Inertia

INERTIA

It is not as if I labour any vitriolic feelings for my mom and dad, or the people I care for…..but this is an observation in general, penned down in the hope that others learn from our personal experiences.

Law of inertia is very well explained in lessons of physics, but it becomes very difficult to understand once it is practiced day in and out by our elders.

What exactly is inertia!

Oxford dictionary, explains the term as ‘unwillingness to move or do anything active’.

With due apologies to my elders, I would like to mention that they are old, fragile in health, with rumbling as well as grumbling insides. Gradually, with passage of time, we realize that it is not just the eyes or stomachs that have deteriorated in normal functioning of the body……….. But the various other parts of the system may also have got affected. The bones may be creaking…. leading to osteoporosis...........
Diabetes may have set in causing blood pressure or more serious still, making the blood sugar rise resulting in glaucoma….or such other related problems.

Once this realization sinks in, it’s too late to get all the organs back to their proper functioning level. Here we have to keep the inertia factor in our minds. As care givers it is of utmost importance to understand that all problems afflicting our elders have to be taken care of immediately. Don’t let their procrastination grip you too!

As time flies past, you will find that you have to choose between what needs prior attention. Any wrong judgment or miscalculation could prove to be lethal and could end up with a guilt conscious for your life.

These days the families are more and more nuclear in pattern. Young generations are either not too aware of the problems being faced by moms and dad’s, or they simply turn a blind eye to it due to lack of time or money. The predominant feeling of deferring the cure may at times come from the parents itself. We need to understand that this may be due to many apprehensions like insecurity, scare of the unknown, distrust in medical facility, or fear of getting into a worsened condition.

But all these ghosts from within the mind have to be assuaged gently. A strength of mind is to be instilled, followed up by a calmness and a trust in yourself. Always keep in mind that one does not do all this for the parents only. It is as much for yourself to have a happy and a satisfied, mind and soul, with the firm belief that you did……….
Everything possible for them.

Care...

My friend and I were in the middle of a brisk walk inside the sports complex.

I got a call for some urgent work and we decided to leave immediately. As, it was pretty dark, I missed the rear lights of the car backing behind me. I banged hard into the bumper of that car. An old gentleman came out promptly and started reprimanding me for the accident.

Instantaneously a picture of a perpetually grumbling old man came to my mind-the sort of people, who forever find fault in others, and grumble at the tiniest pretext. Anyway, some sort of good sense prevailed over my mind and I duly apologized. We informed him of the urgency to leave, and pacified him. Seeing no use in prolonging the argument he graciously backed off.

Being, a regular at the complex I saw this gentleman again, after a few days. Once again, I remembered the unfortunate incident and my thoughts regarding this man. A small voice at the back of my mind said, “Serves him right for making a dent in his car”. I was shocked about the words coming to my mind, but nevertheless they were there!

Next day I saw an aged old lady probably in her mid seventies, walking slowly with the help of a stick. Looking at her I could feel the effort it was for her to move each foot. When I walked past her after twenty minutes, I saw her sitting on a bench .I saw an angelic expression on her face, and felt happy that all was well, and I left for home.

Next morning the weather had changed, it was very cold and foggy. I saw her again. She was wearing a scarf, a sweater, thick woolen socks, and was slowly heading towards her usual bench. Then I was shocked to see the old man whose car I had banged into, rushing towards her! He wiped off the dew on the bench, placed a thick mat, settled her down on it, draped a rug over her knees, and handed her a small flask of tea. Then he resumed his brisk walk around the complex.

I was totally dismayed and disgusted with myself!

Here, was this man, taking care of his wife, so meticulously, at his age; where one would expect to be looked after or being pampered himself.

On the other hand there were people like me, who had passed a spontaneous judgment on him, with out bothering to know anything about him or his travails……and also adopted such a baseless and a careless attitude towards him.

Because of remorse, I started wishing this lady every morning and started asking about her health. Later on, I came to know that their children were settled abroad. Both sons were busy in pursuing their dreams………And the old parents were fighting with hardships of life all by themselves.

It really is remarkable that at the fag end of life, two people can take care of each other without complaining…..They seem to have accepted all the problems that life wants to present them with…And still be able to find peace and contentment within themselves.

By God's Grace

Whenever I succumb to the pressures and the ensuing pains deriving from the process called life, my mind doubts the existence of God. Those are the moments when I recall an incident that puts an end to all my doubts each and every time.

The photographer in me would compel me to use my camera whenever I saw any beautiful landscape on earth. That’s what I was doing in Rajasthan one day, taking pictures, standing high up on a hill along with my four year old son. After taking several shots of a magnificent fort perched high up on the hill, I turned to look around me. The scenery down below looked really enchanting……the winding roads, the high rocks to one side and deep valley on the other. The vehicles moving down the spiral roads looked really tiny, making me realize the high altitude we were at. I started walking down holding my son’s hand, to explore more angles, and check out the possibility of taking better shots. And yes, the fort looked even more regal and magnificent.

While I was busy composing a shot, completely oblivious of my little companion, a car came from behind and stopped by my side. “Excuse me,” a male voice said. I hurriedly removed the camera and looked at him. A gentleman was rolling the window down. “Please take care of your son. He is there.”

And he pointed at my son who was standing right on the edge of the empty road, clutching an old wobbling milestone. Just two little steps away were the naked plain and rocky slope that ended in a deep gorge. There were no guardrails, no barriers of any kind. Boy! My heart missed a beat, I don’t have to tell you what I did after that.

I have felt the divine presence many times in my life but that day I actually saw God – in a car.
(Taken from TOI)