DATED – 7th July 2016
As you read this title, for a few it would have tinkled an old memory of a story you would have read in school. The town of Hamelin (in Germany) was troubled by rats. In spite of lot of efforts, they wouldn’t subside. Finally, Pan Piper in his colourful dress (Pied) with his magical pipe lured the rats away. The Pied Piper walked the rats into the river, thus relieving the Hamelin people.
Though it’s an old story, I think it is very relevant in today’s world for the kind of life we all (or most of us) are living. We seem to be like those rats running behind something, which we don’t know why? We seem to have no clarity on our own life. It’s like a herd mentality. Practically, it seems to be the obvious thing to do, but heart of heart you’re not at peace. To make it more relevant, have you ever made these statements –
- The day is already over; I didn’t realise it
- I am already 40 years old. Time flies!
- This is not something of my interest. But I have to do it to make ends meet. I’ve got no choice
- I wish I could pursue my hobby
- I can’t find time to do things that I like to do – e.g.: read/ meditate/ exercise etc
- I hate this job of working 9am to 6pm. I don’t get time to spend with my family and kids
I discussed this with a few friends too. The common answer was – we must do what must be done. How much we wish things could have been the way we want it. Though I listened to them patiently, that answer was not satisfactory. My mind kept searching for answers.
Though I myself haven’t found a perfect solution to it, but two words seem to be the answer so far – SLOW DOWN! Before you think otherwise, let me clarify that I am not speaking about the pace. I mean to say, SLOW DOWN and look at yourself. Find out –
- What is it that you like to do? Are you doing that as often as you would like to?
- Like my friend, Rajesh Shetty, wrote in his blog – A Run Up The Hill (http://shettyblogs.blogspot.in/2016/06/a-run-up-hill.html), do you experience meditative state when you do something in your daily routine?
- How do you feel at the end of a day – frustrated/ irritated/ angry OR satisfied/ fulfilled?
- When you hit the bed, do you feel tired or do you feel like doing more?
To any of these questions, if your answers were in affirmative, you would not be making above statements (the 1st set) often. It shows you know yourself well. For those of us, who are like those rats, we won’t have answers to the above questions. But let’s not be disheartened – It’s never too late. We can start now.
Vis-à-vis my life –
These questions have made me think. More importantly they made me realise what I like to do and not do. They introduced ME to ME. I have realised a few things and already started implementing them, especially at work where I spend most of my time. With people, I have begun expressing myself more rather than keeping to myself. It makes me feel liberated and excited about anything and everything. Overall, there seems to be a new ‘zing-thing’ in my life.
Slow down we must. After all it is never the amount of money or the reputation you earn, but it is about the satisfaction you get at the end of the day. Ideally, none of us at the age of 60 should be saying – ‘if only I had…’. This thinking will make us suffer even more. In fact, we should proudly be able to look back and say – what a beautiful life I have lived. This is possible if we slow down and be unlike the rats in the story of The Pied Piper of Hamelin
