My Random Essays

 Congratulations Graduate Your History Your Heritage Makes your who you are today Your perseverance Your hardwork Your thrist for knowledge And your wisdom Will make you  What you will be tomorrow Dear Graduate Congratulations! Today, you shine as the brightest star in our family Today, you make us proud with all your accomplishments Today, you feel you are on the top of the world Today is your day. As you celebrate today, I want to remind you that although all your accomplishments are yours, the result of your hard work and your sharp intelligence. But don't forget that you are who you are because of so many seen and unseen factors that made you. Your ancestors, your environment, your history, and your heritage all shaped you into who you are today and who you will be tomorrow. Here is a brief look at those forces that shaped you 💗You have been blessed to be born into one of the most ancient and comprehensive religion that is Hinduism. ...a religion that has been nourished by mil

Perfectly Blurred Thank you 2020 You taught us to live virtually Now Friends meet virtually Kids learn virtually Our yoga is virtual And meetings are virtual Our work is virtual, And shopping is virtual Graduation is virtual Dating is virtual Even last rites are virtual But Our fears are real  Anxiety is real Our solitude is real and our loneliness is real God may be virtual But our prayers are real Sharing may be virtual  But our caring is real The line between virtual and real is so blurred, it feels Our entire world Is out of focus Thanks 2020 Meenal Pandy a

When the warm sun of autumn Turns leaves yellow, red and orange And the shadow of the sun Brings cool breeze The festival of dancing, The festival of Navratri Comes to the earth As the evening sun goes down And the night sky glows Young boys and girls Moms, Dads and aunts Neighbors, and strangers Come out in the streets Their beautiful pallu of saris Flutter in the wind While their feet move To the rhythm of drums Clap, clap, clap Round and round they go Swirling in their ghaghra Dripping with vibrant colors Yellow and red, Orange and pink. Blue, and green Rainbow of colors Splashing the shining light In the dark night Dots of lights Spike from the clay pot Sat in the middle Flickering in the wind Dancing in steps Tap tap tap tap Hands clap in harmony Khanak khanak, khanak Glass bangles jingle Red, yellow, blue, purple Violet, pink, marigold Plop, plop, plop Feet move in steps Silver bells of Jhanjhar Rattle on their feet Flick, flick, flick, the lantern shines in t

Published in Boston Globe. Here is the link. http://www.boston.co m/news/local/article s/2006/11/30/communi ty_disorientation/ SUBURBAN DIARY Community disorientation By Meenal Pandya  |   November 30, 2006 For the last four years, I had dreaded the day when my youngest would leave the nest. I knew how much it would hurt not to have any child at home in my children-centric life of the last 20 years. I knew that I would miss them immensely, but I also knew that it came with the territory of being a parent. So when my youngest finally left the nest, I was somewhat prepared. But what surprised me was how much I missed the connection with the community around me. I had no idea to what degree my suburban life had revolved around my children's school and activities. But in retrospect, I should have known and expected this all along. When we moved into this house on a semi quiet street in a nice, tree-lined Wellesley neighborhood about 20 years ago, we did not know anyone.

If owning a home is  an American dream, why do we live most of it outside? Life happens. Just not at home anymore. Home, once an integral part of all the family activities, celebrations, reunions, and even major milestones such as birth and death is now more or less reduced to a place to sleep at night and a place to keep all of our belongings. Significant events of our lives seems to have moved out of our homes and into commercial buildings. Ironically just as our homes, by any measure, are getting bigger and our families are getting smaller, we seem to be sucking life out of our homes. Last week, our neighbors had a small party outside which went on till mid-night. We heard a lot of happy voices and as much as I enjoyed that happiness being spread around the neighborhood, I was concerned that some neighbor might complain that the neighborhood peace was disturbed. That reminded me how much I miss not having all the celebrations around me right where I live. In l

"Narayan, Narayan" said Narad as he entered the heavenly palace of Vishnu bhagvan on a sea resort. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining. There was a fragrant breeze in the air with a divine calmness all around. Vishnu bhagvan was resting on a sheshnaag and Laxmiji was sitting near his feet. "Narayan, Narayan..." he repeated. Vishnu smiled and asked him to come and sit down. He could tell from Narad face that he was worrying about something and knowing him well he knew that it must be some problem on the earth that  human beings must be facing that is occupying Narad's mind. Many times in the past Narad had come to Vishnu with problems for people on the earth but this time he looked even more worried - actually a bit confused too. Vishnu waited because he did not want to look impatient. So he glanced at Laxmi ji who got up to get some fruits and sweets for the guest. After enjoying this hospitality of Vishnu and Devi Laxmi, Narad looked visibly rela