THE UTOPIA OF FREEDOM

During my childhood days, Independence day always meant patriotic songs, pompous processions, humdrum speeches and delectable jalebis, all-in-all an eventful holiday to me. It was when I grew up a little that I started understanding the reason behind all these festivities. Independence day is a celebration of freedom, a reiteration of our rights and duties towards our great nation, I was told. As for rights and duties, they are clearly adumbrated in our constitution, it was the term ‘freedom’ which puzzled me quite a bit. What is freedom, I asked myself. Does this only mean that we can elect our own government who get to rule us, and not some foreign tyrants. Is it only symbolic or has an aspect to it which affects our day-to-day life? To which extent have we achieved freedom and how far do we have to further go?

Freedom is when we have the right to act, speak or think, when we’re not imprisoned or enslaved, the state of not being subjected to or affected by something undesirable. But is this all the freedom we’ve ever aspired for? Is this all we want as human beings?

On further contemplation, I realize that the essence of true freedom is the freedom of choice. When no one has to justify their choice or preferences to others as long as it lies within moral boundaries. It’s a society where a woman doesn’t get questioned if she wants to fulfil her career ambitions instead of ‘settling down’. Where a man doesn’t have to put up with scrutiny and interrogations like ‘’any issues??” if he wants to adopt a kid instead of having one.  

True freedom is when people supporting one end of a cause, don’t find the other side objectionable. When folks right wing or left wing, beef or no beef, Hindu or Muslim, can all live together in harmony without creating a hullabaloo out of dissent. Tolerance and sympathy are major constituents of this aspect of freedom.

True freedom promotes individual growth. It’s when all citizens get equal opportunities to evolve into their own spheres. Or, even break free from the sphere and pick a different trajectory if they want to. When no one is devoid of options. When a student isn’t discouraged to opt for pursuing liberal arts if that’s where his/her interest resides. It’s when the society and the nation lets a person be.

So, when we talk about freedom in truer sense, we still have a long way to go.

CATCH THE TIME

Consumed by indolence,

idle being the frame of mind.

Moons  later, remorse-stricken,

he mourned over

the failures enshrined.

 

Couldn’t catch the wings of time

when it went high and low.

Didn’t have anything to reap

‘coz he did nothing sow.

All he has now

are lessons from the past.

How he could’ve used each day

as if it were his last.

WHAT’S THERE IN A NAME

When I was about 10 years old, my parents and I happened to attend a wedding ceremony at my native place. Owing to the fact that we had visited our native after years, family friends and relatives – old and young were swarming from all directions to my parents. I had seen some of them when I was a kid and I could instantly recognize their face and recollect the names. The air buzzed with greetings and exchange of pleasantries like how it happens in a typical get-together. In the end, when the ceremony was over and it all fell quiet, my mom exclaimed, ‘my, you do remember people!’, at that very moment it dawned upon me that I really am gifted with this quirky but extremely useful talent, and that is remembering names of people around me.  

I catch the name of a person in the first meeting and almost never forget it. When I was in college, it took me less than a week to remember the names and faces of my fellow students in a class of 70. Now when I’ve tread into the real world, I’ve retained the names of my peers and seniors since the very first introduction. And not only that, I could think of countless instances when my friends have come to me asking the name of a senior in THEIR team which they had once mentioned to me but is now evading their mind palaces. I oblige every time.

Remembering people’s names might sound like a trivial feat prima facie, but it has greatly helped me in building my social skills. As the saying goes “A person’s name is to him or her the sweetest and most important sound in any language”. So, nothing warms someone up to you as much as when you address them with their name (with a smile on your face, of course!). It increases your likeability. It makes people feel valued, and this can a long way in building a harmonious relationship with them. Also, not to mention, it reduces awkward encounters by several times. For someone in a profession like journalism or a client-facing job like sales and marketing, this is the best skill to strive for.

I believe I’ve successfully proven that remembering names is a crucial skill. Just think of my elation when I realized that this is the hidden talent I possess!

SMILES AND TEARS

Nature’s kin, the earthborn beings,

Every soul shelters

a nature within.

Tear-brimmed eyes

are infinitesimal clouds.

Every blink a lightning.

Every glare a thunder.

Then the tears travel south

like a river adamant to

engrave its own path.

Staining all lands

with sentiments moist.

A smile fine,

is condensed sunshine.

Refulgent and live

like minuscule streaks of wildfire

powered by fiery wind,

vaporizing the moistures

drying away the gloom,

which the tears hide

In their lucent bulk.

In the microcosm of a human

The fire gets to win.

— Pratibha Roy

EXPLORING SILENCE

When the motion ceases, vibrations in air retreat

Then trot into the silence, introspect deep.

Plunge into memory lane, dig flakes of lores,

Catch wisps of lessons, which experiences reap.

PURSUIT OF PRODUCTIVITY

In the hours of repose 

pick a paintbrush and lay some strokes,

or delve into culinary affairs with your folks.

Practice music hardcore or do some room décor

or refuge to purple proses to soothe your heart sore.