That evening I was strolling along Marina beach. In passing I noticed many sets of footsteps of different sizes and shapes. All of a sudden it struck me that it takes all kinds of people to make the world. Some footprints made my walking difficult. It was then that the ironies of life flashed through my mind. From those footprints how difficult it is to guess who walked before me. Did they belong to children or adults, men or women? More particularly were they rich or poor, sick or healthy, happy or sad and so on? Those footprints were far from the original since the impressions left behind were on the loose sand. Next I inched forward, walking closer to the seafront. The waves were breaking gently on the shore ceaselessly.
Another thought occurred: Could ocean species outnumber those on land? But being underwater they should be leading a worry-free life while working out their differences according to nature’s laws in perfect balance. We humans have not colonised the marine environment to the extent of growing our habitations on the seabed, not to mention a few submarines and some ‘fish-eating fish’ scenarios. At worst, marine life might be bothered by the pollutants released by humans besides El Nino conditions and the like.
Talking of amity in diversity, I wondered how many, since the distant past including the likes of Swami Vivekananda and Gandhiji, tried to bring a harmonious chord out of complexities for semblance of order in our human coexistence. Were we a quieter lot before this information and knowledge explosion and competitive wars in battlefields as well as market arenas? We are capable of putting rovers on Mars, but helpless when over 200 million Indians sleep hungry every night. The rich wallow in wealth; the world’s US dollar billionaires’ brigade comprises a whopping 90 Indians, while the commoners amongst us have a whale of difference in opinions on myriad issues such as returning national awards out of protest.
The ordinary citizen has to battle a rat race to one-up in varied spheres which woefully boast of no trappings of a level-playing-field. Even in a day-to-day routine, it is difficult to grab a seat in the daily commute before anyone else. Most are after a wage rise always, and businesses bottomlines are always wanting as well.
Beyond all these hurdles and divisions, there is a still thing called ego, which I consider the common denominator and also sine qua non. In fact, it differentiates us from the rest. Most wars are fought, for example the Second World War, thanks to ego. Right from birth, we humans endowed with logic and reason are trained to make a difference in things, which can be the so-called education for that matter. Now, let me narrow the scope of my thoughts. A just-born looks at anything that moves before its eyes and perceives the same to be its mom’s breast. That was the first instinct to survive. In due course, the baby identifies the correct shape and curves besides the touch, feel and voice. At school and in play, the child adapts itself to being in a group and meets expectations from its peers and elders. Later society and class come in, to cope with, challenging one to make a mark therein. During the waking hours, one’s need is always to check if one is on a firmer ground.
The blabber in my head bothered me that day on the beach sands, as the night was setting in. At the end of the day what mattered to me was self-respect regardless of whether I had money or not, health or not. It mattered most, to recognise my dignity in the large and intimidating world. Not losing it ought to be my endeavor till I breathed my last.
With these questions resolved in my mind, I boarded a bus to reach my sister’s house in that foreign place. The bus conductor asked me if I had enough money to buy a ticket, in a language I was not familiar with. Still, I was sure it was something on similar lines, from the laughter his query generated from the other passengers. I smiled at them and joined in their laughter.
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