A Droplet And A Ripple...

It was there, clinging on to the edge of the leaf and was about to fall, fall into the little puddle of water below… The Droplet.

Yes, the droplet was ready to give up and surrender its existence to the little puddle below but something made it cling on, a little longer; perhaps a desire to stay that fraction of a second more in the company of the green leaf, the same green leaf that held it, nurtured it and was now ready to offer it to the little society of droplets underneath.

What was it? Just a droplet! Where did I come from? No one knows. Perhaps a fog, a dew, an overnight drizzle perhaps from nowhere but it was now here. It existed and existed with a distinct identity, an identity that was now to be submerged into the flow of millions - to be lost.

Reluctantly, the droplet left the shelter of the leaf. All the time it went down, it pointed towards its once safe, soft and sure shelter. And then with a little 'whimp' it dropped into the puddle.

Don't know what strength the droplet had in its heart or what amount of agony or what purpose it set itself to make it so heavy.

As it fell, it created a huge ripple all around it. Yes, it was the sign of revolution. It said that it was here to make changes, to transform the society of droplets into the way it learnt intuitively from the soul of the world, to live with a distinct identity.

But, something else happened. The ripple it sent around gradually died out and with time, silently the pool of droplets engulfed it. And its existence was lost.

But yes, the water in the puddle never remained the same again because the droplet fell, the ripple was created, the mud was churned, and the color of the society of droplets changed forever.

We may be a droplet in the ocean of people but it requires only one, to churn what lies within us, to change the course of destiny.

--- Copyright © 2008 Arindam Dey --- India
Since my early days I have been in love with Literature, particularly English, and aspire to become a successful writer someday. Currently, I have almost completed my short story collection, and working on my first novel.

Belief

They were lovers but they had never met

It was by chance, while logging on to an online chat room, they bumped into each other and within three months of daily exchange of views, perceptions, likes and dislikes realized love between them was imminent.

With both confessing their love for the other the relationship advanced to the next stage where they started conversing over the phone every night. They desperately wanted to meet up but since they lived far apart they reluctantly had to wait for the right time.

"You know there is a tree in front of my house." The girl once told the boy.

"Which tree?"

"I don't know its name but it sheds a lot of leaves. And while watching it yesterday I thought of something."

"What?"

"If our love for each other is true and pure then we will meet before it sheds all its leaves."

The boy was silent for a while and then replied, "I hope so."

Eight years went by and then there came a day when the boy happened to visit the girl's place.

"I can't believe we are meeting at last!" He was jubilant.

"I am glad we held on."

Traipsing along hand in hand they reached the spot where the tree stood.

"Is this the tree you always told me about?"

The girl didn't respond.

The boy checked out the tree but as he did so a cloud of gloom covered the sky of his emotions.

"It has already shed its leaves."

The girl looked at the boy and smiled. "Look closely…there is still one leaf present."

The boy carefully perused the tree again but found nothing.

"Where?"

"Here." She pointed towards her heart. "It's called Bleaf. And in the last eight years it never fell from the tree of our love."

The boy looked at the girl for a moment and then hugged her as tightly as he could. His eyes were wet. And so were hers.

--- Copyright © 2008 Novoneel Chakraborty
Novoneel is an aspiring writer and filmmaker.

The Woman

When God created woman he was working later on the 6th day.

An angel came by and said: "Why spend so much time on that one?"

And the Lord answered:

"Have you seen all the specifications I have to meet to shape her? She must be washable, but not made of plastic, have more than 200 moving parts which all must be replaceable and she must function on all kinds of food, she must be able to embrace several kids at the same time, give a hug that can heal anything from a bruised knee to a broken heart and she must do all this with only two hands."

The angel was impressed. "Just two hands...impossible! And this is the standard model? Too much work for one day...wait until tomorrow and then complete her."

"I will not", said the Lord. "I am so close to completing this creation, which will be the favorite of my heart. She cures herself when sick and she can work 18 hours a day."

The angel came nearer and touched the woman. "But you have made her so soft, Lord."

"She is soft", said the Lord, "But I have also made her strong. You can't imagine what she can endure and overcome."

"Can she think?" the angel asked.

The Lord answered: "Not only can she think, she can reason and negotiate."

The angel touched the woman's cheek. "Lord, it seems this creation is leaking! You have put too many burdens on her."

"She is not leaking...it's a tear" the Lord corrected the angel.

"What's it for?" asked the angel.

And the Lord said, "Tears are her way of expressing grief, her doubts, her love, her loneliness, her suffering and her pride."

This made a big impression on the angel; "Lord, you are genius. You thought of everything. The woman is indeed marvelous!"

"Indeed she is! Woman has strengths that amaze man. She can handle trouble and carry heavy burdens. She holds happiness, love and opinions. She smiles when feeling like screaming. She sings when she feels like crying, cries when she is happy and laughs when she is afraid.

She fights for what she believes in. Stands up against injustice. She doesn't take "no" for an answer, when she can see a better solution. She gives herself so her family can thrive. She takes her friend to the doctor if she is afraid. Her love is unconditional.

She cries when her kids are victorious. She is happy when her friends do well. She is glad when she hears of a birth or a wedding. Her heart is broken when a next of kin or friend dies. But she finds the strength to get on with life. She knows that a kiss and a hug can heal a broken heart.

There is only one thing wrong with her…

SHE FORGETS WHAT SHE IS WORTH."

--- Author Unknown --- Submitted by Kartik Bodawala --- India

The Blind Boy

A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." There were only a few coins in the hat.

A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.

Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy.

That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?"

The man said, "I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way."

What he had written was: "Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it."

Do you think the first sign and the second sign were saying the same thing?

Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first sign simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people they were so lucky that they were not blind.

Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective?

Moral of the Story:

Be thankful for what you have. Be creative. Be innovative. Think differently and positively.

Invite others towards good with wisdom. Live life with no excuse and love with no regrets.

When life gives you a 100 reasons to cry, show life that you have 1000 reasons to smile. Face your past without regret. Handle your present with confidence. Prepare for the future without fear. Keep the faith and drop the fear.

Great men say, "Life has to be an incessant process of repair and reconstruction, of discarding evil and developing goodness! In the journey of life, if you want to travel without fear, you must have the ticket of a good conscience."

The most beautiful thing is to see a person smiling!

And even more beautiful, is knowing that you are the reason behind it!

--- Author Unknown --- Submitted by Kartik Bodawala --- India

Think Win-Win

A man died and St. Peter asked him if he would like to go to heaven or hell. The man asked if he could see both before deciding.

St. Peter took him to hell first. There the man saw big hall containing a long table, laden with many kinds of food. He also saw rows of people with pale, sad faces. Then looked starved and there was no laughter.

And he observed one more thing: Their hands were tied to four-foot forks and knives and they were trying to get the food from the center of the table to put into their mouths. But they couldn't.

Then, St. Peter took him to see heaven. There he saw a big hall with a long table, with lots of food. He noticed rows of people on both sides of table with their hands tied to four-foot forks and knives also. But here, people were laughing and were fed and healthy-looking. The people were feeding one another across the table.

The result was happiness, prosperity, enjoyment and gratification because they were not thinking of themselves alone; they were thinking win-win.

The same is true of our lives. When we serve our society, our customers, our families, our employers and employees, we automatically win.

Ancient Indian wisdom teaches us that our first responsibility is to the community, second to our family and third to ourselves. When this hierarchy is reversed, a society starts degenerating.

Social responsibility ought to be the moral obligation of every citizen. Responsibility and freedom go hand to hand. A sign of a good citizen is that he is willing to pull his own weight.

--- Author Unknown --- Submitted by Kartik Bodawala --- India

Relive Those Beautiful Moments

Life is full of twists and turns. We encounter many unexpected events in our life; some of them cheerful and some of them devastating.

Some of the events are so pleasant that we cherish them for rest of our lives. They are like those beautiful flowers which we like to put in our book while turning its pages. They are like those beautiful dreams which we see with open eyes. They are like the view of a rainbow in the rainy season. They become our dearest treasure. So if we possess such a wonderful asset why not make use of it?

Why not relive those beautiful moments and let their lovely fragrance fill our dull moments? It can prove to be an amazing therapy to rejuvenate the inert period of life.

Just soak yourself, once again, in those warm memories that still make your heart skip a beat. Sit back and rest your head and play on those sequences of events which give your life a glittering touch. Visualize those pretty scenes in front of your eyes and slowly enter there to live it once again. And don't mistake it for being nostalgic. Rather take it as a way out for busting your stress out.

When your mind is over-worked and you need a little time off from all the surroundings, just step in that retro journey. Maybe it was your college time when you and your friends used to chill life so carelessly or the time when that feeling of love first stepped in your life and how you romanced life with your beloved. Perhaps it was a success on the professional frontier or it could be your marriage, or the birth of your first baby, or a reunion with an old friend. And when you think of those moments, knowing you have been part of such a wonderful and pleasant occurrence, suddenly you will feel a flow of energy in your veins.

When something terrible happens in life, it teaches us some tough lesson, making us stronger and wiser. But when something blissful happens in our life, it tells how life is full of joys, how blessed we are to be given a chance to live it. Those moments become our strength in droning times.

So take lively and colorful leaves of your own life, when passing through autumn's period of mood.

--- Copyright © 2008 Nisha Grace
As I write very spontaneously and without any pre-planning, I find these writings very genuine and close to everybody's life. So I hope anybody reading this one will find him/herself relating to its message and know that in this life, which is bestowed on us to enjoy, to cherish, to love, to serve, to learn, to give and to make it worth having, they are not a lone pedestrian. We all are together on this path to celebrate life.

Until Then Daddy

Before Tiger Woods was a toddler, old man McGary's Irish temper had broken every hickory made "3 Wood" in Murfreesboro, Tennessee and I suppose the majority of ones he had to replace. To be sure, if hickory in McGary's day had a voice, its raw vulgarity would have rivaled the foulest mouth of the worst Sailor.

My first memories of golf weren't fashioned by mannered men shouting "fore" or pretty putt-putt greens. Hardly. McGary couldn't put his clubs down long enough to give a boy back then time enough to pick up the pieces he left behind. McGary's mean mood swings after every "3 Wood" he'd bust against a tree, over something as silly as missing an easy putt or missing a teed-up ball, allowed me as a child to see how trying too hard was a bad way to kill time that wasn't then and isn't now something to be resurrected.

I never heard him shout "fore" but anyone within a couple of miles of McGary heard their fair share of foul four letter words. His pattern of playing was painfully predictable and downright comical. Free comedic acting at its worst, all because the irritable Irishman allowed his anger to keep him from playing a mere game at his best.

He'd swing hard at the most costly balls a man could find back then just to watch each of them wind up in the weeds, creek, or right where he'd teed up. Missing a ball completely was the culprit of both his cursing and deliberate destruction of the "3 Wood" he had in hand each time a good size clump of grass flew farther than is best drive.

I thought I was alone in my strange sense of enjoyment and mirth each Saturday afternoon, as I'd watch McGary become unglued.

Whiff, smack, crack, and curse.

I had McGary figured out it and it wasn't until many years later that my daddy admitted, while on his deathbed, that he'd been watching McGary just as regularly. I'd always wondered where my daddy would go so quickly after lunch on Sundays. I think my mom knew but she knew enough about McGary's foul mouth to keep hers quiet.

Daddy rarely went bowling or golfing yet both sports he played superbly and with complete passion. He remarked that he always had a place to laugh and even learn a bit without spending a zinc penny. He explained to both my brother and I that he had the rest of this life and forever in the next one to play both games plus some he'd never heard about before.

Daddy kept life simple and didn't let much bother him. I guess old man McGary had rubbed off on him too in a way that polished him up against grinding him down. He told us as boys to "hold God's hand and keep on walking." He said that's what faith looked like in action.

McGary's madness brought us together in gladness when daddy and I needed to make up the time too many fathers and sons just never get around to doing. When daddy's health was good, I never knew his bills weren't that bad and so working two jobs for college savings bonds took some time he would have had to be with my brother and I. He stated he would do it all over again the same way just to see both of his sons graduate from the local college he tried to get a golf scholarship just to attend.

Daddy's gone but those weeks laughing about McGary's "whiff, smack, crack, and curse," predictably free entertainment will stay with me until I hook up with the best golfer and father, in my eyes, this world never knew.

Until then, go get 'em Tiger Woods. For daddy and me, old man McGary's imperfect play and poor disposition served a purpose only our Heavenly Father knew would work together for our good.

"Until then daddy, I'll keep walking, keep walking…"

--- Copyright © 2008 Brian G. Jett
Dedicated in loving memory of the best mother my wife will ever know, Shirley Vaughn (1936 - 2008)