Noise And Joys!

We are playing a game for a Christmas party at school and one of the games is identifying the lyrics of carols. I sit, staring blankly into the ceiling and choose to make a smiley face for each carol that I do not know though I am happy to be a part of the celebrations. When the game finally ends after 23 carols, I have proudly figured out just one much to my own amusement. I was surprised though that I did not the lyrics for even simple popular ones other than the starting line! I very valiantly decide that I will pay more attention to the words as I listen to the radio going forward, mostly on my drives up and down to the school right from the next commute on! So, the next morning to school sees me pull up to the school in somewhat a shock and a big smile. The principal is at the door greeting everyone as is her won’t, and me for my turn greet her with a “What were you thinking when you agreed that perhaps I should be listening to the words of carols more?” and to her raised one eyebrow, I add further that the carol that was playing was “Grandma got run over by a reindeer” and she bursts out laughing with me agreeing that perhaps I am better off listening to the music and not pay attention to the lyrics - like I do most of the time when I am listening to modern Western music be it in my gym or car or with my children. In fact, it is a popular joke in our family and my kids usually change a song saying “This song is not for children” referring to me!

So, talking about sounds, I have to confess that one of the sounds I cannot tolerate at all is that of the noise a chips bag makes while eating out of it directly. Don’t know why, it drives me insane. In fact, a few years ago I remember a student of mine asking me how I would feel if he sat and opened a bag while I sit in my meditation! I have always wondered about that. Forget while meditating, I am not sure how I would feel while doing a Shavasana even, where I try to be just an observer not reacting! Life though has a way of giving us a chance to experience some things and it came my way too just this past Christmas eve. I am on my mat teaching a yoga class on zoom and a family member visiting me decides to come on to the mat next to me, to wrap presents! I am flabbergasted. I know the crumpling sound of wrapping paper as gifts get wrapped shouldn’t be bad, but here I am, on my mat and the sound feels deafening! Don’t blame me, the only sound I hear that morning is that my own voice giving instructions as I lead students from pose to pose and my own breath as I inhale and exhale to keep the warmth of my body on that cold, snowy, storm of the century day of practice!

Being a good host that I am, I bite my tongue; don’t say a word for two reasons – one to not be rude and two to test my own patience and practice like it does not matter but when the wrapping of gifts stops, incidentally I am in a child’s pose, and I find myself surrendering completely to the silence while tears stream down my eyes in gratitude. I smile finally when I realize that I have passed on both the fronts – I have not shown displeasure and I have learnt how hard it is to keep focus and tune out everything around us. We all often hear that it is easy to give up everything and seek, than to stay put in the world and do the same! Now, I know the effort that is needed to tune out everything that is going on inside our own heads and I do not know how to do that for longer periods of time! I make a promise to myself that I certainly would not be able to meditate if that student sits by me eating chips out of that bag! That I know now clearly.

Feeling glad to have accomplished getting on to the mat for the snowy morning, I decide to log on to the social media and boy am I glad I did that for I come across this posted by a friend –

My wife sent me to the store to get more milk.
The cashier asked me if I wanted the milk in a bag.
I said “no, just leave it in the jug.”
I laughed, other dads laughed, we high-fived. It was a dairy good time!

I finally laughed my head off and then realized how serious we sometimes become with thoughts in our own heads, not seeing the humor that is around us. I make a promise to myself that perhaps as the new year approaches, I could resolve to see humor around me more and create joyful moments with people and in the interactions with them.

Happy New Year Y’all

 

Dear @mangaii ,

Nice to see you here - thank you for your response! No question that humor helps during challenging types. I have a friend who refuses to see humor no matter what and I look at her and tell myself that that is what I am trying to avoid - no need to carry the burden all the time - ours, others' or self imposed