Every journey begins with a destination in mind. So have our lives. And all travelers would know that it’s not the end that matters, it’s the journey that matters in the end. Man is a traveler all his life and life an endless journey of twists and turns. Long drives are everyone’s favorite and if I were to draw an analogy between them and life there are more than just a few. Your life is yours and yours alone but you cannot decouple it from those of others around you. Just like on a journey, you can own a car but not a road. There are co-travelers, some patient, some unruly, some cooperative, some senile, some innocent, some adolescent. These faces stay for a while. The bouts of anger don’t long last. Their smiles sometimes pleasing, sometimes mocking will disappear like the road during a blind turn. Only they wouldn’t be seen again unlike the road at the end of the turn. You will cross a number of milestones. Chances are you may breeze past most of them. Take a while to breathe and celebrate each of them because when you look back at your journey, the milestones are all you will remember. You may get lonesome somewhere on the way. Ask a friend to hop in and sit by your side. Share a laugh. Crack a joke. Listen to music. Then say goodbye if you may. Fuel up when you most need it. Avoid too many breaks. It makes the journey seem longer. Remember there’s always light at the end of the tunnel. Dare to take a wrong turn. Thankfully the world is round. Give way to others. Don’t mistake it for failure or quitting. Uphill climbs are easiest when all luxuries are turned off. There are many traveling on the fast lane. Follow them but be prepared to slow down. Don’t let flat tyres agitate you. Use the time to stop and stare. What is this life if full of care? Let the wind hit you on your face. Feels lot like love. Read signboards on the way. Spot an error and treat yourself to a smile. Get nostalgic once in a while. Objects in the rear view mirror are closer than they appear. Like all travelers you would see more than you can remember but a journey is worthwhile when you can remember more than you have seen.
Because their brains have been wired to focus on details… from picking vegetables in the market to the embroidery on their sarees, from the laces on their petticoats to the shade of their nail enamel. Because they can never read maps nor can create one let alone making an effort to lead you to your destination. They like to simply be on the back-seat and give worthless advice or be on the front seat and doze off. Because they always equate power with ownership and ownership with extreme possession…boyfriend, husband, recipes and ideas. Because they are eternally lost in a pursuit of proving themselves in a role…loving wife, caring daughter-in-law, super mom, cool aunt. Because they have always been told – The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world. That behind every successful man there is a woman. They selectively take some words very seriously. They understand humor… too little…too late. They cannot live without their daily dose of gossip and banter - the two most important deterrents to productivity and peace. Because they always consider the penny wise and pound foolish – will haggle with the vegetable vendor but will let their pockets lose on discounted sales. Because they are programmed in binary. Either you are right or them. Because the winds of women empowerment and diversity has created a storm in their tea-cups which are always full of coffee. And too much off caffeine is bad for the brains, especially when you have more of the former and less of the later. Because their understanding of technology is often restricted and sometimes challenged. Because they cannot live or let live without reminders, lists, alarms – you find it everywhere – on their refrigerators, in the knots in their handkerchiefs, on their palms, by their bedside, on their ovens. They like being noticed and love hogging the spotlight. The multiplicity of their efforts is commendable – clothes or sometimes the lack of it, make-up, jewelry, tick-tock shoes, free-flowing tresses, loud ringtones, silly giggles, and conversations at inappropriate levels of decibels. Working women generally carry their work home because they carry their home to work. The reason for the dearth of women managers or must I say good women managers can be best explained like the journey of the Indian cinema industry from the 1990s to the present. We hope 2020 would be the year of coming of age of the women managers when the stereotype associated with them would die a silent death and experience, exposure, etiquette, education and equality would pave the way to change. Until then patience is the key to survival and good appraisals by the biggest nightmare aka women managers!
Where did we lose the innocence?
Did we leave our hearts far behind?
In the quest for the ultimate truth
Have our souls suffered and died?
Looking back at the days did we see
A hint of happiness or a spark of joy?
Or did with the idea of blissfulness
Our mind could only eternally toy?
Did we make more foes than friends?
Did we mar more memories than we could hold?
Somewhere in the chapters of life
Were we the hero of a story untold?
Do we still have a dream to live up to?
Do we still dare to dream?
Do we still have a heart to dare?
Dreams, dare, heart and desires…do we even care?