The Cocktail

The other day, my dad accidentally rammed his car against his shop. Thankfully, there were no fatalities. The shop was closed, he was unwell and asleep in the car. The car galloped ahead as soon as he started it and rammed against the shutter. My dad was caught unaware. He didn't have the slightest clue how the whole event transpired and he still doesn't know how it happened. Oftentimes, there are people standing right in-front of the shop during the closing time, the staffs and my mom as well. But on that particular day, that could have potentially turned fateful, lady luck decided to show up and saved us from a disaster. Disaster would be an understatement.

After this incident, i was thinking about the fragility of life. How our entire world could have come crashing down in no time. I get chills merely thinking about what could have happened. Events like these really make you appreciate all that you are blessed with. It did the job, at least for me. It served a clarion call for me to be more appreciating of the near-perfect life that i am blessed with. Not that i wasn't appreciating of it already. But yeah, it reminded me to not just be grateful, but also be careful of whatever blessings i have been bestowed upon by the creator. 

You don't realize what you have until it's gone. But sometimes, god being very kind gives us experiences that serve as a reminder of our blessings, without actually taking it away from us. I have had quite a few of them in the past many years. When my maternal uncle was battling for his life suffering from dengue, i realized the gift that life was. He almost had a date with death, only to be given a second chance at life. That period of uncertainty between life and death was one of the most trying experiences of my life. I started valuing my blood relations far more since that day. Even if your relatives can be a pest sometimes, blood is indeed thicker than water. You subconsciously care and are hugely concerned about their well-being. Early this month when i met this uncle the first time since his dengue episode, i was overcome with gratitude to see him hale and hearty. He'd just be walking around,or talking to somebody or doing absoulutely nothing, and I would continually look up and thank the heavens for giving him back to us, just like Tendulkar would after a century.

I was also reading Manisha Koirala's autobiography, where she spoke about surviving late stage ovarian cancer and being given another chance at life. She talks about how she began appreciating life far more, after the trying episode. All that she said about gratitude and living it up, i could relate to even though i haven't really gone through any major crisis, touchwood.

Major or not, i too have gone through my share of extended dark spells, spanning over years together, consuming the whole of my teenage. That difficult period has made me appreciate my life now. Now, sadness is a temporary visitor and happiness is a permanent roommate. Even when sadness arrives, i know it will leave soon, but earlier, it used to be that tenant who'd overstay and  simply refuse to leave, and happiness would be conspicuous by its  absence.

In a way i'm glad i went through something like that, even though it wasn't fun at all. But yeah i have learnt to find happiness in little things and i have realized that these little things are actually not that little. Life is largely made up of these little things and instead of waiting for that grand event of 'ultimate happiness', which is an illusion by the way, appreciate the mundane, everyday events, because, in the process of waiting for that perfect happiness, you'll realize that life has sprinted past, leaving you with nothing but regrets for not truly living your life.

So two things, gratefulness and appreciation are necessary ingredients in the cocktail of life. So, don't forget to add it in necessary proportions and don't forget to savour every sip, coz you won't be handed another one, if you mess this one up.

Ghar ki murgi dal barabar( The chicken at your home is as good as lentils)
Muttathe mullakku manam illa ( The jasmine in your yard is odourless)

These are two popular sayings in Hindi and Malayalam respectively, that talk about how we undervalue what we have. Make sure these adages don't hold true in your life, coz mind you, the Jasmine can always be replaced with periwinkles  and the chicken might actually fly away, and you'd have to actually make do with lentils. So nurture the chickens and water the jasmine before its too late ;)

Love, Harsha