The Essence

(http://promisingpoetsparkinglot.blogspot.com/2011/11/perfect-poet-award-week-56.html)

From the moment we open our eyes
To the instant that we sleep at night
A miracle unfolds in front of us
And yet we are oblivious

The clouds at dawn rise
And the sun rays shine through
Dew drops on flowers shine
And birds fly high into the sky

The inspiring beauty of morning
The ball of fire rising
A gentle wind blows by
Amazing , wondrous and spectacular

Looking at natures splendour
My mind cant help but wonder
If so captivating is your creation
Then how infinite must be your beauty

You are the essence of life
You create, sustain and destroy
The life force that enlivens everyone
Unborn, indestructible and immutable

Inconceivable, pure and eternal
I cannot fathom you
Yet I seek to know you
Every moment of the day

Shower your grace upon us
So that we revel  in your love
So that we may feel your presence
Every moment of our lives

Shower your grace upon us
So that we co-exist with nature
So that we learn to share and care
Every moment of our lives

© copyright, skm,  30th April, 2011

Advertisement

Chocolate

Kids love chocolate in all its flavours
They just can’t resist a bite into them
And then as it melts in their mouth
They just revel in that yummy feeling

Chocolates, icecreams, truffles and cakes
They will do anything to get a taste
They’ll hug you and give you kisses
If you agree to buy them that chocolate

They take a small bite
Let the taste linger
That small chocolate to them
Can last forever

The chocolate is spread all over their hands and face
But the innocent kids just don’t care
They are lost in the moment of joy
Chocolate in all its delight

© copyright, skm, 29th February, 2011

(**Inspired by Roald Dahl’s ‘”Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” . For more Roald Dahl books visit: http://www.roalddahl.com/)

Rain

Crying little drops of rain
Will set your heart afree
Rain falling from the clouds
Wash your sorrows away

The little child is all wet
Making paper boats in the puddle
Rain brings joy to him
An escape to another world

A shower of  rain is like
A blessing from the heavens
The farmer prays to you with all his heart
For a hearty downpour

Rain on my windowpane
Obscures the view outside
And my restless senses
Breathe a sigh of relief

The lady looks up at you with love
Your glistening drops render her face aglow
And drop by drop you roll down her face
Planting tender caress and sweet kisses

© copyright skm, 27th February, 2011

Love the song Rain by Madonna. Here is a video clip:

Laugh out loud

Picture this scenario.  Everyone is silent.  Then all of a sudden there is a loud rip-roaring laughter…..HA HA HA HA HA.  This can totally change the mood and the atmosphere.

Laughter is an emotion that brings joy, changes the mood and can lift everyones spirits. Laughter is  considered a visual expression of happiness, or an inward feeling of joy. It may be triggered from hearing a joke, being tickled, or other stimuli. It is in most cases a very pleasant sensation.
Laughter is one medicine that is fun, free and easy to use.  Easy to use – because laughter transcends language and culture.  Everywhere in the world people laugh in the same manner Ha Ha or He He or Ho Ho… but basically the syllables are the same.

Anatomically, laughter is caused by the epiglottis constricting the larynx and the study of laughter and its physiological benefits is called gelotology.

Origins of laughter:
A study of a pygmy chimpanzees in a German zoo found that when it was tickled it combined vocalizations and facial gestures much like those made by human infants. The finding suggests that our laughter could have its origins in primates.
Babies begin to laugh when they are around 2-3 months old.  They usually giggle, laugh and sqeal with pleasure,  especially when you play the peekaboo game with them. And parents wait with anxiety to see their baby start to laugh.

Laughter has immense health benefits:
.. It relaxes the whole body – by relieving physical tension and stress
.. laughter strengthens the immune system
.. laughter helps to release endorphins – which promote an overall sense of well being
.. it improves the function of blood vessels by increasing blood flow and protects the heart from heart attack
… it acts as a body massage. When you laugh from the belly, it gives your organs a thorough shake and it can even bring tears to your eyes

Laughter also has social benefits:
Using humor and laughter in relationships allows you to:
..Be more spontaneous. Humor gets you out of your head and away from your troubles.
..Release inhibitions. Your fear of holding back and holding on are set aside.
..Express your true feelings. Deeply felt emotions are allowed to rise to the surface.

Laughter Yoga:
Madan Kataria introduced a new form of Yoga called Laughter Yoga in 1995, with merely a handful of persons. Today, it has become a worldwide phenomenon with more than 6000 Social Laughter Clubs in about 60 countries.
Here a group of people who may be complete strangers meet and they just smile and laugh together.  And this sets up a very good atmosphere .
Laughter has a domino effect.. it is contagious.   When you see a person laugh heartily it encourages us to ask – What is the joke? And to laugh together

Do you know what makes you laugh out loud?
Is it  a humorous book .. for me PG Wodehouse is irresistible. Or is it a funny movie – The Naked Gun, or a TV show like Friends, Whose line is it anyway?  Or is it a stand up comedy or just listening to jokes? 

In life we are struck by joys and sorrows which can rock our boat.  In such times we can
.. share a happy moment with family and friends to help to lift our spirits
..count our blessings
..look at things from a different perspective

William James the American author said, “We don’t laugh because we’re happy, we are happy because we laugh.”

Here are some interesting reading on laughter:
http://www.helpguide.org/life/humor_laughter_health.htm
http://www.laughteryoga.org/

Sunday sights

The Boatman

Every morning at the river bank
The native boatman lies in wait
People climb aboard the boat and
He ferries  them across the river

He sings a romantic song
In a clear, mellow voice
Looking at the skies above
And pouring out his love

He sings of life, he sings of love
Keeping  all rapt in awe
Everyone feels an inner peace
Along the river ride

As he sings his song
The river makes a ripple
The oars sweep the waters
Guiding the boat to the shore

Boatman, what is it that guides you?
What gives you that glow?
Is it the song in your heart? The birds in the sky?
Or the creator above?

© copyright skm,  April 23rd, 2011

What motivates us to work?

What motivates us to work?  Is it recognition, independence, money,  challenge,  self-esteem, creative expression or personal growth?  Finding what motivates us  can help us to approach our work with vitality and purpose.

https://ted.com/talks/view/id/618

In this interesting TED talk, Daniel Pink explains that rewards work well for tasks with a simple set of rules and a clear destination to move toward.  That is, they work well for routine, rule-based, left-brained work–which includes things such as certain kinds of accounting,  kinds of computer programming, and so on. These are the kinds of jobs that are easy to automate and outsource.

For tasks that require creativity and innovation, rewards produce the opposite of their intended result: they dull thinking and block creativity.  People who are very creative rely on intrinsic motivation, instead of external rewards.

Blogengage blogging contest

An opportunity for bloggers to engage and be noticed. BLOGENGAGE has an amazing contest for you all!
Here are the details:

Start Date
April 16 2011

End date
May 31 2011

Contest Rules

In order to qualify for our contest you must write an article about the blogengage contest and it’s sponsors on your blog ASAP! The sooner you write the article about our contest and sponsors the more bonus points you get.
If you write about the contest and sponsors article in April you will get 300 Bonus points. If you write about the contest and sponsors article in May you will get 150 Bonus points.

Special 1000 USD Note
By entering into our contest your guest article is automatically entered into a chance to win the the $1000 USD to the best guest blogger of 2011 contest

Dec 01 2011 I will allow all our guest bloggers that have submitted contest articles to pick the one article they want to use towards The Best of the Guest Blogger Year End 2011 Contest. These articles will be judged and the winner, the blogger who has the best article in 2011 will be awarded 1000 USD.

Contest prizes
First place 250 USD
Second Place 150 USD
Third place 100 USD

How to Win?
To win the contest you must get as many points as possible by tweeting, engaging here at blog engage, Linkin in votes, facebook likes, comments and sponsor reviews.

Tweets, 1 point up to a max of 250 points
Linked In Votes, 1 point, up to a max of 500 points
Facebook Likes, 1 point, up to a max of 500 points
Engages at Blog Engage, 2 points, Unlimited points
Comments that provide value, 2 points Unlimited Points
Sponsor Reviews, 10 points per review. max points based on unique content

More details & Links to the contest sponsors.

Links to our contest sponsors

Ana from Internet Marketing Tools
Kimberly Castleberry from WordPress and Facebook Marketing
Justin Germino from justingermino.com
Amogh from The Funky Chunk
Don Power from sproutsocial.com
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Courage

When you are in the middle of critics
And not a  single soul believes you
When the whole world thinks you are a liar
Can you stand up for the truth?

When failure stares at you
When anguish, sorrow and pain confront you
When storms tear you asunder
Do you still follow your dream?

When there is a steep mountain to climb
And your legs are weak and tired
When the slope is slippery and arduous
Do you lose sight of your goal?

When this body is shrieking in agony
And the final moment nears
When the last breath is seeping out
Can you smile and face death?

Courage is not bravado
You don’t have to shout and roar
It is that little voice within you
That constantly guides you

© copyright skm,  April 21st, 2011

Wordless Wednesday

Its wednesday night and theres a full moon outside my window: