He lay down, flat…. by default looking straight up into the
vault of heaven. He felt the grass poke him on his backside; it produced a kind
of sensation which mesmerizes any living being. He sensed the wind, feeling it
brush across and all over his body, through his clothes, swaying through his
thin strands of hair, the cold breeze was generously embraced. His body rippled
in shivers, but the kind of shivers that you crave. The shivers of thrill.
This will surprise you later, but he literally ‘heard
nature’, not just the sounds of wind and shards of swirling glass, but that of
birds, insects, crickets and squirrels in unison, the kind you rarely hear in
sync while slogging through your day to day lives in the city. Probably the
city keeps you so occupied that your mind has a blockage towards actions, happenings, and sounds that do not contribute to your immediate tasks. Thus, the obviously
audible sounds of nature are restricted by your mind. An absolute form of
silent communication he thought, feeling so much, hearing so much, living with
infinite joy and love in the moment and for the moment respectively. Verbal
sounds were not necessary, neither were they present.
 |
| Harmony is in the air |
He saw the sky, shades of blue; bright and dark patches and
shapes. This calm soul was so immersed by now, he could see the clouds form
shapes in connection with the constant change in direction of the wind. He smiled,
a smile of purity and simplicity, the kind you see often on a vacationing
retired senior citizen. The only difference being that the latter had to go
through a whole life of struggles, unfulfilled promises, and the complete cycle
of ups and downs to ultimately look back and utter the words “I never needed a
reason to smile”.
Then came me, the socialite, discovering this aura of
extreme amounts of positivity around him. I wanted to feel like he did, to
sense the undisturbed and untouched serenity within. Little did I know this man
was Deaf, Dumb and handicapped! He never had to hear the gibberish we common
folk speak, he never had to hear arguments, and neither did he ever have to
explain himself to anyone. What music was to my ears was nature to his soul.
There I stood once again, assured that there are zero
absolutes in life. The intricacy of moments in life is flexible, we can take
it where we like, when we like and as we like. We need to realize the power of
our mind, learning from the ones who we believe have nothing to offer and are
not naturally gifted. Avoiding them is the first mistake leading to our
downfall. Philosophy is true medicine. Uncertainty is the doctor. They come
hand in hand.
Life cannot be so dull, if you do not open the door for
light to come in, who will?
-Vattakanal, Tamil Nadu
