Musings from a Recliner

Musings from a Recliner. ~ Lally Virk. 0600 hrs/05 Sep 18. Life !!! In a theatre when a drama plays....you opt for front seats. But when a film is screened...you opt for rear seats. Your position in life is only relative....Never absolute. For making soap.....oil is required, but to clean oil, soap is required. This is the irony of life..!! Only two categories of people are happy in this world. The Child and The Mad. Be Mad to achieve a goal.  But be a Child to enjoy what you have achieved.  Enjoy life..!!  Neither can you hug yourself nor can you cry on your own shoulder. Life is all about living for one another....so live with those who love you the most.  Kuchh rishton mein munafa nahin hota....par zindagi amir banaa detein hain !! 🤔🥂

Musings from a Recliner: 10 Aug 18 ~ Lally Virk. “I don’t disagree”. A few days ago, one of the Tigers had put up a post on BambooDoor. These days, wanting to preserve my peace especially on BD, I generally avoid remarking. But not able to contain myself I had remarked on that post.  A couple of minutes later, the Tiger who had forwarded that post replied back saying, “You are right Lally…………….." and ended his response by saying, “I don’t disagree”. This inadvertent, innocuous remark by our Tiger, “I don’t disagree”, occupied my thoughts for the rest of the day and got me thinking.  "I don't disagree"....hmmmm......What is the difference between “I agree” and "I don't disagree", or is there a difference at all? As I kept going deeper, a lot of interesting things started emerging.  Let's walk along and see it unfold. Strictly speaking “I don’t disagree” falls in the realm of a ‘double negative’. I would say it exists i...

Morning Musings: 29 May 18, 0845 hrs - Major Lally Virk A walk in the woods all alone, No one around, the perfect way to drown out all the sound. Breathing in air so sharp, It cuts the cobwebs from my mind. The silence disturbed only by the swaying of trees and the rustling of leaves. Just me and my thoughts, walking along the landscape of my memories. Just a little more, then I'll come back to my door. 🤔😊🌴🌲⛳

Golf it was....random shots today !!! In My Hand I Hold A Ball, White And Dimpled...Rather Small. Oh, How Bland It Does Appear, This Harmless Looking Little Sphere. By Its Size I Could Not Guess The Awesome Strength It Does Possess. But Since I Fell Beneath Its Spell, I've Wandered Through The Fires Of Hell. My Life Has Not Been Quite The Same Since I Chose To Play This Stupid Game. It Rules My Mind For Hours On End; A Fortune It Has Made Me Spend. It Has Made Me Curse And Made Me Cry, And Hate Myself And Want To Die. It Promises Me A Thing Called Par, If I Hit It Straight And Far. To Master Such A Tiny Ball, Should Not Be Very Hard At All. But My Desires The Ball Refuses, And Does Exactly As It Chooses. It Hooks And Slices, Dribbles And Dies, And Disappears Before My Eyes. Often It Will Have A Whim, To Hit A Tree Or Take A Swim. With Miles Of Grass On Which To Land, It Finds A Tiny Patch Of Sand. Then Has Me Offering Up My Soul, If Only It Would...

Musings from a Recliner: 0900 hrs 14 May 18 – Sharing happiness !! This morning once again had one of those surreal extrasensory experiences which are now gradually becoming a part of my everyday life. Having had a late night due to a wonderful ‘after-party’ we attended last evening with the Delhi Daredevils at the Golf Club, I headed a bit late to the forest, where I go everyday to lose my mind in search of my soul. I had barely entered the ‘Sanctuary’ immersed in my own thoughts enjoying this wonderful song on my old iPod, when I was stopped in my tracks by the most awesome sight. Who do I see? My friend, Freddie standing in all his splendour with outstretched arms to welcome me. He covered the complete pathway and did not let me go. The look on his face said, “We need to talk mate”. What followed was a good 10 plus minutes of the most blissful silent “loud” conversation between ‘two friends’. ‘ Yes, these were the sounds of silence’. I was just lost in the vastness of this wonde...

Musings from a recliner: 10 May 18, 1800 hrs.... Retribution, Repentance & Reconciliation : A man walks on through life with the ‘ external call ringing in his ears’ but with no response stirring in his heart. Suddenly, without any warning, the ‘ Spirit’ taps him on the shoulder. What happens next ? Does he ‘ turn around’? The word Repentance means, ‘ He turns around’. Did VW ? Defense of insanity compounds the error. In case of VW, it’s _like a drunkard who in the morning repents the headache, and not the drink_….in this case I’m not too sure if he even repents the headache ? In some there is repentance of a misdeed which produces a ‘ sense of shame’. Was there any in his case ? Having committed the misdeed, was there any moral reflection? If there was none then please remember, ‘ the dog will return to his vomit’. In the case of VW, he has been a regular repeat offender ever since he surfaced on BambooDoor. The stage reached by him is such that ‘ even his tears of repen...

Oh yes…..those were the ‘wonder years’. I remember, so very often in our second, third and even fourth terms, Bhola and I and at times  Batra, would skip the movie on saturday and escape to the long range area via Gole, from where we would fill our satchels with all the goodies. We would locate a nice dug-out, which would be our make believe ‘home’ for the next 2 to 3 hours…….far from the madding crowd. It was as if we were suddenly ‘free’. No senior to suddenly pounce on you and ‘let you have it’ just because he didn’t like the way you looked at him or better still just the way you looked. Yes those were trying times for all of us. I remember we would lie down on the ground and look at the sky and the stars and get the feeling that the world was beckoning us. I was an idealist…….the Howard Roark kind, and staring at the expansive sky and the stars dreamt of how I would change the world…….. Bhola was a die-hard romantic and always saw the ‘love of his life’-Reet, in those star...

Till the British ruled India, history taught in schools only glorified them and the Mughals who obviously the Brits could not have wiped out from the history books. Thereafter, the Anti-Sikh mindset of the Congress which ruled India for a long time after partition prevented Sikh History from coming into the text books. The stand of RSS (BJP) needs no mention. This coupled with the fact that the Sikhs, who inspite having a distinct Identity and doing larger than life deeds, unfortunately could not create an Identity of their own majorly because they were always a minority. Even the state Governments in Punjab were too busy looting the state and possibly felt ashamed looking over their shoulders to see the Sikh Gurus or the other great Sikh Generals glaring at them as them emptied the exchequers. So how could Sikh history have entered text books in schools. Surprisingly, as per my knowledge, the only mention Sikhs find in Indian history books is mention of Guru Nanak in the “Bhagti ...

I had collated this basically for Gulnar & Yuvraj to make them aware of our lineage and our rich heritage. 👊⚔ It would be nice if Nirvaan could be made aware of his mother's lineage when he comes of age. It would I am sure give him strength and encourage him to live up to the rich traditions of his ancestors.⚔  We are direct descendants of the great Sikh General Nawab Kapur Singh Virk. In fact, my father Colonel Kapur Singh Virk, who was himself a gallantry award winning Veteran of 4 wars, was named after our ancestor. This is a bit long but it is important for you children to know your lineage and roots besides gaining  knowledge of the rich Sikh history and some of its great Generals. Do kindly go through this interesting piece collated by me specifically for you my children to apprise you of your rich legacy and ancestry and give you the strength to emulate your ancestors in keeping with the rich traditions and high ideals of our illustrious family. Salute to ...

I was just reflecting this morning on the events of the last few days and a question arose in my mind, “What is the difference between  gratitude and appreciation ?” Because we can be grateful for something in our lives without really appreciating it. The subtle shift from gratitude to appreciation involves being  more thoughtfully aware and active in reflecting on the reasons we feel grateful about something or someone. Through present moment awareness, we begin to generate feelings of appreciation. For example, we can be grateful for having food on our table.  However, we can go further and appreciate its beauty, fragrance, taste, nutrition, and preparation. We move beyond thankfulness as we consciously recognize the value that food adds to our lives. In fact, one definition of the word “appreciation” is “recognition of the quality, value, significance, or magnitude of people and things.” Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and...

I have passed a mountain peak and my soul is soaring in the Firmament of complete and unbound freedom; I am far, far away, my companions, and the clouds are Hiding the hills from my eyes. The valleys are becoming flooded with an ocean of silence, and the Hands of oblivion are engulfing the roads and the houses; The prairies and fields are disappearing behind a white specter That looks like the spring cloud, yellow as the candlelight And red as the twilight. The songs of the waves and the hymns of the streams Are scattered, and the voices of the throngs reduced to silence; And I can hear naught but the music of Eternity In exact harmony with the spirit's desires. I am cloaked in full whiteness; I am in comfort; I am in peace. 🙏

It began with the, "The President and the PM who have never had time to meet the Veterans or speak for the martyrs are tweeting for Mr Bonny Kapoor's second wife !!"... Somehow somewhere the context advertantly or inadvertently seems to have changed...the goal post shifted. At no stage were any comparisons sought between any two funerals. There are no comparisons. One is a a presumed accidental death of a actress, the other lays down his life for his motherland. It was all about the Supreme Commander and the honourable Prime Minister always maintaining a stoic silence when a Soldier lays down his life or not ever having any time to address the legitimate  grievances of the Veterans but both have time to tweet their condolences for the accidental death of an actress and doing everything short of declaring state mourning. That is what my post was all about. Please read it in that context. 👊⚔ It is not a question of comparing. It is a question of honouring. Honouring ...

Morning Musings - All or Nothing from a Recliner – 04/04/18 - Lally Virk. The year 1975 - Hallowed precincts of The National Defence Academy. A ‘ragtag’ group of lads from diverse backgrounds thrown together by destiny, start their journey. What bound them all together were the ‘tears’ of pain, scare, disgust, exasperation, frustration and yet joy and jubilation, they all shed every night in those early halcyon days of Jun 1975. Cut to 2014. Thanks to Brian Acton, ‘BambooDoor’ is born, where this same bunch having completed their ‘long walk to freedom’, so to speak, come together again. ‘Bamboodoor’ an irresistible addiction for all of us….our ‘virtual home’ and the raison d’etre of the 54th Course, NDA. But today how does one best describe BambooDoor....? This ‘ragtag’ group whose biggest joy at one point of time was as simple as having the luxury of 35 minutes of breakfast time whereby you could polish off 35 toasts and walk out of the mess feeling like a ‘king’, has today beco...