Meena Mangalathil:

Yesterday I attended a mass service of the seventh day of demise of a nun. I had no personal contact with the nun, but my invitation rose from the friendly neighbour relationship. So when the bishop who was presiding the mass, highlighted the nun’s personality, I was awed by the different facets he touched about the nun. And he concluded with a phrase which really moved me. She is a person who smiles even when her heart is breaking and I was awed by this comment from a bishop, so how much hardships she might have gone through, to bring such a comment? Life is too full of problems, big, small, fat, thin, long, short, goes the criteria of problems. Human being has an inbuilt mechanism to solve problems. But the way he utilises is the problem. There are two ways to solve it. One, by running away from it and the other by facing it. Whether facing or running, there are different routes, people utilize it. I had a friend, a farmer, who had a small financial problem. He took a loan from his f

            After a long time, I meet not as the same old Meena, now I have become in the language of the young, a weirdo. Yes. Now when I say, weirdo, it's real weirdo because I have learned some real truths. Will you believe it? The truths which all people ask at some point of life, whys and hows and wheres, etc...             So you would like to know, what happened to make me a weirdo. Well, I have been writing a book - A book of adventure to find Self . It's actually a children’s story and while I started the first word, I had an odd feeling, I didn’t know what to write because a normal person doesn’t think of all that type of nonsense. But I wanted to write. For me it was breaking the shackles of my being. So then I was really stuck because I literally am not that genius. If I do not know, then what will I write? So I used my weirdo behaviour, I prayed, talking with God thing. I don’t know whether you would believe it, I spoke to God, well speaking in the sense talking t

I have had many a dreams about missing trains and flights and seen movies, about running to catch it. During those times too the fright really rose from within but when the actual sequel happened in real life, we were laughing.             It happened last week, when my sister came to meet me. She had booked a train ticket for 2 nd A/C from Delhi – Hyderabad. It was a limited stop train and usually, tickets to these types of train has to be booked weeks ahead. Likewise, she booked and got an RAC ticket for Andhra Express, which here is well known as Rajdhani Express. Whenever she had taken train from Delhi, she had only taken it from Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway station in Delhi. So she concluded that this train too departs from there itself. Nobody felt to check the ticket, as she was a seasoned traveller and etiquette called for it that we accept her experience.             We reached 45 minutes prior to departure and luck was with us, as there was nobody in the enquiry counter. We wai

            I have always wondered, why people are not happy. They are always running for something like money, love, luxury, house, car, etc. They get it and still they are unhappy. Today I saw a group of people just living for existence-To Survive.   I was travelling in Dehi, when my vehicle halted in a red signal. Since, it was a junction, I had to wait for sometime there. I looked through the window and saw a spectacle, that really ripped my heart. There was a roundabout in the middle of the road and in it was an open space, just bare ground. And the roundabout was fenced with iron grills. In some places, there were some grills missing, but overall, we don’t find anything odd in the missing grills. But the sight within was unimaginable. For Delhiites winter had already set in, with fogs and mists and cold seeping in to the bones have all started. In this spectacle there where children ranging from 2 ½   month old toddler to very old people sleeping on bare uneven ground, under the

Love – Its The Elixir of Life. It might be for a person, for the nation, for mankind. But actually, What is Love? Love, it is a feeling which comes from within, from our Self. Its a feeling believed to cure all ills. It is a feeling  which makes us the perfect human being. It is a feeling which transcends all feelings, all bonds and above all it helps us unite with the Supreme God.   Love is portrayed in many ways. Love of parents, children, friends, spouse, etc... But can we define love? No, we cannot because it is unique in nature. It holds special and different meaning for each person.   By a simple look, a smile, a pat, a gift,   but the end result is indeed worth reviving. The main quality of love is unselfishness. Love humbles the person, he loses his ego, so as to accommodate each and everybody. A mother becomes a mother not only to her child but also to other children too. She with her love conquers the heart of her kids, their friends, their parents and a chain reaction starts

            My mother had always been stingy on words. She never used words, more than was necessary but if she Gives a Word. She kept it.   When my dad passed away, my mom had to manage on her own, her trait of keeping word continued. I was used to this type of lifestyle, which I took it for granted. But after my dad’s death, I came out of the cocoon of my family. The outside world was crueler, there, the people were so blatant in using words, for making promises, lying, cheating, God knows, what all additives. It was a gory scene that people made with words. But whatever consequences, I learned one thing in life. The word, which comes from our mouth are more powerful, than actions.             I would like to say an incident, which happened not long back. A teacher promised a 10yr old child in the boarding, that she would allow her to call her parents, during the weekend. The boarder was very happy. The weekend arrived, the boarder asked the teacher, “Miss can I call my parents?” At

            It was during a marriage ceremony, a miracle happened, for me. It was ages back when marriage feast were not given for caterers. It was my cousin’s marriage and the neighbours, friends, relatives were all pitching in their share of presence in peeling, scraping, cooking and a lot of talks, laughter, shouts and running around. I was 17. I was also there sitting with the bride-to-be, who was also my best friend. She came to me secretly and told, “Our cooking gas is over and we cannot get a single cylinder from anywhere.” The first thought that came to mind was, “Ask Jesus”. And I told her, just give me five minutes, don’t worry, you’ll get your cylinder.” We both sat on the front stairs, where no one was there or was there? I don’t remember, but one thing was sure, no one knew we were praying, we sat there and I asked strongly “Jesus, you should really give us the gas cylinder, which we need it real real badly. And I included, please don’t humiliate me here because she knows