Having an elder brother can be Awesome!!

The relationship between siblings is by far the coolest relationship ever. Besides being more flexible, there is less drama and hell lot of fun. Fights, patch ups, support, care and a lifelong unconditional bond of trust- it has all the best things. Having an elder brother feels great I must say. It's like having a 24x7 customer support guy at your service, always available for your absurd queries, career advice, emergency money lending or any other big or small issue.

The peculiar species called "big brother" or "bade bhaiya" is actually a hybrid between your father and own self. They are protective and corrective like your dad but crazy and prone to errors like you. So, they will always guide you through tough times, prepare you for what is coming but will also be the best hangout buddies too. Your relationship with your elder brother changes gradually with age. During the first 10-15 years of life with them is full of fighting, running around, biting, scratching, complaining and stealing chocolates. But as you grow up it all becomes casual and brothers become the most important support that can ever be. Not that fighting, running around, biting, scratching, complaining and stealing chocolates stops, but yes, it all becomes less personal and more fun.  

They teach you the secret tricks for survival in the world; having been faced their own set of challenges without much support from anyone they are full of strength and experience. They will help you to choose the right path, warn you about the pitfalls and appreciate your small achievements. You become stronger growing up with them and the bloody sibling fights prepare you to easily beat up anyone. They are awesome secret keepers, only if you hold on to your end of bargain which can be anything they want or any of their own secrets. If you try to double cross them they will surely take revenge in some way or the other coz they are smarter. 

Anyone reading this, having an elder brother might be recalling those vivid childhood memories like old vines playing in the head. I have some vines too. I remember the time when my brother used to come to my school to pick me up when it was raining heavily and all the roads were flooded. I remember him making maggi for me, giving me extra in the beginning knowing I wouldn't be able to finish it and and would give him more than half from my plate at the end. I remember the fights, exaggerated complains to mom to get me in trouble, those endless carrier discussions with him acting as "Arnab Goswami" and me as "Meenakshi Lekhi". ("What did you say?", "Please answer the question, you are not answering my question.") :D    

So, love him, fight with him, abuse him, but you surely can't ignore him. He has many names- your guiding light, protective shield or emergency fixed deposit. 

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"He is the hero a sister deserves, but not the one she needs right now. So, she will fight with him. Because he is not her hero. He is a silent guardian, a watchful protector. Bhaiya!" 

(Batman lovers will kill me after reading this :D )

Growing Up

Growing up is an interesting phenomenon. I have always thought why as kids we were so curious about the world around us. I remember how I asked all kinds of absurd questions to my father when I was around 5 – 15 years of age. I was a super curious child, had doubts about almost everything; Why is milk white in color? Why are all the leaves of a tree of the same shape? Why can't we understand animal sounds? Why do people die? These questions seem pretty deep now but at that time I just blurted them out and my father always had graspable answers for me. As a child we never really worry much about consequences of being extremely original and outright. This gradually fades away with age if not maintained.

Growing up is a matter of state of mind. It is rightly said we are as young as we feel. I am fascinated with the changes in me during this process of developing mental maturity. I have felt happiness in certain situations which denote I did grow up mentally from what I was. This post is dedicated to those small realizations I underwent in daily life, which might point out gradual evolution from being puerile to grown up. 

These small things did bring joy and helped me to see the brighter side of maturity.

Some of those are mentioned here: 

• Keeping calm and smiling off criticism. It takes courage to hold back when people condemn you. This reminds me of Lord Buddha. A man used to insult him often, but Lord Buddha never felt offended or replied back. On being asked the reason for being so calm, he simply replied : 

     "If someone gives you a gift and you refuse to accept it, to whom does the gift belong?"

     #SarcasmAlert

• Waiting patiently in a queue and not getting frustrated easily. But this might drastically fail in case of internet queuing or waiting for the loading to complete. 

• Taking responsibility and finding solutions on your own. Blaming others doesn't lead you anywhere rather makes you powerless over your own life.

• Radiating positivity. Making the best of what you have and never forgetting how awesome you can be.

• Sorting out the inner conflicts and choosing the very first solution popping in head. Believe it or not, the first ones are mostly right.

• Not getting emotionally attached to material possessions and prioritizing experiences rather than mundane objects. Clinging on to things makes it tough for us to cope up with the transforming world.

• Avoiding assumptions about people before knowing them and giving second thought before criticizing. Preconceived notions will always lead to disappointment, be it about assessing a person or situation.  

• Making your own life-fundas. If you don't have your own experiences you are not living it right.

• Being independent and self sufficient in your journeys. Handling things your own way makes you feel stronger and grown up.

All these were felt and cherished by me in recent times. May be they don't actually show that I am mature enough but it’s good to be on the right path. We are taught by our parents till a certain age and gradually we learn things on our own, finding our own paths. This reminds me of my father teaching me to ride a bicycle, he held the cycle from behind not letting it fall and I gradually paddled. I paddled for a few minutes and didn't even realize that he was left behind and I was on my own. So, we grow when we hold the handles strong, keep ourselves focused and paddle away with positivity. Falling down once in awhile will make us stronger and go farther.