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Perspective

Discussion in 'Snippets of Life (Non-Fiction)' started by satchitananda, Feb 15, 2018.

  1. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    How many odes do we hear sung to childhood, adolescence and youth? People dread the words 'middle aged' or 'old'. Personal experience has convinced me that the first few decades of life are the toughest. Is it only me who feels that way?

    I remember as a young person counting my years and despairing at how long I had before I could go to that blissful sleep. I could not understand why people said 'life is so short'. If you asked me, it seemed to stretch endlessly with no sight in end. I even calculated how long I'd have to live if I were to believe my 'horrorscope'. The world would not see the last me until 2042.

    Somehow my 40s had a very liberating effect on me. Life eased out in many ways. Time which earlier seemed to weigh on my hands, despite plenty of things to do, suddenly seemed to fly, when I was fairly relaxed.

    Today I was teaching (and I have come to view these moments when I am teaching or learning as moments of ephphany! :) ) and there was a text about Hamburg in 2030. 2030 seemed far enough (I was still looking at the year through the mental lenses of year 2000), till it suddenly occurred to me that it is only 12 years away! And then 2042 - just 22 years away? That hardly seems to be any time at all, when one thinks of how time seems to fly these days. Am I scared? No. It just seems to be so surreal - even the shops around me looked surreal as I drove back home after that moment of realization. Do I have plenty to accomplish before I get there? I don't know. I can only do whatever it is I have to do everyday. Yes, there are 1 or 2 major jobs to be done so I don't end up troubling anybody after me. Other than that, it is just the mundane business of living (and now I use this word consciously which is quite different from the 'existence' of my younger days), enjoying myself and ..... well, just being. No Nobel Prize to be won, no world changes to be brought about.

    One more thing learned through personal experience. Life is indeed short. Q.E.D.
     
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  2. BhumiBabe

    BhumiBabe Platinum IL'ite

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    This is so true. For a 1 day newborn, 1 week is a long time - afterall, the length of a week is 7 lifetimes. As we get older, time goes by faster and a year is gone in an instant.
     
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  3. jskls

    jskls IL Hall of Fame

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    Satchi When one does what they love every hour would seem like a minute and vice versa if not. Reminds me of the times when we go on a long road trip. Just after an hours drive Kids would ask “Are we there yet?” Imagine the same question being asked at Regular intervals for 12 long hours. It takes the fun out of the journey. Life journey is the same.

    I have had those learning moments when life was so heavy and me looking for light at the end of the tunnel. Now slowly I look back the way I traveled and see that it did zip fast though it didn’t seem that way then. With whatever journey left. I would exist but want to make it a little worthwhile- a life well lived pursuing my goal one little step at a time.
     
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  4. joylokhi

    joylokhi Platinum IL'ite

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    Nice reflections:) Personally, the first few decades were spent without actually thinking of what we are doing - with just the regular routines of school, college , home etc. We were literally raising against time trying to fulfil our duties setting up home, children's education etc. For me , the time I decided I had enough of this running around and resigned by full time job in 2005, is the most fulfilling. The initial 2 years I tried to do things - like attending innumerable hobby classes, taking tuitions etc to console myself and probably others also, that I was not whiling away fruitful years. However, after that realised, there is no need to prove anything to anyone and now have a relaxed life managing home, my temple visits, visits to friends/relatives , reading etc and time seems to fly by. So, ultimately middle age and old age is fine I would say upto the time we are able to manage things by ourselves and not have to rely on others physically/financially and to that end, I try to plan things.
     
  5. GeetaKashyap

    GeetaKashyap IL Hall of Fame

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    It is so surprising that certain realities are universal; yet we struggle to prove it otherwise.

    Till 15 life is of ignorance and dependency. There is a burning desire to hit the fast forward button as adulthood promises many things filmy and confidence is at the peak but time drags. Upon reaching and being in the 15-30 age group, life is extremely stressful; education, career, competitive ness n marriage. Time: who has got time? Then suddenly a huge speed breaker making us question priorities, reexamine and relearn hitherto close-to-heart truths and ideals. Compromises; yes learning to compromise on anything and everything! 30-45/50; life is a whirlwind fulfilling duties and obligations, accepting realities and absorbing everything. One never realises when the previous day ended and the new day began. 50-65/70 take stock of things, get ready to wind up, introspect and realise the profound truths of life n make the best use of whatever is left as time is running out. Light at the end of the tunnel gets closer and brighter. Not to mention the company of faithful ailments and health scares. Time is steady, we do all, we are masters of multi tasking and still we have enough time to worry, we have lots to give but there are very few takers! 70+ sit back, take care of everyday as it comes....be ready to say 'Good bye.' Time crawls...second by second. We suddenly realise 60 seconds make a minute! For some killing seconds may become difficult!

    Satchi, as you said, 40+ is the best phase where we are done away with huge expectations and are more or less ready to accept whatever life has doled out. I would call it the second birth.

    Very nice thought provoking article. I was never on time so I often face some oddities n struggle to fit in!
     
  6. MonikaSG

    MonikaSG Platinum IL'ite

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    Very vivid description of life has been explained. Each stage demand more and expect more and we keep on our struggling as this is the only thing possible. No one knows the exact path and the way to move forward. Each phase has its own pace. As for a child growing years are comparatively more enjoyable but for parent its more involved with day to day struggle of providing him each and every necessary thing be it moral monetary or the time.
     
    Last edited: Feb 16, 2018
  7. SCSusila

    SCSusila Gold IL'ite

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    Age certainly brings new perspectives on everything .
    The more one ages, the better it is to stop looking at calenders ......but hows that possible !
     
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  8. Iravati

    Iravati Platinum IL'ite

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    I feel the same. First few years are impressionable and timid and we concede to the prevailing conventions on how to lead favoured life. We lack the voice to assert our self-governance. We are somebody's daughter, then somebody's protege in high school, then someone's ward in mentorship programme in University. It takes considerable time to insist on our compulsive identity. Yes, first few years are tough because we are pinballed between convention and norm and that approved lifestyle. The toughness is more from confusion than labour. Your determinacy is in opposition to your desires. The dreams of good education, great job, marriage, kids, family, happily ever ...man! such dreams weigh heavily on us. I say toughest because I lacked that strength to believe in self. As a grown-up, I am more self-assured now even if my creed is at odds with the jaded conformity.

    Satchi: Is it only me who feels that way? I feel the same but for different reasons.

    Haha! You think just like me. No Nobel Prize for my chatter. No activism to change the world. But in the darkest corner of my mind when I inquire, would I want to swap my life with Beyonce or Chien-Shiung Wu, nah! I like my brain very much. The way it bounces around in chaotic spin. I like my pudding brain too much to swap it with the megaminds.

    Indeed! Earlier, I would take a lot of experiences, people and moments for granted. They are never lost as they can be cherished in memories. I used to hasten up the passage of incidents with oncoming excitement. New excitement forged, old excitement fading in style! But why defer to cherish in memories when one can be more mindful of their occurrences in the present.

    I am more mindful now of people and the time spent with them. They are here now and with me. I am delaying to cast them in memories for they are the immediate and forceful now. I am extremely wakeful in life as I talk and chat with them now. These people transformed me! They are my now ...I keep reminding ...they are happening now...tomorrow these people will retreat into sweet memories.

    In short, my perspective on life has not just veered but keeled and risen over the years. I cannot relate to what I was even in the recent past, that is, 2017. Identities and perspectives, in general, are alterable, but mine are rapidly fluid like a shape-shifting monster.
     
    Last edited: Feb 19, 2018
  9. Viswamitra

    Viswamitra IL Hall of Fame

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    Dear Satchi,

    Tell me about 40s. That is when I moved over to the melting pot to pursue a career that I never thought even in my dreams. One initial public offering, one follow-on offering for the company I worked for and acquired 14 companies worldwide in Australia, Canada, France, Japan, UK and the US after reviewing about 400 companies and visiting 60 of them.

    That is about the materialistic pursuit. Around 45 is when I started my inquiries into spirituality and realized that I can't even scratch the surface of that vast space. Sometimes, I wonder why it took so long for us to get into the zone? Perhaps, we didn't have enough stock from our prior lives to explore either materialistic or spiritualistic accomplishments.

    Eknath Solkar and Abid Ali used to open the bowling for India in Test Cricket when India was short of fast bowlers when the entire cricket playing world intimidated India through their fast bowling. We used to call them as poormen's Dennis Lillee (the fastest Australian bowler at that time). There isn't a day pass by in my life without thinking why I didn't do this when I interact with 20 year and 30 year old now.

    Don't worry about Noble as none of us are in the Committee. I can give IL Watson to you and Ira as those who stimulate the gray matter by writing such wonderful posts. :)

    Viswa
     
  10. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    Shame on me! Had to hunt in the list and found it on page 5. Extremely sorry for the delay in responding. It is just that sometimes real life interferes with my virtual life.
     

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