Let’s come and be a part of this beautiful Diwali Celebration

Hello Ticklies!

Hope you all are doing well!

So, I am back with a special Diwali challenge.

Hope you all liked it. So, are you ready to make this Diwali more special with your writing skills?

This is not about a challenge- it is more about celebration.

And it is going to be quite simple. You don’t have to do anything extraordinary. You have to be real.

Let’s Celebrate Diwali Together! 🪔✨

All you have to do is share your Diwali experiences with us!

• What does this festival mean to you?
• What makes Diwali special for you?
• Do you enjoy celebrating this festival? If yes, why?
• How do you usually celebrate Diwali, and how have your celebrations changed over the years?

A small note: Don’t forget to add a personal touch to your writing by sharing real pictures from your Diwali celebrations. It could be your rangoli, decorations, puja, sweets, family moments, or anything that makes your Diwali special.

There’s no rush! You can share your experiences even after Diwali, along with pictures of your celebrations.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to get a glimpse into the Diwali celebrations of our fellow writers and readers?

And those who are unable to celebrate this festival can also feel included, connected, and part of our little family. Let’s make them experience the joy of Diwali through our words, memories, and photographs.

Because festivals become even more beautiful when we celebrate them together! ❤️🪔

#Rules📜

No strict word limit.

AI cannot tell about your Diwali celebration or describe your feelings.

Use the subtitle “ Diwali Celebration, and the title is completely your choice.

Language: English, Hindi, or Hinglish are all welcome.

Kindly tag me (Monika Mahadev) and Diya Nagarkoti at the end of your article.

Submit your story to the publication “The Innovative Corner”. If you are not added as a writer, you can leave a comment below.

The Innovative Corner

#Mark Your Calendar🗓️

Last Submission date: 15 Nov.

Winner Announcement: 16 Nov.

#Tagging

Tagging some of my fellow incredible writers:-

Sushmita Chakraborty | Love, silence & the unsaid, Ravinimbus, Vinod Bhardwaj, Hooria Akbar, ShubhamAgrawal, Mamta Verma, Dr Radha Narayanan, Smriti Pathak, Swati, Rohan Nagpal 🔱, NehaR@RisingSoul 🐦‍🔥🔱, Paulia Dianz. A🧡, Ravinimbus, Rishabhshail, Parvathi J

Everyone is welcome to celebrate this beautiful festival.

Your cutie patootie,

Monika Mahadev🌸

Diwali Special Challenge cum Celebration was originally published in The Innovative Corner on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Some people never fade away from your life; they are always there in some forms

This is a nostalgic challenge that made me think about my family and its past, and especially about those members who have disappeared.

I was born into a family that had already lost two important people: my Bde Papa and my grandfather. When I was born, I had no idea about these two relationships or the people behind them.

But as I gradually grew up, I came to know that I had a grandfather and a Bde Papa whom I had never met, yet my family kept their memories alive in everything, in every festival. We never forgot them.

I had never seen them, but somehow, I felt attached to them. I used to talk to them. Papa, this happened; Dadu, that happened. I would tell them everything because I had no one else to share my thoughts with. I would talk to them, pour my heart out, and seek their guidance. I always felt their presence around me. I never forgot them.

But there was another truth. Since I had never seen these two people, my family never seemed incomplete to me. I wasn’t truly aware of what death meant until I experienced it myself.

Then, in 2016, I came face to face with the harshest truth when I lost my younger sister at the tender age of six.

That was when my family started feeling incomplete. I began to feel lonely. I used to cry a lot because someone special, someone with whom I had spent my childhood, had left me alone. And suddenly, I felt like I had no one.

I kept wondering how I would ever forget her and return to a normal life. I used to think that it would never happen. I used to weep a lot.

But I was wrong. With time, everything slowly started feeling normal again.

My uncle, who loved her more than anyone, was also struggling to forget her. In a way, we began to come out of that pain when my uncle got married and welcomed a daughter after four years of marriage. It was a wonderful moment for all of us.

From that moment onwards, the memories of my sister slowly began to get replaced by the presence, laughter, and mischief of this newborn child.

We became completely involved in her life, and then another daughter came along. Now, we have two little girls in our family. And without even realising it, we slowly stopped talking about my sister as often as we once did. Yet, she is still a part of our family, in every festival, every prayer, and every moment of happiness.

But sometimes, I wonder whether she will remain a part of our family forever. Because people move on, memories fade, and everyone eventually gets caught up in their own lives.

But I never want to forget her.

Because I believe my family will always remain incomplete without these three people: my Bde Papa, my Dadu, and my sister.

Thank you, ShubhamAgrawal, for this nostalgic challenge. I really love it.

The Family Story: A Writing Challenge was originally published in Writer’s Circle on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

How to Get Rich (Without Getting Lucky)

How to Get Rich (Without Getting Lucky):

Seek wealth, not money or status. Wealth is having assets that earn while you sleep. Money is how we transfer time and wealth. Status is your place in social hierarchy.

Understand that ethical wealth creation is possible. If you secretly despise wealth, it will elude you.

Ignore people playing status games. They gain status by attacking people playing wealth creation games.

You are not going to get rich renting out your time. You must own equity — a piece of a business — to gain your financial freedom.

You will get rich by giving society what it wants but does not yet know how to get. At scale.

Pick an industry where you can play long-term games with long-term people.

The internet has massively broadened the possible space of careers. Most people haven’t figured this out yet.

Play iterated games. All the return in life, whether in wealth, relationships, or knowledge, comes from compound interest.

Pick business partners with high intelligence, energy, and, above all, integrity.

Don’t partner with cynics and pessimists. Their beliefs are self-fulfilling.

Learn to sell. Learn to build. If you can do both, you will be unstoppable.

Arm yourself with specific knowledge, accountability, and leverage.

Specific knowledge is knowledge you cannot be trained for. If society can train you, it can train someone else and replace you.

Specific knowledge is found by pursuing your genuine curiosity and passion rather than whatever is not right now.

Building specific knowledge will feel like play to you but will look like work to others.

When specific knowledge is taught, it’s through apprenticeships, not schools.

Specific knowledge is often highly technical or creative. It cannot be outsourced or automated.

Embrace accountability and take business risks under your own name. Society will reward you with responsibility, equity, and leverage.

“Give me a lever long enough and a place to stand, and I will move the earth.” — Archimedes.

Fortunes require leverage. Business leverage comes from capital, people and products with no marginal cost of replication (code and media).

Capital means money. To raise money, apply your specific knowledge with accountability and show resulting good judgment.

Labour means people working for you. It is the oldest and most fought-over form of leverage. Labour leverage will impress your parents, but don’t waste your life chasing it.

Capital and labour are permissioned leverage. Everyone is chasing capital, but someone has to give it to you. Everyone is trying to lead, but someone has to follow you.

Code and media are permissionless leverage. They are the leverage behind the newly rich. You can create software and media that work for you while you sleep.

An army of robots is freely available — it is just packed in data centres for heat and space efficiency. Use it.

If you can’t code, write books and blogs, record videos and podcasts.

Leverage is a force multiplier for your judgement.

Judgement requires experience but can be built faster by learning foundational skills.

There is no skill “business.” Avoid business magazines and business classes.

Study microeconomics, game theory, psychology, persuasion, ethics, mathematics, and computers.

Reading is faster than listening. Doing is faster than watching.

You should be too busy to “do coffee” while still keeping an uncluttered calendar.

Set and enforce an aspirational personal hourly rate. If fixing a problem will save less than your hourly rate. If outsourcing a task will cost less than your hourly rate, outsource it.

Work as hard as you can. Even though who you work with and what you work on are more important than how hard you work.

Become the best in the world at what you do. Keep redefining what you do until this is true.

There are no get-rich-quick schemes. Those are just someone else getting rich off you.

Apply specific knowledge with leverage, and eventually you will get what you deserve.

When you are finally wealthy, you will realise it wasn’t what you were seeking in the first place. But that is for another day.

Summary: Productize Yourself.

Hope this article will be helpful to you and provide you with clarity in different aspects of life.

Stay tuned for more blogs like this.

Love you, readers and thank you for giving your time to my writing.

Your Little Cutiee,

— Monika Mahadev🌸

The Almanack of Naval Ravikant was originally published in Voice Of Words on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Come and Congrats to our Amazing Winners

Hello Creative Ticklies!

Hope you all are doing great!

I am also doing pretty well.

So, your wait is over!

Today is the day for the result announcement of the challenge, “What If — A Writing Challenge”, in the publication “Clear and Kind”.

What If — A Writing Challenge for You All

A big thank you to our honourable founder of the publication Manmeet Singh Bhatia. Thank you for giving me this opportunity and always encouraging me.

The question was very simple, as asked in this challenge. This challenge was funny, as you all were asked what would happen if all the decisions were taken by children in a family. And you all gave incredible responses.

So, before knowing the winners, let’s dive into these exquisite entries:-

#Entries

Vinod Bhardwaj

What if- A Writing Challenge

Sudeshna Hajra

What If—A Writing Challenge

ShubhamAgrawal

What If: A Writing Challenge

Dr.Jayasurian Vengilatt. PhD

What if — A Writing Challenge

Biswarupa Mohapatra

What If…? — A Writing Challenge

Pooja Rani

What If -A Writing Challenge

Kalindi Singh

What If – A Writing Challenge

yourrrr_soul

What If — A Writing Challenge

#Winners🏆

🥇1st Position

Vinod Bhardwaj

🥈2nd Position

Dr.Jayasurian Vengilatt. PhD

🥉3rd Position

ShubhamAgrawal

Congratulations to all the beautiful winners and participants. Thank you for making this challenge so special with your words.

I really loved your thoughts.

Thank you for showing this much love of yours and giving your time to my writing and challenges.

Here you can participate in the challenge, “Unapologetically Me”, currently running in our publication:

Unapologetically Me — A Writing Challenge

Stay tuned for the next upcoming challenge.

Keep writing, keep shining

Meet you soon, guys, with more exciting challenges.

Your Cutiee Patotiee,

— Monika Mahadev🌸

https://medium.com/clear-kind

What If — A Writing Challenge Wrap Up🏆🥳 was originally published in Clear & Kind on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Hello Ticklies,

Hope you all are doing great.

This blog is a part of a challenge, “Unapologetically Me”, hosted by 🌸Preeti Pathak🌸. Such an incredible challenge.

This challenge asked me to write about one thing about myself I don’t want to improve, change, or fix.

And I think there are so many things that I don’t want to change, but I don’t think I will be able to carry them with me.

I will break them down one by one:

1. Being Kind to Everyone

There are two personalities within me. In my mind, I often think that I shouldn’t give my things to others or help everyone all the time because my own needs matter too. I should learn to say no to people.

But whenever someone asks me for help or asks me to do something, I can never say no. This is my outer personality. I am always there for others. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in my mind; my actions are always the opposite. And honestly, I feel happy after helping others, no matter what it costs me.

2. Being the Happiest Person and Making Others Happy Too

I have received so much advice like, “You should behave maturely,” “You shouldn’t be so jolly with everyone,” or “You should behave properly.”

But I am completely the opposite. I love making other people happy, cracking jokes, and behaving ridiculously because I love being a child.

I believe the purity and genuine joy (sukoon) of life come from being childish. You can never find that kind of happiness anywhere else. Being carefree, silly, and enjoying the smallest things is one of the best feelings in the world. I love finding joy in small things.

3. Talkative

I am very talkative and talk too much. I literally speak a lot. I can’t live without speaking. Talking is my favourite thing to do. I can live without food, but without talking I can’t.

And I literally love this thing of mine, but I don’t know whether I will be able to carry this habit of mine because we can be talkative if someone is there for us to listen to us. But when there is no one around to listen to you, you automatically become silent and don’t want to talk.

I hope this thing of mine remains alive forever. I love talking.

Thank you, 🌸Preeti Pathak🌸, for such a compelling challenge.

Unapologetically Me — A Writing Challenge

Unapologetically Me — A Writing Challenge was originally published in Clear & Kind on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

The delulu world I had in my mind is the life many people are living. But for me, it is just a dream I see in the day with my open eyes.

You know, I don’t like the real world as much as I love my own delulu world!

There was a time when I didn’t have much work to do or too many responsibilities. So, I used to spend most of my time sleeping and exploring my imaginary world.

I love sleeping so much because it allows me to dive into a world where I belong completely. A world where I feel genuinely happy. I create things on my own. I build my own little universe, where everything happens just the way I want it to.

A world where I can move around freely without any restrictions. I don’t need to seek permission or validation from anyone. A world where I have my own name and fame, where I am doing everything I’ve ever wanted to do.

A world where I can do anything, achieve anything, go anywhere, and live life on my own terms. I can eat whatever I want, travel wherever I wish, and live a fairytale-like life.

You know, when I was in my early teens, I genuinely believed that fairytales were real. I thought fairies and magical worlds actually existed somewhere in this universe.

I imagined that one day, I would also live a fairytale life. I would wear beautiful gowns, find my Rajkumar 🤣, and do all sorts of things with him. We would travel together, explore different places, and do all the silly and ridiculous things I could possibly imagine.

And trust me, I’m a very funny person. I love doing unusual things, cracking jokes, and being a little ridiculous sometimes. So, obviously, I want a partner who is just as fun as I am!

Someone who understands me, pampers my inner child, makes me feel special, and is always there for me. Someone with whom I can be completely myself without worrying about being judged.

And all of this was a part of my delulu world. But back then, I genuinely believed that one day, it would all become my reality.

I never really imagined exploring the world beyond what I could think of because, according to me, travelling to faraway places was something beyond our imagination. I couldn’t even imagine that an ordinary person like me could experience all those things.

I was also a huge fan of the Anywhere Door. I used to think that one day, I would definitely get my own Anywhere Door so that I could travel wherever I wanted, or at least explore different places across India.

Yes, my imagination was limited to India at that time. I only dreamt of travelling around my own country.

But as I grew older, I started realising that nothing is as easy as we imagine it to be. Reality is completely different from the world we create in our minds.

There are responsibilities, limitations, expectations, and so many other things to deal with. Not everything happens the way we want it to.

And slowly, I realised that fairytales don’t work the way they do in our imagination. There is no magical door waiting for us, no guaranteed happily-ever-after, and no one who can magically make all our dreams come true.

So, I started spending more time in my own delulu world. I began sleeping more because, somehow, sleeping gave me more time to explore that imaginary universe.

A place where everything was possible.

A place where I could be whoever I wanted to be.

A place where I didn’t have to explain myself to anyone.

Perhaps, my delulu world was never about escaping reality alone. It was also about experiencing a life where I could be completely free.

And you know what? I realised something later in life.

The things I used to see only in my dreams, the things I thought were impossible and could never become a reality, were not necessarily impossible. They were just a part of my imagination.

Because the life I had always dreamed of was already being lived by so many people.

If they look just like me, if they are human beings just like me, and if they can experience that kind of life, then why can’t I?

Why should I believe that something is impossible for me when it is already possible for someone else?

And from that day onwards, I didn’t stop living in my delulu world. I still love it because that’s the one place where everything seems beautiful and possible.

But something changed.

I stopped limiting those dreams to my imagination. I started working towards the life I had always dreamed of. I began taking little steps to turn my imaginary world into my real one.

I didn’t leave my delulu world behind. I started finding ways to bring its magic into reality.

So, I will proudly say I love my delulu world and love to be in that world because this is the only world where I am the queen.

Hence,

I will say be in reality, but don’t stop creating your delusion world because it gives you the reason to be happy, and it gives you the map to the life you want. And it is not only an imaginary world but a life you see for yourself.

Enjoy Ticklies!

Keep shining, keep imagining, keep writing

Love you……💖

Your cutiee Patotiee,

— Monika Mahadev🌸

Thank you, 🌸Preeti Pathak🌸 di, for this amazing prompt.

For the dreamers, the overthinkers, and those who have a little too much imagination. Enter your Delulu Land, give your imagination a story, and share them with Write Your World. Reality can wait.

Welcome To My Delulu World🏰 — A Writing Challenge

Welcome To My Delulu World — A Writing Challenge was originally published in Write Your World on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

What is Onism?

According to Google, “Onism is the frustration, sadness, or existential ache of being confined to a single body in one place and time, and realising how little of the vast world you will ever experience.”

This is the definition of onism I found on Google, and I came across the word onism through LinkedIn.

I read it for the first time.

And the definition I read on LinkedIn is:

It is the frustration of being stuck in just one place or routine, longing to explore the world and experience life to the fullest.

And when I read this, I came to know how many people are living this kind of life or the same routine in their daily lives.

I think mostly everyone can relate with this word.

Because somewhere, we all have dreams that we want to fulfil. Everyone wants to explore the world. Everyone has a dream place they want to go, but they don’t have any idea whether they will ever be able to reach their dream destination.

It’s not only about dream destinations.

They are not even able to live their lives to the fullest because they have so many responsibilities. They think about other people too much. They overthink everything and constantly worry about what others might say.

Many of them are introverts, and other people’s opinions matter a lot to them. There are so many barriers that stop them from living their lives to the fullest.

They keep following the same routine every day. Some aren’t even pursuing their dream jobs because they are afraid of failing. They hesitate to take the next step, they are afraid of taking risks, and they keep wondering, What if I don’t succeed?

They simply wake up every morning, follow the same routine, and go to bed, without even knowing what else they could do with their lives.

And eventually, they become comfortable with it.

They start believing that their dreams don’t matter. Sometimes, they even convince themselves that their dreams were never meant for them.

They tell themselves, “This is not my destiny. I’m not that lucky. Perhaps God doesn’t want me to do this.”

But we often forget one important thing: so much of our journey depends on the choices we make.

We are human beings, and life is an opportunity to explore, experience, learn, and pursue the things we dream of. We have the ability to try, to create, to achieve, and to discover what we are capable of.

Why should we settle for less when we haven’t even given ourselves a chance to try?

We don’t need to have everything figured out before taking the first step. We don’t need to be fearless, either. Sometimes, all we need is a little courage to begin.

And I believe that when we take that first step with faith, God guides us towards the path ahead.

God is waiting for us to take that first step.

Just that one first step. Otherwise, time will fly away and will never return. And you will only get regression.

And perhaps, that’s how we begin to break free from the limitations we have created around ourselves.

We don’t have to spend our entire lives wondering what could have happened if we had only tried.

We owe ourselves at least one chance to live the life we dream of.

Hence,

We don’t need to be fearless. Sometimes, all we need is a little courage to begin.

I hope you all will be able to resonate with this blog of mine, and it will help you and show clarity in life.

Don’t forget to share your perspective with me

And also don’t forget to ask yourself and tell me: Are you living the same life- onism?

Your Cutiee Patotiee,

— Monika Mahadev🌸

ONISM — Infinite Dreams Finite Days was originally published in The Gravity on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Hello Ticklies!

Hope you all are doing great.

So, this blog is a part of a real experience I had in my life.

I went to see Ravana on Dussehra, and there was a large crowd. So, I sat on one side because of the crowd, and there were more friends of mine who were also sitting near me. One of them is married, so she was saying one of our old friends is going to get married this year.

Then, her sister simply asked whether she is doing love marriage or arrange.

She said,” She is doing a love marriage”.

I was genuinely happy for her because she was getting married to a man of her own choice. She knew him well, and I thought that was such a wonderful thing!

But then, some aunties commented sarcastically, “Aajkal toh love marriage hi ho rahi hai!”

I was wondering, what exactly is the problem with that?

According to me, it’s such a beautiful thing that you don’t just get to wear a lehenga of your choice, but you also get to marry a person of your choice.

Then my friend’s sister said, “Yes, Auntie, love marriages have become quite common nowadays. Personally, I don’t particularly like the idea of marriage, but at least a love marriage is better than an arranged marriage where you don’t even know whom you are going to marry.”

And those aunties immediately responded, “But women are killing their husbands and leaving their families in the name of love!”

They didn’t talk about the women who are doing remarkable things, making their families proud, and contributing to society. Instead, they chose to highlight a few women who had done something wrong.

I think this is one of our biggest habits:

we remember the negative things but conveniently forget all the positive ones.

I wanted to say so many things to them, but I remained quiet. Because sometimes, you cannot change someone’s opinion simply through your words. You have to show them through your actions.

Your words matter, too, but sometimes people are willing to listen only when you reach a certain position or stage in life.

But at that moment, I remain silent and made another promise to myself.

I will change this mindset.

And this wasn’t the only thing they were talking about. They had so many opinions about women and even about their own community.

They said, “In earlier times, we wouldn’t even sit in front of our fathers or brothers. We couldn’t speak freely. But look at the girls nowadays!”

They were saying all this as if it were something to be proud of.

And I was sitting there wondering: How can someone feel proud of having lived a life in which they weren’t even allowed to express themselves freely?

They seemed to take pride in the very restrictions that had once limited them.

And I kept thinking, if women themselves continue saying such things about other women, how will anything ever change?

Men cannot be held responsible for everything. We, too, have a role to play when it comes to changing these mindsets. Sometimes, we become the ones who pass on the same restrictions that once held us back.

I tried to make my sister’s friend understand something.

Dear, never speak negatively about your own community just because a few women have made mistakes. If one woman does something wrong, it doesn’t mean all women are wrong.

Everyone makes mistakes. But why don’t we highlight the mistakes made by men in the same way? Why is it that when a man does something wrong, we often treat it as an individual mistake, but when a woman does something wrong, we start questioning the entire community of women?

And as far as those women are concerned who choose love over their families. So, they are not completely wrong. Somewhere, families are responsible for this. If they support and understand their daughter, nothing will happen like this, and their daughter will brighten their name. And choosing love over family is not wrong. So, both a woman and family both should understand each other. And family should support their children and be there for them in everything.

But don’t always judge a woman instead of understanding them.

Why do we judge all women based on the actions of a few?

We need to stop doing this.

I also tried to explain something about those aunties. There are so many women who have spent their lives within restrictions and have gradually started believing that those restrictions are something to be proud of.

And perhaps that’s the saddest part.

When someone has lived in a prison for so long, they may eventually start believing that the prison is their home.

But that doesn’t mean the prison was ever meant for them.

And I hope we learn to recognise the difference.

If they will recognise this difference, they will be able to fight for their upcoming generations, their daughters.

Things will change; but first, women have to change themselves.

I hope things will change one day, and I will definitely be proud if I am able to make any minor change in anyone’s life.

— Monika Mahadev🌸

I got stuck with two Aunties was originally published in The Innovative Corner on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Kuch Ankahe Ehsaas — Book Announcement

Get your eBook here:- https://store.pothi.com/book/ebook-monika-mahadev-kuch-ankahe-ehsaas/

Hello Ticklies!

Here is the another surprise for you all as you all were not waiting for. Because this time I didn’t give you a hint.

But yeah, you are definitely going to love this surprise, and this is something special, especially for the Hindi readers who love reading stories.

So, without further ado and creating suspense, here is your surprise:-

Yes, this is my first poetry book or should I say our first book because this is not mine only. Here is someone special who equally contributed to this book.

And yes, I never thought that I would write a poetry book one day. But here it is.

I have no idea. How did this happen?

But yes, it happened and here is the result.

कुछ अनकहे एहसास | Pothi.com

I never thought a girl who has never been out would write a book in collaboration with a girl from a different mulk or country.

Yes, this book is the work of two different writers, one from India and the other from Pakistan. That’s why this is more special to me.

Fatehana

She is an amazing poet. She is the one who did a great job, as I am not a regular poet. I just write what comes to my mind; otherwise, I don’t.

#Story Behind This Book

By the way, turning your words into a book is never a one-day story. It takes a lot of dedication, patience, and hard work.

I really loved the way she wrote, so I asked her if she would like to collaborate with me on a book. She immediately said yes, and I was beyond excited!

I approached her in mid-September, and we set a target to complete the book before November. And guess what? We did it! We published our book before November, and it feels like such a wonderful milestone for both of us.

Sometimes, you fulfil a dream you never even imagined having. I never thought I would write poems one day, let alone publish a poetry book. But I tried, and here I am!

I hope you all enjoy reading our poems. And since this is my first attempt at writing poetry for a book, please forgive me if you come across any mistakes. I’m still learning, and I’m happy to be taking this step.

#About the Book📙

This Hindi poetry book is written by me, Monika Mahadev, and Fatehana.

It brings together poems from different genres, inspired by real-life experiences, observations, and emotions.

These are not just words we have written on paper; they are pieces of our hearts. We have poured our emotions and feelings into these pages. Sometimes, we even cried while writing because certain emotions are so deeply rooted within us that putting them into words brings tears to our eyes.

We don’t just write these poems; we feel them.

And that is what makes this book so special to us. Every poem carries a little piece of our experiences, thoughts, and emotions. I hope you find something in these pages that resonates with your own life and makes you feel understood.

This book is very close to my heart, and I genuinely hope you will love reading it as much as we loved creating it.

#Gratitude🙇‍♀️

I am grateful to everyone taking the time to read this article.

You are not just readers; you are a source of strength and motivation for me. Your words of encouragement inspire me to keep writing, exploring, and believing in myself.

Because of you, I have found the courage to do things I once thought were impossible. Things I had never even imagined myself doing are slowly becoming a part of my journey.

Thank you for being a part of this beautiful journey, for reading my words, and for encouraging me to keep sharing them with the world.

Some of the very incredible writers who are true companions of mine in this writing Journey:-

Parvathi J, Saksham Mundra, Manmeet Singh Bhatia, Smriti Pathak, ShubhamAgrawal, Shristi Saini., Diya Nagarkoti, Sushmita Chakraborty | Love, silence & the unsaid, Mamta Verma, Dr Radha Narayanan, Vinod Bhardwaj, SK Sharma (earlier 8th Wonder), Ravindra Kumar Karnani, Sumedh Pimplikar, 🌸Preeti Pathak🌸, Paulia Dianz ❃, Revanth Goud, Anchal Bhuyan ✨, Priyanka Sevta, Harshit, Rockstar Girl/Kaylee, Bharat Chandera, kamal ck, John Edwin, Rachana Adhikary, siya_in_twilight🪷, Gopi Prajapati, 🌀Louisa Light🌀, Nikki’s Unfiltered, GUDDANTI MIHIR, sita, Rishabhshail, Rohan Nagpal 🔱, NehaR@RisingSoul 🐦‍🔥🔱

#Our Book

You can buy my book here. Here is the link:

कुछ अनकहे एहसास | Pothi.com

I hope you will love this book and find something in its pages that resonates with your heart. ❤️

Through this collection, you can explore poems from different genres, including life, motherhood, women, self-reflection, and love. Each poem carries its own emotions, thoughts, and experiences, and I hope you find a piece of yourself in some of them.

I would love to hear your thoughts! Please share your reviews, opinions, and feedback on our book. Your words of encouragement mean a lot to us and will inspire us to keep writing. 🌸

— Monika Mahadev🌸

Our first Poetry Book is Live🎉🥳 was originally published in The Gravity on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Happy Karwachauth Ticklies!🤣😁

Hello, Ticklies!

As you know, Karwa Chauth is coming, and every married woman is going to be busy now, whether it’s your sister, mother, aunt, or someone else.

It’s one of the biggest festivals for many married women, and they celebrate it with great enthusiasm and joy. Every woman seems excited about this festival. From wearing new dresses and jewellery to getting ready in every possible beautiful way, they want to make the day special.

And you must be wondering why I’m talking about all this when I’m not even married. So, what’s my connection with Karwa Chauth?

But there’s a connection, bro! 😂

As you know, I’m not a mehendi master, but yeah, I’m pretty good at applying mehendi. So, I play a very important role during this festival, not on Karwa Chauth itself, but on the day before it.

And guess what? Tomorrow is the day when I’ll be super busy, and my back, hands, and neck are probably going to hurt like crazy!

You know what’s the biggest problem? Everyone wants their mehendi applied at night because they believe that the colour turns darker if you apply it at night. According to them, the darker the colour, the better!

And there are so many women who want me to apply mehendi for them. My neighbours, my aunt, my mother, and several others — all of them come to me.

And the biggest problem is that I don’t know how to say no to anyone!

So, I try to apply mehendi to my mumma in the afternoon. Otherwise, by the time I finish applying it to everyone else, her turn might never come!

And no, I don’t charge anyone for applying mehendi. But people still give me shagun because, well, it’s considered customary. ❤️

Even today, a girl asked me to apply mehendi to her hands. She wanted a full-hand design, and since she knew I wouldn’t have time tomorrow, she asked me to do it today.

And you know what? She’s younger than me.

While applying mehendi to her hands, I suddenly found myself thinking about something.

She’s younger than me, yet she got married last year. She’s so excited about Karwa Chauth and all the celebrations that come with it.

And here I am, still trying to figure out what to do next in my life. I’m struggling to find my direction, trying to build my career, and wondering what the future holds for me.

She isn’t the only girl I know who got married at such a young age. I have so many friends who are already married, and some of their younger sisters are married, too. Some of them even have children!

And honestly, for a moment, I felt awkward.

Not because there’s anything wrong with their lives or their choices. Everyone has a different journey, and I’m genuinely happy for those who are happy with theirs.

But somewhere inside, I couldn’t help comparing our lives.

We are all growing up, but we’re growing up in such different ways. Some girls are already taking on the responsibilities of marriage and motherhood, while others, like me, are still trying to understand themselves, discover their passions, and figure out what they want from life.

And sometimes, when everyone around you seems to be moving ahead on a different path, you start wondering whether you’re falling behind.

But am I really falling behind? Or am I simply living my life at my own pace?

Maybe I don’t have all the answers yet. Maybe I’m still struggling with my career and trying to discover where I belong. But I don’t think that means I’m late in life.

I just hope that one day, girls will have more freedom to decide when they want to get married, what they want to do with their lives, and who they want to become before taking on such big responsibilities.

I hope we reach a time when getting married at a young age isn’t treated as an achievement, and choosing to study, build a career, or simply understand yourself isn’t considered a delay.

And most importantly, I hope people understand that a girl’s life doesn’t have to follow a fixed timeline.

The legal minimum age for marriage for women in India is currently 18, while it is 21 for men. Personally, I hope every girl gets enough time, freedom, and opportunity to grow into the person she wants to become before making such a life-changing decision.

Because marriage should be a choice made with readiness, not a race everyone is expected to finish at a certain age.

Anyway, that’s enough serious talk for today, bro! 😂

Tomorrow, I’ll probably be sitting for hours, applying mehendi to everyone, listening to their conversations, and wondering when my own hands will finally get some rest.

Wish me luck, Ticklies!

My hands, back, and neck are going to need it! ❤️

Also, don’t forget to share your experience and opinion with me.

Your Cutiee Patotiee,

— Monika Mahadev🌸

Karwa Chauth Is Coming, and Guess Who’s Going to Be Busy! was originally published in A Place Called Home on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.