Oprah Winfrey - Live your Best Life

So I have been following ‘The Oprah Show’ since past few months now. And let me tell you that it has become a complete addiction to me. Other than the content of the show which is most fascinating and ‘O’ so varied, what also holds my attention is Oprah herself. Just seeing her interview the guests on the show is amazing by itself. The way she empathizes with the guests, seems to feel their emotions, makes them at ease so they open up makes for a great study itself on how to communicate with people around us. It’s like watching a perfect human being talk to people like us. The way Oprah handles the show is really amazing. Personally to me Oprah has become a way of life. She has inspired me to believe that dreams do come true, that good things happen in life. It’s because of her that today I have become more sensitive to the various issues facing this world. Thanks to Oprah, that I no longer just hear the news and forget about it at the end of the day. Instead, I feel the news. Things bother me like they should bother each one of us. She has in a way woken me up. I feel so good when she shows her support for so many worthy causes. The way she stands so strongly against child abuse, drug addiction, and many more similar causes. I absolutely love it when she shows her support to single working mothers and women in general.  Her show has truly struck a chord with me and I have come to believe that we all are connected, a part of one single community and we are responsible to look out for each other, that one person’s joy can truly be multiplied or a tragedy divided if we start being more caring about all around us.

In my spare times I actually wonder as to how a day in Oprah’s life must be like. As there are so many things she seems to do. There is her show of course, which I am sure must be taking major chunk of her day, in spite of her wonderful team at the show. Other than that she has this book reading club which I so love. Her book selections are so wonderful; each selected book is truly a jewel. I just got hold of one of the books she has recommended in her book club and let me tell you it is absolutely spell binding. I have to make an effort to put down the book and do something else with my time too. Oprah also has her very own magazine called the ‘O’ magazine. Reading the magazine feels like you have got yourself a new BFF. Like a cool girlfriend, who is sharing with you everything she knows and bringing you a whole new world of experiences and most of the topics covered there are so liberating.

Come to think of it there are so many powerful people on think earth. Probably I have not spent enough of my time discovering the rest. But about Oprah I can say this for sure, that whenever I feel the power of Oprah, I don’t feel envy, I feel blessed to have such a powerful and a good willed person inhabit this world. I love the way she uses her power to help make this world such a better place – like maybe inviting big celebrities to her show and talking to them and making the viewers realize that the celebrities too are just like us, that they too have problems ( many a times the same problems that the rest of us have).  Or when she uses her power to give platform to new and young talents like Charice Pempengco or just promoting a chicken pot pie.  Oprah also has opened a school in South Africa for girls, it is called the ‘Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy’. The name by itself proclaims that the school plans to give the world new leaders. I love Oprah’s power and her continued passion to make good things happen and her spirit to celebrate life. Thank you Oprah for being your wonderful self. May you continue with your good work and may it inspire million more others, like you have inspired me.

Susan Boyle – I am who I was born to be

This woman needs no introduction. She is an internet sensation.

I saw Susan Boyle on the Oprah show the other day and was absolutely touched by her simplicity, her immense talent and perseverance. I am sure there are millions out there like me sharing similar views about Susan. I had of course seen her audition video for the ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ (BGT) on the You Tube before. I was completely astounded at her singing skills even then. But after seeing her on Ophrah, I really started admiring the woman.

So I got hooked and started digging more about her. This is what i found out. Susan Boyle is the youngest among her 9 siblings. As a child she had learning problems. She had no friends. Kids used to bully her and had nicknamed her as “Susie simple”. In her own words, she found her only solace in music. She never married. She remained with her aging mother to care for her until her mother passed away in 2007. Even today she lives in her family house with her cat named ’Pebbles’.

Susan Boyle always aspired to become a professional singer. Despite winning several local singing competitions, she never really made it big until her audition at the ‘BGT’ when she was 47. Before BGT happened, Susan had auditioned for ‘My Kind of People’ in 1995 and was mocked at by the judge Michael Barrymore. She refused to audition for ‘The X Factor’ because she believed that selections were being done on the basis of looks. Even when she came on stage at the BGT, for her audition - everyone in the audience including the judges were skeptic about her. She was greeted by sniggers when she announced that she wanted to be as successful as Elaine Paige. But after her performance, the very same crowd gave her a standing ovation.

She came 2nd in the BGT competition. So great is her singing talent that Elaine Paige herself praised Susan’s singing prowess and proposed to share the stage with her for a duet. Susan’s album” I dreamed a dream” was a global best seller. Susan Boyle is so successful today that there are blog sites entirely devoted to her – they put up updates about her on their sites. There are some sites/web sites that solely sell Susan Boyle merchandise.

Seeing her success today, I realize that never judge a book by its cover. To Susan - You dared to dream. With your beautiful talent and a never give up attitude , you turned your dream into a fairytale like reality. You have finally become who you were born to be!!

When I was a child
I could see the wind in the trees
And I heard a song in the breeze
It was there, singing out my name

But I'm not a girl
I have known the taste of defeat
And I've finally grown to believe
It will all come around again

And though I may not
Know the answers
I can finally say I'm free
And if the questions
Led me here, then
I am who I was born to be

And so, here am I
Open arms and ready to stand
I've got the world in my hands
And it feels like my turn to fly

And though I may not
Know the answers
I can finally say I'm free
And if the questions
Lead me here, then
I am who I was born to be

When I was a child
There were flowers that bloomed in the night
Unafraid to take in the light
Unashamed to have braved the dark

And though I may not
Know the answers
I can finally say I'm free
If the questions
Led me here, then
I am who I was born to be
I am who I was born to be

Lets make ourselves HAPPY!

“Happiness is intrinsic. It's an internal thing. When you build it

into yourself, no external circumstances can take it away”

I came across this interesting thought today while surfing the internet. How incredibly true it is!
In my daily life I sincerely try to follow the mantra – make yourself feel good. Do atleast one thing in the whole day that’s only for yourself. It doesn’t necessarily have to be something time taking. It could be spending the extra 5 mins in the morning on yourself to make sure you look good. I love dressing up. It always makes me feel good about myself and also adds a nice spring to my step, the whole day long.
Another thing that always brightens me up is water. I am a complete water freak. I love playing in water. Depending on my mood I at times treat myself to a nice luxurious bath with scented candles lit around or at times it’s just a fun filled swim in the pool, or a quiet walk in the rains (sometimes with my beloved) or playing with the waves at the lakeshore. Water always rejuvenates me.
Being human, we all are by nature - social. Being social, helps me feel connected. It makes me feel counted. I love catching up with my old friends and laughing about good old times. Reliving some past experience, brings with it a feeling of nostalgia. And nostalgia makes me feel good, it makes me feel comfortable. I love hanging out with my girlfriends. Discussing what they have been upto. Things that we talk about at times end up inspiring me to try new things. Besides the joy of spending a good time with our friends always makes one feel good. I also feel good whenever I get a compliment for any of my efforts. Appreciation never fails to cheer me up and hence I make conscious efforts to appreciate all the little things that people around me do. I am sure we all love a bit of appreciation and acknowledgement in our lives.
Another peculiar habit I have is that whenever I feel anxious or am frustrated due to some reason, I put on some of my favorite (Bollywood) songs and sing aloud with the music playing. Kind of like a karaoke. Singing out loud helps release the knots of frustration within me and helps me relax. I can’t exactly explain the logic behind this but this exercise works for me.
Whenever I feel a bit low and not so good about myself, I set myself some tasks/goals and work hard to achieve them. Once I complete those tasks, I derive a great sense of achievement. And achievement leads to happiness in me. It also re-boosts within me a sense of confidence (which is usually at an all-time low when I feel down) and gives me a new strength.
One of the activities that I indulge in most is shopping. It’s a complete mood lifter for me. I love to shop, be it personal or household stuff. I love to shop for myself, my family and friends, for my home. Every time I buy something nice I keep feeling good about it for a long time.
As I read through all of the activities I have listed so far, I realize that these activities indicate that I am vain. But come to think about it, if being a bit vain once in a while keeps me happy, then I think being vain is really not that bad. I believe that nothing can bring you happiness but yourself. While doing our daily chores I think it’s important that we not forget ourselves. Giving ourselves time is the best thing we can do for ourselves. And only when we are happy can we truly give happiness to all around us. May we all find it within ourselves to make ourselves happy!!

My First Cake… I made it!!!

Since childhood, “cake” has always felt special to me. Whenever my mom baked a cake I always felt that she has created something very special. It never failed to make me super excited. And so this reaction remained within me every time I saw someone make a cake. “Cake” was so superbly special for me that I always assumed that to bake a cake required a great deal of expertise. I don’t know why I thought so, but that’s how I felt until very recently when I finally dared to bake my own cake.

It all started with me watching the various cooking shows on the food network. The cooks on the show would bake such delicious looking cakes that I was tempted to bake one myself. But as I had this huge inhibition about cake being a big deal, I thought that I needed to have my very own hand mixer to whisk and whip all the ingredients together. Being a coward, I assumed that if I attempted to bake the cake by my hands and a simple whisk, I would not be able to bake a cake at all (or it would be too tedious and I would just not succeed). So I ordered a hand mixer (thanks to my hubby). The day it arrived, I felt that now my hour of exam is finally here. Now let me see if I can really make a cake. Although I love cooking and love experimenting in the kitchen, I don’t know why baking freaked me so much. So I decided to confront my fears by taking a small baby step into the world of baking. I went to the store and bought a Betty Crocker’s cake mix (French Vanilla flavor). This cake mix required me to add just 3 eggs, 1/3^rd cup vegetable oil and 1 1/4^th cup water and whisk all together into a smooth batter. So it was my first cake and the first time with the hand mixer too. My husband came into the kitchen to share my excitement. He too was excited about the fact that I was finally baking a cake (ya, it was SUCH a huge deal with me and the cake J ). So we both formed a team. While I whisked the batter, my husband poured in the ingredients into the bowl slowly. And whoa, in a matter of mere 5 minutes (wow! Hand mixer works!!!), I had the cake batter ready. All it needed were 40 minutes into the oven. And out came the much awaited yummy cake. My husband and I were so pleased with the outcome that we couldn’t stop gushing about it for a long long time. And the cake was all the more special since we both had baked it together. It was like exploring some new place together. I think baking with family could turn out to be a fantastic means of strengthening bonds.

So friends this is how my first cake was baked. Of course boosted by the first cake, I am ready now to experiment (without inhibitions) into the world of baking. This experience has led me to once again believe that “The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are”. If you have not yet tried baking a cake….please try baking one now…involve your family into the process and see the outcome…I am sure you would love it, the cake as well as the experience of baking it with family.

Cheers to unexplored territories and simple new beginnings!!

Book Review:My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

We had my husband's colleague and his wife over for dinner some days back. As the evening progressed I told them about my avid interest in book reading. And so it turned out that they sent some books over for me which they thought were interesting. They sent three books - all by the same writer named Jodi Picoult.

I must confess that although i do read a lot, i hadn't heard about Jodi Picoult before (duh!!). So ‘My Sister's Keeper’ is her 1st book i have read. In fact as i kept reading i realized it was a first of many sorts. It is a book that is completely on a different level than any book i have read so far. It is so intense that i haven't been able to stop thinking about it ever since i turned the first page of the book. The plot is so interesting; the book captures your interest the minute you read the synopsis. ‘My Sister's Keeper’ tells the story about a girl named Anna, who has endured countless surgeries and procedures ever since she was a month old infant in order to help her sister, Kate to fight leukemia. In fact Anna was brought into this world ("genetically designed") so she could be the perfect match, the perfect donor to her sick sister. Every time something goes wrong with Kate, Anna is used as the ultimate fix. Like borrow Lymphocytes from Anna or take her bone marrow and stuff like that. But now Anna is thirteen years old and is starting to question about who she truly is? Would she even be in this world at all if her sister wasn't diagnosed with leukemia? As then the need for a perfect donor would not have arisen. She instigates a lawsuit against her own parents so she can have medical emancipation (meaning she gets to decide about any medical treatment/procedure being done to her).

Could the plot get any interesting? Oh yes. As the book proceeds it unravels so many different facets to the characters in the story, so many ethical issues. Jodi Picoult has done an amazing job of telling the story through various characters. She proceeds with the story as if each character was speaking and giving his/her own version of the things. It’s surprising how she does justice to each character in the story. It’s not just an interesting plot, but a very carefully thought and well written story. The story holds all the elements that have rightly made it a bestseller. Kudos to Jodi Picoult for crafting such a sensitive story! A must read for every book lover. I am looking forward to reading more of her works.