Song from "To Sir With Love"

A beautiful, inspirational song and movie.



Those schoolgirl days, of telling tales and biting nails are gone,
But in my mind,
I know they will still live on and on,
But how do you thank someone, who has taken you from crayons to perfume?
It isn't easy, but I'll try,

If you wanted the sky I would write across the sky in letters,
That would soar a thousand feet high,
To Sir, with Love

The time has come,
For closing books and long last looks must end,
And as I leave,

I know that I am leaving my best friend,
A friend who taught me right from wrong,
And weak from strong,
That's a lot to learn,
What, what can I give you in return?

If you wanted the moon I would try to make a start,
But I, would rather you let me give my heart,
To Sir, with Love

Chicken-a-la-Carte

These are moments of truth which makes us realise how fortunate and blessed we are, and that we must be conscious and empathic for those around us who are less fortunate.

This is a true Story 6 min film ..but really worth the time.

The film has won a prize in 2009 Berlin Movie Festival.

http://www.cultureunplugged.com/play/1081/Chicken-a-la-Carte

Law of the Garbage Truck..

One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport. We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches! The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really friendly.

So I asked, 'Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!'

This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call, 'The Law of the Garbage Truck.'

He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally.

Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets.

The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day. Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets,

so .... Love the people who treat you right. Pray for the ones who don't.

Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!

Have a garbage-free day!

Jityu Hamesha Gujarat..

"Jityu Hamesha Gujarat " is an Anthem for Gujarat sung by 25 celebrity Gujarati singers (Praful Dave, Aishwarya Majumdar, Padmashree Diwaliben Bhil, Ashit Desai, Hari Bharwad, Mouli Dave, Arti Munshi, Alap Desai, Hardik Dave, Shyamal Munshi, Saumil Munshi, Abhesinh Rathod, Achal Mehta, Uday Majumdar, Falguni Sheth, Dilip Dholakia, Purushottam Upadyay, Hema Desai. Hemant Chauhan, Karasan Sagathia, Keerti Sagathia, Neeraj Parikh, Biharidan Gadhvi, Damayanti Bardai, Bharti Kunchala, Viraj Upadhyay and Bijal Upadhyay).

It has been shot at scenic locations of Gujarat like Little Rann of Kutch (Dasada), River Narmada / Karjan Dam, Somnath / Arabian Sea, Tithal Beach of Valsad, Khadia ni Pol of Ahmedabad ,Half constructed Bridge of Sabarmati, Gandhi Ashram, Gallops Mall Street of Ahmedabad and Adalaj ni Vav.



I grew up in state of Gujarat, India. Gujarat is one of the most diverse States in India. Its history stretches over a long years from the age old Harappan Civilization to the Mughal period. Gujarat's endless journey from Roots to Wings is timeless with historical and cultural traditions glorifying the State. Proud to be a Gujarati.

Ignacy J. Paderewski..

This is a true story that had happened in 1892 at Stanford University . Its moral is still relevant today.
-------------

A young, 18-year-old student was struggling to pay his fees. He was an orphan, and not know­ing where to turn for money, he came up with a bright idea. A friend and he decided to host a musical concert on campus to raise money for their education.

They reached out to the great pianist Ignacy J. Paderewski. His manager demanded a guaranteed fee of $2000 for the piano recital. A deal was struck. And the boys began to work to make the concert a success.

The big day arrived. Paderewski performed at Stanford. But unfortunately, they had not managed to sell enough tickets. The total col­lection was only $1600. Disappointed, they went to Paderewski and explained their plight. They gave him the entire $1600, plus a cheque for the balance $400. They promised to honour the cheque soonest possible.

"No." said Paderewski. "This is not acceptable." He tore up the cheque, returned the $1600 and told the two boys "Here's the $1600. Please deduct whatever expenses you have incurred. Keep the money you need for your fees. And just give me whatever is left" The boys were surprised, and thanked him profusely.

It was a small act of kindness. But it clearly marked out Paderewski as a great human being. Why should he help two people he did not even know? We all come across situations like these in our lives. And most of us only think "If I help them, what would hap­pen to me?" The truly great people think, "If I don't help them, what will happen to them?" They don't do it expecting something in return. They do it because they feel it's the right thing to do.

Paderewski later went on to become the Prime Minister of Poland . He was a great leader, but unfortunately when the World War began, Poland was ravaged. There were over 1.5 mil­lion people starving in his country, and no money to feed them. Paderewski did not know where to turn for help. He reached out to the US Food and Relief Administration for help.

The head there was a man called Herbert Hoover - who later went on to become the US President. Hoover agreed to help and quickly shipped tons of food grains to feed the starving Polish people. A calamity was averted.

Paderewski was relieved. He decided to go across to meet Hoover and person­ally thank him. When Paderewski began to thank Hoover for his noble gesture, Hoover quickly interjected and said, "You shouldn't be thanking me Mr. Prime Minister. You may not remember this, but several years ago, you helped two young students go through college in the US . I was one of them."

The world is a wonderful place. What goes around usually comes around.

‎10 things to learn from Japan in the face of tragedy..

1. THE CALM -Not a single visual of chest-beating or wild grief. Sorrow itself has been elevated.
2. THE DIGNITY - Disciplined queues for water and groceries. Not a rough word or a crude gesture.
3. THE ABILITY - The incredible architects, for instance. Buildings swayed but didn’t fall.
4. THE GRACE - People bought only what they needed for the present, so everybody could get something.
5. THE ORDER - No looting in shops. No honking and no overtaking on the roads. Just understanding.
6. THE SACRIFICE - Fifty workers stayed back to pump sea water in the N-reactors. How will they ever be repaid?
7. THE TENDERNESS - Restaurants cut prices. An unguarded ATM is left alone. The strong cared for the weak.
8. THE TRAINING - The old and the children, everyone knew exactly what to do. And they did just that.
9. THE MEDIA - They showed magnificent restraint in the bulletins. No silly reporters. Only calm reportage.
10. THE CONSCIENCE - When the power went off in a store, people put things back on the shelves and left quietly.

Murphy's Laws of Parenting!

1. A child's greatest period of growth is the month after you've purchased new school clothes.
2. An alarm clock is a device for waking people up, who don't have small kids.
3. Any child can tell you that the sole purpose of a middle name is so he can tell when he's really in trouble.
4. Anyone who says "Easy as taking candy from a baby" has never tried it.
5. Children are natural mimics who act like their parents, despite every effort to teach them good manners.
6. Children don't sleep ... they recharge.
7. Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn't have said.
8. Cleaning your house while your kids are at home is like trying to shovel the driveway during a snowstorm.
9. Grandchildren are God's reward for not killing your kids. -- really true.
10. Gym clothes left at school in lockers mildew at a faster rate than other clothing.
11. If raising children was going to be easy, it never would have started with something called labor!
12. Kids really brighten a household. They never turn off any lights.
13. Leakproof thermoses - will.
14. Refrigerated items, used daily, will gravitate toward the back of the refrigerator.
15. Shouting to make your kids obey is like using the horn to steer your car and you get about the same results!
16. Sick children recover miraculously when the doctor enters the treatment room.
17. Teach a child to be polite and courteous in the home and when he grows up, he'll never be able to merge his car onto a freeway.
18. The item your child lost, and must have for school within the next ten seconds, will be found in the last place you look.
19. The chances of a piece of bread falling with the grape jelly side down is directly proportional to the cost of the carpet.
20. The garbage truck will be two doors past your house when the argument over "whose day it is to take out the trash" ends.
21. The main purpose of holding children's parties is to remind yourself that there are children more awful than your own.
22. The shirt your child must wear today will be the only one that needs to be washed or mended.
23. The tennis shoes you must replace today will go on sale next week.
24. There are only two things a child will share willingly - communicable diseases and their mother's age.
25. Trying to dress an active little one is like trying to thread a sewing machine while it's running.
26. We childproofed our home three years ago and they're still getting in!
27. You spend the first two years of their life teaching them to walk and talk. Then, you spend the next sixteen telling them to sit down and shut up.
28. Your chances of being seen by someone you know dramatically increase if you drive your child to school in your robe and curlers.
29. Your children may leave home, but their stuff will be in your attic and basement forever.

દોસ્ત, આ ગુજરાત છે!

અહીં પ્રેમ કેરો સાદ છે

પ્રભુજીનો પ્રસાદ છે

ને પ્રકૃતિનો વરસાદ છે!

બૉસ, આ ગુજરાત છે!

અહીં નર્મદાનાં નીર છે

માખણ અને પનીર છે

ને ઊજળું તકદીર છે!

યસ, આ ગુજરાત છે!

અહીં ગરબા-રાસ છે

વળી જ્ઞાનનો ઉજાસ છે

ને સોનેરી પરભાત છે

અલ્યા, આ ગુજરાત છે!

અહીં ભોજનમાં ખીર છે

સંસ્કારમાં ખમીર છે

ને પ્રજા શૂરવીર છે!

કેવું આ ગુજરાત છે!

અહીં વિકાસની વાત છે

સાધુઓની જમાત છે

ને સઘળી નાત-જાત છે

યાર, આ ગુજરાત છે!

અહીં પર્વોનો પ્રાસ છે

તીર્થો તણો પ્રવાસ છે

ને શૌર્યનો સહવાસ છે!

દોસ્ત, આ ગુજરાત છે!

A Nice Message..

Good things come to those who wait,

Better things come to those who try,

Best things come to those who believe,

Desired things come to those who pray!

Gratitude to A Soldier..

I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down inmy assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight. 'I'm glad I have a good book to read and perhaps I will get a short nap,' I thought. Just before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to start aconversation. 'Where are you headed?' I asked the soldier seated nearest to me. 'Petawawa. We'll be there for two weeks for special training, and then we're being deployed to Afghanistan.  After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that sack lunches were available for five dollars...

It would be several hours before we reached the east, and I quickly decided a lunch wouldhelp pass the time....As I reached for my wallet, I overheard soldier ask his buddy if he planned to buy lunch. 'No, that seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch. Probably wouldn't be worth five bucks. I'll wait till we get to base ' His friend agreed. I looked around at the other soldiers. None were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant a fifty dollar bill. 'Take a lunch to all those soldiers. 'She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me. 'My son was a soldier in Iraq; it's almost like you are doing it for him.'Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the soldiers were seated. She stopped at my seat and asked, 'Which do you like best - beef or chicken?' 'Chicken,' I replied, wondering why she asked. She turned and went to the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from firstclass. 'This is yours with thanks...

'After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane, heading for the rest room. A man stopped me. 'I saw what you did. I want to be part of it. Here, take this.' He handed me twenty-five dollars. Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Aircraft Pilot coming down the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked, I hoped he was not looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on my side of the plane.When he got to my row he stopped, smiled, held out his hand, and said, 'I want to shake your hand.'

Quickly unfastening my seatbelt I stood and took the Captain's hand. With a booming voice he said, 'I was a soldier and I was a military pilot... Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot.' I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of the passengers. Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs. A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached out his hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five dollars in my palm.

When we landed I gathered my belongings and started to deplane. Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped me, put something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a word. Another twenty-five dollars!

Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their trip to the base. I walked over to them and handed them seventy-five dollars. 'It will take you some time to reach the base.It will be about time for a sandwich. God Bless You. 'Ten young men left that flight feeling the love and respect of their fellowtravelers. As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a prayer fortheir safe return. These soldiers were giving their all for our country. I could only give them a couple of meals..

It seemed so little...

A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to his country for an amount of 'up to and including my life.'

Important Question..

The room was full of pregnant women with their partners ... the class was in full swing. The instructor was teaching the women how to breathe properly and was telling the men how to give the necessary assurance to their partners at this stage of the pregnancy.

She said, "Ladies, remember that exercise is good for you. Walking is especially beneficial. It strengthens the pelvic muscles and will make delivery that much easier. Just take several stops and stay on a soft surface like grass or a path."

She looked at the men in the room,"and Gentlemen, please remember -- you're in this together -- It wouldn't hurt you to go walking with her."

The room suddenly got very quiet as the men absorbed this information. Then a man at the back of the room slowly raised his hand.

"Yes, answered the Instructor.

"I was just wondering if it would be all right if she carries a golf bag while we walk?

---- This kind of sensitivity just can't be taught

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime..

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.

When you know which one it is, you will know what to do for that Person..

When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need

You have expressed.

They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with

Guidance and support,

To aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually.

They may seem like a godsend and they are.

They are there for the reason you need them to be.

Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time,

This person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an End.

Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away.

Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.

What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire

Fulfilled, their work is done.

The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.

Some people come into your life for a SEASON, because your turn has

Come to share, grow or learn.

They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh.

They may teach you something you have never done.

They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy..

Believe it, it is real. But only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons,

Things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional Foundation..

Your job is to accept the lesson,

Love the person and put what you have learned to use in all other

Relationships and areas of your life.

It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

A Day Made of Glass... Made possible by Corning.

Very Interesting and Impressive.

Miscommunication..

Beauty of English..

Professor Ernest Brennecke of Columbia is credited with inventing a sentence that can be made to have eight different meanings by placing ONE WORD in all possible positions in the sentence: "I hit him in the eye yesterday".

The Query: What is this word?

The Answer: The word is "ONLY".

The Message:

1. ONLY I hit him in the eye yesterday. (No one else did.)
2. I ONLY hit him in the eye yesterday. (Did not slap him.)
3. I hit ONLY him in the eye yesterday. (I did not hit others.)
4. I hit him ONLY in the eye yesterday. (I did not hit outside the eye.)
5. I hit him in ONLY the eye yesterday. (Not other organs.)
6. I hit him in the ONLY eye yesterday. (He doesn't have another eye.)
7. I hit him in the eye ONLY yesterday. (Not today.)
8. I hit him in the eye yesterday ONLY. (Did not wait for today.)

Conservative v/s Liberal

A young woman was about to finish her first year of college. Like so many others her age, she considered herself to be very liberal, and among other liberal ideals, was very much in favor of higher taxes to support more government programs, in other words redistribution of wealth.

She was deeply ashamed that her father was a rather staunch conservative, a feeling she openly expressed. Based on the lectures that she had participated in, and the occasional chat with a professor, she felt that her father had for years harbored an evil, selfish desire to keep what he thought should be his.

One day she was challenging her father on his opposition to higher taxes on the rich and the need for more government programs.

The self-professed objectivity proclaimed by her professors had to be the truth and she indicated so to her father. He responded by asking how she was doing in school.

Taken aback, she answered rather haughtily that she had a 4.0 GPA, and let him know that it was tough to maintain, insisting that she was taking a very difficult course load and was constantly studying, which left her no time to go out and party like other people she knew. She didn't even have time for a boyfriend, and didn't really have many college friends because she spent all her time studying.

Her father listened and then asked, "How is your friend Audrey doing?" She replied, "Audrey is barely getting by. All she takes are easy classes, she never studies and she barely has a 2.0 GPA.

She is so popular on campus; college for ! her is a blast. She's always invited to all the parties and lots of times she doesn't even show up for classes because she's too hung over."

Her wise father asked his daughter, "Why don't you go to the Dean's office and ask him to deduct 1.0 off your GPA and give it to your friend who only has a 2.0. That way you will both have a 3.0 GPA and certainly that would be a fair and equal distribution of GPA."

The daughter, visibly shocked by her father's suggestion, angrily fired back, "That's a crazy idea, how would that be fair! I've worked really hard for my grades! I've invested a lot of time, and a lot of hard work! Audrey has done next to nothing toward her degree. She played while I worked my tail off!"

The father slowly smiled, winked and said gently, "Welcome to the conservative side of the fence."

If you ever wondered what side of the fence you sit on, this is a great test!

If a conservative doesn't like guns, he doesn't buy one.

If a liberal doesn't like guns, he wants all guns outlawed.

If a conservative is a vegetarian, he doesn't eat meat.

If a liberal is a vegetarian, he wants all meat products banned for

everyone.

If a conservative is down-and-out, he thinks about how to better his

situation.

A liberal wonders who is going to take care of him.

If a conservative doesn't like a talk show host, he switches channels.

Liberals demand that those they don't like be shut down.

If a conservative is a non-believer, he doesn't go to church.

A liberal non-believer wants any mention of God and religion silenced.

(Unless it's a foreign religion, of course!)

If a conservative decides he needs health care, he goes about shopping!

for it, or may choose a job that provides it.

A liberal demands that the rest of us pay for his.