The Smiling Belle

She leaves a little sparkle wherever she goes
She smiles like sunshine kissing a rose,
As she bends down to smell the lavender
The flower sways to touch her nose.

"You want to tickle me, I suppose?"
She laughs heartily and twirls on her toes,
The lovebird chirps to agree with her words
She turns around and a kiss she blows.

Happiness is her middle name, the whole world knows
But nobody gets to see her when she suffers through her lows.
She writhes in pain as she deals with her woes
Yet that is the storm that no one knows!

She wipes her tears off quietly, Lord knows
She lives to spread happiness as the story goes,
So like the calm, serene river that flows
She gifts the world with her smile that glows.

The Anklet

The calm before the storm has passed
The storm itself has had its run,
Never one to call it quits
I have braced through it with elan.
Exhaustion sometimes makes me ponder
My body or mind ... which is more tired I wonder!
Taking stock of all the bygones
As I close my eyes to think,
Flashbacks crowd my mind in a jiffy
Taking me right to the brink.
As I get sucked in a whirlpool
A touch of a warm hand jolts me awake,
I see your hands clasped around my ankle
Forcing my thoughts take a break.
Head held high you looked ahead
At the endless road ahead,
I followed your gaze and felt divine
My anklet sparkled in the sunshine.
New dreams and endless colours I could feel
Embracing the present is all I need to heal,
Your fingers whispered gently to my soul,
"The secret lies in the bends, take control."
Soaking in the feeling of your touch
Acknowledged that I don't need much,
Sometimes the answer lies in the unknown
So walk I shall, towards the bends that beckon.
Who knows what is waiting round the corner?
Faith is all we need to garner.
Surprises can only be pleasant,
If you believe in the Omnipresent,
And in Him I truly believe
The gift of love only He can give.
"The puzzle fell in place in such a short while"
I closed my eyes and thanked Him with a smile.
All it took is a leap of faith
Armed with that I'm now looking ahead,
I don't know what awaits round the corner
One thing for sure ... I'm feeling finer.
Right now all I need is your hand
And I'll be able to cross the bend,
So stay by my side and love me as I am
Let's make life witness the wham!

Are we lacking in the art of appreciation?

I went through binge reading LinkedIn articles on this lazy Saturday. Needless to say they're always a value add. While I was appreciating different thoughts and perspectives, I also made an observation. Almost all the posts were about goal-setting, enhancing your skills for the next job, future of hiring, etc. The comments told me that most people aren't happy with the current state of things. That made wonder ... are we lacking in the art of appreciation?
Very often we're so busy making ourselves anxious about what next, that we forget to appreciate what is. It's extremely important to set goals to reach the next high, yet where you are standing today was yesterday's goal. Did you pause to celebrate your current role? Did you realise that your hard work paid off for you to be where you stand today? The very fact that you're craving for the next role means you have a job in the world of high unemployment. Have taken a few seconds out to express your gratitude to the universe that you're among the lucky few to have a job that brings hot meals on your table everyday? Maybe it's time to stop and smell the roses.
We keep talking about the increasing stress levels but not many of us own up to the fact that perhaps we contribute to our own stress levels. We're constantly in the competition mode, be it in school, college or professional lives. Remember how we used to get annoyed with our parents because they would refer to the neighbor's son or a brighter cousin? Today, thanks to the brag posts on social media, we ourselves are constantly comparing our lives with hundreds of people we're connected with. We all want the holidays others are taking, the jobs others seem to be enjoying, the more attractive partners they're with ... there's no end to the cravings. What we overlook is that somewhere we're dimming our own lights, which in turn is causing us dissatisfaction with our own lives. With rising dissatisfaction comes a fall in enthusiasm which in turn makes us worry about things that perhaps aren't a cause of concern at that moment and all it does is lead us to the viscous cycle of ever rising stress levels which make us chase what we think we need to achieve.
Hold on before you start running again. Take a few minutes to introspect. Maybe you already have what should make you happy. Prepare for your next goal by all means but not at the expense of today. Appreciate what you have and how much more you add to your happiness and suddenly life isn't so stressful anymore.