dailyprompt

When are you most happy? I’m in my head a lot which is a habit I’m trying to break out of. As I was writing this, an elderly lady pointed at the empty spot next to me on the bench. I gestured for her to sit. The lady mopped her sweat with a little towel…

What was the last thing you did for play or fun? I did my first Bollywood dance class last week which was exhausting yet fun. As a desi, most of the songs were familiar except the seeti maar (whistle) song. When I tried watching the Salman Khan song afterwards, I was put off by the…

List your top 5 grocery store items.

Tell us one thing you hope people say about you. We can hope for nice things but can’t really control what others say. When I hear others describe me, I often don’t relate to the words used. Hypothetically, if I could influence others I hope they say I cared and made an effort. I’m not…

Tell us about your first day at something — school, work, as a parent, etc. The first day at my current job was a branch planning day where I was in a room full of strangers with no laptop or desk to hide behind. I was being called newbie which felt strange after being in…

Have you ever performed on stage or given a speech? It was a regular thing when I was a child. I’d often play the old lady in school plays. As a 14 year old, my idea of an old person was a shaky voice and an even shakier body. At times, I’d host school events.…

What are your favorite physical activities or exercises? Yoga feels like a hug. It releases stress and can be as gentle or intense as you like. Today’s yoga class had me sweating. The teacher made us do a crow pose, a bind, a split masquerading as a stretch and a plank on forearms. I am…

Do you trust your instincts? The gut never lies but I tend to rationalise things. It’s something I need to work on.

What’s the first impression you want to give people? I’d rather be me and let the other person form their judgement. To an extent, we adjust our behaviour automatically based on social cues but if I start thinking of the impression I want to make, it’ll affect my behaviour for the worse.

What’s the coolest thing you’ve ever found (and kept)? I was speaking during a team meeting when a colleague turned around to look at my screen and smile. “Did I say something wrong?”, I wondered. I hadn’t cracked a joke. I was just talking about the order in which we would do our individual updates.…