There is flattery in friendship.

Not my words, this is what the Bard observed.

So this post is not about Shimla, or about its author whose not-so-occasional rambles readers have been so tolerant of. I just want to talk about my friends and the wonderful ideas they're thinking up and sharing with the world. Here they are:

Meet SdS, she writes a great little blog Grant Me Bookshelves. Book-mad noone quite reads books the way she does, her perspective is always amazing and her impressions and insights deep and astounding.

Asha has only just begun to work on Self Leadership. I look forward to being with her on this journey of examining beliefs and values related to leadership.

Autar Mota is a deeply sensitive, poetic soul. His photographs and words on Chinar Shade sear the reader and leave you numb and joyous by turn.

Imran's a seeker. He may choose to describe himself differently, but I am yet to come across a person like him who combines his sense of adventure with his spirituality with such grace and felicity. Imran's pictures, worth more than a thousand words can be seen on his photoblog Imran The Trekker on Flickr.

Ranjani has been a healer and empath for as long as I can remember. In her blog Reiki Rhapsody, Ranjani is trying to help us, her readers, regain and hold on to the precious rhythm of life through music.

Kaushik is young. His perspective, fresh and innocent like his mind. Looking at his photographs, I just know it in my bones that this young lad will go very far in life.

Vinayak's take on things, like his blog At The Edge, is sharp and sapient. Just when my ideas begin to feel stale, I go look at his blog and am blown away once again.

GP is witty, wicked and utterly irreverent. I totally wouldn't like to be at the receiving end of the bon mots he comes with on Noise Of India which claims to, and succeeds in, "putting the mock back in democracy".

Varsha is my wellness Guru. Through her blog, Wholesome Options, as also through fortuitous personal acquaintance, I have picked many easy tips and tricks and have had many a health myth shattered.

Thank you, each one of you, for sharing your perspectives and insights. My life, as indeed that of all those who visit your blogs, is richer because of you.