The Garden of Life

We are grateful for being one of the few people in Mumbai who have a good garden close by. Considering the encroachment of open spaces (both geographically and mentally), I feel really blessed having a nice garden where we go for walks, nevertheless we being the  regularly irregular types!

The garden to me seems to be a melting point of all ages, apart from being a meeting point for many culturally different people. It is with keen eyes and inquisitive mind I see young school children (really young) and college girls and guys dating. Sometimes children in school uniforms too and I wonder how the parents would react to this scene. So much of trust (and money) invested in children, going down the drain - rather taking a walk!

Some married people walk miles apart and the discord is obvious, whereas someone who is sitting alone on a bench thinks of life "if they had someone".  Some feel lonely being together and some look happy even though alone. The various games our mind makes us play!

It's not far away that you see a group of middle aged men and women train on physical fitness by personal trainers and the zest for being fit is surely infectious. Another group of laughter club consists of people post fifties who force themselves to chuckle - albeit a great therapy. It is like all of us looking back at life when we are old and grin at all the things that have happened - positive and negative! What better way to look at the past than with the lens of laughter.I am already beginning to make a list of events in my life that need that kind of guffawing laugh :)

Clock is ticking away

Observing over days I find a few old men and women may be in their late seventies who are in the park - no matter what time of the day. It is very obvious they spend most of their time here after the regular walk. Horror stories of children not wanting parents or parents choosing to stay out as much as possible, to avoid going home come to my mind and I feel a pang deep inside. The glorious days of being the head of the family soon gives way to the sun down days of waiting for the clock to tick away soon.

Hope is renewed seeing a newly born baby being entertained by the doting mother (more often a maid these days). A child in many ways represents hope and future unfolding. Human being's attraction to the future is one of the best kept secrets of life. What keeps us going is the hope for a better future, no matter not many vouch having experienced a greater future but always think of "the good-ol days".

The various stages of a human life are seen in the garden, if only we identify ourselves with every other person around, the stories are all the same. Some a shade better, some with grey areas but the general story in the garden of life is all the same. Yet all of us feel unique and that's the beauty!