As I stood blowing soap bubbles, I attracted quite a few glances from passersby. I can well imagine the thoughts passing through their mind (but, I’d rather not mention them). The fact is I was thoroughly enjoying myself. Perfect, shiny, bubbles of varying sizes, glistening in the evening sun floating aimlessly till they burst into nothingness. Such a joy watching them!
As a child I could spend hours visualizing the patterns in the clouds or watching ants at work. The movement of a butterfly flitting from flower to flower was exciting. So was a spider spinning a web. Collecting the pretty orange and white flowers of the parijata in our courtyard and threading them to decorate the neck of the Lord gave me immense joy, as much as sewing and folding leaves and paper into various shapes. And painting? I could be at it for hours, if I wasn’t engrossed in reading. A slow drive around town or a walk on the beach or watching the sunset from the Monte, with my Dad, provided a perfect end to the day. Delightful indeed!
Somewhere along the way we lose this ability to experience joy in the small things in life. As we grow up we need more and more for the smallest amount of joy. The ‘latest’ mobile loses its charm within a few days of its purchase as our eyes are already on a newer model. Cars are changed as often as innerwear and clothes…oh…difficult to wear them more than twice. Neither birds nor butterflies can stand up to the competition of movies and TV serials. And who has the time to sit and paint when FB, Twitter and email keep us at their beck and call.
Walking with a skip and a jump, jumping to touch the door top, swinging high in the air, stopping to smell the flowers and watch the sunset…these are but small things that add a little sparkle to our life, keeping alive that child in us. It is only in being childlike that we can experience the joy of small things. The good news is, it’s never too late to stop and feel the breeze, observe the fish in the stream or the turtle in the well. Go ahead - rekindle the joy of small things. After all, it’s matchless. 
6 comments:
Awesome buddy.. As always.. Somehow, such topics bring d best out of u. It an eye opener for many. But m sure, u still enjoy those little moments.
Come back to Goa soon..
- Giriraj
So very true!! Far too many people keep trying to find new ways to improve the quality of their lives while neglecting the simple pleasures and blessings life provides. As time has gone by, I have realized that amassing possessions is not as important as experiencing the truly enjoyable pleasures in life and that there can be as much personal satisfaction in some simple activities and chores as there is in many grand and expensive experiences. Maybe it’s something as simple as a morning jog or a walk in the park, listening to music or watching a good movie, or petting your dog or stroking your cat, the world is full of simple pleasures that bring joy and happiness, and the variety of interests and experiences one can have only expands with age.
A few of my favourite things and activities that bring me joy, peace, or even a moment’s relief!
> An early morning walk. It's relaxing, energizing and uplifting.
> Listening to the Kokila's calls (koo-Ooo koo-Ooo) to each other and birds chirping at dawn is such a great joy!
> Basking in the early morning sun is truly blissful. Bright and sunny days make me break into song.
> Watching sunrises and sunsets. Also, star gazing and moon watching (especially the full moon), and sleeping under the stars. Magical!
> The beautiful red and orange colors of the evening sky. Marvellous.
> Listening to the rhythm of the falling rain while snuggled up in bed. So very soothing and lulling.
> Cruising through the lush green countryside, the sun rays glistening through the trees and the smoke filled haze, the warmth of the sun on my face and the gentle wind in my face, as I breathe the pure and fresh air is such a high!
> Trees. And flowers in bloom. Anywhere and everywhere. All types, all colors, all seasons.
> I love (feeling) the transition between seasons, be it the beginning of summer when the sun gets stronger and the days warmer with blue skies and fluffy white clouds or the smell of the wet soil during the first showers of the season, or as the winter starts to slowly unfold, the dewy mornings, the nippy weather and crisp air.
> The months October through February. Full of Hope, Love and the Promise of a Better Tomorrow. (Wet Wet Wet's cover, "Love Is All Around" for the soundtrack to the film "Four Weddings and a Funeral" best reflects the way I feel.)
> The beach. Watching and listening to the waves or taking a walk along the beach with the waves gently lapping at my feet, spending time near the sea is always special.
> Sitting on the front porch watching birds and squirrels.
> Reading or rereading a favourite book.
> The smell of baking, freshly brewed coffee/tea, a book (especially the nostalgia-inducing smell of old books). Also, the fragrance of night blooming Jasmine.
> Returning home to my two adorable dogs who are always so happy to see me that they practically wag their tails off!
> Indulging in long hot baths :)
> Hugs and smiles :-). So simple, yet so very infectious and precious.
...it certainly is true that "The best things in life are free". Or well, almost free.
P.S. I love the way you use descriptive and evocative language to arouse the imagination and paint a wonderful picture with your words :)
Thank you! :)
Anonymous...you have written so well - a blog of your own! :)
Rukma, it's a pleasure to read your well thought-out posts. So candid and honest. I should add your blog to my list of favourite things and activities - Reading Rukma's blog "Musings & More". Interesting. Inspiring. Insightful. :)
Thank you for taking the time to read, publish and reply to my "blog" :) Henceforth, I'll limit my long-winding "blogs" to a couple of hundred words. Or, three to four hundred. Perhaps up to five hundred. Definitely, not more than a thousand... :)
Rukma... would like to share the Scottish poet, Alastair Reid's insightful writing - in his book "Passwords: Places, poems, preoccupations..." - on the key difference between childhood and the later stages of human life... he wrote, “The principal difference between childhood and the stages of life into which it invariably dissolves is that as children we occupy a limitless present. The past has scarcely room to exist, since, if it means anything at all, it means only the previous day. Similarly, the future is in abeyance; we are not meant to do anything at all until we reach a suitable size. Correspondingly, the present is enormous, mainly because it is all there is.... Walks are dizzying adventures; the days tingle with unknowns, waiting to be made into wonders. Living so utterly in the present, children have an infinite power to transform; they are able to make the world into anything they wish, and they do so, with alacrity. There are no preconceptions, which is why, when a child tells us he is Napoleon, we had better behave with the respect due to a small emperor. Later in life, the transformations are forbidden; they may prove dangerous. By then, we move into a context of expectations and precedents of past and future, and the present, whenever we manage to catch it and realize it, is a shifting, elusive question mark, not altogether comfortable, an oddness that the scheme of our lives does not allow us to indulge. Habit takes over, and days tend to slip into pigeonholes, accounted for because everything has happened before, because we know by then that life is long and has to be intelligently endured.”
Thank you for your kind words Sumit. Happy to know someone is reading and enjoying what I write.
You write beautifully yourself; once again...do consider starting a blog of your own. For sure you will have many readers.
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