Dear Manishasky,

Firstly, like I’ve said before, it was mighty kind of you to nominate me for this! Thank you. 🙂 It sure is encouraging when someone appreciates you for your work, and most of all for being true to yourself.

That’s the thing with writing – through it, we give the readers a glimpse into our mind. It isn’t easy to let it all out for the world to see. It is a brave display of our innermost thoughts, available for anyone to judge. But we aren’t deterred. We bare it all because we are being true to ourselves, and that is what matters the most at the end of the day.

I really enjoy reading your blogs because you are not afraid to show what you truly feel. And that is how readers connect to a piece of writing. Keep it up.

To everyone who is reading this blog, do visit Manishasky’s blog at – https://manishasky.wordpress.com/ . You will not be disappointed. She conveys her thoughts with simplicity that is endearing and charming.

The rules are:

– Thank the blogger(s) who nominated you and link back to their blog.
– List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or on your blog.
– Answer the 11 questions the blogger asked you.
– Nominate up to 11 new blogs to receive the award, write them 11 questions and notify them about the nomination.

My Answers to the questions posed by Manishasky :-

1. What embarrasses you the most and/or what’s been your most embarrassing moment?

As I’ve grown older I’ve noticed that I don’t get embarrassed very easily. But that wasn’t the case when I was a kid. I was shy and never spoke up when put on the spot. As years went by, I realised that speaking up and defending myself was important. And then I started to stand up for myself for everything. And yet, years later, I realised that we have to choose our battles. Not everything deserves our attention and energy. When you make peace with that, a lot less bothers you and still less embarrasses you. Because you don’t look at yourself from the eyes of others anymore. You begin to look at yourself through your own eyes. You recognise that you know what you truly are. And that, explaining it to others beyond a reasonable level, is a waste of time and a disservice to yourself. In short, when you are being your truest self, why be embarrassed? 🙂

2 . Who do you look up to the most, and what qualities do you love about that person?
I love my parents. I definitely look up to both of them for their many qualities that I have tried to imbibe. But specifically, in terms of one quality that I feel I need to still imbibe, I look up to my father for it the most. He has seen struggle since he was very young. He has faced challenges, but every single time with a smiling face. I tend to crib when there is a setback. Mostly to do with the fact that I love my comfort zone and uncertainty and sudden changes scare me. I like to conveniently blame my zodiac sign(Taurus,the bull) for this. Heheh. But my father is unfazed(no exaggeration) when there is a setback of any kind. His positivity in the face of otherwise disconcerting uncertainties is inspiring. I wish I was like him in that matter – his refreshing attitude of facing life’s challenges by looking at them straight in the eye, that too with a smile and a calm demeanor, and just focusing on the next steps, effortlessly, like the natural flow of water. I try to be like him, but it takes mindfulness and effort to achieve that. With him, it is just effortless. I wish I had that in me.

3. What would be your perfect day?

Given the ongoing global pandemic, I would imagine a perfect day to be one where I don’t have to live in constant fear of it anymore – A day which announces the end of the Covid19 pandemic.

4. What’s your biggest fear?

Oh, if there was just one! Fears may be small or big, that doesn’t matter, but they certainly come in the way of living life to the fullest.

5. How do you like to be comforted when you’re sad or upset?

I like to be listened to with an open heart. Just feeling heard and understood by someone has a strange healing effect, even if the actual problem doesn’t get solved.

6. What’s your all time Happy Memory?

Many come to mind. But one really stands out – the day my daughter was born and the joy I saw in my father’s eyes and the happiness I sensed in his voice when he described his feelings of when he saw her. She is easily his most favorite person in the world.

7. What’s your favorite thing you own and why ?

My earphones I guess – I love putting them on and getting lost in my own world with the music that is playing.

8. Who was the last person who made you cry and why?

Ummmm…. oh yeah… a few days ago. My husband. Nope, no story of romance here. No tears of joy. It was over something trivial. Don’t get me wrong, he is a nice guy. It’s just a usual married person’s tale. If you’re married, you know how these stories go. But I cried and got over it. He blamed it on PMS. Totally normal. lol.

9. Where do you hope to be five years from now? Ten, fifteen?

I read somewhere that 5 years ago, those who were sure what they were going to be doing 5 yrs from then, are totally wrong today (pandemic happened remember?).
But I’ve never had the answer to this question. Even thought I’m not comfortable with change, even I know to make my plans in pencil, coz they keep changing.

10. If money was no object, what would I buy?

Interesting question. Off the top of my head – I would invest in an amphi theatre of sorts, do it up in an old-world charm sorta way, but with state of the art technology, and have talented folks in the fields of music, dance, speech and drama come from all over the world(carefully selected by me) and showcase their art to a daily crowd of enthusiastic, curious and encouraging audiences who are genuinely interested in spreading the word of goodness and joy around.

11. When have you felt the most proud?

It gives me great joy when my parents tell me they are proud of me. They are my most honest critics, and give me sincere advise when they see me faltering.

I would like to Nominate the following Bloggers further for this award (i’m new to this, so I’m simply posting blogs whose work I’ve come across and liked) and the questions are the same ones I answered, for you guys as well.

https://newumeedshabd.wordpress.com

https:// cur8able.com

https://theartofselfproclaimedsolitude.com

https://historyofawoman.wordpress.com/2020/06/25/running-water/

What I Hear When Someone Says “I Don’t See Color”

Surrounded: How Books Are Keeping Me Going in Quarantine

Watercolor Painting & Sketching Group, Community, Magazine, and Shop

https://kk.org/thetechnium/

https://iambeggingmymothernottoreadthisblog.com

https://sebald.wordpress.com/2020/05/26/pandemic-time/

https://theimtiredproject.com

I hope that our community of bloggers continues to churn out pieces that are straight from the heart, so that it makes us feel lighter and we are able to share the joy in that with our readers. Cheers to our love for the written word!

Best,
Aanchal

(https://amindspeak.com)

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© 2020 Aanchal Nithin Prakashan All Rights Reserved.