This article was supposed to be on the challenges of Chennai, thanks to my friend S. My friend H, who looked back at her blog posts from several years ago, urged me to do the same. I looked at all the pieces I had written after arriving in Chennai — one miserable piece after another. Where was the hope? Where was the inspiration? It was there buried somewhere, but you had to really look for it.
So much for being the “enlightened” one, the one who dabbles in yoga, reiki and all the new-age mumbo jumbo and then proceeds to shove it down everyone’s throat. But I discovered that it is so hard to shine your light when everything around you falls apart and there is no light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. The last four months have seen me move across the globe, sell almost all of our worldly possessions, become unemployed and watch my kids try hard to adapt to a culture alien to them. Added to that the water problem, maid problem and the traffic problem. Every day, you wake up in the morning not knowing what problem you will have to confront that day.
Before I knew it, I was sucked into a quagmire of problems. The more I struggled, the deeper I sank. It wasn’t before I was neck-deep in my worries that I realised my folly. The problems were getting bigger because I kept focusing on them and complaining about them. I had to find my tiny bit of hope and I had to find it fast. It was my only foothold to stay above the water. I had to tell myself that it was coming, that it was on its way even though I had no idea what was coming. That small expectation kept me going, even when there was no change on the outside.
That tiny bit of hope came trickling into my life a few weeks ago. It wasn’t much, just an assurance that some work may come my way after a hiatus of nearly five months. I heartily lapped it up and it grew in me and glowed within. Then things began to change on the outside. We had heavy rains in Chennai. The parched earth quenched her thirst and was replenished. The maid, gone for weeks, now returned. A big burden was lifted off my chest. Things are going to get better. As this transformation happened, an old song from my school days came to my mind.
Mere Dil Mein Jyothi De,
Jag Ko Apni Jyothi De,
Teri Jyothi Se Mein Chaloon,
Jag Ko Apni Jyothi Doon.
(Give light to my heart,
Give light to the world,
Let me burn in your light,
Let me give your light to the world)
And that is exactly what each of us has to do. Find that little bit of light in our life and spread it. It is not easy, as I have experienced in my life. If you are unemployed, or are a single parent, are chronically ill or in an unhappy relationship, you are consumed by it and it is harder to find the light. Some of us simply drift, barely keeping our head above water. But survival is not our sole purpose. Some of us are swallowed by this tidal wave of sorrow and despair. There is no hope. No lighthouse to guide you through the storm. You probably know at least a handful of people who are worse off than you. But one person shining their light can lift hundreds out of their misery. And that person could be you.
Don’t wait for your life to be in order before you start sharing your light and uplifting others. Start now and start right where you are. Open your heart, empathise, help someone today. Your purpose is more than doing a 9-to-5 job, managing kids or running a business. The world may be full of problems but you can be the solution. Be the light. Be the love. Be the change we have all been waiting for.
- The author blogs at www.punctuatelife.com.