Near yet far..

Have you ever caught yourself taking people and things for granted? Assuming that you'll still find them when you wake up the next morning? Equating them to the likeness of the sun rising in the east no matter what happens in your life? Let alone the others, in the race against time, have you ever taken yourself for granted? Today you are full of energy and vigor and tomorrow your body fails you (Jeez, that's a scary thought!! I have to report to work the day after . Illness shall have to wait until the next weekend). 

We are often advised to slow down, stop and smell the flowers. Until we find that we are the only ones indulging in olfactory gratification. Time waits for none. Never did. Never will. But if we go into an overdrive, something will always catch up with us. And that is as definite as the sun rising in the east, even if there is a holocaust tomorrow.

The times we live in are queer. There was a time when people would bear it all and still stick their neck out for the ones they loved. It didn't matter to them, how they would make ends meet, but they clung to the only thing that gave them happiness. Being with each other. Today practicality runs in our genes. What's important to us today is whether we will be able to lead a good life post marriage or not. And by a good life we mean a plush accomodation with all the traps that money can buy. Today asking for your spouse's time is not giving them enough space. You spent years woing your wife/husband, and today when they are by your side, you suddenly find yourself innundated with trillions of things which are pressing for your time. Work suddenly takes priority. It's like you have a battle to win each day and amass things. We have no time for the subtle nuances of life which earlier occupied all of our mind's landscape. We hurt our loved ones but we hope they would understand. It reminds me of this garfield strip where John tells Garfield- "You cats! All you do is  take, take take!" to which garfield remarks "Yeah! Give Give Give!". We want our loved one's to compromise, to adjust, to change. We don't sense any need for change anyway. We aren't wrong. The others are. There was a time when we could understand each others silences. Today we have difficulty understanding the spoken word. Our parents gave up their all to make us what we are today. They made sacrifices we aren't even aware of, and maybe, we never will be. But today in a bid to find our space in the sun, we neglect them. With the hope they'll understand. Yes they will. They always have. They might not say it, but they need us as much as we needed them when we were infants. They don't need our money. They don't need our help. All they need is our time. Today with them by our side, we want to reach as high as we can in our careers. When we are finally where we wanted to reach, we will be happy. But that will be shallow. Suddenly all that will mean nothing. Because we have no one to share it with. Life will seem empty even when we have everything money could buy. The best things in life are always free. Will always remain so. Let's not loose our sources of love, inspiration and trust in a race against time. Let's not cease being humans. Let's not be near yet so far. Time doesn't come back. Neither will these people.