Impatient Reader.

It was around midnight when I had the urge to finish the book I started in the morning,

on a bumpy cab ride, I opened the first page to mark it with my name,

the ride made my name look illegible,

a little less elegant, a little less cursive,

the words, as I discovered, were everything that my handwriting at the moment wasn't,

they were elegant,

full of life and what one could call, soul wrenching and thought-provoking,

my delight of discovering a new writer and the romance with his words came to an abrupt halt as I reached work,

after making a mental note of spending a sleepless night to finish it, I resumed my activities,

that midnight, however, was a different tale altogether,

a book I procured so carefully from a second-hand bookstore was nowhere to be seen,

scouring the bags, rooms and areas under the bed yielded no favourable result,

with disappointment writ large on my face, I took to venting out on all mediums I could find,

no amount of coaxing from my fellow readers eased me as I subjected my brain to a great deal of ridicule,

its forgetfulness, recklessness and the mere ability to leave a book in the cab was unforgivable,

but as my plight worsened, I ordered another copy of the book and decided to endure the long wait of seven days,

7 sunrises, 6 sunsets, I calculated, didn't seem long as I imagined engulfing myself in the words of that writer,

so right now, I have a new friend coming my way, sunshine in my pocket, and the thought of living and breathing new words,

I am an impatient reader again.

Goodbye To Your Favourite Fictional Characters!

“I like stories about supervillains. They teach children that you can accomplish great things even when the whole world is against you.” 

― G.D. Falksen

I have a really annoying habit of getting attached to fictional characters. Like most of the readers, I laugh, cry, and jump in joy along with them. Ah! The little joys of being an avid reader, right? All good things must end and so do the stories. How does it feel to bid a tearful adieu to your favourite fictional character? How does it feel to bid a goodbye to your favourite childhood hero? 

I agree, a writer immortalizes the character, the protagonists, the villains, and the metaphors. But the book comes to an end. *Sniff* We won't experience the journey of the character again. Unless, we decide to read the book again. And again. 

Who comes to your head when someone talks about fictional characters? Of all the characters I love, Hector of Troy tops the list. Truth be told, it was awful when he dies. I could never fathom why Achilles is SO overrated. There were moments when I felt Achilles was outright ridiculous. I mean seriously, Hector is an epitome of a true hero. 

Sherlock Holmes, my childhood hero, is one character that most of us love. All the followers of Holmes, raise your arms. (Woot! I see all of them raising their arms. Some of them raised both their arms in excitement.) The question here is why, just why did Sir Doyle end the awesomeness of Holmes so soon? There could have been stories, more investigations, more mysteries. More. Just a little more.

Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina is one of the most beautiful characters. I fell in love with her character the moment I read the book. Needless to say, it was very painful to see her go through so much agony. Leo Tolstoy created one of the best female protagonists with Anna Karenina. Such beauty!

Doctoring her seemed to her as absurd as putting together the pieces of a broken vase. Her heart was broken. Why would they try to cure her with pills and powders?

Bruce Wayne! One cannot help but fall in love with him. And we all know how we felt when Bruce Wayne sacrificed Batman for the greater good. We had to leave a major part of our childhood there, and walk out. And we walked out, pouting and throwing tantrums like children. 

Jane Austen's Darcy is one of the most influential characters. Most of the women are SO into Darcy that they want their men to be like Darcy. How ridiculous! Saying goodbye to Darcy is one thing, but asking garbage to turn into gold? Not happening, ladies. Darcy is Darcy for a reason. If all men could be like him, Darcy would have never gotten so popular in the first place. 

I must also say that 90% of my friends wept when Harry Potter ended. They are SO delusional that they claim that it is a sheer injustice. They never wanted Harry Potter to end. They wanted to grow old with Harry Potter. Silly lives!

It is always painful to say goodbye to your favourite character. You treat your favourite fictional as a real person. You talk to it, cry with it, and laugh with it. I am glad I read, I fall in love with so many characters, live their lives and treat them as my own. We must be so glad, and thankful to all the writers who create such wonderful characters that were a part of us, and somewhere down the line, we'll meet more interesting characters. More stories. But the goodbyes are always heart wrenching unless the book is horrid enough for you to leave it mid way.

25 Things that Every Person Should Do!

1. Read. Read a lot.

2. Write. Write everything. Write about every moment that you experience, write about every memory that is awesome, write about every moment that is not-so-awesome, write till you are lost in your words. Write till you are exhausted. Write till you know you cannot write anymore

Or even better, write a book.

3. Travel. Maintain a journal. Write down everything. Take pictures. Make memories.

4. Fall in love. 

5. Get hurt. Fall apart. Cry out loud. Push everything away. Make yourself numb and immune to all the crap happening around you.

Experience the pain. And write down how it feels! No, really.

6. Write a song. Compose it. Refrain from singing it out loud. Or may be, you should just sing. You never know!

7. Go on a sabbatical.

8. Take a break from Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Quora, Whatsapp, and of course, your mobile phone. It is easy. Try it.

9. Sleep a lot. Take a break from work and sleep for 48 hours straight. You know how awesome it feels?

10. Eat.A.Lot.

11. Sleep under the stars with your friends.

12. Wake up early in the morning and let the sun-rays play on the face of your loved one. Well, do you need anything more than such a beautiful sight? No, you do not!

13. Make a difference.

14. Spend a day eating a yummy chocolate cake and try not to feel guilty about the calories and all.

15. Go back-packing. Alone! Yes.

16. Quit your job. Find a job you love the most.

17. Spend all your money. Be broke.

18. Learn something new each day.

19. Slap all those idiots who ask you to 'move on.' It is so easy for people to say that. Obviously! They do not put themselves in your shoes and think, right? And if you have ever asked someone to move on..well, you know whom to slap first!

20. Talk about yourself to a stranger and let him judge you. Brutally!

And accept the criticism. Or the good stuff. ;)

21. Make promises. And promise yourself that you will fulfill every promise. After all, promises are meant to be fulfilled, isn't it?

22. Take a leap of faith and do the things that you badly want to do in spite of knowing and sensing the repercussions.

23. Shop till you drop.

24. Figure out what you need. Figure out what you want. Make a plan and make sure that everything happens according to your plan.

Make every effort to get what you want. What is the use of making plans and all when you cannot fight to achieve them?

25. Make some friends who love you. Love them back and do everything to make them happy.