It's one way or another

          Most often, we don't like to consent with others. We want to be different from others; we like to feel unique and it bothers us when we find someone else who has the same interests as we do. When you say that you are weird, or different from others, you state it like you are complimenting the other person, but the truth behind the scene is that you don't want to seem same as the other person. If someone else says that they like the same kinds of food that you do, then you get defensive about the food you like. "Oh! My mom makes it a little different, she adds this and that, and that's why I like it and that's the ONLY way I like it." There is nothing wrong in liking the same kinds of foods, music, art, subjects, sports, and etc. There are so many people who like the Eiffel Tower. I like the Eiffel Tower [I have never been to Paris, but would love to one day go to Paris and see the Eiffel Tower in person]. If someone says that they like the Eiffel Tower too, it's kinda hard to get defensive about that. What would I say? "Oh! I only like the Eiffel Tower from this angle."

          Why does one have so much vanity over their hobbies, preferences, and choices? There is no reason to be so narcissistic. You find that someone else has the same interest as you do, and then you lose the feeling of "uniqueness." You don't enjoy that feeling, so you try to find ways to make it seem unique, then the competition begins, and then that ends with a disagreement, which will end with an argument, just because you like the same thing that the other person likes. Instead of competing for the "most uniqueness," if they accepted it that they have similar interests and appreciated it, then they could have build upon on that. It would have further improved their abilities and expand their ideas. I guess the choice is yours - do you want to keep your feeling of uniqueness, or do you want to develop on your preferences?

Peaceful Warrior

          I watched this inspiring movie quite awhile ago, like may be six or seven months ago. This movie was recommended to me by couple people, but I didn't watch it until my dad said I have to watch it. Without reading any reviews, summaries, or watching trailers, I got a packet of popcorn, and while it's popping in the microwave, I went on Netflix, found the movie, and paused it until my popcorn was ready. Then the two-hour journey into wisdom, inspiration, and total awe broke the ground. 
          When the movie first started, I thought it would be like any other 'inspiring' movie, first the guy succeeds, and then he fails, and then by some miracle he succeeds again. Yeah! It was sorta like that, but the difference was, he did not succeed again because of some unknown miracle, but rather a known miracle - realization. The main character of the movie, Dan, was a gymnast, who is soon going to be qualified to represent United States of America in Olympics. His dad has so much money that money is never a worry for him. He is a straight A student at University of California - Berkeley. He has amazing friends, and he never sleeps alone, unless he has to. Dan thought he was happy, but he could not sleep at nights. Why? 

          To make him realize why he could not sleep at night, he had his own private guru, as Dan referred to him as Socrates. Socrates agreed to help Dan to become a better gymnast, but Dan never thought he would become a better person. Socrates made Dan do some "exercises" that were no way related to becoming a better gymnast and at times, Dan wanted to stop coming back to Socrates, but Socrates reasoning behind his activities made Dan more and more curious about his goal, life, and himself. It was a journey for Dan to discover himself beyond his selfishness and arrogance.

          When someone asks you, "What makes you happy?" What is your response? May be good academics, money, brand new house, family, marriage, health, and etc. Whatever it may be...you are only happy when you get what you want. Dan had the same kind of attitude that he is happy as long as he gets what he wants. He never realized that after he got whatever he wanted, he wanted something else, and after he got that, he wanted something else, he was never happy. As the private guru said in Peaceful Warrior, "You don't get what you want, you'll suffer, and even when you get what you want, you'll suffer." 
          We all heard some wisdom points here and there, and most of us when we hear them, we think, "Is that it? I knew that before you told me." But the private guru that Dan has makes him experience how it feels to actually live those wisdom points rather than just knowing them. So from what I said so far, you probably think this is a movie, which basically goes through wisdom points, huh? Well, that's what I thought until Dan gets into an accident and is now handicapped, but still participates in Olympics.

          It's all a miracle! It's amazing how all of this happened, and it's not by practicing to be a better gymnast, but rather by practicing to be a better person. He met with challenges, but he learned how to handle them even at the hardest of times. This is truly an inspiring movie, and the fact that it's based on a true story makes it even more inspiring.

My Thoughts

These are some of the points that I found very interesting from the movie.

 You work hard, you get results.

 Don't let emotions control you.

 All you have is RIGHT now.

 There are no ordinary moments.

 Death isn't sad, the sad thing is, most people don't live at all.

 Life is a choice - you choose to be a victim.

 The journey is what brings us happiness, not the destination.

 You make every move, about the move.

Aha! Moments

At the Beach in Vizag, India

Early one morning during one of our vacations (It's either California or Colorado), we were driving and just randomly decided to take the picture of the sun.

This again is in Vizag, India. I took this picture from the top of the light house which I heard is in many Tollywood movies.

This picture is from one of the largest caves in India, Borra Caves. This was found back when the British were ruling India. This is the story I heard: One day when a herd of cows were walking over this cave, one of the cow fell in a hole on top of these caves, and while some people were trying to find the cow, they found these caves. There is also a river flowing in this cave which connects with Bay of Bengal.  

I took this picture while I was in a train on my way to Araku, India. 

Rocky Mountains, Colorado, USA

Bear Lake, Colorado, USA

Arguing vs. Debating

               It's time everyone realizes that each and everyone of us are different in our own ways. We think differently and we act differently. I promise you, there is no one, NO ONE, in this world that thinks and acts EXACTLY like you. Yes, you are indeed very unique! As our self esteem may rise knowing that we are one of a kind, but we also need to respect the fact that other people are one of their kinds. 
               Most often, when we disagree with someone, we want to manipulate their thinking. All of us want everyone else in the world to think like us. Even though, by the fact that we are unique makes us feel special, we fear being unique. When someone says, "oh! you are special, I have never seen someone like you." You get the warm feeling inside but when you think for yourself that there is no one else in the world that thinks like, you get afraid. You are afraid of being right or wrong, or may be if someone else is wrong. So most often you want someone else to think like you, so you don't feel 'alone' in this world, and also in some cases, one would adapt to someone else's believes. 
               There is nothing wrong with having different opinions from someone else, and that's why they are called opinions and not facts. It's also for our benefit that someone else thinks differently from you - you get more perspectives than your own. That's when you get more knowledgeable and you not only learn more about the subject but also about the other person.


Disagreement leads to stronger bonding. 


               The goal of an argument is victory. You want to win the argument - it doesn't matter to you if you are right or wrong, but you want to win the argument. There are usually two ways that people reach that ultimate goal, one way is: one rambles soooooo much that the other person has to give up arguing and then the one that rambled "won." Another way is: just say random things that might/might not make any sense and confuse the other, and then consider that you won the argument. There is no beauty in either way; it's all about your own selfishness. I guess a better word to use here would be: a fight.
               Another form of argument is debate. I consider debate as an art - an art of discussing. Debating involves a lot of mental maturity - one has to be able to agree to disagree. There is no 'agree to disagree' concept in arguing. Debating requires knowledge about the subject; it's impossible to debate without having any knowledge. Debating leads to a more open relationship. It's when two people open up to each other and respect others opinions. In debates, you realize that there is a disagreement between two point and you simply prove your point and the other side does the same and then both sides try to understand each other and try to find the common ground. It's a lot more knowledgeable than arguing. 


Disagreements might lead to stronger bonds, but arguments lead to weaker bonds, and debating leads to more mature and open bonds. 

How to Install: Love!