A Date To Remember - April 18, 2008

If Richie, my choir master, had ever approached me with a request to join a choir giving a 10 year commitment, I would have run hundred miles away from such a ridiculous demand. But here we are, celebrating the 10th anniversary of my choir – yes the Marian Choir which began on April 18, 1998 with Richie, myself and a handful of others has turned ten years old. And what a decade it has been.
What memories – of singing every Sunday at our slotted 9.00 am mass, of fun practices every Friday evening, of singing for weddings of near ones and funerals of dear ones, of participating in the annual choral festivals at NCPA for six consecutive years. Such fond moments – of a choir which started out with just 7-8 members and grew to more than 25, so many have come and gone and keep coming back, we can safely say we represent a larger version of the Von Trapp family. And our Christopher Plummer, I mean Richie, needs nothing less than an Oscar for not only his relentless dedication but also for turning a noisy nuisance bunch of croaking pranksters like me into a more than decent choir.
Kudos to the Marian Choir.

Well, on the same day, 4 stations away at Goregaon, a priest got ordained. Brother Jude whom Trudy and I had had a brief encounter with at youth camp, a few months earlier, became Fr Magi Murzello on April 18, 1998 and entered our parish and our lives. I proudly say I’m the first person he met in this parish when he approached me and asked for directions in the church compound, little did I realize then that he was nothing less than a God sent guardian angel to guide and guard me. To those who don’t know him, he is a priest cum principal with educational qualifications that can put many doctors to shame, with knowledge so profound that he won the All India Bournvita Quiz Contest for Principals. He is a task master who can make most youth, student and teachers shiver at his command. To me and my family, he has been a confidant, a counselor and a close friend who would rush to your aid no matter what the hour of day. I can safely say that over these ten years there have been many pitfalls I would not have come out of and many more pitfalls I would have fallen into if it had not been for his guidance. And I won’t say anymore, else he’ll also become my murderer for embarrassing him so much.
Thank You Fr Magi.

And I just can’t reminisce over this day without remembering my Goldie; it’s our fourth anniversary today. It was on April 18, 2004 that she entered my life and it’s been one whirlwind of an affair ever since. Her sexy moves, her smooth drives, her soft caresses, her body of sensual curves, her racing spirit, her melodious voice, her amazing power has so attracted me these past years and driven me crazy – literally.
Oh, come off the wild imaginations; don’t tell me you don’t know who I’m talking about. My first love – MH23. E 1620 – MARUTI ZEN LX
I Love You My Goldie

Shall We Dance !!

So this Guy walks up to the Gal and asks her ‘Would you like to be my partner?’ She accepts, and they become partners for the dance.
The dance starts with the American FoxTrot and they have a ball of a time. They realize how well they blend, how perfect they are for each other, how they move together so gracefully with such charm and finesse.
Then suddenly the guy decides to change the music and switches to some waltz tracks. He happily starts leading the girl and she obediently follows. But after a few rounds she starts to tire of being lead all the time. She has been a solo dancer most of these years, choosing her own moves, so now she gets nervous at dancing to someone else’s tunes. The result - she starts her own moves and tries to lead the guy.
This poor chap can’t for the life of him understand what exactly is happening. She is suddenly the boss, trying to guide him, stepping on his toes, entering into his space. Their earlier graceful movements now start looking as jagged as the writing of a pen with a rough nib.
This change of power is too confusing for him; he starts feeling claustrophobic, so he changes the music to his favourite heavy metal numbers and joins his male friends in the head banging moves they enjoy best, leaving his female partner all to herself.
Totally upset and frustrated by her guy leaving her alone while he thrives in his male bonding, she suddenly spots one of her ex – dance partners at the far end of the room. Wanting to taste sweet revenge, she ambles up to him and with a flutter of her eyelids, cajoles him into accompany her in the next dance. She then cleverly changes the beats from rock to salsa, not only since she and her ex can rock the dance floor with their salsa moves, but because her present guy does not know the A to Zee of this dance.
Should I even mention how furious he gets at seeing his girl dance with her ex on tunes they know best? He can’t even butt in since he would just make a fool of himself, not knowing which leg to move first to get the dance started. He knows the only way to get her back is by offering her something she just can’t resist.
So, he changes the music to the ever graceful Cha-Cha-Cha, puts his ego aside, walks up to her and requests her – not only to join him in this dance but also to lead him in it, since he is still rough at the edges for this particular sequence. Now this is an offer she just can’t refuse. I mean imagine finally getting an upper hand over him. So kissing off a good bye to her ever mystified ex, she leads her guy on to the dance floor and the born leader in her takes over.
Do you think this will last for long – oh no, the guy just cannot control the growing agony of his ego while he is being stared upon by his shocked male comrades. “Man, I’ve got to do something”, he thinks to himself, “which lets me lead here and at the same time does not arouse the demon in her”.
So finally, he cleverly changed the music to their favourite Jive beats which lets him lead and does not threaten her dominant spirit. And they thoroughly enjoy the rest of the dance.

When someone asked them to give a name to this entire sequence of tunes where the most important deciding factor was who leads whom, they both smiled and said
‘We call it Marriage!!!!’

A Seven Rung Ladder (Sequel to 'The Ideal Dust')

So angel Alyssa and her companion stepped out of the pearly gates to commence their journey as mortals.
In front of them stood a huge seven rung ladder, which would lead them to Earth.

They stepped on to the first rung, a rung filled with bright RED hearts. In the middle of the rung, a huge heart was placed on which were painted the words

Here is your armour, of courage, strength and love
No situation too bleak can make you frail or weak
When armed with the best gifts from God above

They carried these hearts onto the next step, a step covered with bright ORANGE ribbons. There were ribbons floating everywhere. And each ribbon carried the words...

A ribbon of gaiety, a ribbon of cheer
A ribbon of youth and vibrance for you
No evil on earth should an angel ever fear

With that message, they jumped onto the next step - it was covered with gifts wrapped in YELLOW. And the card on each gift read

The gift of wisdom, for every decision you make
The gift of confidence, for every step you take
Be strong Alyssa, in the world you are to face

As they moved to the fourth rung, getting closer to earth, they stepped onto a bright GREEN carpet. They were surrounded with the greenest of grass and tallest of trees. They moved to the nearest tree and on the bark was written...

Be one with nature, protect and preserve
All God's creations should be treated alike
A fair chance to survive, do they all deserve

The fifth rung rained BLUE dew drops all over them, the dew carried a moisture of peace and loyalty. And the sign said

These drops of blue seep through to your soul
Each drop of peace to keep you serene
Those of loyalty keep you true to your goal

On the next rung, they were covered with rays of INDIGO, shining brightly on them. They basked in the light while they read the message....

Rays of indigo, shine strong and bright
Truth & Honesty, is the glare they carry
Will highlight the line between wrong and right

Well finally they stepped onto the last rung - which was covered by a bed of VIOLETS. As they walked through it, each of the flowers bloomed and out poured a sign which read

These buds of violet, bloomed specially for you
For kindness of heart, do they here impart
From harshness of earth, to keep you apart

And armed with these gifts, Alyssa and her companion finally reached earth to start their journey called life.




So each time you look to the sky and see a rainbow, remember, its just not an ordinary rainbow, its a seven rung ladder bringing an angel down from heaven to fill our life with gifts galore.