Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me....
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now, I see.
T'was Grace that taught...
my heart to fear.
And Grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that Grace appear...
the hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares...
we have already come.
T'was Grace that brought us safe thus far...
and Grace will lead us home.
The Lord has promised good to me...
His word my hope secures.
He will my shield and portion be...
as long as life endures.
When we've been here ten thousand years...
bright shining as the sun.
We've no less days to sing God's praise...
then when we've first begun.
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me....
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now, I see.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Monday, February 20, 2012
Great Lent
“Lent” is what Christians call the six weeks that lead up to Easter, which is the most important festival in the Christian calendar. According to a Pastoral Letter by the Bishops on the occasion of Lent 2012, “Once again, it is the time of Lent. The culmination of Lent is the suffering, death and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. These events are very relevant for our lives and during the coming forty days, we need to reflect upon them and prepare ourselves, not only through prayer, but also by pondering upon their relevance in our lives”.
Lent in 2012 starts on Wednesday, 22nd February, and will continue for 46 days until Saturday, 7th April. In Western Christianity Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes on Holy Saturday. The six Sundays in Lent are not counted among the forty days of Lent because each Sunday represents a "mini-Easter", a celebration of Jesus’ victory over sin and death.
Lent is the season of penance and prayer before Easter. Lent is a time of preparation for the death of Christ on Good Friday and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. It is a period of 40 days of repentance, with prayer, fasting and abstinence and Confession.
Lent provides us with an opportunity to reflect upon our patterns, to pray more deeply, experience sorrow for what we have done and failed to do, and to be generous to those in need. Like last year, I will abstain myself from:
• Non vegetarian food
• Coffee
• Music (Bollywood)
• Books (Classics)
• Shopping
• Social Media
• Anger
• Slandering
• Screaming
Lent in 2012 starts on Wednesday, 22nd February, and will continue for 46 days until Saturday, 7th April. In Western Christianity Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes on Holy Saturday. The six Sundays in Lent are not counted among the forty days of Lent because each Sunday represents a "mini-Easter", a celebration of Jesus’ victory over sin and death.
Lent is the season of penance and prayer before Easter. Lent is a time of preparation for the death of Christ on Good Friday and His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. It is a period of 40 days of repentance, with prayer, fasting and abstinence and Confession.
Lent provides us with an opportunity to reflect upon our patterns, to pray more deeply, experience sorrow for what we have done and failed to do, and to be generous to those in need. Like last year, I will abstain myself from:
• Non vegetarian food
• Coffee
• Music (Bollywood)
• Books (Classics)
• Shopping
• Social Media
• Anger
• Slandering
• Screaming
Monday, February 13, 2012
High blood pressure
Hello Motu,
I want to share a bad piece of news with you – I have got high blood pressure (HBP)! On Saturday I kept getting severe headaches since morning and so Golu took me to the doctor in the evening. It was at that time that I came to know about my HBP. Sadly, I have already reached stage 2 HBP as my systolic number is 160 and diastolic number 90 (160/90). No wonder, I keep getting headaches, dizziness, shortness of breath and blurred vision all the time!!!
I also have been feeling drowsy for quite sometime and developed a skin rash though I didn’t know I had HBP. Because of shortness of breath I have been finding it difficult to walk up stairs – my office is on the fourth floor and there’s no elevator in the building. Though climbing the two floors at home hasn’t been a problem yet!
It seems being physically active is one of the most important things one has to do to control HBP. I am sure I am sufficiently active though I need to exercise regularly, eat a healthy diet and cut down on my salt and caffeine – I will again have to give up my coffee! I have to now include plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables in my diet.
I had already thought of taking some relaxation therapies such as yoga and meditation in 2012. Now I guess I will have to seriously undergo these stress management medical cares.
Though HBP is called the “silent killer”, I am not all that worried for myself – its okay with me if I die soon because of stroke or a heart failure – I am worried about my kids as they are too young and still need me. I am glad that at least I have come to know why I feel restless all the time; its time to take care of myself! Since HBP often has no warning signs or symptoms, many people don’t realize they have it and I have been one of them. But now since I have come to know, I need to be very careful.
Jesus, please be with me!
I want to share a bad piece of news with you – I have got high blood pressure (HBP)! On Saturday I kept getting severe headaches since morning and so Golu took me to the doctor in the evening. It was at that time that I came to know about my HBP. Sadly, I have already reached stage 2 HBP as my systolic number is 160 and diastolic number 90 (160/90). No wonder, I keep getting headaches, dizziness, shortness of breath and blurred vision all the time!!!
I also have been feeling drowsy for quite sometime and developed a skin rash though I didn’t know I had HBP. Because of shortness of breath I have been finding it difficult to walk up stairs – my office is on the fourth floor and there’s no elevator in the building. Though climbing the two floors at home hasn’t been a problem yet!
It seems being physically active is one of the most important things one has to do to control HBP. I am sure I am sufficiently active though I need to exercise regularly, eat a healthy diet and cut down on my salt and caffeine – I will again have to give up my coffee! I have to now include plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables in my diet.
I had already thought of taking some relaxation therapies such as yoga and meditation in 2012. Now I guess I will have to seriously undergo these stress management medical cares.
Though HBP is called the “silent killer”, I am not all that worried for myself – its okay with me if I die soon because of stroke or a heart failure – I am worried about my kids as they are too young and still need me. I am glad that at least I have come to know why I feel restless all the time; its time to take care of myself! Since HBP often has no warning signs or symptoms, many people don’t realize they have it and I have been one of them. But now since I have come to know, I need to be very careful.
Jesus, please be with me!
Friday, February 10, 2012
PLATINUM
Platinum seems to be the newest inspiration in my life. On Tuesday I had gone for the unveiling of a platinum jewellery collection for some brand and I was totally bowled over by the lovely array. I want some platinum jewellery piece for my birthday this year.
Thanks to the rising gold prices, platinum has started “sounding aspirational” as it is becoming affordable. Earlier I was thinking of buying the lowest Samsung Galaxy Y (price as on Feb 08, 2012 starts at Rs 6990). But now I seem to be changing my mind. I am looking forward to that “special” one gift for myself on my birthday – a pair of earrings or a pendant of a simple design in platinum! Just the thought of it is so exhilarating and I am already super excited.
So I am thinking of gifting myself a Tanishq piece from their wide variety of platinum jewellery. Tanishq has relaunched this white metal and around 250 platinum jewellery designs are now available in their select stores.
According to a new report published by Dow Jones, “Indian consumers are showing an increasing interest in purchasing platinum jewellery at the current depressed prices”. So what is this consumer waiting for???
Thanks to the rising gold prices, platinum has started “sounding aspirational” as it is becoming affordable. Earlier I was thinking of buying the lowest Samsung Galaxy Y (price as on Feb 08, 2012 starts at Rs 6990). But now I seem to be changing my mind. I am looking forward to that “special” one gift for myself on my birthday – a pair of earrings or a pendant of a simple design in platinum! Just the thought of it is so exhilarating and I am already super excited.
So I am thinking of gifting myself a Tanishq piece from their wide variety of platinum jewellery. Tanishq has relaunched this white metal and around 250 platinum jewellery designs are now available in their select stores.
According to a new report published by Dow Jones, “Indian consumers are showing an increasing interest in purchasing platinum jewellery at the current depressed prices”. So what is this consumer waiting for???
COFFEE
No matter how much I try, am just not able to give up coffee! The moment I reach office I head for the coffee dispenser. Somehow, nowadays, I am unable to get through the first part of my day without my coffee. After lunch, I yearn for my green tea.
I don’t know and just don’t want to know about the adverse effects of this drink as I feel that as long as am not behaving like a bad penny, there’s really no harm in my having a simple cup of coffee everyday. What would my world be without my Lattes and Mochas and Cappuccinos – coffee is undoubtedly the elixir of my life!
I have read that coffee is much healthier than it is thought to be, and can actually work wonders for health if taken in moderation. I guess having just one cup every morning is a sure sign of moderation! Every morning it increases my alertness, is extremely rich in antioxidants and obviously helps in burning all my extra calories (which I have been gaining because of the leftover cheese sandwiches I gorge blissfully). Today also I had to eat that irresistible cheese sandwich which Goldie left while going to school!
So honestly though my one cup of coffee in the morning gives me instant energy I am definitely not addicted to it. So as long as I restrict my coffee intake to just one cup, I guess my love for coffee should not be considered that big a problem as people feel coffee is not all that innocent in nature.
And hello! The caffeine content in coffee is a vasodilator (a drug that causes dilation of blood vessels) which works to firm and tighten the complexion. Ahem! My Olay has a helping hand here!!! And you know what? Besides my skin, another beautiful aspect of my body seems to be benefited from coffee! I just found out that coffee helps in improving hair and can also minimize hair damage. Yippee! My Dove too has a companion here!!!
So now I will continue to have my daily dose of elixir with less guilt as it also believed to be a reliever of headaches. Therefore, I will continue to have coffee guiltless – coffee, my dearest, I love you!
I don’t know and just don’t want to know about the adverse effects of this drink as I feel that as long as am not behaving like a bad penny, there’s really no harm in my having a simple cup of coffee everyday. What would my world be without my Lattes and Mochas and Cappuccinos – coffee is undoubtedly the elixir of my life!
I have read that coffee is much healthier than it is thought to be, and can actually work wonders for health if taken in moderation. I guess having just one cup every morning is a sure sign of moderation! Every morning it increases my alertness, is extremely rich in antioxidants and obviously helps in burning all my extra calories (which I have been gaining because of the leftover cheese sandwiches I gorge blissfully). Today also I had to eat that irresistible cheese sandwich which Goldie left while going to school!
So honestly though my one cup of coffee in the morning gives me instant energy I am definitely not addicted to it. So as long as I restrict my coffee intake to just one cup, I guess my love for coffee should not be considered that big a problem as people feel coffee is not all that innocent in nature.
And hello! The caffeine content in coffee is a vasodilator (a drug that causes dilation of blood vessels) which works to firm and tighten the complexion. Ahem! My Olay has a helping hand here!!! And you know what? Besides my skin, another beautiful aspect of my body seems to be benefited from coffee! I just found out that coffee helps in improving hair and can also minimize hair damage. Yippee! My Dove too has a companion here!!!
So now I will continue to have my daily dose of elixir with less guilt as it also believed to be a reliever of headaches. Therefore, I will continue to have coffee guiltless – coffee, my dearest, I love you!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
PRAYER
St. Paul’s Letters illustrate the importance of prayer. He tells us that we should “pray without ceasing”, yet sometimes or most of the times, our prayer takes a back seat. But majority of the time I insist on praying before going to sleep – it leaves all of us peaceful!
There have been times when we struggled with prayer. It seems even the Apostles turned to Jesus and said, “Lord, teach us to pray”. But I am trying to teach my children that they don’t have to say lengthy prayers and use too many words – just one line will do – Jesus will surely hear it!
I want to make prayer central to our life so that it can open the doors for us. God is waiting patiently on the other side of that door, at all times, in all situations, to join us – we just have to pray and call out to Him. He is forever there for us!
Prayer formed an important part of life for St Paul – he prayed at all times, night and day; he even remained awake late in the night to pray. We want to pray everyday and thank the Lord God for all the beautiful things He has given us.
There have been times when we struggled with prayer. It seems even the Apostles turned to Jesus and said, “Lord, teach us to pray”. But I am trying to teach my children that they don’t have to say lengthy prayers and use too many words – just one line will do – Jesus will surely hear it!
I want to make prayer central to our life so that it can open the doors for us. God is waiting patiently on the other side of that door, at all times, in all situations, to join us – we just have to pray and call out to Him. He is forever there for us!
Prayer formed an important part of life for St Paul – he prayed at all times, night and day; he even remained awake late in the night to pray. We want to pray everyday and thank the Lord God for all the beautiful things He has given us.
The Gospel Bells
The Gospel bells are ringing
Over land, from sea to sea:
Blessed news of free salvation
Do they offer you and me.
For God so loved the world
That His only Son He gave;
Whosoever believeth in Him
Everlasting life shall have.
Gospel bells, how they ring;
Over land from sea to sea;
Gospel bells freely bring
Blessed news to you and me.
The Gospel bells invite us
To a feast prepared for all;
Do not slight the invitation,
Nor reject the gracious call.
I am the Bread of life;
Eat of Me, thou hungry soul;
Though your sins be red as crimson,
They shall be as white as wool.
The Gospel bells give warning,
As they sound from day to day,
Of the fate which doth await them
Who forever will delay.
Escape ye, for thy life;
Tarry not in all the plain,
Nor behind thee look, oh, never,
Lest thou be consumed in pain.
The Gospel bells are joyful,
As they echo far and wide,
Bearing notes of perfect pardon,
Through a Savior crucified.
Good tidings of great joy
To all people do I bring,
Unto you is born a Savior,
Which is Christ the Lord and King.
Over land, from sea to sea:
Blessed news of free salvation
Do they offer you and me.
For God so loved the world
That His only Son He gave;
Whosoever believeth in Him
Everlasting life shall have.
Gospel bells, how they ring;
Over land from sea to sea;
Gospel bells freely bring
Blessed news to you and me.
The Gospel bells invite us
To a feast prepared for all;
Do not slight the invitation,
Nor reject the gracious call.
I am the Bread of life;
Eat of Me, thou hungry soul;
Though your sins be red as crimson,
They shall be as white as wool.
The Gospel bells give warning,
As they sound from day to day,
Of the fate which doth await them
Who forever will delay.
Escape ye, for thy life;
Tarry not in all the plain,
Nor behind thee look, oh, never,
Lest thou be consumed in pain.
The Gospel bells are joyful,
As they echo far and wide,
Bearing notes of perfect pardon,
Through a Savior crucified.
Good tidings of great joy
To all people do I bring,
Unto you is born a Savior,
Which is Christ the Lord and King.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
"Know whom to avoid"
And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
Matthew 5:29 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
Matthew 18:8 If your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.
“To know whom to avoid is a great means of saving our souls” - (St. Thomas Aquinas)
So, the question here is what causes me to sin?
Music – it stirs up my soul; so I have been avoiding songs on FM. I am trying to listen to more of hymns and spiritual songs.
Reading – I guess the same reason as above; so trying to read more of scriptures and Christian spiritual books.
Facebook – Trying to concentrate more on blogging. But I still love facebooking; and will continue to do so. Here St. Thomas Aquinas’ quotation (three lines above this) summarizes my thought process.
Well, I can’t think of anything else right now. I will go on big time penance from Ash Wednesday which is on 22nd February till Easter Sunday (8th April).
Matthew 5:29 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
Matthew 18:8 If your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.
“To know whom to avoid is a great means of saving our souls” - (St. Thomas Aquinas)
So, the question here is what causes me to sin?
Music – it stirs up my soul; so I have been avoiding songs on FM. I am trying to listen to more of hymns and spiritual songs.
Reading – I guess the same reason as above; so trying to read more of scriptures and Christian spiritual books.
Facebook – Trying to concentrate more on blogging. But I still love facebooking; and will continue to do so. Here St. Thomas Aquinas’ quotation (three lines above this) summarizes my thought process.
Well, I can’t think of anything else right now. I will go on big time penance from Ash Wednesday which is on 22nd February till Easter Sunday (8th April).
Sixteenth year
Today’s the day; sixteen years ago in 1996 I started my career in journalism.
Since the time I had become a big time admirer of cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar in 1991, I wanted to be a journalist so that I could meet him. This coupled with my craze for ace reporter Rajdeep Sardesai during my college days in 1994-95 were the two main reasons for this decision of mine. I would take journalism books from my college library and read them to know more about journalism. Somehow the craze for journalism was just too much!
Then I came across a classified ad in Midday for trainee journalists and I just jumped for it. I had to get this job (by any hook or crook) and I just applied for it. Since I was still studying, I requested to be a part timer! The management agreed and I was asked to join them from 1st February, 1996 – my joy knew no bounds! I wasn’t worried about anything – the only thing I knew was that I was on my way to becoming an eminent journalist! LOL
Today, sixteen years down the line, nothing of that sort has happened. I am no way close to becoming an eminent journalist. Sadly, I have had a fragmented career (which shows poorly on my resume) because of various reasons and mainly due to motherhood – I kept getting in and out of jobs all the time for my kids! My family and kids have always been my priority and for this very reason, I have never aspired for top notch journalism jobs wherein I will have to give a lot of my time and endeavor – I preferred giving it all to my kids! That’s the reason I still work part time though three years back I was working full time. I would come across hundreds of problems which would work against me – so I have stuck to low profile b2b writing! I like this kind of arrangement as it gives me the liberty to manage my time at both the places – at work as well as at home!
This way we all feel happy – I can give my time and energy to my kids, teach them, cook, and also do various other things – now I feel I am able to juggle everything in a much better way! I guess there are no more guilt feelings of neglecting the kids as it used to be with my earlier jobs.
But honestly speaking, it’s a humongous task to be a mother – I still don’t know what to do when they both start growling at each other like mad dogs and are just ready to pounce, paw and scratch each other! It’s so difficult to handle them in these situations – it’s so difficult to wake them up in the mornings for school – it leaves me flustered till today!
Talking about my career, somehow this year I want to excel in my work front – since it’s the year of the Dragon, according to Chinese astrology, it’s an extremely good year for me in all fronts – so I feel like pursuing my career in a much better way!
I am getting this aspiration to be an expert columnist in some parenting magazine or have my own column in some mainstream newspaper – but I just don’t know whom to approach! Just don’t know how to go about it!
I also feel like becoming a reviewer – be it of books, music, movies – anything! I know how to do it because I have done it in the past for some dotcom.
My ambitious project of launching my own PR agency dedicated solely to the gems and jewellery industry is also in the backburner since 2009. This plan is just not taking off! May be its not destined to be!
So let’s just see what the sixteenth year of my professional career has in store for me………………
Since the time I had become a big time admirer of cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar in 1991, I wanted to be a journalist so that I could meet him. This coupled with my craze for ace reporter Rajdeep Sardesai during my college days in 1994-95 were the two main reasons for this decision of mine. I would take journalism books from my college library and read them to know more about journalism. Somehow the craze for journalism was just too much!
Then I came across a classified ad in Midday for trainee journalists and I just jumped for it. I had to get this job (by any hook or crook) and I just applied for it. Since I was still studying, I requested to be a part timer! The management agreed and I was asked to join them from 1st February, 1996 – my joy knew no bounds! I wasn’t worried about anything – the only thing I knew was that I was on my way to becoming an eminent journalist! LOL
Today, sixteen years down the line, nothing of that sort has happened. I am no way close to becoming an eminent journalist. Sadly, I have had a fragmented career (which shows poorly on my resume) because of various reasons and mainly due to motherhood – I kept getting in and out of jobs all the time for my kids! My family and kids have always been my priority and for this very reason, I have never aspired for top notch journalism jobs wherein I will have to give a lot of my time and endeavor – I preferred giving it all to my kids! That’s the reason I still work part time though three years back I was working full time. I would come across hundreds of problems which would work against me – so I have stuck to low profile b2b writing! I like this kind of arrangement as it gives me the liberty to manage my time at both the places – at work as well as at home!
This way we all feel happy – I can give my time and energy to my kids, teach them, cook, and also do various other things – now I feel I am able to juggle everything in a much better way! I guess there are no more guilt feelings of neglecting the kids as it used to be with my earlier jobs.
But honestly speaking, it’s a humongous task to be a mother – I still don’t know what to do when they both start growling at each other like mad dogs and are just ready to pounce, paw and scratch each other! It’s so difficult to handle them in these situations – it’s so difficult to wake them up in the mornings for school – it leaves me flustered till today!
Talking about my career, somehow this year I want to excel in my work front – since it’s the year of the Dragon, according to Chinese astrology, it’s an extremely good year for me in all fronts – so I feel like pursuing my career in a much better way!
I am getting this aspiration to be an expert columnist in some parenting magazine or have my own column in some mainstream newspaper – but I just don’t know whom to approach! Just don’t know how to go about it!
I also feel like becoming a reviewer – be it of books, music, movies – anything! I know how to do it because I have done it in the past for some dotcom.
My ambitious project of launching my own PR agency dedicated solely to the gems and jewellery industry is also in the backburner since 2009. This plan is just not taking off! May be its not destined to be!
So let’s just see what the sixteenth year of my professional career has in store for me………………
My body
“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body”!!!
I always knew this but the realities of these words are cutting through my heart while reading the book on St. Paul.
Further, “If Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive...And when He enters to make His abode in us, our spirit is made alive”.
Still further: “Yet, even though Christ lives within you, your body will die because of sin”
We are baptized into Christ’s body and so I have no right to defile the temple of my body; for this very reason I will take care of my body in a much better way from now on. I will make it look ever more beautiful by covering it with beautiful clothes and keep pampering it all the time.
I always knew this but the realities of these words are cutting through my heart while reading the book on St. Paul.
Further, “If Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive...And when He enters to make His abode in us, our spirit is made alive”.
Still further: “Yet, even though Christ lives within you, your body will die because of sin”
We are baptized into Christ’s body and so I have no right to defile the temple of my body; for this very reason I will take care of my body in a much better way from now on. I will make it look ever more beautiful by covering it with beautiful clothes and keep pampering it all the time.
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