Here is a hospital
recording that moved me to tears. It could be real or just a story, but it
moved me to tears.
Here is the
recorded message:
Here is the text
of the message, extracted from the recording:
“God willing, this
message will reach you someday soon. I have entrusted an old acquaintance of
ours to deliver this to you sometime after I have left.
After so many years I
have gathered the courage to thank you and wish you well because I would soon lose
that chance.
It is not to disturb or
agitate you but simply to let you know my feelings, as I am about to leave. It
is to let you know that I have never forgotten you and that I pray for your
welfare and happiness every single day. Even
at this stage, you are in my heart and thoughts.
It is over forty years since
you moved away from me, to places where I should not come to see you under any
circumstances. Since then, to be exact it has been 15,138 days of suffering and
loneliness for me. Thoughts of vanishing from this world did crop up at times,
but I desisted because great sorrow would befall on my family and your name
would be drawn into this tragedy and blemish your life.
In all these years there
were many opportunities when I could see you at family gatherings or meet you
deliberately, but I avoided them with a heavy heart. I felt that you would not
like to see me and would be embarrassed. I took precautions by tearing your
photographs and letters to ensure that they do not fall into wrong hands and
create problems for you.
In a very casual manner
from time to time, I kept enquiring about you and your family and was always
very happy to hear that you are doing extremely well. God bless your family.
I do not know how you
look today or have transformed over these years. But you are in my thoughts
always as I have seen you for 6 years in our younger days, that is before these
40 and odd years of separation. I should
not be saying this, but I am sure you are still as pretty and jovial as you
were then. God bless you and your family with good health, happiness and
prosperity.
I do not know what I am
doing by forwarding this message to you is right or wrong. Do not bother about
this message or the sobbing you may hear in between. Over the years, thoughts
of our days together and missing you thereafter has made me a very sad and emotional
person, so I cry a lot.
When you are listening to
this message I would long be gone. I am recording this from a hospital lying on
my deathbed. My days are numbered. I may at the most live for another 5 days.
Till then I shall continue to pray for you and once I reach my destined place I
wish I can continue to think of you and pray for you.
All these years, I had a desire to see you and listen to you.
I desire this even today but it is not possible anymore.
I hope I will become an
angel and be with you and keep seeing you and listening to your lovely voice. I
would not be disturbing you because I would be invisible.
Sorry for disturbing you
with this message, but I had to do it to thank you for being my friend for 6
years and making my life worth living though it was just for 6 years.
Countless articles have
been written on the subject of good health, happiness and longevity by experts
from different branches of science, study and belief… by research and some by
experience. Here is one article from TIME Magazine on longevity – ‘What 3
things can I do extend the length of my life?’. It is an old Issue of TIME
Magazine which I have come across recently. I wanted to bring it to you
especially because for the first time I have read that curiosity in old age
plays an important role in longevity.
This is a well-researched
article that appeared in the Health Section of TIME magazine of 27th February
2017. Normally for longevity, physical and mental activity, diet and happy
personal relationships are emphasised. In this article, curiosity is one of the
three factors suggested for longevity – ‘Stay Curious, Eat way more plants and
Rethink what it means to be old’.
I have reproduced below
photo-excerpts of this TIME Magazine article. However, I shall briefly narrate
in brief what this article states:
STAY CURIOUS: There is
evidence that curiosity has longevity benefits. According to Laura L.
Carstensen of Stanford University, asking questions and discussing new things
keeps one engaged with other people and contributes to enthusiasm, happiness
and longevity.
EAT WAY MORE PLANTS: The
link between diet and well-being is well-known. But, very often, it is ignored.
This has increased the incidence of diet-related diseases. Eating a lot of
plants is recommended. To ensure longer life, one has to focus on fruits,
vegetables, nuts and olive oil.
RETHINK WHAT IT MEANS TO
BE OLD: Those who have positive beliefs about age live longer. This means
remaining mindful of the contributions that older people make to others. Those
who maintain friendships appear to live longer. It is said that ‘people want
their close friends to be someone they can talk to, someone they enjoy being
with’.
Religion too is
important. It is said centenarians rank high on ‘moral righteousness’ which may
help them adapt well to later life.
Also, exercise and food
habits matter. Even 15-minute exercise in a day would benefit muscle
strength.
You may also read the original
passages in the photos below:
We visited the spectacular
Kondapochamma Sagar Reservoir last Monday that is on 5th October 2020. It is
located in Markook Village of Siddipet District. The distance of the reservoir
from our house in Secunderabad is 57 km – up to a parking point on the embankment.
A VIDEO OF
THE RESERVOIR
The reservoir is a part
of the marvellous engineering project - The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project.
The capacity of the reservoir is 15 TMC. The water reaches this reservoir
through Link I, Link II and Link IV of the project.
In the prestigious Link I,
River Godavari water is lifted upwards in stages in the reverse direction, to a
higher elevation along the river, from Medigadda Barrage to Annaram Barrage surge
pool, and from there to Sundilla Barrage and then to Sripada Yellampally Barrage.
In Link II, water is
supplied from Sripada Yellampalli Barrage to Medaram Reservoir and from there
to Mid Manair Reservoir.
And in Link IV, water is supplied
from Mid Manair Reservoir to Ananthagiri Reservoir and to Sri Ranganayaka Sagar
Reservoir and then to Komaravelly Mallanna Sagar Reservoir and from there to
Kondapochamma Sagar Reservoir.
Water is pumped into Kondapochamma
Sagar Reservoir from the Markook Pumphouse located adjacent to the reservoir
using 6 pumps of 34 MW each.
The perimeter of the
reservoir with a well laid circular road is 15.8 km, and the water spread area
of the reservoir is 17.027 sq. km. Its full-reservoir level is 618 m above MSL.
It will provide
irrigation to 2,85,220 acres of fields through 13 canals and drinking water to
Secunderabad and Hyderabad.
It was inaugurated by the
Chief Minister of Telangana State on 29th May 2020.
It has become a big tourist
attraction and is full of crowds on holidays. So it is best to visit this vast
water-filled beauty on weekdays.
I prepared Kimchi for the
first time in June 2016. Since then I have prepared it a few times and we consumed
it over time. The first time I prepared it was along with other dishes and
posted an article to my blog under the title – “Easy Eastern, Mid Eastern,
Chinese and Hyderabadi food for this weekend”. I am posting the link to this
article separately, below this article.
Kimchi is a staple in Korean cuisine
and a traditional side dish consumed on daily basis. I understand that there
are hundreds of varieties of Kimchi, made in different parts of Korea in
different ways. I am comfortable with two types of recipes involving salted
cabbage, radish, spring onion, red chilli flakes, chilli powder, garlic, ginger,
other seasonings like sugar, vinegar, olive oil, rice flour etc., and then a
few days of fermentation.
Now here are the health benefits:
HEALTH BENEFITS OF KIMCHI.
1.Contains healthy bacteria and
probiotics for the overall wellness of your body.
2.Lowers cholesterol levels
3.Facilitates healthy body development
and clear vision
4.Produces radiant skin and shiny hair
5.Prevents stomach cancer
6.Slows down the ageing process
7.Helps you lose weight
8.Prevents the occurrence of peptic
ulcer
9.Boosts your immunity
Easy recipe and it lasts
long!
PS. You may also see this blog post
of mine, which I mentioned in the above
message – “Easy Eastern, Mid Eastern, Chinese and Hyderabadi food for this
weekend” by clicking on the following link:
Our tradition of Puttentukalu
Ceremony (Puttu Ventrukalu) is to carry out the first haircut/tonsure of the
baby at the Temple of our family deity - Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy of
Nampally Gutta, or alternatively to carry out the ceremony at home and offer
the cut hair at the Temple at a convenient date. This is as per our family
tradition being followed by our ancestors since generations and as per Hindu
Sanskaras.
However, the other
reasons given by the general public are as follows:
The scientific reason:
Vitamin D is made faster
and in more quantity in the baby’s body when exposed to sunlight without
clothes and hair. When a tonsured head is exposed to sunlight it absorbs the
sunlight better.
The religious reason:
According to religious
texts and scriptures, a soul gets a human body after experiencing 84 lakh
births. And it is said every birth has its influence on human birth. The
shaving off hair from a child’s head is a gesture of purification from the
previous births and freedom from the past.
Other reasons:
Reason 1: The natural growth of hair
on a baby’s head is uneven. Shaving off the hair from the baby’s head helps in
proper and healthy growth of hair.
Reason 2: The ceremony is performed
to give the kids freedom from diseases, give them strength, health and vigour.
Reason 3: Some ancient scriptures say
it helps in stimulating proper growth of the brain and nerves.
Reason 4: Many people believe Puttu
Ventrukalu helps get rid of past life’s negativity and brings a long life along
with a good fortune.
Reason 5: It helps to keep the baby’s
head cool during the hot summer, that is why many people prefer getting the
ceremony done during summertime.
There are uncountable traditions and
beliefs but it completely depends on what you want to believe. Follow what your
heart says.
