In today's super-speedy life, we find ourselves not having time enough to say Good Morning to a 'news-paper-reading' father, or give a mother her well-deserved hug as we leave home only to return late. There is no time to touch the feet of the 'wise-old' gramps, who just sit and watch each generation get smarter and weirder, or say a simple heartfelt I LOVE YOU to your partner, or for that matter, kiss your child Good Night!
When such a packed life poses a question like- "If you had two extra hours in a day, how would you spend it?", like most people; i find myself in a dilemma...! A grave one.
There's a part of me that wants to just laze around and have fun, but then there's another which sends me to a guilt-trip every time i sit idle. We have this strange disease of procrastinating chores just to enjoy more laziness, or to catch 'just-one-more' wink of sleep! And then we find ourselves complaining about lack of time. This amount of time we choose to laze around- being jobless, is compensated by cutting on quality time meant for the people we love.
Ever wondered why the loved ones are the ones to face this harsh cut? I think i know why. It's cos we take them for granted. We know, that no matter what, these are the people who will always BE. Loved ones are those to whom a small act of a happy deed, however insignificant it be, their happiness is amplified... ten-folds. This reminds me my vacation at my grandparents' home as a kid!
My Grandad, whom i fondly call 'Ajja' woke up early morning, everyday, same time, from the same side of the bed, traced the same set of steps before stepping outta the house to pluck flowers from the same plants, to be offered to the same temple soon after. No kid likes waking up early, especially when its a holiday! I was no exception either. But i had a strange fascination watching Ajja go around the home, pluck just one or two blooms from each plant in the compound, making sure there are no buds harmed, treading through them ever so delicately. I followed him holding the same basket in my hands as carefully as i could. It made me feel loved and special...! He taught me all the names of the flowers, and their behavior in the process. I wondered what it would be like if Ajja taught at school! Wishful thinking?!
The dirty, muddy me after the whole garden survey would be greeted in with a pretending-to-be mad mom who would quickly send me to a quick bath as all the super gross clothes piled up in the buckets. Wonder what she would have done if not for Surf Excel. Oh, i so loved the fragrance of the fresh clothes after bath!
Fresh and all cleaned up, I diligently followed Ajja to the temple too, every single day. He told me stories about the God in the temple. I wished his stories never ended. I watched the priests give him the special Prasad everyday, the privilege earned over years of persevered visits to the temple! Every vacation offered me the same routine, the same path, the same turns, the same temple and the same stories. But never-the-less, i lovvvvd it cos it was OUR THING! This is one of my best memories from the chapter of my childhood.
Years passed, i grew up... not a kid anymore, they grew older too and shifted homes to live in a flat. Things were never the same again. Vacations were never the same again. The bond was same, but it lacked the little things that made it more special. It lacked spending quality time together. The magical journey through the fairyland of the little princess with her wise old King-Ajja every morning was soon compromised for the time spent watching late night movies, 24x7 internet, chatting with friends.. transforming the lil morning sunshine to the Queen of the night!
This being just one incident from one chapter of my life, i am sure there are lots i can list as an example. What i am trying to tell here is, let's do little things that bring joy to us and our loved ones. Lets indulge in quality time with them, for.. one glowing smile from them brightens our day, so why not give them that little part of our life that they deserve. Given a chance, i would love to spend more time doing things with my grandparents... my parents... my loved ones. Strengthen the bond... become Miss.Sunshine again...!
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