Tuesday 7 June 2016

The Joy In Little Things

 I consider myself to be a hazardously optimistic person. My optimism oft borders on foolishness, I've been told. I totally agree. Yes. But tell me, is hope really a dangerous thing? After all, that is what keeps us going isn't it? A hope may not have to be grand. It can be anything simple. But defining hopes as simple or grand is a sheepishly comic task. While having to prioritize hopes, I'm trying to establish that all hopes are equal in their strength to the person who bears them. Intriguing paradox, isn't it? Anyway, coming back to the point. As you may have noticed, the title (that thing on top in those big bold letters) said I shall speak to you about the Joy in little things and now,  I shall give you what I promised. Okay. So let's start by defining joy. What exactly is it? Is it that sudden rush of euphoria that overcomes us, or is it that feeling where you wanna dance, but enough oxygen is just not reaching your lungs? Is it that overpowering warm glow that fills your heart, or is it that little sense of satisfaction that sits in the corner of your heart? The answer- Joy cannot be singularly defined by any of those. It is in fact the collective stigma that all these experiences give us. As a daylight optimist in a cynical world, I would tell you that joy and happiness will just find you. But I'm a bit of a realist too and not unlike our beloved Professor Dumbledore, I too, pride myself on my ability to turn a phrase. So I shall amend my statement and say, Joy and happiness will just find you, if you let them. Often we wander about searching for happiness and satisfaction when we come home to realize that it was there all along. People lose out on happiness not because of its absence, but because of their inability or refusal to acknowledge its simple existence. As a person who believes in grand gestures and dreaming big, its quite ironic of me to say this, but happiness lies in small things. We surprise ourselves with it too sometimes. Let me give you a personal example. The other day, I was having the worst day possible. Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. And as i sulked, thinking about all the bad things that had happened, I boarded the 5:39 local to CST from Andheri. On the train, all I saw was tired, frustrated, angry people. Which pissed me off even more. Thinking about how it was surely gonna get worse, my eyes found themselves looking at a little baby held in his mother's arms. Innocent and oblivious to the worries of the world, the kid was breathtakingly happy. God! What I would give to be that little again. Anyway, so as I looked on at this child engrossed in its world, it smiled at me. And I don't know whether it was pure instinct, but I could not help but smile back. And after I got down at my station, I noticed that I was still smiling. That's the beautiful thing. I have no clue why, but I found myself grinning like an idiot. So, I guess what I'm saying is don't let a bad day discourage you. Look out for things that will make you smile. Happiness doesn't come easy in this world. So, we create it. Cracked a hard question? Pat yourself on the back. Climbed up 10 flights of stairs (or 2)? Pat yourself on the back. Managed to wake up on time? Pat yourself on the back! All these little things are achievements for you. Learn to appreciate them. Having said that, remember, there's always room for more. Stay satisfied, but never settle. Life will keep giving you things, accept them. But never stop there. Keep moving forward. More joy awaits you.
For any queries, refer to Julie Andrews' 'My favourite things' from The Sound of Music.
Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens..... 

2 comments: