haiku (morning)

chilly morning–
slowly sweeping my street,
golden rays

steve jobs

I spent the last few days listening to Isaacson’s book about the life of Steve Jobs. And I felt an intense array of emotions ranging from inspiration to disgust.

To put this in context: Steve Jobs’s 2005 Stanford commencement speech struck a deep chord with me, like it did with so many individuals. The design of the iPod, Mac, iPhone impressed me, as did the Zen-inspired minimalist essence of Apple products. Jobs, in my mind, was the unique blend of artistic and technical passions concocting in a magical way, rippling with new possibilities. Jobs recently died. So I was all the more curious to learn more about him, how he led teams, how he dealt with people, and who he internally was, as a human.

The book sheds light on all these aspects. If you’re expecting Jobs to come out a hero in all spheres, you’d probably be more than disappointed. Instead, Jobs comes across just as human and prone to mistakes as any of us, perhaps more. He declined paternity to his daughter, did not share stocks with close friend and employee number 12 — Daniel Kottke, underpaid and lied to Steve Wozniak about a bonus he got at Atari for a device that Wozniak created, planned a boardroom coup to oust John Sculley, frequently charmed people with lies for selfish motives. He was not an engineer, but tightly controlled the workings of several.

At the same time, he comes across as someone with an excellent sense of design, a pursuit toward perfection, ability to inspire, and the charisma to extend the spectrum of perceived possibility. He was the CEO of 3 big companies, co-founder of 2 of them, battled cancer, came back from a public ouster to generate unpredictable success.

The question I had on my mind was: how does Jobs fare as a role-model? Is he someone one would like to emulate? Of course, there are parts of him that seem good, and others not-so-good. However, as anyone interested in leadership would ask: were the same quirks and issues that made Jobs a ‘difficult’ person, the ones responsible for all the innovation he was able to inspire or participate in? Isaacson has, on a few interviews, answered this in the affirmative (or so is my perception).

I disagree. I think Steve could have inspired creativity without denying paternity to his daughter. He could have shared his success more fairly with friends, while making great products. Not to say that he made any more or worse mistakes than several of us make in life, but that as far as role models and inspiration go, one has to be careful to identify what would resonate. Steve’s wonderful life can leave one with the impression that innovation is not possible without being a jerk… but it is important to remember that there are several examples around us where innovation and impact has been made without necessarily resorting to be a jerk. Whether it is Gandhi or Luther who inspires you, or Andy Grove or Larry Page, or Neil Armstrong, or Marie Curie, it is important to put things in context. Especially when you’re in the reality-distortion-field that engulfed the life of Steven Paul Jobs.

A Good Political Debate, Finally!

Arun Jaitley finds his voice, courtesy Mr. Hazare.

-”…if a group of citizens says it has an alternative view, we may not eventually accept what they say, we may accept some suggestions of what they say. But how can you take away and snatch their right to say?”

-”Right question is not who frames law, right question is does the government has will to fight corruption?”

- “Mr PM , you don’t need a magic wand to fight corruption , you need a political will.”

- “No PM can say he is helpless, he needs to exercise powers”

-”Sir, power is not immortal. The more it gets into your head, the sooner it disappears.”

-”When is it the regime of the day says I will impose 22 conditions on this protest? The government of the day will decide as to whether people are to have a large protest or a miniscule one?”

-”The condition for holding a proteåst can be that there should be no violence, not that how many people will protest, and for how long they will protest.”

Inspirations from: http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2011/08/17/hazare-helps-bjp-find-its-voice/ , http://ndtv.com. http://ibnlive.com

Bheed Mein Kho Gaya Hoon

yun chalte-chalte main bhi is duniya ki bheed mein kho gaya hoon
khuli aankhon se dekhta hun par bheetar se so gaya hoon.

sahi-galat ke fark ko lafzon mein lapetne jo nikla,
raah-gumraah ke chaurahe par gum sa ho gaya hoon.

auron ke gham ko apni udaasi ke taraazoo par tolta
shayari likhte-likhte, ik dukaandaar sa ho gaya hoon.

ehsaas ki kami ko yaadon ke registaan mein dhoondta
kuch samandar hain jo na jaane kahin ro gaya hoon

yun chalte-chalte main bhi is duniya ki bheed mein kho gaya hoon
khuli aankhon se dekhta hun par bheetar se so gaya hoon.

—————–

A Few Hours to Dawn

a few hours to dawn,
as we sit by the window tonight
looking at distant lights

|

how long shall we
let thunder
fill our pauses?

|

will you not sing
one parting song
for all those years?

|

i’d understand if you didn’t.
like a receding wave
and the shore,
this is as close as we could get.

|

as you turn away
from my gaze
i wonder –
if a memory was stuck in my eyes?

|

 as you stare in to the horizon
are you looking ahead?
or still looking back?

|

why don’t you shed one tear?
or beam a smile of hope?
even glaciers give in to rivers…

|

it is a tired moment–
no future to be seen,
no past recalled.

|

one feeling
morphed in to another
and morphed in to yet another

a spiral of unseen emotion
engulfs my life, today.

—-

Auto-vaale Uncle

I still remember going to school on an auto-rickshaw, the rickety vehicle also known as a three-wheeler. With seating meant for 3-5 people, it would actually be filled with 12-15 kids, all barely awake up at 6 am in the morning.

During the rainy season, we would cheer as the auto-rickshaw made its way through deep trenches of water on the road, splashing muddy water on to one of us. Mondays were especially hard during the monsoons, since we wore the white ‘PT’ dress. Rain splashes were no badge of honour in the school assembly.

I have so many memories associated with my auto-rickshaw. The many dawns I’ve seen while sitting on the ‘side’. The smell of flowers early in the morning. The cool breeze as we approached the outskirts of the city. The friends, the fights, the innocence…

Yet, this blog post is not about these memories. It is about our auto-vaale-uncle ji (driver of the auto-rickshaw). I was about to go off to sleep today, when a thought about him passed through the memory lanes. The fat, friendly gentleman who would ring our bell at 6 am in the morning without fail. Who would pick up our bags, help us settle in to the rickshaw, resolve our fights, ensure that we sat safely. He was not very educated, but he helped educate tens of kids. At a salary of about 2 thousand rupees per month (~40 dollars), 10-15 years ago.

I have never thought of this man all these years, and yet this sudden memory fills me with emotions. Feelings of gratitude towards a man whose name I do not remember, but without whom I would have not made it safely to school, or resolved the countless fights with other kids, or enjoyed the morning breeze. Somewhere deep inside my heart, is a feeling of guilt. I am guilty of having lost contact with him through all these years, resigning these memories to the unimportant/trivial in life…

Here’s hoping that I get to meet him the next time I visit Amritsar.

Here’s hoping that we can all pause to remember the individuals in our lives who have helped shape who we are, and who must not be forgotten as we sail through the seas of life.

Lincoln Inspirations, and Current Politics

Any man can say things that are true of Abraham Lincoln, but no man can say anything that is new of Abraham Lincoln

– Frederick Douglass

I’ve been recently listening to the Team of Rivals, and interviews of Doris Kearns Goodwin about Lincoln (besides snooping around on Biography.com for more about the man). Like millions of others, I find myself mesmerized by the almost-mythical stature Lincoln commands in history.

There is a lot that can be said about him, but a quality that intrigued me most, perhaps because of its absence in the political scene of today, is Lincoln’s uncanny knack to be able to oppose his political foes with respect, without questioning their intent. Even as he opposed slavery, Lincoln could empathize with folks on the other side. Instead of demonizing them, he said:

They are just what we would be in their situation. If slavery did not now exist amongst them, they would not introduce it. If it did now exist amongst us, we should not instantly give it up.

By doing so, Lincoln is able to oppose the issue and let others ‘come to him’, instead of adding to flames of bitterness. It is not only a sign of good character, but also a smart political strategy.

I wonder how such attitude would transform the political debate today, especially in India. I wonder if Manish Tiwari could speak a sentence without demonizing everyone else on the other side of the table. It is not just about being polite, rather more importantly, it is about being smart and strategic.

In the midst of these thoughts, I am reminded of Gandhi, who called Jinnah his brother. I am reminded of Barack Obama, who called McCain a patriot and hero, while opposing him in an election. These qualities are not wholly absent, but rare, perhaps for a reason…

On the landscapes of history, only a thin horizon separates the skies of statesmanship from the seas of politics. Perhaps it is this essence of Lincoln and Gandhi, a sense of balance that calls you to rise to the highest levels of emotional strength while keeping your feet grounded in reality.

Life

I tried standing tall
and firm, like Everest.
I tried letting go
just flow, like Ganges.

~

I tried being a dreamer-
inspired, like a poet.
Then embraced acceptance
and peace, like a monk.

~

Yet life never came
to me, as whole.
It came in bits and pieces
of shattered glass,
no longer transparent.

~

Ambition and acceptance,
hope and happiness,
desire and despair,
fill suspended moments
in dry strokes of color.

~

Never to be seen whole,
the rainbow of life
remains
undiscovered.

Waking

like a little paper-boat
on a strong current
I flow — unaware
of space and time.

In the curves and rapids,
a little rock I hit.
a spark of conscience awakens
but only for a little bit.

the tide of time again
sweeps me in its flow.
in a current where it’s easy
to pretend I do not know.

I think blessed are they
who say life’s slopes are steep
for at least they’ll spend
more time, awake than asleep.

for those of us surrendered
like paper boats in time,
I hope there are ways of waking
Where rocks are a little sublime.

2010 in review

The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Wow.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 9,100 times in 2010. That’s about 22 full 747s.

 

In 2010, there were 33 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 212 posts. There were 24 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 23mb. That’s about 2 pictures per month.

The busiest day of the year was February 19th with 131 views. The most popular post that day was Does a Private Job Make You a Sell Out? Disagreeing With CNR Rao.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were facebook.com, twitter.com, linkedin.com, saurabhmadaan.blogspot.com, and google.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for guru gobind singh ji, perimeter scholars international, saurabh madaan, manmohan singh, and harivansh rai bachchan agneepath.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

1

Does a Private Job Make You a Sell Out? Disagreeing With CNR Rao February 2010
3 comments

2

Faves from Ghalib March 2009
19 comments

3

‘Sauda’-giri in Punjab May 2007
30 comments

4

Perimeter Scholars International, a Student’s Experience December 2009
6 comments

5

Agnipath – Harivansh Rai Bachchan November 2009