My 30 before 30 - A bucket-list of sorts!

1. Read 30 books
2. Do 30 heart pushups and 3 pull-ups (at least)
3. Drive coast to coast - Covered 4 time zones (Michigan - California though not coast to coast)
4. 300 miles - this biking season
5. Visit Alaska! Ice Cave Hike in Mendenhall 
6. Help 30 non-profits around the world.
7. Start a new initiative/company.
8. Get PADI certified.
9. Hiking the Grand Canyon.
10. Eating seafood. 
11. Buy a house!
12. Get back to swimming.
13. Learn a new language.
14. Pick up a new skill
15. Ride a motorcycle.
16. Learn to do a hand stand and walk on your hands!
17. Learn how to Pole dance.
18. Be more patient
19. 30 posts in my blog
20. Produce a Fringe Show
21. Cook for 30 days straight.
22. Wake up early/ Bike to work.
23. 30 parties/meetups/get together before 30!
24. Travel Solo.
25. 30 hours of hiking. 
26. Paint
27. Roll down a snowy mountain top.
28. Dance on stage just before/after I turn 30!
29. Play football/soccer in rain with a bunch of boys.
30. Swim in an ocean!

...makes you stronger!

Hey girl, you are there in my thoughts and you feature in my dreams,
I pray for you every day even though I don’t really know what prayer means!
I have missed you many days when I was here and I wish you had come
I am sorry I never understood your dreams, those days I should have just kept mum

I cannot take away your pain though I wish I could;
But I am a believer, I know it will end; I know it should.
I have told you this before and it will always hold true,
You just ask me and I will do anything for you!

Hey, look there is light at the end of this dark path;
It is indeed going to be a happy aftermath.
Put in your mind along with your might;
You will emerge winner in this fight.

They come buried in deep, cold & dark mines,
But diamond burns hard before it shines!
Now is just a short testing time,
It will be behind you even before I can find a nice word here to rhyme :P

(Now that you are smiling :-))

That smile of yours will keep you strong and going.
The age is on your side, so do what you are doing.
The beautiful people around you will never let you fall;
You've got to bounce back after all :-)

Unknown relationships...

The moment our eyes met, a connection was felt
He smiled a smile which I had never before met
I took his hand and he shook it hard
Out sprouted his excitement which was all this while jarred!

He saw a winged elephant in a flying cloud
He created an angel with a clay mould
He clapped, he jumped, he laughed aloud
He dint seem to care about the reaction of the crowd

We sat at the window and he sang for me
His creativity was strewn across for all to see
All he needed was my attention, he wanted the time to freeze
Though Innocent and gullible, he was not easy to appease

He was a big man but his mind was that of a child
But why was he here even though his imagination ran very wild
I have everything and yet I always cribbed
With all his disability he still rejoiced

He did cry when I bid goodbye
But I had to let go, my heart was dry
I just had one question when I looked up at the sky
Just tell me god, Why??


I taught at Spastic society of Karnataka for one summer. The first day when I entered the classroom full of kids of age 13-15, one kid who had never opened his mouth for the last two years smiled at me.
As I sat next to him and tried to teach him 2nd standard math, he just held my hand tight and never wanted to let go.. He never spoke a word but smiled at me for hours holding my hand.. eventually he started singing and responding to me.. the teachers there said this was some improvement they had seen in quite some time... That evening when his mom came to pick him up the teacher told his mom what happened and she was in tears... she shook my hand and said thanks.. She was a poor lady whose husband always accused her for giving birth to a spastic son..
I had done nothing... I had no idea what made that child so fond of me... Had he felt the affection, which he always wanted, when I held his hand for hours.. I had no clue..
I had gone there just to help out but I felt so wanted.. More than him I felt so rewarded that evening...

Letter to the Prime Minister

Dear Prime Minister,

I am writing to you from Minneapolis,USA. I have been living in this country for the last 2 years but I miss my India every minute. I am what I am and where I am only because of the place I took birth in, because of the people who raised me and all the values instilled in me by my family, my teachers & my friends. I would love only the best of lifestyle to all these people and every Indian who is born with these cultures and traditions. I support Anna Hazare only so that my country will be so much better without corruption.
Please give heed to him. Give politics a clean face!

Jai Hind,
Divya Maiya

A New Beginning

Lots of things have changed over the last year!!


I picked up my eyelash and placed it on my fist..
Closed my eyes and chanted a long string of wish..
Before I blinked I blew it away into the mist..
I could see wishes turning true in a swish!!!


Summary -

1. My mom came to live with me in Madison... She was here for my birthday... She experienced so much and more of my lifestyle and she turned a youth all over again!! We danced.. We traveled.. We attended classes :P We even skied together!!!!!

2. Dance Dance and more Dance!!!! Gave so many performances and loved it..

3. Traveled to places on pretext of interviews!!

4. GRADUATED with a Masters degree :P

5. Moved to Minneapolis ( close to Madison :) and closer to Madhu :D )

6. Got a job right here... YAAAAAAY!!!

7. Moved into a pretty house...

8. Finally Married!!!!! :D :D

9. SURMA wins its first NATIONAL FUSION DANCE TEAM title :D :D


Life just gets better with every day!!

Few Things which makes me smile everyday… :)

Cocoa Pebbles with cold 2% milk, bunch of new emails and FB updates…
My soft colorful mittens which promises to keep me warm as I head out in the cold
The crunching sound of fresh snow under my feet…
The inexplicable fun feeling when I step on it not realizing its depth and I sink in 
A silly thought of me turning fair as the icy wind blows against my face :P
The superficial greeting by the bus driver which brightens the start of my day
Self trust that the day's cooking experiment is not going to fail and I would love eating it anyway :)
The enjoyable pain after a 3 hr long dance practice…
Comfort feeling that I can pick up my phone and I have more than one number to dial when I am bored
A bed time story narrated by mom over the phone which makes my smile linger till I get up the next day!!

Misadventures & Celebration!

Day 1:
We drove miles to find my surprise
To celebrate our anniversary
It is so much fun he said
Least did he know about the upcoming adversary

He had planned it; it was a state park :|
He started to pitch the tent in the dark…
As I started whining in the silent night…
Our neighbors’ well trained dog let out a slight bark


Day 2:
We crouched up inside the tent, waiting for the rains to subside,
He hated the rains and refused to go on a bike ride
When the sky got clear, he overcame his resentment..
Lets Canoe! He screamed with some excitement

We sailed along the wind, admiring the beauty around
Paddle hitting the water was the only sound
Soaking up the sun, we sang, we laughed
Farther and farther we went, away from the ground.

We turned around to head back towards our camp,
Suddenly the wind had turned into a vamp
There was no way could we could paddle back
Our spirits were getting damp.

He said, Paddle honey, just there is the shore
Though cold winds blew, beads of sweat began to pour
With his motivational speech he began to bore
I threatened to jump off the canoe; I could take it no more

Finally we pulled over on a private jetty,
Walked on a highway wearing life jackets; we looked pretty
Six miles and Paddles in hand, we were almost dead
Phew! That was how our celebration ended.