Sometimes in life we may end
up like the above statement – meaningless but interesting – Beware!!
Photography by Rahul VR
I have been meeting and getting
to know different kinds of people.
Some lead a very flamboyant life
and lifestyle, doing a lot of interesting things. They have so many interesting
people around them, possess all the luxurious things , seems to be always happy
and smiling. They have stories to share everyday about their success and
failures. Fame and money comes automatically to them, proving that money and
fame are interconnected and to a great extent leads to one another!
Then, there is this second
category of people who do not have all these luxury and end up doing “uninteresting
things” in life! I read somewhere about a person who makes 5000 food packets
daily and distributes in the Govt hospitals, where there are patients from very
poor families. He does this daily without interruption managing with whatever funds
that’s available. Of course, his days are filled with seeing people crying,
worried, suffering from pain and sorrow. But still, I think his life is NOT
“Pistah suma kira so mari juma kiraya”. Yes, he leads a meaningful life –
considering that he gives back life’s meanings to many, in his own possible way.
Then there are many middle class
and upper middle class office goers, who lead a very interesting life and claim
to be leading a meaningful life also. Again,
amongst them, there are some unfortunate employees working in government
departments –especially in those where direct citizen services are given. They
may be leading a life which, according
to me (and them), may be uninteresting
on a day to day basis but meaningful in the long run. I am reminded of one such
government official belonging to the Social welfare department, whom I was
fortunate to interact with some years ago. She was a strong and bold woman who
fought for the rights of the inmates of a welfare shelter home, where she was
the superintendant. She was not like any other employee who, when faced with a
situation of crisis, could easily move away to a safer zone of activity.
Instead, she did all she can to protect her inmates who were mentally ill and
was asked to move out of the shelter home as it was planned to shut down. Thus,
a legal battle, which she initiated, gave back the inmates a safe place to
live. Sometimes people do things beyond what they are paid for! Can we say,
that’s when their lives become meaningful?
Let me narrate one more story and
wind up. The hero of this story- A 72 year old man who works as the caretaker
of dogs and other pet animals in a resort. In a casual talk with me one day, he
narrated his own life story in a simple way. He got his Govt job at a very
early age and joined the sales tax department as a peon, thirty five years ago.
In his first week he was offered bribes by several people to get their things
done. He accepted and could even make twice the money than his salary. But then
he realized that this was not the place he should be (he was a Christian and
believed that Jesus will not accept this). He gave his request for transfer to
another department. His colleagues stopped him from doing that. They tried to
convince him –saying that “you have three daughters, don’t u want to marry them
off? , don’t you want to build your house?” . But this man was adamant and he
got his transfer done to the Homoeo department as a peon and then later got
promoted as a drug dispenser. He served
in remote villages and helped and prayed for poor people who felt happy
and satisfied with his caring services. He told me, “I retired after thirty
years of service and yes, I built my small house, married off my daughters and
educated my children. Above all I am happy that I don’t have any guilty
feeling. I am sure that I will have a peaceful death unlike my ex- colleagues
from the excise department who died spitting blood. Today, even when I am
cleaning the poop of dogs, I feel satisfied that my hands are clean!”.
Now, is that what we can call ,
“A meaningful life” and NOT “ A Pistah suma kira Life” ?
Cee Vee
P.S: For those who didnt know abt "Pistah suma kira" :- Its the latest viral hit song from the movie "Neram" and check out its video - Pistah Song on Youtube
