The Letter

To the child who lost his father,

Hi there. How are you holding up these days? I know it is hard and you are doing great. I am proud of you.

I know how irritating the lines above are and you are thinking what does this person know about what I am going through or how hard this is. But I do. I know exactly how hard it is, because I have been through it. I am going through it. I know how most of the times you feel so alone or how you feel that the future ahead is dark and hopeless. I know how you are trying to pull away from your friends because you think they don’t have a clue about how hard your life has suddenly become. I know how sometimes all you want to do is cry. I won't tell you not to. It is how you grieve.  I know how unfair all of it is.

I wish I had a solution to your problem. I wish I could tell you ‘go do this and the pain will go away’. I wish there was some cure because I know it hurts too bad. But there isn’t one. I have looked hard and not found any.

I will not tell you not to cry, because that is pure rubbish. How can anyone expect a child who lost his father not to cry. Cry. Cry your heart out. It will not take away the pain but it will lessen it. Get up everyday and think of nothing but the fact that you survived another night. Do not give up yet. I know that you feel that this is the end but it isn’t. There are many great thing which you still have to experience. Wait for them. And even though your father won’t be physically there with you, he’ll be there in your heart and your memories, where he’ll live forever.

And do not give up on your friends. Trust me they will be the people who give you strength. Even if they don’t understand what you are going through they will be there for you through everything. They will be the anchor. They will stop you from getting lost in the sea of sadness.

And in the end, don’t ever think that you are alone. You have me. We are here for you. All those who have lost a loved one, all those who have been through the pain. We are here for you. You are in our prayers. You will survive.

With love,

Someone who really understands.

New Year

So what happens now? New year. How do things change? How can anyone expect one whole year to be good? I, for one, know that it won’t be. Come to  think of it, I can even mention some thing that will go wrong this year. So what is all the excitement about? I will make some friends and lose some like I did last year. So what will make this year different?

It is the hope that better things are coming. The hope that even tough there is suffering ahead but, maybe there is a greater happiness. Each one of us, some consciously other unconsciously, said a small prayer in their heart as they stepped into the new year. And everybody asked, or rather hoped for the same thing.  Here’s my prayer

‘I know that I have had some bitter thing happen last year. And I am not naïve enough to believe that the next year wont have bitter experiences. But I have faith in myself  that I will grow spiritually and emotionally this year, so that the things that bother me today won’t trouble me by the end of the coming year’

Take life one day at a time. One good deed a day.  Don’t make a resolution. Instead set a realistic goal. Work hard to accomplish it. And start on the first day. If on 1^st Jan you couldn’t do what you promised yourself, you wont ever be able to.

Live life fully. You never know which day is your last. Forget money for a while and be different. Learn to help people. Let go of the fears that are holding you back and explore something new. Let today be the day you change, not this year. Then only will this year be a good one. Good things won’t come to you, you’ll have to work to get to them.