What I did in memory of my beloved father this year...



So this year is 27 year since my Beloved father passed on to that other shore..beyond the clouds. I was just a young girl...What did I do to honor my Father this year..25 years after his passing ?

I called my Mother and told her that I love her every single day of the year..and she knows I meant it..I reminded her of how My father thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world and the queen of his heart and he treated her just like a Princess till the last day of his life..I wanted her to know that we her children..would always carry on that legacy of Love my father had for her and for each other..I told her how much I love her and treasure her..
I told my husband Brian..that he was just the kind of man my father would have wanted me to marry...the kind of man who reflected the great and noble soul of my father..Truthful, Open minded,..compassionate, Loving, Brave and  unpretentious..Strong not just in body and mind but also strong enough to show his vulnerable little boy side to those he loves and trusts..and the ability to make  a room full of glum people laugh until laughter and happiness  is the only thing they remember of their days..I told my husband Brian that I truly Love him and honor him and I know it is my Dad 's blessings that brought him into my life...
To Brian..my best friend..My true Love and the man who always tells me that through me he has met and seen my father and knows exactly what I mean when I say he was an extraordinary man..
This year I joined a Business program..my father always told me that I had it in me to be  a trail blazer to make my own destiny and prosperity with determination, hard work and creative thoughts and actions..and most of all because as long as live we learn and open up our doors and horizons to new opportunities for ourselves to grow and to bless those around

us.in every possible way. I started up my own company in honor of my dad who was always a leader and an entrepreneur who created hope and opportunities for everyone around him..

This year  I stopped and patted the heads of every dog I passed on the streets..My father loved animals and made time to share his good will and love with them and I too passed on my message of friendship and love to our four legged friends..whenever I got an opportunity. My father was also the greatest cheer leader of the 'Under Dog". The people who had no voice, no friends ,no champions. He stood up and spoke up whenever he could in support of them. He tried to give his best to the poor and lonely and less fortunate in life..

This year. I made many new friends most of them young and full of life and zeal..My father loved children and young people and got along with them because he was always young and youthful and full of happiness and energy in his outlook . Youngsters loved him. He was always one of them...children came up to him and hugged him. He was always the sweet and loving `Papa types.'..This year I found myself in the company of men and women , boys and girls, younger than me...and I learnt a lot from them and developed a lot of respect and liking for what is happening in the ` Generation next' I also developed a strong spirit of discernment. A spirit that can teach me who is a friend and who is not and when to walk away and when to `come back'..

This year I honored every man I met whether at work, at business school or in the course of the day..I treated them with respect..I stood up and held the door open when I saw one when my father's age.( that is if my dad had not died so young..but had lived to be 76 this year). I gave them my time..my warmest smile and showed them I cared and that each one of them is a precious diamond to their children and grand children and to me..even if I did not know them.. . I showed them that they are cherished,loved  and respected.

I told every little girl or boy who I thought was taking his or her dad for granted that their Dad's gave silently and as intensely as Mom's did and that  it was the biggest mistake we ever make..in taking Dada or Mom for granted coz..when they are gone..the world becomes a very empty, cruel and lonely place..
I asked forgiveness of my Father in whichever far away world he is in..for the times when I was a spoilt brat, a difficult child, an unworthy daughter and for the times when I had knowingly or unknowingly hurt his tender heart..I have never forgiven myself for any trespasses..and in my life journeys how many times I have wished that I could turn the clock back and go back to him and make it up..the only way I can is to speak to those who will listen and remind them   not to ever hurt their loving Father's and Mothers.ever again....
This year I breathed more deeply of the fresh cool air every morning...watched more sunsets and walked by more lake shores. I laughed more often and sometimes cried too and I spent more time in meditation and inward soul search to feel the truth. Because my Father when even at his most exuberant was always one with God.he was truly spiritual...

This year...I tried to see the beauty of this world and this life more intensely .because some rare people like my Dad who truly loved the world around them did not stay too long to experience its full beauty and exited from this game before their time was up....
This year I smiled at  more strangers shook more hands and took more chances..you never know when it is your last...

This year I looked at my Dad's pics so much more lovingly and talked to him saying..
I know that somewhere..and someday I will come back home to you..please wait for me on that other shore with your outstretched arms like you always did ....laughing and loving and filled with warmth and sunshine..and this year I whispered the words to the wind and the skies and the oceans..

My father  wherever you are in whichever world and dimension..I will always Love you...
also read :To Dad with Love..to all who know what it feels like on Father's day when Dad is no longer around..

Runaway Peacocks..Cowboys - Indians and other Tales..!

This Peacock escaped from the High Park Zoo Toronto on Friday..May 29th.On Saturday morning Brian was watching TV and woke me up..The Peacock was flying around on roof tops around Galley Ave which is just a lane down Fern...I ran out and saw all the TV crews worth their salt and some Animal Rescue guys chasing around with their Cameras and Nets..however I did not see the elusive bird.....

Later  My Cowboy Brian joined the hunt with his telescopic camera and me with my little Canon one that was his  loving Gift to me for my trip to India..so anyway the Indian Peacock was having a field day.as he was giving everyone a run .

It rained all Saturday and Sunday and Brian and I wondered where the Bird had flown..or hidden..we had our theories about it..
Earlier that afternoon I asked Brian's mother Irene when I visited her place..what I was supposed to do when I saw it.." Do I call 911?" Oh No she gasped.."Those Police guys will not appreciate a call about  a Peacock in the neighbourhood. You call the 311 guys" However by Sunday evening the 311 guys were telling people not to call but to just leave The Renegade alone..

Anyway I had given up hope of seeing anything , especially Flying Blue 'Renegades' when early in the morning on Monday around 5.30 am  I heard an orchestra of chirps and a loud trumpet sound and a shriek which seemed to be on the balconey. I ran out in my 'Jammies'..managed to grab my camera from my purse and saw The peacock hopping around from Roof to roof and then on the Roof top opposite the house.I got some shots..and then he disappeared behind the tree.." I later told Brian that the Peacock seemed to have a ' Canadian accent' because he had honked like a Canadian Goose and then given out his Indian call..He seemed to say to me..in our brief moments of eye contact..

" Hey these Cowboys do not know the secret of how to catch me..Im having real fun!"

Anyway My cowboys comment was  that the Peacock seemed more Cowboy than Indian..since he had taken off for a weekend on his own which is what wild cowboys ( Not mine) would do..
Its also true that Brian had known from moment one that the Peacock and me were destined to meet..after all we are both of Indian origin..plus I really love birds and animals and had worn my  Peacock blue blouse that day when it had all begun...

later on Monday evening the Peacock was flying around the roof of the Emanuel Howard Church near the High Park Library and the next day returned home to his Zoo..No scout needed...
This Renegade Bird had had his freedom and then gone back home on his own, and caused a weekend of excitement and given a lot of happiness to everyone who was blessed to see such a Beautiful Bird flying Free and happy in a far away land..reminded someone like me..of  childhood and places in India where these beauties fly around Free and  unharmed in little towns like Vrindavan and the garden cities in Rajasthan .He created for us all a few moments of magic..in his homeland away from home.... !

I was carried away ..back to the time in my early childhood where my Grand Father and Father were both Chief Executive Engineers at a little Sugar Factory town of Walchandnagar in the state of Maharashtra, India.

The owners of the Sugar factory were the Pioneering Industrialist Walchand family who owned a palatial Bungalow and sprawling gardens with two huge cages for their pet  Peacocks . 
Their estate was known as the ' Director's Bungalow' and was almost as regal as a picture book palace. During the summer holidays my brother and I would come home from boarding school and  play in the  `Director's Bungalow' gardens and feed the peacocks. We were their only friends and now I understand the birds lived a sad and lonely life in their cages..with no bird mates or friends except us and the gardeners.
In the monsoon season many wild peacocks would visit the little sugar factory town ..and our own garden which had many big Mango trees and a large lawn..My Mother would sip her Tea while seated on the lawn in the late afternoons as she waited for my Father to return from work....and one particular peacock would walk up to her and gently peck at the treats she fed it with her own hands..It became quite  a sensation and story of interest in the little town..many people would gather outside our compound and try to peek over the fences to watch my Mother and her ' adopted' pet peacock..My Mother has a very loving and kind heart that has always drawn everyone from children to the elderly..the poor and lonely and also all kinds of birds and animals to her.Never have I heard her say a mean or an unkind word about anyone ..even those who have taken unfair advantage of her goodness and simplicity...Many of my college friends who hailed from other cities would always come over just to meet my Mother and get a feel of home and warmth through her Motherly  kindness and love..which has always made her so special.. and that is why this wild peacock sought her out..
 Then  one winter the beautiful bird and his tribe took wing and flew away to a far away place from where they never returned..but we still remember those days and our pets and especially the beautiful peacocks which were so much a part of our long lost childhood..
There is something almost spiritual about a beautiful part of Nature such as a Peacock....that reminds us of something Higher and more beautiful than our everyday lives..The Artist who could even conceive something so beautiful is definitely divine.... and yes he sure has a great sense of Humor !
On a Lighter note..Here below are a few Pics from the web that I liked and what I think these creatures  were trying to say!

 Yes Dear..I don't think my `Under eye repair cream' has been working lately..

I am one and I can become many...Grrrr Kids..just remember this lesson in Life...Everyday is Mother's Day..!

BUY ONE AND GET ONE FREE This is originally a pic by Noiella De Phillips on Google +.caption by Lipi..!