Wednesday, May 1, 2019

The Romantic Story


SHAMMI woke up that morning feeling as detached as if she were a character in a short  and not a real girl waking up on an important, heraldic day. She was getting formally engaged today, and instead of excitement she only felt a vague urgency to settle some unfinished business, probe a dully aching tooth in her life.
Perhaps she should put her thoughts on paper, write out a letter but to whom? Or may be she should attempt a short story? As a prodigious reader of romantic fiction she often wished she had the gift of writing and could have written a story for the magazine for which her best friend Asma’s brother Ahsaan often wrote. Today, she wished she could have written something that would have earned her his eternal admiration, even a nod of acknowledgement from him. Oh! He was so bright and talented and well…. Handsome to boot. Everyone wondered how in spite of being a busy medical student in his last year he still found time to be creative.
She once told Asama, in the hope that it would reach his ears that she thought Ahsaan’s fiction was a bit like him: intelligent but grounded too much in reality. His characters were idealistic and impassioned enough to seem terribly romantic but were too much in control of their emotions to give in to the wonderfully irrational realm of the heart. She sighed now .It was a pity that Ahsaan’s stories, though intellectually and technically polished, were…. Dare she admit it dry and boring? But, naturally, Shammi read them anyway and quite avidly too; She world read even a medical treatise signed by him.
Apart from the fact that over the years he had often lent her books and magazines , engaged her in casual conversation while helping (or rather, scolding )her in maths , and had once used her name in one of his stories , Ahsaan  seemed hardly aware of her existence. But where could she file away the odd memory or two when she could swear he was alive to her, fully conscious of her like the time they had found themselves squashed together on a crowded car trip to Khulna, with long miles of cringing, sparking, pent up closeness on their way to the Sundarban cruise, or that year on Eid ….
Shammi caught herself sighing a second time and scolded herself for thinking about Ahsaan on the day of her engagement to Jamal. Goodness! She was going to become a Mrs. Haque. Was that the spelling? Or was it Huque? It definitely was not Huq, of that she was sure. She reached for the jar of Uptan and marched to the bathroom.
The other family members seemed to be out in preparation for the events of the evening .Shammi dressed carefully and went down to the flat immediately below to look in on Asma. The maid opened the door. ‘Afa has kelash this morning.’ Of cause ,how could she forget that Asma had Psychology class on Thursday , Shammi made a gesture of slapping her forehead , but she still lingered at the door taming her freshly shampooed hair , waiting for Bua’s next word; ‘But Bhaiyya is here…..
‘Oh! Good. Then I’ll just say hello to him, ‘Shammi breezed in and walked up to the study door more boldly than she felt. Though he knock was timid her laugh was hearty and carefree when she entered and greeted Ahsaan as he half turned his tousled head towards her from his desk.
‘well, well, well, if it’s not the bride –to be ! There were shadows under his eyes but he gave her a crinkly smile as he scrutinized her. Shammi’s mouth went dry but her attitude was arch. ‘I thought I’d look in on the Daaktar Shaheb and see what new frontiers of literature or medicine you were pushing.
‘In fact, will you believe it , I was just thinking about you .’ Shammi’s heart pounded as she found the voice to speak: Really? And why pray is that?
‘You see, I am in the death throes of finishing a story for next week about a girl who is getting married , and I need some in –put from you…..
‘Aha ! Finally a romantic story?
He shrugged. ‘I don’t know, I mean, who the hell knows what’ romantic’ is .Anyway , maybe you can help me. I am having problems with the ending. I don’t want to make it happy and unreal or sad and real.’
                        ‘Why not happy and real?’
                        ‘I can’t .Doesn’t fit in.’
                        ‘Fit in with what?’
                        ‘With reality, conventions, the way things happen in real life, you know….
‘But its fiction, for God’s sake! Why should it have to be real . It can be anything you want to make it.’
‘No, dear girl, that’s life you’re talking about, not fiction. Only in life theoretically –you have the freedom of choice and action. Fiction works within boundaries. You see,. Life can be conducted in creative ways by individuals who have the courage and conviction to make or break conventions and seek their own truths, find their own paths. But the ‘reality’ of fiction, the limits within which the fiction world operates so that facts and events appear plausible, can’t be tampered with too much. I am not talking about innovative narrative techniques but the reliability of fictional truths.’
Shammi shook her head and released a roomful of fragrance. ‘This is too complicated, and you are too analytical .I am a simple girl who relies on her senses and instincts, I don’t understand you.’
‘Or maybe you don’t want to understand.’ Ahsaan looked at her thoughtfully then turned his chair fully to face her as she sat at the edge of his bed. ‘Listen, let me present you the simple predicament of the story, and you tell me how you’d solve it.’
‘What’s the story about?’
‘A girl ….’
‘Pretty?’ He rolled his eyes and laughed, ‘shop interrupting. Yes , pretty. Like you.’
Something ached inside her and out of the blue she wondered what it would have been like to be kissed by him. But she looked blandly at him as he toyed with the mouse on the pad and continued. ‘It’s actually a rather trite story. Here is a girl who has a crush on a boy but she never expresses her feelings .Her wedding is arranged to a man whom she meets and likes, but her feelings for the first boy are still unresolved.
‘And the boy?’ Shammi whispered, her hands clenching. 
‘What about him? His feelings towards her are irrelevant here. The story is about the girl….’
‘No, wait .That’s not right, that’s completely askew.’ She almost got up in her agitation.
‘Will you just let me finish? So, the day of her wedding dawns and she finds herself alone with him , and she has this desire to let him know how she feels about him and to …’ ‘Shammi stood up , ‘I don’t want to hear his story.
‘Why?’ Ahsaan rose and came to stand close to her.
‘You’re right .It is trite and silly.’
‘You haven’t even heard the extent of its triteness.’ Ahsaan laughed.
‘Oh I know , next you’re going to say that the girl wishes to have some sort of …physical encounter, a souvenir of …of this ‘infatuation’ to help her decide right?’ Shammi stammered angrily.
‘Perhaps ….Hey , why are you mad?’ Ahsaan leaned forward and touched her hand .
‘Because you are derisive and mocking and presumptuous and arrogant and …. And a terrible writer. You should just concentrate on your dissections and leave romantic stories to those who understand about feelings. And you Know something, if you thought even for a moment that I had a crush on you, you are mistaken. You think too much of yourself. If anything I hate you!’
In the time it took her to swallow her tears and turn to run out Ahsaan had grabbed her and gathered her to himself.’What a silly girl you are.’ He said over and over as he kissed her.
‘So how would the story end?’Shammi asked as they came up for air. ‘You tell me.’ Ahsaan stroked her hair. Shammi sighed, ‘It depends on the boy, how he feels .’Ahsaan looked into her eyes and said clearly: ‘No ,it doesn’t .Even if he does love her back , it’s only the girl who Knows what to do , what step to take .’
‘Would calling off the wedding guarantee that the girl and boy would guarantee that the girl and boy would eventually be happy together, or happy and together?’ Shammi spoke half to herself. Ahsaan held her silently offering no reply.
‘Ahsaan, tell me honestly, would you commit yourself to me if I broke up with Jamal today?’
‘In good fiction, it would be highly unrealistic if I said ,’Yes , I VOW eternal love .Give up everything for me.’ It would be expected that a medical student with a long way to go would out of his love and consideration tell his lady love ‘I can promise nothing’ and leave the story again in the hands of the girl.
‘But in reality? Today, now , what are you saying to me?’ Shammi clutched at his shirtfront and shook him .Kissing the top of her head, Ahsaan sighed , ‘The answer would be the same.’
Shammi abruptly released her hold and walked out of the room .Ahsaan slowly went back to keyboard and typed out the conclusive paragraph of his story: She went back to her room and hid her face in the pillow, crying bitterly. She had made the right decision. She would have to forget him and just cherish the memory of the kiss. At least she had that. Perhaps over the years the significance of this day would be revealed to her. THE END.’ He sat back, his cold heart clenched like a face about to cry.
Shammi went back to her room and taking the pillow from her bed, punched and pummeled it was she making the right decision? Could she forget him and live on the memory of the kiss? Over the years the significance of this day would be revealed to her, and it would be too late .She was not some heroine in a short story bound by the stale conventions of perceived reality. She was not a writer of realistic fiction but a reader of romantic fiction .Yet, she was no ordinary woman. No sir .And by god! Her life was going to be every bit as romantic as the unrealistic , light hearted fiction she loved.
She took up the phone and called up her mother on her cell phone: ‘Ammu , please don’t be angry. But something has come up and we have to rethink the engagement.’
‘What? What the hell is this girl saying? Whatever happened?’ Her mother’s voice was hysterical . Shammi gulped. ‘I’ll explain please just come home .Please.
Then she went over to Ahsaan’s study. She didn’t bother to knock. He was learning back in his chair at his desk, his eyes shut . She cleared her throat and smiled from the doorway. Ahsaan stared at her for a while then held out his arms. As she came to him she laughed: ‘Your short story maybe finished Daaktar Shaheb, but mine is about to start.

10 Ways to Be a Happier Person


Joy is the driving force of life. And this joy comes as an outcome of happiness. In this self-centered world our activities are just for our happiness. In the hope of achieving happiness, people struggle so much in the way of life. Nobody takes steps for sorrow. Everyone is struggling so much for the beauty of the bliss of happiness. Ask who wants to be happy in life. You, me, we all try to be happy in our life. We all hanker after happiness.In total; we do all the things in our daily life with the hope of happiness. No one will want to bring any more sorrow into life, will you?

If we live a happy life then our life is filled with joy and pleasure. The way of our life becomes colorful. Then there was a skyscraper and confidence in the strength. Besides happy people live for a long time. Optimism and positive thoughts help prevent heart disease and increase the resistance of our body. So it is very important to establish yourself as a happy person in life.

Do not be Lonely, Find a Partner
Loneliness will take away the joy of happiness from your life. Although the loneliness seed does not spread its roots first, it gradually extends its strength and grasps us mentally and physically. After that there are many problems. So do not be lonely, do not make the mistake of planting loneliness in the life. Keep your relationships alive. Because relationships help people to be happy. Those who keep a close relationship with different people in the society, they stay happier and better than others and live longer. Intimate relationship with friends and family brings love and survival to life and builds self-confidence. Make your relationships stronger, develop new relationships. It is very important to be happy.

Do Something for Others
Helping others is the key to happiness - it gives us more happiness, makes us more healthy. Because our hearts are happy when we help others. If we do something for others, we feel proud of ourselves and this gives us the eternal joy in our life. Believe me, if you buy any gift for you mother or father with your own money, this will bring great pleasure for you. Your heart will be full of joy. And this joy can bring tear of happiness to your eyes. In addition, if we do g anything for others, it will make our relationship stronger. As a result, the benefits of the society in general are good, everyone is happy. In all cases the question is not money and money. We can help others through time, ideas, labor etc. So do something good to get mental peace. Then you can feel happiness subconsciously.

Take Care of Your Physical Fitness
We live in our bodies at the end of the day. If your body is not good then no matter what you do. The body and mind are intimately related to each other. If the body is active then the mind is also happy, the health is good. If the 'mood' is good then you can also get out of mental exhaustion. Moreover, he who is not cared for himself can never go ahead because he cannot take care of himself, how will he take care of others or work? And the biggest thing is to take care of yourself for happiness. When we are physically and mentally fit, our self-confidence increases. So take care of yourself and every day you can do some simple work.  Go out of the room, take fresh air and sleep enough.

Set the Goal of the Choice
A positive attitude about the future is important for the happiness of the mind. All need some goals for their motivation. But they should not be unrealistic. Otherwise, there will be unnecessary 'stress' or emotional stress. If the goal is set in consistent with the ambition and the framework of the realities, life will be guided in the right direction. If you can fulfill that goal, satisfaction and pleasure will come. On the other hand, success is not possible without a specific goal. And goals are like the stairs of success which you will achieve one after another. And the goal is to bring people to the edge of success. And by achieving success, who does not you enjoy happiness and joy? So it is important to set a goal of choice.

Be Aware of the Surrounding World
Have you ever felt that there is more to enjoy in our life? The good news is that there are more things to enjoy in our life. We must understand that by giving a pause for a moment in our life. Increasing attention increases the good feelings in all areas of life. There is no remorse for the past if you are aware of the present time, there will be no worries about the future at all. And if you only think about present, you can enjoy your life because the main reason for the disappointment of the people is to keep the past and think about the future. These two things drive away the happiness of most of the people. So it is important to be alert nowadays so that you can not touch the pain of the past and the anxiety of the future.

Positive Thought
Positive emotions like joy, gratitude and satisfaction are not good for just a while. If these feelings come back to life frequently, the life becomes more and more enjoyable. Positive thinking bears a lot of power. It makes people's confident and strong. As a result, inspiration is found to be 100%.And if these two foundations are in the right place, then at the end of the day, happiness smiles on your face. There are happiness and sorrow in life but focusing on the good aspects of any situation is really beneficial. Seeing half of the pot is good, half is not empty.

Do Not Stop learning
Education is the backbone of human beings. Just like a man can not stand when the backbone breaks, so can people not prosper in life if they stop learning from life. Happiness does not come to his life and life becomes very dull and gloomy to him. Education has a positive effect in the case of happiness and well being of a person.. New ideas come to mind; help us to be curious and active. Education gives satisfaction to mind, enhances self-confidence and power. There are many opportunities to learn new things - such as new skills, language, games, songs etc. This will enrich our ways to stay happier. 

Learn to Wake up Again
Everyone's life has 'stress', loss of something or someone, or other is bad experience. Our happiness depends on how we deal with them; we do not have to be good at everything. In our lives, in most cases we can not decide for ourselves. But we can decide our attitude about what has happened. According to a recent report, to like many things resistance can also be learned.  This will boost our ways to happier living.

Be Content with Yourself
Nobody is perfect. But we often compare ourselves with everyone else. If you do not own it, it's more headaches. And these thoughts take our happiness away from us. Due to the frustration, these thoughts start to grow. If we are not satisfied with our own position, it is difficult to be happy. So we should think more about what we have. Especially in difficult times, if we learn to accept it and feel more compassionate to ourselves, then we will have joy in life. It would be easier for us to accept others as well. So, we have to learn ways to be happier today. 

See Yourself as Part of a Larger World
The person who sees the meaning of life, he is much happier. His mental stress, fear and depression levels are also low. Religious beliefs, being a parent of a child - even new jobs can bring meaning to life. This feeling is different for everyone. But in every case this feeling comes that we are only a part of the larger world.

In the end, I would say that happiness and sorrow is the epitome of money. Do not get frustrated if you get saddened, do not stop being frustrated. There is no point in stopping life for these trivial reasons. 

Working the Bell


                                                              image:pexels.com
It has been six years that I have been working the bell.  At first I started in this kitchen, cleaning pots, sweeping the floor, going to the shops on errands. Then one day, and I don't quite know if it really was a fortunate day for me, I was promoted to working the bell. That is, answering the call of the madam. Two of the others had not come to work, so I suppose it was necessary for me to take over. They gave me  a new shirt so that I would be presentable in front of guests. And every year since they have given me a new shirt on Eid days, so now i have a total of thirteen. I consider myself lucky.

My tasks are very simple. I am in search of taking tea upstairs and bringing the dishes down afterwards. I also let the dogs out to the garden or call them back again. This is what I do all day.  I have been doing this past six years; it is modeled so clearly in my mind that I do it without thinking.
Bell rings. He leaves, scrambling quickly into his sandals. He returns with a tray in his hands, it has two tea cups on it.

As I was saying it is very easy job, but you know it gets disturbing. The same things again and again. Up and down, down and up. This vigor began to build up in  me.  But it was a bad kind of vigor' an angry sort. I started to pray a lot, and as I lay my forehead on the ground, I would mash in some anger. But the burning in my chest kept getting worse until it was so uncontrollable, I would feel like stretching right out of myself. But now I carry it close to my chest.

Bell rings. He runs up again, and returns quickly, panting a little.
 That was for the dogs. As I said before, I do consider myself fortunate. For outside these doors life is hand to mouth. And there is hardly anything from our soil worth eating any more. It is bad that I am so ungrateful for a full bell, but sometimes about the bell just disturbs me.

Sometimes in my sleep I twitch randomly, as if to respond to the bell. Any sudden sound makes me think she is calling me, so it is difficult for me to lie. During the day I run on a wide eyed energy that has been burning me up.

I often feel this sharp pain pierce my chest, as if someone was poking me hard, and laughing. It is this person that I want to confront, and leave dead. And the burning is spreading through my body. Scorching its way to the very core of my bones. The most severe of sorrows, it has even seared my tender memories and charred them black.

Bell rings. He leaves only to return for a glass of water. He runs up again. 
At times I feel as if the rage in my body will implode, simply collapse in on itself. It would condense itself to hot iron that could pierce my soul clear through. The only way I can avoid this by cooling my fury out, patiently. I need to do this alone because if anybody fell in my path, the hit would burn them silly. Sometimes I am so full of anger that I am afraid to touch my own body.

And when they say you have a choice, they lie, because a true choice gives you somewhat of a fair alternative. Cause just when you think you've got everything together,  when everything's neatly in place, someone comes along and knocks  a single thing out of line, and everything starts tumbling  down, falling apart-and no matter how hard you try, you can't pick up the pieces fast enough, you just can't.


But I once knew love. A love that filled my lungs with pure air. She was the kind of woman people couldn't help loving. Something that made you need to live. She should me how real dreams could be; reached into the valleys of my heart, and healed my soul in places I didn't know were hurting. She showed me how wide heaven was. A  woman that cushioned my world; and made me want to jump up and spread my arms, because I was that close to flying. But I lost that love. She married while I wrestled with my private demons.
I cried when I lost that love. And it is very difficult for me to cry. But there is still a part of me however, that is a child; that wants to laugh out loud just because the world looks so interesting. Because everything looks so golden. But it is difficult now; the days move slowly. Things have little rhythm.


How to Build a Positive Attitude Towards Life


There is a common trend among people. People lose confidence by thinking about their weak aspects in many ways. For example, someone who is shy of dark or someone is afraid to talk or mix in a new environment. The man can not be blamed for these things. It’s his own entity. So you have to love yourself. This is the best way to build a positive life. You have to keep this idea in mind as you are the best. Only then anyone will have the confidence to come forward to you . When someone loves himself, he thinks about himself.

Own happiness gives priority to his life. Try to make yourself better .So stand in front of the mirror and see whom you can see, you will be the best. We have to develop a positive outlook in life.
In every life there are some hobbies, passions. There is some good work that he loves to do. These works save us from the busy life span. Creative people are romantic, sunny and mentality positive because of this. Many people have started their hobby as a career. Such as: fashion designing, paintings, music artists, actors.

Chase your own hobby in the middle of a busy routine. There will never be any boredom in education and in the workplace. In this era of Facebook, social networking and internet, loved ones are no more so intimate like before while Facebook friends are friends. Remember when the last time a father-in-law, siblings sat together with each other, where did they eat or have a story? Many would answer yes but many would not remember. Here's the problem. We do everything in our busy life without giving time to the family. Have you ever been told to go to a family trip by your parents or other family members? But they are the ones who sacrifice the most for us. So you will be good to give time and priority to the family. Many studies have shown that those who have best family bonding are also good at studies and profession. It is vital to know how to build a positive attitude in life.

Anger is the big enemy of us all. So learn to control anger. There are some people who become angry for silly matters. It will damage your image on the one hand, and if you get angry afterwards, then your guilt will work. Tension and stress management along with anger are very important. Excessive tension adversely and drastically affects on our body and mind.

Headache or Tension is a common disease for many people. So you can do regular yoga and meditation to reduce tension. Regular physical exercises and yoga can also be beneficial. Sometimes you may be able to go to any psychiatrist or psychologist if you have gone too much for depression.  Medication will be useful for you to reduce depression. We must learn how to stay positive.  

Eating habit in our daily life is an important thing. Eating too much junk food or fast food has become a trend for the younger generation. Due to its long-term consequences, many problems arise due to overuse of fat and cholesterol. Not only that, when there is nothing in our body that does not have the food material needed for mental handling and development, then the natural mood will become annoying . Our study and professional life are interrupted. So we should eat vegetables, fruits and milk regularly

Now a days we use mobile phones, laptops, computers and various devices frequently. We spend most of the time by using various types of gazettes. Do we know, radiation emitted from these devices is harmful for our body.  These devices are responsible not only   for frustration but also lack of attention. Therefore, the use of unregistered device has to be stopped. Do not use more than one hour in the day. Do not keep mobile in your hands without urgent need. After a month, you can understand the difference itself. If you can do it, it will speed up your work.

In this era, the tendency of being awake and late in the morning between all and everybody is noticed. As a result of frequent sleep disruption at night many of us miss the morning class, many of us suffer from insomnia, mental discomfort, depression, headache, low blood pressure problems. To get rid of this, there must be a habit of reading at the right time and at the right time in the morning.

On the way to life, many of us have to face trouble. Some people have a disappointment with the results of the examination. If someone suffers from family problems, someone breaks up next in depression. Whenever you are Depression you should remember that you are very good. Is not it less than the creator kept you better than thousands of people?

So always try to stay well in situations that are there. I'm fine; I do not have anything wrong with myself. I believe it is the way to be good. A little result is bad, or any disappointment I'm failure, I have to change this mentality of what life will be like. Share your grief and frustration with the close people. It will lessen your sufferings and mental agony.

In the era of social media, we are not able to think of what we are doing in life. Because every person is different and exceptional. Everyone is the best of their own. So do not compare yourself with others, but you should be the best one like you. Try to do better than the previous day, to work in a new venture.

It has been said that, if there are many things that you can expect, life will be a bit better. Get up early in the morning and stand in front of the mirror. The person you are seeing in this world will love you most. Only you can love others. You will be able to enrich your life well.

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