JULIE ANDREW'S 69TH BIRTHDAY SONG

After watching the film " Bucket List " with two great actors - Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman in it - I figured it was time I built a 'bucket list' for myself. It is unlikely that I am going to achieve even 10% of what I am writing - but it is good to get it down on paper.It is good to have something to look at and say - maybe I should do this - or maybe I should help someone to do this - or maybe Pran and myself should really try to do this. Most of these will just end up being words on paper, but then as in the BeeGees song - "words are all I have"

1. Open a school for children of construction workers. Most of them just play by the wayside while their parents work at the sites. They are not there for very long and the logistics involved in this are way too many. But maybe someday when I have enough money, I may be able to do this or maybe I can help someone who already does this.

2. Cut my hair short and let it go grey. Too much effort is involved to dye it and take care of it. Cut it short, stop coloring it and let it be. Life is so much easier then.

3. Go scuba diving - go down in the sea and have a look at the plants and fish around me.

4. Get a toned body - this involves too much effort on my part - so it is not likely to happen !!

5. Spend a few days in Rome - just walking around looking at history and the glory of the Roman Empire. The Sistine Chapel - the Pieta - Da Vinci's sculptures - Michaelangelo's pieces, and so much more.



6. Visit Jerusalem - just thinking about going there makes me feel good - the holiest of holies of three religions - can there be a better place than this to go for a visit ? I am not sure I would consider it a holiday - for I would spend too much time just going from place to place trying to imbibe as much as possible , but then how can you just sit back and relax in a place like this.




7. Teach children about Delhi - about the beautiful places all around it - about its amazing history and how every street seems to hold some new place to see. How it is not its malls and shopping complexes that are its face - but its mosques and temples and its monuments.

8. Teach my children and grandchildren about our religion. We did not do this when they were young and I realise that it was wrong. They have not imbibed a sense of tradition and have lost out on many old traditions and festivals. We should have taught them about the importance of festivals, of why they are held and what each ritual means. Maybe it is too late.



9. Meet Lata Mangheskar and thank her for the many hours of joy that she brought into our lives.

10. Meet - George Clooney, Richard Gere, Meryl Streep, Julie Andrews - again something that is not likely to happen - but the wish is there.

11. Listen to Pandit Jasraj sing all through the night at the ramparts of Purana Qila. I heard him once - for just a few hours - and I cherish that memory.

12. Open a trust fund to ecucate children through school and college. Pay for it at least 5-10 children through the years of their education.

13. Watch my grandchildren graduate through college - live long enough to see that and relish the moment.

14. Stay in a really fancy hotel for 4-5 days and not worry about how I am going to pay the bills in their restaurants. savour every moment of my stay there.

15. Buy solitaires for all three of my daughters - something for them to remember me by.

I will add more as I go along - these are but a few of them