Trying before buying

I don't understand the concept of an arranged marriage. I mean, you meet the guy once or twice and decide that you want to spend the rest of your life with him? Look at it this way, when you go shopping for a dress, you don't just buy the first thing you see, right? You check how it fits, whether it is comfortable, whether you have accessories that go with it, how many occasions you can wear it for. You parade around in it to see if you make a statement, whether the outfit is 'YOU'. So much fuss for a dress and just one encounter is enough to make one of the most important decisions of your life? You have to try before you buy, right? You could argue that the parents have probably checked out his background, but they can't really check out his personality can they? Just because you seem compatible on paper doesn't mean that you're compatible in real life. I mean, the parents can introduce the guy to you, and you can date him for a while. Get comfortable with each other and decide whether you are right for each other. Honestly, this is a person you expect to spend the rest of your life with, it's not a spontaneous, spur of the moment decision you just jump into. It may sound insanely romantic, but it's just insane.

Clear With Periodic Clouds

My phone, like all smartphones, gives me the forecast for the day. Today it said "clear with periodic clouds". I couldn't help but think that our lives too are very much like that. All of us have periods of distress and have experienced the calm before the storm or the horrific storms themselves. When you think about it, our lives can be explained in the form of a weather forecast. Take my day for example; mostly sunny with a few thunderclouds. It's a nice way of looking at life. A simple way-without all the riff-raff that we bother with.
I'd like the message on my gravestone to be along these lines. Somehow, when you look at life this way, it doesn't seem so complicated anymore. And therein lies our problem. We overcomplicate everything and then are shocked to find ourselves tangled in a filthy mess. Take it easy. We have only one life to live! Now, if only I could follow my own advice! Oh well, Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!

The Mistakes We Make

When I wrote my boards in the 10th grade, I felt that nothing could be harder and I couldn't wait for it to finish. Then I reached the 12th, and thought, "Okay, this is the hardest thing I've done". Then I reached college; well, you catch my drift, don't you? It's the way life works. We always assume that THIS will be the hardest thing I will do, that THIS is the worst possible way I could screw up and then life surprises you. Rather, you surprise yourself. You can't expect life to be mundane and stagnant. It's filled with mistakes. You make mistakes so that you learn a lesson and are cautious enough to prevent it from happening again. When you make mistakes, major ones that is, you feel like it's the end of the world. Like choosing to trust the wrong person, losing your wallet that contained every single thing you need for identification (this actually happened to me a few days ago. Thank god I found it.), disappointing someone who believes in you. That's the thing about mistakes. They happen. They happen to all of us, no matter how careful we are. Life throws curveballs at us every step of the way. Some things are easy to deal with and some aren't. When I lost my wallet, my mom and I literally lost our minds. She was screaming at me about my irresponsible behaviour and I was ready to pull my hair out at my own stupidity. Had I not found it the very next day, I have no idea what I would have done. But you move on. You have to. If you don't, you haven't learnt much. Because that's what mistakes are for. To shape you into a better, stronger person.
I hope to God, I didn't come across as preachy. I'm so sorry if I did.