Mistakes aren't always stepping-stones

I have always maintained that the English language is a beautiful one albeit filled with plenty of idiosyncrasies and crazy contextual vagrancies! This could be just my viewpoint, of course. Many people find it easier to express themselves in their native language. Though I grew up in a household that gave a lot of importance to awareness about my native language, I must admit that English is the language I think in. It, thereby, became the language I express myself in the best way.

As the years rolled on, I have fallen more and more in love with the language. So much so that I have begun to almost revere it! :D But this has led to a problem of sorts. I can't tolerate mistakes - either grammatical or spelling! I find it (almost) criminal to make a mistake. I make mistakes too...for I am no machine. But each time I make a mistake or am told of a mistake, I make a mental note never to make it again. I would definitely not get angry with the person who pointed it out, let alone talk about them behind their backs ('who does he/she think he/she is?Shakespeare?')...

It is that very treatment that has been meted out to me most often. I get told off for correcting people on their vocabulary. People say their ego is hurt when a mistake is pointed out to them. I get told, 'But you understood what I was trying to say,no? That is important'...No,THAT is not the only thing that's important, IMHO. I find it irresistible to NOT to point out a mistake when it is made. I surely mean no harm...nor is my intent to belittle the other person. Period. But a mistake is...well...a mistake. And it is the duty of any person with a higher level of knowledge about any subject to correct another person when he/she makes a mistake in that subject. I consider it as just another way of spreading knowledge. And knowledge is a much better thing to spread than gossip or hatred! My corrective statements and raised eyebrows may be offensive to many, and I do know that I have hurt many an ego with my blunt remarks. I would be happy if people were to realise that my comments are just like an artist's advice at an amateur's careless stroke...or like how a mother adds that additonal pinch of salt to her daughter's first try at cooking (ah!now it's perfect,honey!)...I wish more people would understand.

It actually feels nice to be a candle that lights a million candles...rather than be a mirror that merely reflects :)

Hmm.....

Tears:Summer showers to the soul

The other day, I shed a few precious tears (for reasons I don't want to disclose here anyway ;) ). And let's say I had, what I'd like to call, an 'Isaac Newton' moment :D Meaning to say that the entire deed set me thinking...why did I cry now? (Okay,the first answer i got was the obvious reason as to WHY i cried...talking about the next level of the thought process here) I mean,what set off those tiny glands?Why tears when I could have had any other emotion? I could have talked it out with someone or written about it or gotten angry or whatever! But I cried. Why? Just a little deeper thought and I had my answer ready.

Imagine (or rather look back at) the day when you achieved something you had really worked hard for...something you had put your heart and soul into. It could be anything - a school prize, an acknowledgement, a grade, even a 'yes' from someone you love! Or think of a time when grief engulfed you in its murky blanket...so much so that no amount of consolation can soothe you - the loss of a loved one,an unfair accusation, getting second place by too small a margin. These are times when emotions are capable of overwhelming you...in the sense that it fills your heart and soul to the brim. You just can't take it any more. Words seem to fail you. You feel like you would rip at the seams! That's when you cry.

Crying is probably one of the best ways to let out the emotions brimming and sloshing inside you. At that moment your heart is akin to an irresponsibly filled glass...one little nudge and everything spills over! It's not always the prettiest of emotions to behold. But I am sure that many would agree with me that a good long cry does wonders to your mood, although your circumstance may or may not have changed at all. I have seen people getting hysterical and crying on TV when they see their favourite celebrity at a show (usually for Michael Jackson's shows). Why do they do that? It's just an expression of so much adulation for that icon whom they have come to idolise and worship. It is not at all a planned thing. Just an automatic body mechanism. The heart can contain a lot of things...emotions,sentiments,love,hatred,anger,jealousy,envy...but there a limit as to how much of the same thing it can handle at a time.

Then there is the famed 'tears of joy'. Oh!That's something that happens to almost everyone (it's yet to happen to me...I'm still waiting *wink*wink*). We see people getting so elated at something and then they just break down crying with that smile still on! Mothers are the best example for this. We've all seen our mothers break into tears of joy at something. For them, each thing we do is special :)

I don't know if many people do it but I cry when I'm angry. And I'm talking extreme anger here. An optional emotion would be...ahem...murder :D At such times, you really don't get the right words to express yourself. You know you have been wronged...and you sooo want to wring the neck of the @#$%&*%$# who dared to hurt you...or you know that all the allegations against you are false but nobody would believe you...or you're just plain hopping mad! In short, you're in a situation where you're alone,angry,helpless and frustrated.Just cry!Or wail....bawl....scream from the rooftop...weep....do something!But let the briny flood flow out of your eyes.

They say that holding back tears is such a wrong thing to do. Like famous British psychiatrist Henry Maudsley once said 'The sorrow which has no vent in tears may make other organs weep'. Yes...it is so true. Tears that are contained/withheld can harm you. Your mindset, your mood, your very persona....everything is affected. I, for one, get a splitting headache :-/ It's popularly considered 'feminine' to cry. Which is so wrong!Men ought to cry. Just for the reason that they are brawny and muscular, that does not mean that their hearts are made of stone! Men are emotionally weaker than women. The apt way to vent out your feelings would be to just cry in your privacy. There is absolutely no need to advertise your emotions, of course, keeping the rather critical society in picture. But let them out...it's wrong to hold back tears that wish to be freed.

Remember......Tears are the safety valve of the heart when too much pressure is laid on it.(Albert Smith)

Cheers! :)

Weirdest of the Weird

The Piri Reis Maps

16th century Turkish geographer and cartographer Piri Reis created some of the most accurate maps of the world including then-unknown places like Antartica...with the contours and details put in so perfectly that they almost look as if they had been lifted off Google Maps!Antarctica was 'discovered' only on 7 February 1821 by American sealer John Davis. How did Piri Reis make those maps then???

Island of Crete

In 1995, archaeologists discovered a piece of a large clay object that had imprints of the parts of a modern-day heavy-duty helicopter. The clay slab dates to a period more than two millenia ago. Given the fact that Crete has been an island for more than 5 million years, it is also interesting to note that there have been evidence of pre-human maritime activity to the island. Stone tools that are at least 130,000 years old have been unearthed, though the earliest known sea-travel was that of the much evolved Homo Sapiens to Australia about 60,000 years ago. Read more @ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/16/science/16archeo.html

Silbury Hill, England

This is the largest artificial hill in Europe. Believed to conceal an ancient step-pyramid, this mound has several mysteries attached to it.It is a part of the Avebury-Stonehenge UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is built in exactly the same way as the Giza pyramids of Egypt. The fields that lie around the mound have often been in news for the mysterious crop circles that form there. The Silbury/Avebury complex  together with Stonehenge and Glastonbury, combine to form a right angled triangle across the English landscape. The Hypotenuse is formed by the St. Michael's ley-line, which crosses England along the zenith of the May-day sun.Avebury sits exactly 1/4 of a degree north of Stonehenge. Read more @ http://www.ancient-wisdom.co.uk/englandsilburyhill.htm

Nazca Lines, Peru

The Nazca valley is a strip of level desert ground 37 miles long and a mile wide. The enormous drawings were made by removing the dark purple granite pebbles which cover the floor, and exposing the light yellow sand beneath.


The drawings were first confirmed when commercial airlines began flights over the Andes. The purpose of these drawings and the reason for their enormous size has been much debted over the years though no conclusions have been arrived at as yet.


Read more @ http://www.ancient-wisdom.co.uk/perunazca.htm 

Spheres of Costa Rica

Also known as the Diquis Spheres, the spheres of Costa Rica are mysterious rock formations in a perfectly round shape. They are more than 300 in number and are found scattered all over the region in a more-or-less geometrical pattern. The spheres range in size from a few centimetres to over 2 metres (6.6 ft) in diameter, and weigh up to 16 short tons (15 t).The stones are believed to have been carved between 200 BC and 1500 AD.

Ashoka Pillar, New Delhi

Considered to be one of the symbols of pride of India, the 7m high pillar located in the Qutub Complex is known to be unbelievably corrosion resistant,in spite of being made out of 98% wrought iron.


The pillar, which weighs more than six tons, is said to have been fashioned at the time of Chandragupta Vikramaditya (375–413) of the Gupta Empire though other authorities give dates as early as 912 BCE.


It is believed to have served as a sundial at some point of time while it was originally housed within the compound of a Jain temple.

The Siboglinidae or the Vestimentifera

One of the most mysterious creatures living on earth today, the Vestimentifera are a phylum of giant tape-worms that grow more than 2 meters in length and are found at ocean depths from 100 to 10,000 m . The pressure at these depths are close to 260 atmospheres and their primary nutrition is derived from the sulphide-rich fluids emanating from the hydrothermal vents they live by. The fact that these creatures still exist prove that even after all life has been wiped off the face of the earth, these underwater beings will surive.

Taung Child

The Taung Child — or Taung Baby — is the fossilized skull of a young Australopithecus africanus individual. It was discovered in 1924 by quarrymen working for the Northern Lime Company in Taung, South Africa.


Raymond Dart (1893–1988), an anatomist at the University of Witwatersrand, received the fossil, recognized its importance and published his discovery in the journal Nature in 1925, describing it as a new species.


The fossil consists of most of the face and mandible with teeth and, uniquely, a natural endocast of the braincase. It is estimated to be 2.5 million years old.