This note is lovingly dedicated to the women force, who always keep me calm and happy at all times. Well, while one thinks they get paid and are expected to do so, but the amazing part is that they do this every single day and most importantly, with their heart and soul filled with happiness and joy!

The way they appear, smile, behave and do their daily , highly monotonous chores with the greatest levels of energy and enthusiasm  clearly indicates that these are a bunch of highly spirited women who have cracked the ‘happiness ‘code and all this without any self-help books or any life coach to lead them on. They just know how to ‘Be happy for no reason’ and they have no clue how blessed they are! This is the best example of ‘Ignorance is Bliss’ and I draw a lot of inspiration in my own journey towards happiness from these women.

My first wonder lady is Janaa, a 29 year old girl, mother of 2 boys who lives in a joint family of 10 people in a 1-room chawl and works for at least 10 hours a day doing the regular jhadoo-pocha-bartan work and I have known her for the last 15 years. She works at my mom’s place and I have seen her all through her transition from a coy newlywed to a mother of two, going through the usual saas-bahu drama and working till the last day of her pregnancy without much pampering and affection of her loved ones. But, during all these years what simply amazes me is that the only make-up she wears every single day is her smile and it only gets better with time. She is diligent, hard-working, compassionate and kind.

The second super girl is Leela Tai. She is under 30 years of age, got divorced and remarried 5 years back, loves children but unfortunately was unable to conceive and now spends heavily on all possible treatments to be a mother ( I pray to God to bless her abundantly), and has to be constantly pushed to speak . Honestly I don’t mind that but what I get so inspired with is her ability to speak and smile with her eyes. She secretly smiles through her work and is one of the most compassionate people I know and that has also helped Soham, my dear Brateshwar, to get a first-hand experience of kindness and compassion.

Last, but certainly not the least, is my Sunshine aka Supriya Mausi, the lady who rules my kitchen and my heart. She is the mother of 3 beautiful girls, a dutiful wife and one of the happiest people I have ever known. Full of energy, brimming with happiness, the best-dressed cook ( with a jhatak red clutch and a lovely gajra in her hair) and the best sight I get to see every morning at 6:30 am, when I am still struggling to look normal and in the midst of getting Soham up and ready for school. And, thankfully, I am blessed to see her again in the evening, when I get back from work. She is again there waiting to receive me with the widest smile and a reassuring look that says ‘Aal is well’.

I can’t thank God enough for these super women in my life and I love to flaunt them as ‘Neighbor’s envy, Owner’s pride‘. I don’t flaunt this for my ability to employ them but for their ability to teach and enlighten me with some amazing facts of life. These women come from a different economic strata, don’t have the luxury and indulgence that we all are blessed with, have some really stressful politics going back at home, and yet they know the true meaning of ‘Live and Let Live’.

They follow and practice some of the basic fundamentals of being Happy:

1. They love their work and derive a great sense of accomplishment from what they do
2. Are kind and compassionate
3. Smile with their heart
4. Have an attitude of gratitude
5. Stay calm and positive at all times

While there are many more ways of being happy and plenty of happiness theories and case studies prescribing this, these women practice the 5 fundamentals of happiness and clearly teach me and my boys every single day how we are all hard-wired for Happiness! There is no need to base our happiness on any external factor or possession, for our happiness quotient clearly lies within each of us. Go, kiss the world!

I gain a lot of inspiration from these real, happy and healthy women and I have clearly coined them as my coterie of ‘calm’ wali bais and not the kaamwalis that most of us women are constantly trying to conquer.

Cheers and more power to my happy gang!