A year ago, I would never have thought the way I do now. That is the process of evolution and it is one of the nature’s best way to teach us about life and much more. In a few days, my son will turn one. From May 27, 2016 to this day, I have observed my wife taking care of my son. Saying it was not an easy job would be an understatement. Witnessing how demanding it is to raise a single child gave me an idea about how my mother raised the three of us; especially with my younger brother who is mentally challenged. So, this goes out to my mother and to all the mothers out there who have done an incredible job of raising a human being to the best of their abilities.
To the mother, who knew that it won’t be easy and yet made it look so simple and uncomplicated.
To the mother, whose compassion and warmth, I can feel still, sitting thousands of miles away from her.
To the mother, who shielded me against the bad of the world and in the process, hurt herself so much but never complained.
To the mother, who used to cry in solitude thinking that she was not a good parent and yet, proved to be the best parent in the world.
To the mother, who always put my wishes first, regardless of how much she wanted to do something she loved.
To the mother, whose hugs are better than everything in the world.
To the mother, who always put food in my mouth first and always ate what was left.
To the mother, who used to sleep on a wet bed, so that I could sleep in comfort.
To the mother, who spent countless hours teaching me how to walk and talk.
To the mother, who used to wake up multiple times in the middle of the night in order to make sure that I was alright.
To the mother, who sacrificed everything she had, for me.
To the mother, who gave up her dreams so that mine could become a reality.
It is 6:20 AM in the morning. The first alarm on my mobile goes off. I turn it off. Ten minutes later, the second alarm goes off. A few minutes later I am in my bathroom. I offer my morning prayers, prepare breakfast, get ready, make lunch and pack my bag to leave. In the mean time, my wife is also awake and I kiss her goodbye. I rush to the underground train station (also called the “U-Bahn” in this part of the world). I catch the 7:51 train, change to another train 10 minutes later and after about 20 more minutes, I find myself at the door of my office building. I enter, greet everyone I meet and head to my desk. I open my laptop, check the calendar and I start to work.
Now, it is 5:30 in the evening. I check that the next train (also called the “S-Bahn”) is on time. I pack my bag, wish a nice evening to my colleagues and rush to catch the 5:39 PM train. I see a sea of people walking towards the train just like me. I join that sea, oblivious to everyone around me, hoping to find a familiar face that I can talk to about my day. Sometimes, I do, the others, I don’t. At about 6:20 PM, I reach the place I call home. I ring the bell and I can hear my son running towards the door saying, “Daddy aa gaye” (meaning “Daddy’s home”). He is as usual excited to see me. He tells me about his day, what he did and what’s new in his little world. I see my wife, I hug her. A few minutes later, we have dinner. I play with my son for a while after which we start preparing for the next day. At about 9 PM, we go to the room to sleep.
It’s 6:20 AM in the morning, the first alarm of my mobile goes off. I turn it off. Ten minutes later, the second alarm goes off. The monotonous routine that I just described starts again. About 15 hours later, it is bed time again and we all go to sleep.
This is what I call, the “rhythm of life”.
Now, every now and then, it is important to break this rhythm. More important however, is to realize the moments that make your rhythm beautiful. Moments that give purpose to your life. Moments that drive you, every day.
It’s 6:20 AM in the morning. The first alarm on my mobile goes off. I open my eyes and I see the person I love lying peacefully next to me. It brings a smile to my face. This is the first moment that makes my rhythm beautiful. I turn off my alarm. I just lie there, looking at her.
Ten minutes later, the second alarm goes off. I get up and offer my prayers. The prayers bring peace to my heart. I feel a connection to the creator of the universe. In that moment of connection, I pray for all the humans that inhabit the Earth that may their day be a beautiful one, filled with love. This is the second moment that makes my rhythm beautiful.
After getting ready for work, I have my breakfast. Just when I am about to leave, my son wakes up and he asks me when will I be home? I see love in his eyes. I kiss him and tell him that I will be home soon. I hug my wife, smile at the both of them just as I am about to close the door behind me. This is the third moment that makes my rhythm beautiful.
I rush to the underground train station. It is crowded as most of the people are traveling to their jobs. During the 30 minute train ride, I usually make eye contact with at least 1 person and pass them a smile. They normally smile back. Without knowing anything about each other, we did something nice. More importantly, made a human connection and reassured each other that it is going to be fine. This is the fourth moment that makes my rhythm beautiful.
A few minutes later I sit at my desk working on something that I love. In that moment, I think about all the people who are unhappy at their work. People who work because they have to, not because they want to. In that moment, I pray again that may everyone find a job that they are passionate about. At the same time, I thank the creator of the universe for giving me the opportunity to work at something that I enjoy and love. This is fifth moment that makes my rhythm beautiful.
It is about 6:20 PM as I ring the bell. I hear my son rushing to open the door. As soon as he opens, he hugs me and then starts telling me about his day. I make a point of listening to him intently. I hug my wife and ask her about her day. A few minutes later we sit down to have dinner. In that moment, I thank God for giving us food, clothes to wear and a place we can call home. At the same time, I pray for those who do not have food or a place to call home. This is the sixth moment in my rhythm that makes it beautiful.
Normally, after the dinner, I call my parents. We have a 4 hour time difference so they are preparing to go to bed by then. I ask them about their day. I also ask about my grandmother and my brother who is very close to my heart. In that moment, I thank God to bless me with amazing people whom I get to call my “Maa” and my “Papa”. At the same time, I pray that they stay with me forever, for no one can replace them. More importantly, I pray for the children whose parents are no more, that may they find a place they can call home and people whom they can call parents. This is the seventh moment in my rhythm that makes it beautiful.
As I prepare to go to bed, I have nothing but gratitude and I thank God for blessing me with countless blessings. After my son is asleep, me and my wife talk to each other about the day and what is planned for the days to come. Soon, we are sleepy as well and as I am about to close my eyes, the last thing that I see is a very beautiful girl whom I call my wife. In that moment, I pray that may she remain with me forever and may our love grow with each passing day. More importantly, I pray for all the humans that may they find love, for that is the most important thing in life. This is the eighth and final moment that makes “the rhythm of my life” beautiful.
Take a deep breath and take a few moments to analyze your rhythm of life. Apply something called “the subtraction method” that I learned recently from a very fine gentleman whom I have the pleasure of knowing. One by one, subtract everything from your life and imagine it without it. It will help you be grateful. More importantly, it will help you realize the things that make your rhythm beautiful. In this moment I pray, that may you find a lot of things in your rhythm of life that make it beautiful.
It has been quite some time since I purchased this domain for myself. I never really had the time to write something or let’s just say, I really never had the will. But what better time to start than the start of a new year. The last year was amazing. My life took a huge leap and I entered the world of fatherhood. The year before i.e. 2015, I entered into a beautiful bond that goes by the name “Marriage”.
Everyone thinks that there is a right time to do everything. Most people want to get married when they are settled, have a nice sum of money deposited to their account every month and are sure about what they want to do in the future. In my case, it was different and it still is. I was 22 and still studying when I got married and a year later, I had a son. I did not have a regular paycheck coming in my bank account every month and to be honest, I was not even mature. But the truth is, everything worked out as it always does in the end (or so I believe).
My principal in my high school used to say, “Have faith!” Back then, the two words did not make any sense. Moreover, Steve Jobs once said in his commencement speech, “it is possible to connect the dots in reverse and not vice versa.” Well, I took a leap of faith and I am glad to say that so far, I can connect the dots. Those two words, “Have faith!” make a lot of sense now.
I have moved to Munich to pursue my Master’s in Power Engineering. But honestly, I don’t even know if I want to do it. I still haven’t figured out what I want to do with my life. But the good part is, I am looking for the answer. I am sure I will keep on looking for it until I find it. There are a few things in my life that make sense to me right now. I have very loving and supportive parents who have always been supportive of what I have done so far. I have a girl who makes my heart beat and who happens to be my wife. My son, who makes all the worries go away with one smile. Finally, my sister and my mentally challenged brother, who I love dearly. To sum up, the only thing that makes sense right now is love and the beautiful people with whom I share this feeling.
I know life will have a lot to teach me in the coming years as I believe that life is a great teacher. So far, I have learnt my lessons and one of them is to ‘have faith’. I see so many people with brilliant ideas that are waiting to be believed in. I see so many lovers that need to learn the meaning of the two words that life tries to teach us. I see so many young artists and writers who are waiting for someone to tell them, ‘have faith’. I see so many people who want to believe in humanity once again but are waiting for someone to tell them, ‘have faith’. I see 7 billion brilliant minds and souls who are waiting for someone to tell them to ‘have faith’.
So, I guess this goes out to all the people who are confused about what they want to do, to all the people who don’t know if things will turn out fine, to all the people who are not sure if this world will ever become a great place to live in, to all the people who have a broken heart, to all the people who have lost their jobs, to all the people whose next great idea has failed, to all the people whose business isn’t doing good, to all the people who are not sure if the sun will rise tomorrow, to all the people who are on the verge of losing hope, I tell you “Have Faith!”. For one day, the things will be better, for one day, this world will become a better place to live in. For one day, you will find true love. For one day, you will get a job that you love. For one day, your idea will be a reality. For one day, everything will make sense. Remember, the dots can only be connected in reverse.
P.S. The picture on my website is from 2014. Taken from ‘Top of the Rock’, New York City, New York, USA. I was there on an exchange program. For all of you who are going to New York City, do check out the place. The best time to go is at sunset.
On-Life 