Writing101 & Blogging101 #Day 2 – Things I’ve Learned.

Woke up this morning and found myself reaching out to the iPad from under the sheets with curiosity crawling all over me – What would today’s question hold?

Three options given and one caught my attention – taking me to quick yet scary journey back in time. I could literally see visions from the past – tall peaked mountains so high that one couldn’t even imagine to ever be able to set eyes upon those peaks, let alone touch it… bumpy roads that shake you so hard – that even one’s conscience could feel the jerk of it !!… huge deep trenches from where one would feel it isn’t humanly possible to get out of…dark creepy nights that are so black in color, the daylight of tomorrow remains a question…deep waters that look so beautiful and tempting that it leads you to drown so down under – a place from where there is absolutely no recovery… All this and more is what flashed in front of my eyes like a movie when I saw the words ” THINGS I’VE LEARNED” as today’s writing assignment from Writing101.

Why such creepy and negative visions, you ask ? Cuz’ “Your Best Teacher Is Your Last Mistake.” I’m someone who believes ( out of nothing but sheer shitty experience !! ) that some of the best lessons one could learn in life are always the result of some of the worst and most disastrous storms that one has crossed. These storms keep gracing you..one after the other…in the same zone…until you actually learn to dance within the chaos and not wait for the storm to pass. That is when you have your  “Lesson Learnt” moment. And ofcourse, thats not the end of it. That’s just one lesson learnt!

Learning is a process that begins at birth and goes on for eternity. An no matter how much one does end up learning – The greatest lesson learnt will always be the fact that there is still a lot more where that came from!

Having said that, I don’t know how many of my lessons I could jot down and present here at the moment as most of them hit like flash bulbs in my head when I’m approaching the mistake that taught me the lesson in the first place ! However, I will attempt this one…. so here goes :

1. BE YOU ! – The situation , the people, the profit, the loss – None of this matters more than you being yourself at all times. Be you and be you with confidence by knowing that however you are, you are special by default ‘cuz there is just ONE like you. And that is YOU. And along with being you, be true to yourself – about yourself and about others around you. The biggest and most damaging lie that one could tell , is to oneself. Remember – Honesty has a power that very few people can handle.
2. Another day is a blessing. Do not take it for granted.
3. As hard as it might be – sometimes the very smallest of steps in the right direction could be one of the biggest ones you’ve taken to change your life!
4. The sky is never the limit. Your belief system is.
5. Age is just a number. It does not define maturity nor experiences.
6. There is a very thin line between ignorance and arrogance. Both equally damaging and both equally dangerous than the other.
7. If you haven’t really done anything for someone who cannot repay you in any manner – You haven’t really lived!
8. Honesty, Morality, Ethics, Sincerity, & being Trustworthy are not specific to having a good character when in a crowd or when in a role at work, at home, at school etc., It is way more important to be honest , have morals, ethics, being sincere and trustworthy when you’re not in a crowd , not playing a role and are alone by yourself. That is when these qualities count the most.
9. Sometimes what we learn and who we become in the process of waiting turns out to be even more important than what we were actually waiting for.
10. The ironic thing is – if you run towards your fear…it will actually run away from you.
11. There are no coincidences and no wrong paths – Just roads that we had no idea we were meant to walk along. And what good is it anyway if you know the destination all the time?
12. Life is too short and your time here is limited. Don’t waste what you have by living the life of another. It will do neither of you any good.
13. A certain amount of darkness is called for, if you want to see the stars shining. The choice is yours. You could either sit and be upset with the darkness of the night or choose to be amazed by the beauty of the stars!
14. Home has absolutely nothing to do with where you were born, to whom you were born or where you’re supposed to stay. Home is two arms holding you tight when you’re about to fall apart. And any place or person that provides those arms is Home.
15. One can manage to lure you and fool you with kindness – But loyalty speaks for itself.
16. Everybody is fighting some kind of battle everyday. DON’T PUSH IT !
17. One should not have to rip out oneself to keep another whole and alive. The injustice is simply not acceptable and definitely unnecessary.
18. Screaming and yelling accomplishes nothing. It silences the message you’re trying to put through.
19. Always trust yourself – if you have survived everything so far – you will survive whatever is coming.
20. It is always better to take a chance…to take that risk and cross the line than to just stare at the same for the rest of your life wondering what is beyond and what could have and would have happened if you had shown the spontaneity.
21. Sometimes you truly do not know how strong or brave you are until being brave or strong is the only choice you’ve got left.
22. A person who has been ling to you consistently could be honest for once – Always have the courage to trust one more time and again one more time.
23. Before approaching someone with harshness – always speak to yourself first and see how it would sound if another reacted in the same way to you.
24. There will come a point in life when you will realize that no matter what you do – you will never be good enough for some people. Have what it takes to ask yourself, if that is your problem or theirs.
25.  A strong mind with a fragile heart are a deadly combination.
26. It takes a certain amount of humbleness and humility to know that  there is something called mystery out there. If you don’t have what it takes to see it that way – it is truly sad.
27. The looser always wins when there is a war of ego.
28. “Those who had coins, enjoyed in the rain. Those who had notes were busy looking for shelter” ( Couldn’t have said it in a better way.)
29. “Nature does not hurry.Yet everything is accomplished.” ( in quotes ‘cuz these are not my words and I couldn’t find more simpler and better words to say the same.)
30. “Love is passion, obsession, someone U can’t live without. Fall head over heels. I say find someone U can love like crazy & who’ll love U the same way back. And how do U find him? Forget your head and listen to your heart. Run the risk, if U get hurt, you’ll come back. Because, the truth is there is no sense living your life without this. U have to try. Because if U haven’t tried, U haven’t lived” – Anthony Hopkins. ( this one is from MEET JOE BLACK .. And a lesson that holds very true to me personally .)

Ok. So there is like a million more where all this is coming from and as mentioned earlier – the learning will never cease to stop. For now, I leave you with my 30 lessons ( simply ‘cuz my children won’t let me write any further !)

I would like to leave you with one of the best lessons I have learned and consistently try to teach myself so that it remains imbibed forever –

Don’t let someone’s judgement affect you – they don’t know what your journey is about. Don’t judge someone else’s way of living – you do not know what their journey is about either.