Little Things..

A child always dreams of growing up. The day he/she moves from primary to high school, from pencils to pens, from ruled papers to blank copies, from knickers to jeans, etc he/she is one more step closer to this transition. I remember the day when I held my first fountain pen. I felt so grown up and wisely and worldly mature. All that mattered at that point was growing up and seeing the world and now that we are grown up all that matters is going back to those blissful days of oblivion. Just the other day I got down from the metro and accidentally took a longer route to the entrance. And found myself in a passage full of drawings. I was dumbfounded for a moment and couldn’t stop myself from reaching out to those drawings. All of them were drawn by kids between the age group of maybe 9 to 11. And they were beautiful, portraying how much we have when there are millions out there in this nation who can barely afford two square meals a day. The thoughts gone behind the drawings humbled me and I started recalling all those painting competitions my mother would drag us kids too.

As I stood there gazing at the hundreds of pictures I looked around to see and was stunned to notice no one but myself standing there and gazing into the pictures. The crowd hurried by in a rush, pushing each other in their haste to reach the exit as soon as possible. None seemed to be aware of the drawings on the walls; some would gaze with blank looks and then hastily look away as if those drawings would infect their minds with poison. Adults seem to forget and appreciate the small things in life; the nostalgia of childhood memories, the beauty of gazing into the night sky, the joy of being childish at times, of spending lazy weekends having breakfast in bed, of tripping and falling and getting up again, running around the playgrounds chasing friends, blowing bubbles and acting crazy at times. No one can even comprehend of finding peace and beauty in a metro station and very few people look out for it. We rush through life like zombies struggling to survive and prove ourselves. Make impossible wishes, look out of the window of the bus when going to office, go on a painting spree (even if you are terrible at it) and help make someone’s day worthwhile. Because in the end you do not want to leave this world with regrets; you want to take great memories with you and make your presence felt even after you die. You want to live on in the little things that bring joy to the people you love; in the garden you built for the kids to play around, in the hammock u made for your wife to lie on, in the photographs you took on a family vacation and the friendship you so willingly gave to those who needed it. Because all that matters in the end is not to become an insignificant figment in someone’s memory; what matters is living on in their hearts.

Mirages...

The human nature is a complex study, a finely spun web intricately woven so that all threads are interlinked and entwined. Defying all caution it is almost always judgmental of varieties in its domain. Since my childhood I have often heard that we all leave behind an image when we interact with others. This image is a joint culmination of our actions, beliefs and presentation. Living in Kolkata has been a revelation in many ways as it presents a wide variety of human natures to study and judge. The first impression is like a mirage; a delusion we are led to believe as per the object wills us to. This delusion can be powerful; a shallow person at first can seem to have surprising depth and we may be swayed to believe a dishonest man to be the most honest man ever existed. We pass through life mostly holding on to this mirage as most people walk past leaving behind nothing but a delusion. As soon as a little intimacy is encountered, the true nature starts unfolding.

Let me give you an instance. Last August I met an elderly man, solely devoted to his religious cult and believed to have forged an image of a benevolent benefactor to many. Tall and impressive he strikes instant respect in his devotees and sways them easily with his beliefs and views. Such a religious and pious man can hardly try to exploit victims but as time passed I saw another side to this man. This man is fanatically obsessed with money, making unjustified demands on people whom he believes are unlikely to protest. The image I had of him was a mirage that hides a more human side to his nature. As time ravels we become familiar with both the good and bad within. These revelations are often shocking and damaging. Travelling by train I have often encountered helpful people, rude people and people who are not bothered as to anything besides themselves. We pass through life with these mirages; touching just the tip of the iceberg as we sail. But we do stop at times to sit down and try to break the delusions we live with. This is when we develop bonds for life; friendship, love, enmity, admiration. . We look for compatibility in this variety and develop bonds as per our needs. It is our nature to seek company. It is our nature to seek emotional attachment. This is what I believe makes us so unique, the ability to feel and analyse and hold on to the bonds we so intricately develop. These bonds are for lifetime; it is like the glimpse of an oasis in the desert. Mirages give you hope, oases give u the elixir needed to live. We humans are beautiful and complex.In our own way we are  intricately linked to each other like threads in a vast seemingly endless web called life.