pERSPECTIVE- Life is a SCHOOL and all of us are School KIDS!

Ofcourse I will be the teacher here!!!!!

   You know, which is the best quality in a teacher? Brainstorm:

    -Good with children

    -Knowledgeable

    -A role model

    -Noble

Naah. It's being a child in an adult's body. Don't get me wrong here by thinking all the freudian qualities of a newborn, but think about a child who is ever observant of her surroundings, ever curious to learn from everyone and everything, ever innocent of an experience whether it was a good one or a bad one, and ever being in the present moment. Most of all ever making everyone around them lighten up and happy.

  I want to share my child's eyes with you. Would you like to wear them? We will be exploring a small view outside my hall window where there was a small happenstance that made me stop doing my chores, planning out my day, achieving my agenda and goals. (Yup, just like a kid when you take them to the market and are rushing home when suddenly the kid spots some ants and stops, yes just that feeling!- the adult is obviously my long list of chores just waiting for me to finish writing this and get back to "work").

   I see there is a growth of a patch of yellow mandevilla on the wall towards my left, upon which there is a cat who His graciousness, has plopped himself on it and is sleeping, soundly. The cat is white with little black smears on his ears. He makes me smile, animals in the animal school lead such a simple and straightforward life!

  Then I see the sky. Big white cotton candy clouds fluffed over the perfect sky blue background. I can definitely capture the picture for my desktop but alas, I cannot capture the weather, the wind blowing and touching all of us as it passes by; the trees-it's leaves, my face- my heart. The windchime singing makes me look at it, and just like a child on a cradle.....I smile.

 Oh, and then my eyes spot a crow! I immediately recognize and accept him as a part of our family! He is sitting on the platform beneath my window grill and he looks at me and recognises me as the "food giving beautiful, lovely,  pretty, amazing, magnificient young girl"(let's assume this). He flies over to the opposite branch of a tree( definitely weirded out by my wide smile) and suddenly the sun rays fall on his feathers, reflecting back to reveal a tint of bluish black shine as he sways a little. My eyes widen with how beautiful his feathers look and he, seeing that gaze and that funny look on my face, flies away!

Then I see an old couple  walking down the small distance between their flat wing and the seat below a tree, slowly. I see two things. I see how the old man walking with a cane has his legs scarred and worn out with age and his experience as he is slow but firm in his walk, sits on the seat taking the help of his wife, but opens the knot of his lungi to make it full length himself as he sits. Then I see his wife, helping him, holding his hand. I see a student who has done it all and is now basking and living life with whatever grades he got and his beau, who loves taking care of him,  supports him and just loves being with him! That's old age school for you!

With a twist in the live story and like a spring, there enters a Jhadu Wala! He has a youth energy "Chappal" which makes him sweep through the area with steadfast steps and a youth strength "Jhadu" as he grips it with the expertise of a Jhadu Wala and sways it with smooth motion and calculated movements. A bhangarwala comes along and without even clearing his throat, just like a switch turned on, he starts saying "BHANGARWALA, BATLI BHANGARWALA". I bet he speaks in a different pitch and accent than that. That, is his selling voice, practiced and made autopilot mode with time. Speaking of which, at the same time there is another middle-aged man, with the same fervor and determination, as he is dressed in crisp grey pants and blue shirt, polished shoes, clean kept hair, all of which is conditioned and now a part of his personality to be seen and felt as a man working in a company, going to the office, carrying an office bag on his back which must have his lunch dabba for sure as he approaches his washed grey car ,opens both the front concave mirrors, puts his office bag on the front seat, rounds back to open the right door of his car and sits inside, heading to his job, which was his school earlier back when he was a kid. His clothing style is the same, just his office uniform instead of the school uniform. I just hope he knows he is still in a school, just graduated a level further. I just wish all the adults are happy and have fun in their jobs, just like they did in their school!

 With a laugh I then see this another old man, having his usual school uniform on even though he is now retired! (all medals of life won, grades received, society school has given him a farewell and yet he dresses up in a unform!) I see him having a sheet of paper in his hand, oh sorry;an "important" piece of "document" and he is struggling like a kid not knowing where to keep it, he tried two - three times to fit that "A4 sized paper" into his pocket "without" folding it. Just hold it in your hand, god damn it!!!!!!!

You see, life school is much more than your school, your job and most importantly "YOU". Life in itself is a school and all of us are it's students. There is a battle of thoughts, a war in my mind often making me question what is more important in life? Vision Board for my future,consistency in the way I show up to this world everyday, discipline in my work and having a daily routine, big plans to progress, working on myself constantly and upgrading, picking out what I think is a "mistake". Or is it Helping others with no reason, talking with people with no hidden agenda, living each day as if it were the first day of your life on earth, spending time observing everyone at work and learning from them, forgetting people who did bad to you, were bad to you immediately as you spot your family, your friends, your loved ones and hug them, kiss them, eat food with them, play with them. Forgiving and making amends, as you are too busy enjoying the simplicity of present rather than the complex past or future or both!

A child knows and realizes life is too short for sulking and too long for serendipity, how about you learn and do the same too!!!

So that was the lesson for today, my dear readers. I hope you enjoyed. Please reflect on it and as you read it, think what war is going on in your head. Switch the adult lens with a child's lens. How can you look at it with a child's lens, what would you instead do...what is that one childish thing that you want to do for so long which would put a smile on your face? Now, go ahead and eat that icecream already! Be happy!!!!

 This is Teacher Priya, signing off.

Bye!