Friday 13 May 2016

Chai-losophy

The other day I was stirring in some sugar into my chai and thinking about life, as you do. As I looked at the swirls the spoon made in the cup, it struck me that someone was probably doing the exact same thing, at this very moment, somewhere else in the world. I don't know why that thought overwhelmed me. Maybe because Life (with a capital L) has a way of making you believe that your life is the only one that is moving (or propelling, or stalling, or jogging, or crashing, or burning) and others are just extras who come to life in the brief moment their life intersects with yours. Then they fade away the moment they step out of your frame. 
Think about it. At this very moment, as you are reading this, a baby has just entered the world, a child is high in the air on a swing set, a boy feels his heart thudding loud as his crush walks by, a bunch of classmates are graduating college, a woman just said yes to her boyfriend's proposal, a couple just exchanged their vows, a twenty something is gushing about her first job offer, someone has had a heart shattering break up, someone lost his faith, someone else is discovering God, a child has lost their parent, a husband is by his wife's death bed as she breathes her last. 
We think about our singular experience a lot, but what about the experience of Life in a moment? In one second, as the Earth flings itself around by 460 meters, 7.125 BILLION people are immersed in their lives- being born and giving birth, conceiving and abandoning, falling in and out of love, finding and losing hope, picking their nose, loving their kids, paying their debts, drinking their woes, doubting themselves, surging ahead, dying, mourning, finding meaning again. It's breathtaking. This mind boggling range of human experiences that a single moment goes thorough. 
So the next time you find yourself in the extremes of any emotion, be it happiness or sorrow, excitement or boredom, dread or anticipation, remember that there is atleast one person out there who is going through the same right now with you and there are probably many more who are in the other end of the spectrum. Either you find hope in this or you become grateful. It's a win either way. Right?

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