Inside a box
One day in the mess, one of the boys who work there came to me. There was a rare smile on his face. He said "Anna, I got a letter from home".
"Ahan...what does it say? How are your parents?", I responded.
"Fine".
"Where is your home?"
"Tiruvannamalai".....
The conversation built itself and I learnt a lot about this boy. He was 16 year old, had two elder brothers, one studying, and the other working as a mechanic. He had studied upto tenth class, but had flunked the exam twice, and so had given up. Consequently, he came to Chennai to work here. He was now on his own. The only emotional support he received was from the letters his parents wrote to him. No one else.
This set me thinking. There are a lot of people whom we see everyday. Many of these are like this boy. The milkman, the paper-wallah, the guy who sells tea in Taramani, the cycle repair-wallah, people in Gurunath, the barber, the sweeper, the mess manager, the watchman, the maid servant.......the list is endless. These are people who constantly serve us. Without fail, like the Sun.
Have I ever stopped to ask a barber how he is? Have I ever asked the maid servant what her kid was doing? Have I ever enquired the sweeper about his problems? The answer to such questions, sadly is a big NO. But, when I am introduced to certain Mr.X or a Ms.Y by my friend, or worse, when I see an attractive female in a party, nothing stops me from asking them about their lives. I call this 'socialising'.
Am I not showing double standards here? On one hand, there is a person whom I see everyday about whom I don't care, and on the other hand, there is a stranger, for whom I show great concern (but in reality, even there I actually don't care).
So, you see, I live within the confines of an invisible box, a box that I have erected in order to 'protect' myself. The only person inside this box is ME. Ocassionally I let someone else inside, but only to satisfy my own desires. I also take great pride in living such a life. To top it all, I have no intentions whatsoever to change and open up myself. I live inside my compartment, breathe the same stale air, and eventually stink to death.
How stupid! If only I could break the walls of my box and open up my mind, heart and soul......
"Ahan...what does it say? How are your parents?", I responded.
"Fine".
"Where is your home?"
"Tiruvannamalai".....
The conversation built itself and I learnt a lot about this boy. He was 16 year old, had two elder brothers, one studying, and the other working as a mechanic. He had studied upto tenth class, but had flunked the exam twice, and so had given up. Consequently, he came to Chennai to work here. He was now on his own. The only emotional support he received was from the letters his parents wrote to him. No one else.
This set me thinking. There are a lot of people whom we see everyday. Many of these are like this boy. The milkman, the paper-wallah, the guy who sells tea in Taramani, the cycle repair-wallah, people in Gurunath, the barber, the sweeper, the mess manager, the watchman, the maid servant.......the list is endless. These are people who constantly serve us. Without fail, like the Sun.
Have I ever stopped to ask a barber how he is? Have I ever asked the maid servant what her kid was doing? Have I ever enquired the sweeper about his problems? The answer to such questions, sadly is a big NO. But, when I am introduced to certain Mr.X or a Ms.Y by my friend, or worse, when I see an attractive female in a party, nothing stops me from asking them about their lives. I call this 'socialising'.
Am I not showing double standards here? On one hand, there is a person whom I see everyday about whom I don't care, and on the other hand, there is a stranger, for whom I show great concern (but in reality, even there I actually don't care).
So, you see, I live within the confines of an invisible box, a box that I have erected in order to 'protect' myself. The only person inside this box is ME. Ocassionally I let someone else inside, but only to satisfy my own desires. I also take great pride in living such a life. To top it all, I have no intentions whatsoever to change and open up myself. I live inside my compartment, breathe the same stale air, and eventually stink to death.
How stupid! If only I could break the walls of my box and open up my mind, heart and soul......
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