Last month on my Shillong trip an Aunt invited us.”whoever celebrates turning 50!” my mother jeered. But as I met Aunt Poonam she was still the luminous perfect lady I always aspired to grow up to!

After dinner as I was helping her clean up I casually asked “so how does it feel to be fifty?” She looked at me affectionately and replied with a smile ” There is no way to stop time ,is there? but at 50 I do wish I was wiser at 20. Time is so precious ,we realise it once it slips away.”

Here’s a gist of her advice.

1. Work on your over all personality and appearance, no one is sitting with a magnifying glass to count your zits or grey hairs.

2. The only way to lose those kilos is to break some sweat not mope in front of the mirror. Find solutions don’t wallow in your problems.

3.Wear your hair in its natural glory for as long as possible — colouring the hair will be a monthly chore some years down the lane and its length and breadth,a cherished memory.

4.It is always wise to spend on a vacation than on a designer dress —-one will enrich your experiences,the other remind you of a figure you can never re-attain.

5.Indulge your sweet tooth before all the desserts go directly to the hips or the old age diseases ban them altogether.

6.A relationship should continue for its affinity and companionship, there is no place for cunning and compromise in it.

7.Get your life in focus,set your priorities,take your own decisions and also responsibility for their consequences.

8.That you can never have all you like ,so might as well like what you have is a lesson— the sooner learnt the happier a life lived.

9. Take the onslaught of age gracefully because no matter how hard you maintain at 50 you will slowly but surely turn into your mother.

10. Don’t listen to all I said!

Break a few rules! Follow your heart! Enjoy the flow! Dance in the rain! You are young and innocent only once!

I first visited Shimla hills during 6-8 th october 2017, North Zone conference at Kandaghat.Autumn had just set in and the air was pleasantly crisp in the morning and evening .Being brought up in a hill station I perceive the variations in their features as distinctly as the faces of people. The Shimla hills are sharp falls rather than slopes. The uphills are steep and the gorges deep and abrupt. The outskirts were green with conifers while the town was clogged up and congested.The Mall Road was vibrant with activity and a far cry from the lull of hill stations . Children enjoyed the horse rides and fancy woollen kiosks. For me the whole charm of the vacation pivoted on the resort.It was a lovely property sprawled on the hillocks along the Shimla-Solan highway. I always love to push the curtains and soak in the morning hill view.The balcony overlooking the slope was the perfect place to enjoy a hot cup of tea while enjoying the misty breeze.

And then I visited Shimla again on a white weekend in January 2019.The view of the snow clad town was breathtaking.The snow took precedence over everything else.The children enjoyed pelting snow balls at each other and snow trekking.The coffee and Maggi points which dotted the road served both hot refreshments and an awesome hill slope view. I will never forget our personal party on a chilly night at -8 degrees C.

The different hues of the Shimla Hills—- both green and white,remind me of the different circumstances in life.Just as we enjoyed differently the different hues so also we should try to accept the darker hues of life gracefully and splurge in the brighter hues . If we try to live each colour as enjoyably as possible the memories will always warm our hearts.

Two days ago the news of a friend’s husband’s untimely demise set my mind rolling to a year ago when a childhood friend of mine lost her husband to a massive heart attack. Friends and family are always there with heartfelt condolences and wholehearted support but the loss , especially for the children is irreparable.Life will never be the same for them.

In some bygone corner of my mind I do know however that all dreadful things aren’t always news.When my husband had a head injury years ago I spent many sleepless nights thinking why we? Sincere thanks to the Almighty that my husband recovered fully and now we have even forgotten the incident.He was lucky.But as I see around me especially at work,everyone is always not so lucky. In those sleepless nights the insight slowly dawned —- why me?became why not me? Everyone of us on this earth is sent with a pre-destined plan. I remember as I picked my first born in my arms I wanted to promise him all the best things in the world but I could not as life is not fair and there are no rules,no reasonings or justifications. It is a lucky draw and everyone has their own coupon.One can never know what’s in store,both good and bad,till they unfold. This analogy takes the sting out of the situation. The pain will always be there but accepting destiny gracefully puts a balm on it.

A Jewish boy conceived in a concentration camp grows up to be an American banker.A young girl of 20,becomes a widow on her honeymoon but the child within her becomes the yardstick of her life.At the age of 7,a schoolgirl loses her right leg,with grit and determination she is today one of India’s renowned dancer.

And to think that to break up with a person,even if he or she means the sun to you will end the world….”it doesn’t happen that way ” to be gentle;ridiculous,to be frank!

True it will end your world as you have known it till date.But next morning as the sun rises,a new world opens its gates to you—-a world devoid of the person who meant so much to you just a few days ago.

You start living in this world and slowly the previous world becomes a distant memory. The flash-back is there but the sting soothes down.Thats how life continues.

That’s how it should continue because in bottling up all the hurt and pain you only shun out the happiness this new world can bring.You have to let go.This new world will unfold its myriad possibilities to you only if you are willing to explore.

What is done cannot be undone.What will happen will happen but the gift of today should be lived in the way we think best.It is too precious a present to be wasted in repenting about the past or fretting about the future.Life brings its own hurdles in its way but along with that it also brings the strength and courage to overcome these hurdles .Thats the beauty of life—- it goes on,sometimes by climbing the summit,sometimes by bending around the wall,sometimes by changing its course—- but it flows on.

So here’s to life—- its undaunted spirit to go on.”La Vitae Continua.”

Just as pattering raindrops splatter a window pane so also the passing moments besprinkle a lifetime.Just like the sliding raindrops memories linger, experiences enrich and people affect. ‘Raindrops on my window ‘ are my collection of anecdotes as I amble down nostalgia lane . Welcome to my psyche.

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton