FOR AULD LANG SYNE!

1:35 PM – I’d my half-hour lunch and rushed to make a draft of this blog. Lucky you all, you get to read it after um… more than three years of my hiatus in blogging. God, I sound like one of those band members who just rejoined the band after a massive recovery from drug and alcohol problems. Except that I’ve always been very clean and a teetotaler (I think). It’s another thing that I wish to go to Amsterdam and smoke pot, one fine day (in 2015, God willing or NOT!). To be honest, my writer’s ears stood up in the loo after my lunch. You know how they say that people get their best ideas in the loo, you can second that on my behalf. I’m a little psyched that I have restarted writing My Frame of Mind. I can’t guarantee for how long I will pen down either of my specific or random thoughts swirling in my head though. As I’m getting old each day I’m becoming more of a faddist.

7:00 PM – Hiya world!!! (I think I forgot to formally give you all my greetings.) I just finished my last dinner for 2014. Why the hell am I talking about eating today?! Anyway, I’m watching the popular Sydney New Year's Eve (NYE) fireworks celebration on BBC News. I can’t believe we are closing out another year already. I miss being down under this time of the year, obviously to be the first ones to welcome the New Year. Well, as we close and welcome in the New Year, I’m gonna reflect on what I learnt in 2014 for you to take lessons (just kidding). And just so you know, I even denied my office colleagues for NYE to stay back home and finish this piece (winter cold has got nothing to do with it : P). The list is not in any order.

1. Time – where does it go?! 2014 went by so quickly personally. Great minds think alike - do I get the nod, who all? I’m glad that I am still alive and ready for 2015. New beginnings are so refreshing especially if you’re forever stuck with a mundane, humdrum existence. And you are a bit much adamant to hope that life will be all that you ever want it to be, next year. I’m very thankful for yet another exciting year; thankful for another chance to experience life with weird and wonderful people in my life. I hope you all take time to be thankful for all the good, bad and ugly experiences in your life with your most loved weird and wonderful people in your lives. It certainly has given you a way forward when you got lost and stranded.  I’m sure every one got lots to live up to, still. Well, for those procrastinators like me start off exactly from where you left off and continue to forge ahead with your every bit of energy. It’s gonna be an enormous year!
2. You make plan and it fails. You make another plan and it fails. You plan again. You always have next year to make the same plan. Inside story: I made a total of eight travel plans this year alone and miserably none of them happened. It was way beyond my grasp due to lots of i-don’t-remember-reasons. I’m carrying forth the same plans in 2015 minus the reasons. How exciting! I don’t have to plan again. Time saving too. On the brighter side I hope you all make crazy plans; plans that you definitely can do and plans for year next and when you do may it be the best one ever.
3. The price of petrol was 59.33 Nu today when I went to fuel my car. The last time I checked, it was 60 point something. At least it is good to know that some figures in life are decreasing. It is good news for someone like me whose living depends on a shoestring budget. Next time you visit a fuel station, don’t forget to discover your small happiness.
4. I’ve been living in Bumthang for almost 11 months now. Fogs are part and parcel of living in this beautiful district. I remember how I used to dislike foggy days pre-2014. It’d this unpleasant depressing effect to already not-so-lively-mood. But now I have become a fogaholic. I’ve come to realize that fogs are not always the damper especially if you like taking pictures of nature. So, you all, allow yourself to try your hand at stuffs that you remotely like. I’m sure some day you’ll know what you are searching for. En passant, strange place Bumthang is, every stranger I meet shares my first name. What are the odds?
5. Who says that you cannot live without social media! I partially quit Facebook for almost four months (no sad reasons just that I had a small bickering over nothing with Zuckerberg. You guys do know him, right? He’s kind and very thoughtful. If not for Facebook, millions would forget to wish their loved ones on their birthdays and wouldn't be able to track their milestones). No withdrawal symptoms of an addict. No having to go through the bombardment of too much information. But you suddenly have a lot of extra time in your hands! FYI, I’ll be back on Facebook soon, when I feel like I’m placated enough by Mr. Z. If you ask me how I survived, well, don’t consider it as cheating but I had Instagram and Twitter to accompany me during my peak lazy hours.
6. People say change is good. I cut my hair short when my heart broke last summer (more on that some other day). Clearly a haircut did not do any good to this airhead’s mood. Wait… except that you save your budget on buying shampoo and conditioner. If you love your hair, don’t try this stunt at home or a saloon for that matter. Only time heals. Give yourself few days, a month or two, a year... to let the suture in your heart heal completely. 
7. Um… this one is slightly blue. You outgrow people and it’s okay. Seriously, it’s A-okay! It doesn't make you a horrible person to let go and move on. Give them some time to grow up, though (if for nothing but just for their sake).
8. I’ve seen so many deaths in 2014 (may their soul rest in utter peace). We live for a limited period in this world. But each day we go fantasizing that we’re immortal. The sands of our death hourglass are cascading in full momentum and we still refuse to acknowledge. I hope you allow life to teach you lessons within that limited period. And when you do learn them you stop taking things for granted.
9. Come 2015 and 365 more days in it to live life our way in this beautiful world except that there are morbid diseases running through our planet. Most of the days I’m self-centered but lately I’m minding others business since World peace seems to be not at peace. May 2015 be the harbinger of positive change to these morbid occurrences. God knows, we need some desperately (Alert: don’t be surprised if I write my next blog somewhere from a remote village serving as a volunteer to promote peace).
10. This one is to change the mood. When you get sad, stop being sad and be AWESOME instead. It’s a true story. I learnt that from Barney Stinson.
11. And lastly but not the least, it’s okay to sit home and watch Cosmos- A Spacetime Odyssey on New Years Eve, alone. Well, it’s not even St. Valentine’s Day after all. It’s just another year around the sun we’re talking about, hm?

On a serious note, wishing a happy and fulfilling 2015, whether you’re bone-cold surrounded by snow or sweating in a hot summer land, wherever you are in this beautiful world. Wishing that may each day of 2015 bring you the clarity of intentions, bring you closer to enlightenment and satisfaction and may you get the strength to see them through. Happy New Year, all! Sharing positive vibes and light to you all! I’m a huge fan of English personalities. So as we ring out the old year, I end this piece quoting few lines from the infamous Scots poem written by Robert Burns:

For auld lang syne, my jo,
for auld lang syne,
we’ll tak' a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
And surely ye’ll be your pint-stoup!
and surely I’ll be mine!
And we’ll tak' a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

One more thing: I just read my daily note from the Universe. As the Universe ordered up another year for me, it has one request of me: to dream bigger. I pass on the same request to you all too:

DREAM BIGGER

Let’s do this, JC

PS. What is one resolution you have not followed through with in 2014? There I caught you!

 

OF STARTING ANEW!

"Never regret. If it's good, it's wonderful. If it's bad, it's experience." It was by Victoria Holt which I happened to come through it in one of my newsletter (I didn’t really know who she was until I goggled few seconds ago). I had saved it in my collection hoping that I would use it in one of my columns. And here I’m starting with it. 2010 is over, I’m sure it must have been an awesome and extreme year for many of you (I can see that they have already picked their favourite moments of 2010). There must have been mix of good and bad, high and lows, success and failures, lessons and mistakes, friendships and foes, love and hatred, romance and break-ups, unions and separations, happiness and sorrow, hope and despair, peace and tensions, forgiveness and vengeance, birth and death…the list could go on. The balance has always been a part of life. It’s about time now to ring out the old year, keeping the wonderful moments and letting go all negative vibes and ring in the new year with promising thoughts and make 2011 count.

With a festive and frantic weekend lived I assume all of us are still in the holiday spirit, eh? Hope everyone had a great weekend with the Gregorian New Year’s eve followed by Nyilo celebration (One of several New Years in Bhutan particularly for the people of Punakha-Wang region). It has been not so crazy but living-by-the-moment week for me. With new year round the corner and everyone around so excited to welcome the new year, discussing their plans for a spectacular entry into new year, getting their resolutions ready for the year; the week started leaving me to worry about the end of the year. That point of time, I was feeling sad of having to bid adieu to 2010. I’m not too fond of goodbyes (I see nothing ‘good’ about saying ‘bye’).  It’s so poignant. They say that ”an optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves”. As much as I thought it was going to be awfully difficult for me, I saw the new beginning at the threshold while I was about to close the doors to the old one. Like they say at the end there is always a new beginning! No big plans though, like a true optimist I joined my friend in the countdown (just the two of us) to assure that we weren’t alone but we had each other yet in another new journey of life.

New Year has always been a grand occasion to willingly start fresh on our old habits. It’s not just about a mere number changing in our calendar but about us growing as a human being. It’s time to pause and look at ways to clean the mess we created. It’s the time of year to peel off yet another layer and be a better person each passing year. What better juncture than the New Year to embark on to discover yourself with? It’s also the time of the year when we yet again reintroduce the New Year Resolutions in our life. ‘I’ll diet’ ‘I’ll quit smoking’ I’ll stop procrastinating’ Sounds simple and easy to do. ‘I’ll be a nice husband’ ‘I’ll call my parents’ ‘I’ll stop partying’ This is impressive now.  ‘I promise….’ blah blah blah! We spend hours making a meandering list of resolutions to change for good, only to break them. Well, um… I’m gonna continue being a nice girl…lol (Live Out Loud). Seriously I know this year is going to be a beautiful year so I’m refusing to resolute to any change that I do not have a hope to keep. Now not imposing myself with a set of manacles actually isn’t hard. To those who do, I wish them my genuine Best Wishes in being confident enough to keep their promises. Please be kind to yourself and remember to take stock of the resolutions you just noted down on paper (or on your mind).

As we close the books on one year and start another, I take this opportunity to contemplate over my year. It has been a year of mixed feelings for me as well. Personally, I have come closer to my family, friends and people who are important in my life. I have been able to get in touch with few of my childhood friends (after fourteen solid years). I have made few new friends who have left their honest imprints in my life which I will treasure for keeps. The whole connection with them has been special and unforgettable. Each relationship that I share with different significant squad has emerged stronger, pure and beautiful. On my professional front, it has been a busy year for me. Initially it started off with lots of travelling and then my share of the regular job responsibilities. There were times when I had to sacrifice my weekends which I embraced very joyfully. Don’t you believe that nothing works like hard work.

I agree that we live in a critical world. I got to meet few good leaders along and many pompous colleagues. Learning has been a continuous process for me as well. The hard punches have been tough to receive but I have come in terms to roll with them. The year has contributed in giving me all the values which helped me through the harsh times. I often encountered rejections but I’m proud to divulge it as a part of my life now. I guess I have learnt to deal with the failure. There have been some really great times and some bad times which proved to teach me important lessons of life. I again guess it took me to where I wanted to be and led me become who I am. I have found my own thing that helped me rejuvenate my strength. Another year has gone by leaving me bruised, worn out, critical and a little wiser. All in all, it has been an overwhelming ride! 

And then I started writing My Frame of Mind late summer last year. It started as an idea to reconnect with my writer mode. I always wanted to write earnestly. I had stalled my capricious thoughts but I was short of confidence and determination on this front. However, it has been an amazing journey which led me to express all the random thoughts twirling in my head (and heart) despite the time and my laziness factor coming as a road block. It has been special and this year I hope I can speak more and draw you all closer into my life including my private life which hopefully I’ll be posting soon. As clichéd as it may sound but I couldn’t have asked more than this, really I couldn’t have. I look back on 2010 and the memories created with a lot of gratitude.

                              

As a kid I have known (and I still do believe) that what you do on the 1^st of January determines what you will do for the rest of the year. I spent my day without anything to worry about; I’m ready to take on the world. Are you? HAPPY NEW YEAR to you, to all my fellow bloggers and all over the world! I hope that all of you joyfully start yet another journey and make it a wonderful experience. Let’s ring in 2011 by wiping the slate clean and start anew. Well, I can feel the air of positivity and am looking forward, hope you do. Here’s to the start of the second decade of the century! Opening of new doors! New beginnings! New hopes and aspirations! New resolutions! New us! A great and Happy year! Bright and Promising! Happy Times! 2011 has to be only GOOD for everyone! So dream big.

Lolay!

Live, laugh and love, JC

PS. I woke up thinking about the following piece this morning while I caught myself chewing on it last night before I dozed off:

"Let this coming year be better than all the others. Vow to do some of the things you've always wanted to do but couldn't find the time. Call up a forgotten friend. Drop an old grudge, and replace it with some pleasant memories. Vow not to make a promise you don't think you can keep. Walk tall, and smile more. You'll look ten years younger. Don't be afraid to say, 'I love you'. Say it again. They are the sweetest words in the world."  Ann Lander

PSS. Simple and effortless things to do ain’t they? So all set, eh? Two days in, how's it going?