… It’s is about learning to dance in the rain”.
With all due respect to Vivian Greene, I am not really down with the getting down thing… but I am totally up for getting out in the rains with a glass of wine and enjoy the feel of the cold sharp drops on the skin and the bald pate… as I get soaked to the skin…
I had just finished my tenth exams and my NTSE (National Talent Search Exam – a standardized test in India for earning scholarships for higher education) tests. On a whim, decided to visit Swarup-da in Bishnupur. Swarup-da was my teacher who helped me to appear for my NTSE tests.
I recollect vividly sitting outside his parents’ house in some dim light with his sister Shikha-di, his close friend – Lalmohan Agarwal and of course, himself. We were all sitting out in the open and listening to some unbelievable songs from the movie “Nikaah”. Helped by Lalmohan, we unraveled the meaning of the lyrics that evening. (Hindi was not the forte of any of the other three).
This is one of those great numbers that I listened to again this evening … from the haunting voice of Salma Agha.
“Dil ke armaan aansuon mein bahe gaye
Hum wafaa kar ke bhi tanha rahe gaye
Zindagi ek pyaas ban kar rahe gaye
Pyaar ke kisse adhoore rahe gaye
Shaayad unka aakhri ho yeh sitam
Har sitam, yeh soch kar ham sahe gaye
Khud ko bhi humne mita daala magar
Faasle jo darmiyaan the rahe gaye”
Roughly translated… (improvements welcome)
“My heart’s desires flowed down thru my tears
I was left alone even after putting my faith in you
Life remained for me as as an unquenched thirst
And my story of love remained incomplete for life
Hoping it would be the last blow (suffering) from him
I endured every last blow (suffering) from him
I obliterated my own self; and yet
The distance between us remained as unfathomable as ever”
The way my fellow Indian brethren display haste – you know like getting up from our seats barely after the plane touches ground or crowd at the gate all simultaneously moment they start boarding, you might be tempted to conclude that we are fastidious about being punctual or something.
Far from the truth, I assure you 🙂
We just don’t want you to reach anywhere before we do 🙂
1.
The Top ten countries are Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland, Finland, Netherlands, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and Sweden.
Apparently, to be very happy, you need to live in shivering cold 🙂
2.
India (my birth country) is at rank #122. Its arch nemesis Pakistan is #80 and every other (much smaller) neighbor – Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and get this – Myanmar – has outranked it. Upon reading this, India slipped further 3 ranks this morning 🙂
3.
Finally, there is a curious correlation between per capita alcohol consumption and happiness index. I am not suggesting any causality. Just saying 🙂
For serious readers who want to read the article and how the indices are measured… here it is… http://s3.amazonaws.com/sdsn-whr2017/HR17_3-20-17.pdf
There I was. Sitting down near my gate quietly in a chair watching people go by – causing no harm nor foul to anybody. Then I lifted my head to look at the blaring TV screen and Boom! it hit me! A full show going on about “Kissenger”. Apparently an app that lets you kiss somebody without they being there with you!! (http://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/kissinger)
And I shook my head thinking…
First, they gave me social media and told me that I do not need to talk to any real human being…
Then they gave me Amazon and said I really do not need to talk to anybody to buy anything.
Even in my stores, I got “Self Checkout”. Apparently there is no need for me to meet a human being to pay for my stuff.
Then I got XBox. I was told I was wrong in assuming that I need a human being to play tennis against…
Even at the airport today, the machine printed out my luggage tags. No need to greet any of their agents. I can tag the luggage myself and throw it in.
And now this? I do not even need a human being to kiss any more?
In my next birth, can I just send my emoji to this world in my place and fast forward thru this automated life?
It would never be the start of a new year for me if I did not send my “I wish you enough” message like every year. Again, credits are to Larry who had “wished me enough” for the first time many years back.
“I wish you enough!”
By Bob Perks
I never really thought that I’d spend as much time in airports as I do. I don’t know why. I always wanted to be famous and that would mean lots of travel. But I’m not famous, yet I do see more than my share of airports.
I love them and I hate them. I love them because of the people I get to watch. But they are also the same reason why I hate airports. It all comes down to “hello” and “goodbye.”I must have mentioned this a few times while writing my stories for you.
I have great difficulties with saying goodbye. Even as I write this I am experiencing that pounding sensation in my heart. If I am watching such a scene in a movie I am affected so much that I need to sit up and take a few deep breaths. So when faced with a challenge in my life I have been known to go to our local airport and watch people say goodbye. I figure nothing that is happening to me at the time could be as bad as having to say goodbye.
Watching people cling to each other, crying, and holding each other in that last embrace makes me appreciate what I have even more. Seeing them finally pull apart, extending their arms until the tips of their fingers are the last to let go, is an image that stays forefront in my mind throughout the day.
On one of my recent business trips, when I arrived at the counter to check in, the woman said, “How are you today?” I replied, “I am missing my wife already and I haven’t even said goodbye.”
She then looked at my ticket and began to ask, “How long will you…Oh, my God. You will only be gone three days!” We all laughed. My problem was I still had to say goodbye.
But I learn from goodbye moments, too.
Recently I overheard a father and daughter in their last moments together. They had announced her departure and standing near the security gate, they hugged and he said, “I love you. I wish you enough.” She in turn said, “Daddy, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Daddy.”
They kissed and she left. He walked over toward the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see he wanted and needed to cry. I tried not to intrude on his privacy, but he welcomed me in by asking, “Did you ever say goodbye to someone knowing it would be forever?”
“Yes, I have,” I replied. Saying that brought back memories I had of expressing my love and appreciation for all my Dad had done for me. Recognizing that his days were limited, I took the time to tell him face to face how much he meant to me.
So I knew what this man experiencing.
“Forgive me for asking, but why is this a forever goodbye?” I asked.
“I am old and she lives much too far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is, the next trip back would be for my funeral,” he said.
“When you were saying goodbye I heard you say, “I wish you enough.” May I ask what that means?”
He began to smile. “That’s a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone.” He paused for a moment and looking up as if trying to remember it in detail, he smiled even more.”When we said ‘I wish you enough,’ we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them,” he continued and then turning toward me he shared the following as if he
were reciting it from memory.
“I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.
I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger.
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish enough “Hello’s” to get you through the final “Goodbye.”
He then began to sob and walked away.
—
My friends, I wish you enough!
