All posts tagged: thoughts

Quarter Life Crisis & 4 Ways To Deal With It.

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A quarter life crisis is not a myth. Every 20-something reaches a point in life that is the peak of the adult version of adolescence. At that point begin a series of assessments, of one’s accomplishments, relationships, and the past, present & future. More often than not, these assessments give way to disappointment, anger and confusion, or a 20-something’s version of a mid-life crisis. The severity and implications of a Quarter Life Crisis aka QLC vary with each individual. A study solemnly reports that every 3 in 4 people aged 26 to 30 go through a Quarter Life Crisis, while the Urban Dictionary and Wikipedia have some broad opinions on what such a crisis entails. The pace at which our generation moves has redefined most demographics, and having just turned 23, I’m attempting to discuss how to cope with a QLC, and hoping I wouldn’t relapse. 1. Let go. We carry a heavy burden from our past, of broken friendships, unfulfilled promises and seemingly wrong choices. In retrospect however, these defining moments have made us …

We Are The Same, You & I.

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I read a thought somewhere A thought I thought myself Someone thought it long ago Now it sits on my book shelf. I heard a song on the radio Made from the tears I shed Someone wrote it far away Now it’s stuck in my head. We are made of the same stuff You and I Flesh, blood, tears, sighs Pain, love, fear, lies. SPONSORED: Interested in ways to help people find happiness and live a great life? An online msw degree is for you. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.

The Renaissance of Mercedes in India!

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This is the story behind the story. Few people in Germany (and the world over) must’ve heard of the quaint city-town of Aurangabad in Maharashtra, before it became a gold mine for Mercedes. You heard it right, and here’s how I hear it happened. It started with a group of doctors with flourishing businesses in Aurangabad, consulting each other on which car to buy. Like most Indian households, the consideration set comprised Tata and Honda, until someone upped the notch a little and proposed buying a Mercedes. The closest Mercedes showroom was in Bombay, and as the docs prepped for their trip, word spread among their network of professionals. By the time the trip materialized, 75 doctors, lawyers & businessmen from Aurangabad had decided that it was time to buy a car! Can you imagine how the sales folks at the Mercedes showroom in Bombay must’ve reacted on hearing of a bulk purchase of 75 cars? Or better still, their headquarters in Germany, especially given that BMW lures a large majority of the elite car …

India Has Arrived, Indeed.

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The Common Wealth Games 2010 have been an emotional journey for Indians – we’ve been anxious, enraged, desperate, doubtful, optimistic, surprised, awed, thankful, excited, nervous, exhilarated, proud, very proud. Just before the Games started, many of us were hanging on with dear life to the hope and fact that we wait until the very last minute to execute things, but with all the media bashing and the pessimism it created the world over, it was a long shot. Some of us logged out of Facebook, stopped buying newspapers, unplugged the TV and refused to talk about ‘it’ (think Gandhiji’s 3 monkeys)! Then the day came, and like a pre-mature baby, a tad too soon. We went to the newly-built stadium to cheer the Opening Ceremony, praying to all our gods that nothing will collapse. We tuned in to our TV broadcast, our nails bitten right up to the skin. We opened our Twitter streams, ready to defend our honor. We felt like we feel on a Monday morning. But none of it lasted. We were awed by the …

death & all his friends.

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Every time you are in the vicinity of death, something changes. A certain part of you grows, matures, thinks, wonders. Life is uncertain, yes, but seeing that uncertainty float in the air, right before your eyes, makes you question the very essence of life. Often times, I have thought that our lives are reflected in the eyes of other people. Once you leave this mortal world, the only thing that matters is how you live in the memories of people, if at all you live. That thought changed yesterday. I was part of a memorial for a colleague, and people he’d known professionally poured in large numbers to offer their condolences and pen their thoughts in a little black book. The book will most likely be given to his family, and probably contains very fond memories. And you know what? He’ll never know. He’ll never know how people spoke of him, remembered him, missed him. He’s gone. May he rest in peace. It brings me back to my feeble assessment of life. How you may …

My First Chinese Wedding

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A wedding is a must-attend to graduate in the understanding of a culture. A batch-mate at work took the plunge last night, giving me my first sneak peak into a Chinese-Singaporean wedding. Gate crashing The title’s a misnomer. It’s a Singaporean tradition in which the groom must earn the right to his bride. The groom, accompanied by his brothers (the western equivalent of the best man), shows up early in the morning at the bride’s house. They are greeted by the bridesmaids and tasked to pass tests on life’s essential skills (culinary, physical, endurance etc). Before the tasks started, all the brothers were made to sign indemnity forms! In this particular wedding, the tasks were considered rather mild, and included doing push-ups, decorating a cake, dancing & eating dumplings of 4 kinds – sweet, sour, spicy (stuffed with chilli) & bitter (boiled with panadol!) After completing all the tasks, the groom is given the key to his bride’s room where she waits in her bridal gown – rescuing the girl, Bollywood style 🙂 Tea ceremony …

Don’t read.

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I haven’t written anything I want to read. I want my words to become a language on their own, to dance before your eyes, to sing to you in the silence. I haven’t written anything I want to read. I want my words to sketch characters in your mind, to fill your nights with colorful dreams, to show you sparks on a bright day. I want my words to be yours when you lose your own, to say what’s true when you’re in doubt, to be with you when I can’t. I haven’t written anything I want you to read. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.

Carpe diem!

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This one is for all of us who have put our dreams on hold. Remember when we were 16 and the world was our playground and nothing, absolutely nothing, was hard to envision? Adulthood has undoubtedly put our dreams into perspective, magnifying the fine line between the good dreams and the bad, the big and the small, the realistic and the idealistic. It is trying to convince us that dreams are just that, and that life is meant to be filled with sacrifices. It’s a lie. Think of the last time you really, really wanted something and gave all you had to get it. Think of the thrill you felt, irrespective of whether you made it. If the thought was short of a smile, you need to think again. Cliched as it might sound, life comes with no warranty card. We spend so much of our time doing things we hate that we forget all about the things we love – future or no future. It’s not about being rich or famous or successful. It’s …

It’s a girl thing.

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Here’s the most powerful depiction of girlhood I’ve ever come across. Eve Ensler, the creator of The Vagina Monologues, is amazingly inspiring. All hail! This talk, entitled ‘Embrace your inner girl’, was delivered by Eve Ensler at TED India (Mysore) in 2009. Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.

’cause time flies

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It’s been exactly a year since I unofficially graduated from college and lost myself in the insanity of adulthood. I have loved the freedom since, the rush of responsibility, the financial independence, the stamp of a degree, the corporate chaos. And also hated it. Life has changed in many ways, and yet, in some fundamental sense, I am still the restless, fickle mind of a young student exploring the ways of the world, looking for adventure in the least likely of places, and forever moving by elimination. I have however, in this year, found a master key to survival – living a day at a time. Of all things that work, this one works wonders. It’s amazing what a day can be, with no future to look into and no past to brood over. I am not aspiring to be a life coach just yet, so I’ll leave you with these lines from Porcupine Tree, But after a while, You realize time flies, And the best thing that you can do Is take whatever comes …