I am Daarji

For men in olive greens…or as we call them the men in ‘OG’, travelling has been a one big added benefit, at least for some of us who are bitten by the travel bug.  We get to live all over India and if good fortune comes our way then perhaps we get global deputations or two like I did. The opportunity to see places teaches many valuable things about other cultures and ways of life. But there is a difference between those who travel to gain knowledge about the world and its people and those who travel for pleasure as well…for if you derive personal pleasure then you gain the power to feel the soul of the place and your journey becomes a spiritual odyssey.                 As I look back I could say with confidence, and I am sure Bebe will second me on that ,that  all our journeys  across India  in service of the nation  have been one of  the most rewarding perks of ...

           The old dictum, ‘y outh is wasted on the young’  is one that I seem to be in harmony with these days…Could the reason be  a discord between the spirit of my mind and spirit of my  body….willy-nilly one is slowing down and not keeping pace with the other.  When I was young and filled with enthusiasm, I had the youthful energy as the driving force in me to take on new challenges to make the best of all that life offered...The momentum was all fast forward… And sure, that's the way it should be….For youth dare where angels fear to tread.  To have taken a pit stop then, to take stock and look back at ‘Life’ was definitely not a choice to be considered. In  fact , that was the farthest from my mind. It is only now,  that I am older and the energies have dipped , that I have begun to sit back and overview the  years as  they rolled for us…. That is for Bebe an...

The old dictum, ‘y outh is wasted on the young’  is one that I seem to be in harmony with these days…Could the reason be  a discord between the spirit of my mind and spirit of my  body….wily-nily one is slowing down and not keeping pace with the other. When I was young and filled with enthusiasm, I had the youthful energy as the driving force in me to take on new challenges to make the best of all that life offered...The momentum was all fast forward… And sure, that's the way it should be….For youth dare where angels fear to tread. To have taken a pit stop then, to take stock and look back at ‘Life’ was definitely not a choice to be considered. In  fact , that was the farthest from my mind. It is only now,  that I am older and the energies have dipped , that I have begun to sit back and overview the  years as  they rolled for us…. That is for Bebe and  I….   Where we've been, what we’ve done and what's still left t...

The Story: Maybe its true,    ....maybe folklore … Some of you may have heard the haunting song, 'The Last Post.' It's the song that gives us the lump in our throats and usually tears in our eyes.....in memory of all those young soldiers who never came back... But, do you know the story behind the song?  If not, I think you will be interested to find out about its humble beginnings. Of all military bugle calls none is so easily recognised or more apt to render you poignantly emotional ….as ‘The Last Post’.  Originally it was significant to signal…‘lights out’ for troopers ….But, since 1885 all military funerals bid farewell to a fallen comrade….  By playing The Last Post…..this very haunting musical composition. This bugle call has been passed down through the centuries in many countries of the world as an accompaniment to the impressive last rites of a soldier’s farewell - the closing bars wail out their sad valedict...

Lil' Santa .....Big Santa He was dressed all in red and fur, from his head to his foot. And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot; A bundle of toys he had flung on his back, And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack. His eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples how merry! His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry! His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow, And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow; The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath; He had a broad face and a little round belly, That shook when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly. He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf, And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself; A wink of his eye and a twist of his head Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread Our Lil' Santa Merry Christmas & Happy Days To ALL