What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind?

This question has been haunting me since a long time. After spending months at home, being forced to confront my own thoughts has led me to a few realizations. The multiple covid lockdowns made me realize how everything around us is temporary. It got me thinking that with the maximum amount of time that I do get around this beautiful planet, what it is that I want to leave behind, what do I want the world to remember me by? Which also makes me realize that for me to leave something behind, I need to take actions to actually create a legacy.

India recently lost one of its iconic singers, KK. All of us 90s kids have expressed love, been heart-broken, celebrated friendships through his songs. He had a poetic death where he passed away after performing for a concert, he literally died doing what he loved. I’ve always felt that there’s a missing piece in my life even if everything seems to be going great. It is this missing part of the puzzle that sends me searching out for something more. I once saw a movie where the actor is asked – “You are doing this job to live the life you are living now, but what do you do for yourself?” To which the actor replies, “I write.” There are things you do in life which fulfil a practical purpose but we also tend to seek things that fulfil our souls.

Legacy can be anything, for some it is the wealth they earn, for some it’s their kids, for some it’s their work. I feel legacy is all about what YOU want to be remembered by and then working towards that purpose. For some it may take a shorter time, for some it might be a longer wait. However, it is all worth it to see the day you feel the contentment in your heart, knowing that this is the missing piece of my life I’ve searched for all along!

I believe that legacy also lies in how you are remembered by as a person. I still love how my loving Grandma is remembered by everyone in her town as one of the kindest souls they had come across. She also planted a few mango trees during her time and now we are able to relish their fruits even today. This inspires me to take actions today that I know would benefit not only my time on this planet, but would benefit generations to come. I still haven’t figured out HOW I plan to do it. But that’s what life is for, to search for things that brighten up your soul and keep working on them till you can!

PS: Thanks for reading through this post. It has been a long time since I wrote. But I know I’ll always make a comeback. What legacy do you envision to leave behind? Would absolutely love to read your thoughts on it!

The journey of becoming a writer

Exactly a year ago, I started writing and updating my blog regularly on WordPress and Instagram (I created ‘The Shooting Star Blog’ in 2015 as a hobby). Being stuck at home due to covid-related lockdowns, I had finally found the time and determination needed to write consistently. And here I am, a year later, holding a book that has one of my pieces in PRINT!!

From writing poems on the back side of my question papers in school to finding one of my poems being printed in a physical book (e-book as well!), it’s been quite an amazing journey. Also, my favorite part of it all is that one of my poems I had written celebrating Women’s Day is being published.

This also reinstates my faith in the Universe and makes me believe that if you pour your heart into something you really care about and put in your honest efforts, things do tend to work out. Generally, for the best.💫

P.S: It’s available for purchase using the following link:
https://www.amazon.in/dp/9391228410/ref=cm_sw_r_wa_api_glc_fabc_JSZ4505HQ5HEXATWPST1

Museum Day

Happy International Museum Day! 🦕

The best part about museums is the unsaid stories that you try to uncover, dreaming about a world that existed thousands of years ago or sometimes trying to understand an artist’s thought procedure, wondering what really inspired them to go out there and create those beautiful pieces of art.

Looking back at this picture taken at the American Museum of Natural History, it reminds me of how we have evolved and mainly, adapted. We, ourselves, are a striking reminder that humans have made it through so many difficulties and changes over time. And even though this pandemic has upturned this world, we, this resilient species, will make it through again. ✨

PS: Finally getting back to writing after a short break. The covid crisis in India has been heartbreaking and overwhelming. Trying to slowly get back in the groove. Hope everyone out there is doing well! Thanks for reading. 🙂

Prisoners of the free world

This image was taken at the Alcatraz prison, which is just 1.5 miles away by sea from San Francisco city. Walking through the matchbox sized cells with rusty metal bars, it made me wonder how the lives of the inmates of this prison would’ve been like. The prisoners had this beautiful view of the Golden gate bridge on one side and the SF skyline lurking on the other.

The tour guide told us, that the smell of chocolate from the famous Ghirardelli factory nearby, used to spread across the island. The irony for the prisoners here was that they could’ve had everything that one could wish for, just 1.5 miles away. And yet, because of the burden of their crimes, this small distance kept them away from the real world.

Alcatraz Island, California

I also happened to stumble upon a prisoner’s cell (above image) who’s art made me stop and wonder that, if he was out here in the real world, he would’ve definitely made it as an artist! Such a waste of talent. When I come to think of it, we as humans, sometimes imprison ourselves in this crazy web of life, that we forget about the beauty that lies underneath. I mean, this one life, wouldn’t you want to make it big?

This guy, he was stuck in one place and yet, he tried to make something out of literally nowhere! And here we are, free as birds, yet caged by these shackles of a monotonous life, societal pressures and procrastination. One of these days, I hope you break free from these chains and paint a beautiful picture in real life as well!

Friendships lost and found

Isla and me decided to meet at Pebble beach. She always loved the beach. Probably because her name itself meant an island in Spanish – Isla. I faintly remembered our beach getaways during college days. It had been 10 years since our last rendezous at the beach. Since the Californian winds blew quietly that day, we decided to directly head down to the beach.

For the longest time we just sat quietly on the sand, staring at the deep blue ocean in front of us. The sound of the crashing waves being the only sound amidst the awkward silence. I suddenly remembered, this place was called “Pebble beach” and I saw all these pebbles lying around. I grabbed some pebbles from around and started stacking them one above the other. Isla joined in too. We both got engrossed in placing the pebbles on top of each other, trying to maintain their balance. While we were at it, I said, “You know, people stack these stones to make a..”. “Wish! I know”, she said and smiled. I smiled as well, amused at how she remembered this random thing I once told her.

Just like that, here we were, 10 years later, skeptical if we had lost our connection and wondering if our friendship could ever make sense again. Yet, we were back to being those same two kids who used to run off to the beach, where we would stack some pebbles together, wishing for future adventures together.

I didn’t wish for anything that day and I know she didn’t as well. Maybe, one of our wishes from the past did come true. Because here we were, reunited as the best friends we always thought we were.

Pressed flowers in a book

Let’s collect flowers and save them in a book
Pressed amidst random pages, where no one would look
From the days when we wished for the time to stop
So that our good times would run in an endless loop

Let these flowers you pick from the ground
Remind you of days that made you forget time
And how happy you were in your own little world
Oblivious to everything happening around you

And each time you come across a dried little flower
I hope the faint scent and its imprints on the pages
Remind you of a time when this flower was in full bloom
But right now, it’s a cherished memory, an invaluable heirloom

– Ashwini

P.S: We found these cherry blossom trees in the Japanese Tea Garden located in the San Francisco Botanical Garden. Eagerly waiting for the cherry blossoms to arrive again this Spring!

The flowers that bloom

If you ever wonder what you’re made of,
Think about the flowers that bloom through branches and thorns alike
Their purpose is to grow into these beautiful flowers
That makes walkers stop by to adore and smell
Or make people carry a fresh bunch home
To remind them how beautiful this world actually is
How even a single stem can brighten up your day
And how an entire bunch fills your entire room with fragrance

Let these flowers remind you
That you too, are meant to grow into something beautiful
Sometimes you need to just let yourself be
Maybe a sunflower, maybe an orchid, maybe a tulip
You don’t need to be a part of the same bunch

Choose whatever you want to be and sow the seeds today
Slowly growing roots and expanding your stems
Even if the world looks at you just as a bud today,
There will be a time when you too, will be in full bloom. 🌸

– Ashwini

P.S: Came across these lovely flowers while taking a walk in New York City. Loving the spring vibes all around!

The waterfall..

They say, she tells a story without any words
All you have to do is pause and simply watch her flourish
Through the long branches of trees old and new
How she cuts through massive rocks that try to block her way
And flows over the tiny pebbles that people once threw

She doesn’t seem to care how they view her or judge her criss-cross path
For all she knew was to flourish through it all
Changing courses when the obstacles didn’t let her slide through
For one way or the other she was meant to endlessly flow

She moved seamlessly, being her unapologetic self
That grew and outgrew everything that came under her way
Roaring through the wild forests, “I am born this way and this is what I am meant to do”,
She gathered all of her forces and incessantly she moved

Leaving the world to see the marvel that she was
A natural beauty, creating magic wherever she falls ✨

– Ashwini

P.S: This picture was taken at the Smoky Mountain National Park in North Carolina and was shot on my good old iPhone 8. Always fun to try something new in photography! Also, happy weekend!

To shine..

All I’ve ever know in my life
Is to shine
Amongst heads held high and hearts full of pride
Even through dark night skies
And peeking through skyscrapers so high
Anything that tries to dim my light
Only witnesses how bright I shine without putting up a fight
For I never learnt how to dull my sparkle even through time
Coz all I’ve ever know in my life
Is to shine. ✨

– Ashwini

P.S : This picture was taken at the Bryant Park Winter Village in New York. It’s almost Spring in New York and I was surprised to see the Winter Village at Bryant Park still lit! Loved how glorious the Empire State building looks from here. Hope everyone’s excited about Spring!

Her beauty.

This time, she chose to be her own kind of beautiful

The beauty that goes beyond the color of her skin
And unveils the shades of her attractive soul

The beauty that surpasses the length of her hair
And uncovers the width of her smile

The beauty that isn’t measured by how fat or thin she is
But it adds up the weight of the love she carries

This time, she chose not to be just like them
But to be herself and that’s how she chose to be defined

– Ashwini

Epilogue: Women are constantly put into categories of being either too thin or too fat, too dark or not fair enough, there’s never a “perfect” woman. And these judgments are passed on by men and women both. Even if you say it in the most casual way, you don’t know how deeply it might affect the other person. Rather than classifying women based on their physical appearance, I hope we get to live in a world where men and women themselves recognize that life is so much more than just having a pretty face. It’s all about being a beautiful soul. 💫