The End...For Now....

Have you seen an envelope like this, very popular nowadays? Oh yes, most of us have grown so affluent that we may no longer possess the humble one rupee coin and have to hunt for it..…so, to save your precious time, some astute envelope manufacturer came up with this brainwave….

I’ve heard people say that when you gift someone cash at an auspicious function, you must add 1 rupee to the otherwise round figure ending with zero, because the number 1 indicates the beginning of something more….

No, this isn’t a post on the Indian concept of numericals….I’m just trying to put a positive (auspicious?) spin to the fact that my blogathon that was supposed to be for 30 days, has spilled over to the 31st day...

Many of you may not be aware, but I had done a similar blogathon last year – November 2016. A group of us bloggers got together, each one put up a blog each day, and we read and commented on each other’s blogs. It was fun and a huge learning experience.

This year, the lady who organized that group was too busy to do it….so I decided to go it alone, knowing it would be a huge stretch, but still, that I was capable of doing this because I have actually been writing on my Facebook page everyday since August 23rd…

There were two things I did differently for NaBloPoMo 2017. One, I decided to forward the link everyday to my readers through Whatsapp, Facebook and Twitter. Two, I enlisted my readers’ help to give me stuff to write about. This latter step proved so magical that on some days, I had to write nothing more than giving an introduction and a conclusion….the rest was what people wrote themselves.

And you, dear readers, have been amazing….right from sending in your replies to my query to opening your hearts and sharing your thoughts on each of the posts you read, to sending in your final feedback about the experience….I’m overwhelmed and humbled by all the respect, positive sentiments, love and affection that has moved you to be such enthusiastic participants…..

Here are snippets from what some of my readers had to say….

 

There were some valuable suggestions too….hopefully, I will be able to act on these from next time onwards….



I've put up all this feedback not to show off....but because I treasure it all...and want it to stay for posterity....someday, if ever I forget the power of what one small positive step can do, I will look at this post again, and feel reassured to go on doing whatever little I can.....

These 30 days were hectic, no doubt.

Putting “writing and posting blog” under Important and Urgent category on my to-do list for the day….

Rushing between my laptop and the kitchen and the washing machine and cleaning utensils….

Forgetting if I’d added salt while making the rasam because the mind was occupied with some particular train of thought on what the blog post would be…..

Being asked on the phone if I had time to talk or was busy writing for the blog ….

Saying “No, it’s ok,” and talking (mildly distractedly) because I was worried I’d lose the mental environment I had created for the day’s writing if I got caught up in what the person at the other end was saying…

Overall, Cinderella syndrome….rushing through things with an eye always on the clock because the post had to be up before the midnight hour struck. Not very pleasant for King and Prince Charming at home….but I’m grateful to them too for letting me and my writing be and putting up with this temporary 1-month syndrome….

At the end of the month, all I can say is that making each one of the 30 days count was an uplifting experience. For me, and from the feedback, for you readers too….

In fact, I still have quite a few stories unpublished. Which is why I have decided……no, don’t panic…not another blogathon…but I will be writing one post every week to continue to spread the positive messages people send my way…If you had wanted to tell your story but couldn’t do it in this one month, do write in whenever you can and I will put it up in the months to come…

Thanking each one of you dear readers for making this a wonderful experience....looking forward to many more stories that will help all of us, together, to make our world a better place…..