I have a friend who's visiting me from the US. We were in film school together, and we became really close. I moved back to India in 2005 but we stayed in touch, and he always promised that one day he'd come visit. I was never sure if he really would, or if it was just one of those things you say to people. You know, like, “hey dude, we should get together some time. I'll call you, 100%!”. But this turned out to be real, and a couple of months ago he emailed saying that he had booked his tickets and was coming to India.

I immediately started to plan all the places I'd take him, and all the food I'd make him try. We started from the very first day that he got here, which happened to be Eid. I dropped him into the deep end, feeding him biryani, jalebis, kababs, rasgullas, gulab jamuns... everything. The next day I introduced him to ‘Indian Chinese' (remember gobhi manchurian?), the day after that, classic North Indian butter chicken and paani puri (which he said is the best thing he's tasted), followed by dosas and idlis. Something new every day. I made it a point to explain to him what each dish is made of, where it originates, and what it's significance is.

And something amazing started to happen. I started to experience everything the way he was experiencing it; as though it was the first time I was eating paani puri, or trying to understand what exactly a dosa is made of. I started to appreciate the things I had started to take for granted. I've always loved food more than the average person (you should see me at the table; once the food arrives, I don't say a word. I don't even look up from my plate) but once you know what flavours to expect, some of the joy diminishes. Luckily for me, I catch on quick. By the second day I had realised that I was in the middle of a renaissance and decided to run with it.

We might not all be so lucky. We tend to fall into a routine and stop appreciating things we once found enjoyable, but many of us might never snap out of that routine. Look at me; I had to have a friend visit my country for the first time to help me rediscover the things I already knew. The things I had loved all my life, but had forgotten how I had fallen inlove with.

Come on, think about it. How many things do you do on a daily basis that you really like? Things that would make you really happy, if you only gave them the importance that you once did instead of rushing through them? It could be something you eat (my personal favourite), wearing a shirt you feel looks really good on you, or just listening to a song that makes you want to sing along. Happiness in small doses is there for the taking, if you only look for it. It's amazing how often we forget that.

Sorry guys, haven't had the chance to read emails this week. I'll read them all next week.