Looking at the small aquarium sitting in my office, I often wonder about the life of the teeny weeny fish who day and night have to live through claustrophobia. I wish I could scan their emotions and understand their mental status.
Remember 1993, Bill Murray movie, ‘Ground Hog Day?. The Protagonist falls into the rut of a Time Loop that happens every day with the same frequency of events, and people participating. He desperately tries to change things up by doing weird things but succumbs to the uncontrolled repetition and lands in Depression with Suicidal Tendencies.
‘It is not enough to be busy, so are the ants. The question is, what are we busy about?”…. Henry David Thoreau.
The purpose of life should not be to be {just} busy. The endeavour should be to draw pleasure out of whatever we are doing.
A man was travelling through a village and he saw a villager carrying a big basket, and running to and fro from outside to inside his hut. The man asked him what the purpose of this toil was The villager happily said … “ I am trying to carry sunshine from outside to illumine my dark hut …”.
The philosophy is that the villager was happy doing the dumb work … so what? If he was enjoying it.
Wonder at the life of a common man travelling from Lokhandwala to Churchgate every day in the wee hours of the Morning by a particularly stinking, overcrowded local train; meeting the same set of faces, performing similar activities, coming back in the evening tired and weary, and dumped in bed for another ordinary day. There are no dreams or sweet memories, just a mundane clock routine, more or less robotic.
GOLD MEIR rightly said … “I must govern the clock, not be governed by it”.
To get out of the monotony and the routine rut, develop a Hobby; something that can divert or break the cycle of dull and gloomy life. Live with a passion for quenching the void of emotional penury and scarcity.
No wonder inculcating a Hobby or nurturing a passion is cool, but again, if there is repetition and the action falls within a ‘Time Loop’, the charisma and allure are lost in the oblivion.
The CORONA period and the ongoing lockdown has presented a different scenario altogether. Forced imprisonment and compulsory confinement have knocked down the philosophy of hobbyism.
I love Music, Writing and Reading, and Gardening is my Passion. During the initial lockdown of six weeks, life seemed OK and manageable, although there was nothing on the professional front.
The Morning started with two hours of storming hello with plants and flowers. Writing and reading throughout the day, and evenings were reserved for mind-blowing sessions of Music. The forced detention and quarantine did not cause pain and dread because there were channels and pastimes to nullify the effects of boredom.
However, these resources eventually fell into the Time Loop. The Hobbies that were supposed to give me pleasure and contentment started to wither. I would not venture into the garden for days and not touch my guitar at all. My pen abandoned ideas of working on blogs, and the books lay idle on the shelves.
I questioned myself and was frantic to consult a Psychiatrist friend about my temperament swings.
A HOBBY is something that you do for pleasure in your free time. The value of ‘free time’ is cherished when you have to steal from your busy schedule. An abundance of free time pushes you furthe into the loop where you accede to despair and helplessness.
“True life is lived when tiny changes occur”… LEO TOLSTOY
All we want is a change. Change from a routine to a tedious repetition of events.
So, who doesn’t go down in the dumps? We all get it because we have our fair share of bad days. Maybe someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed, or recently had a heated argument with your spouse and it’s still got you in a funk, or maybe you are just plain grumpy and edgy.
TOM RODETT brilliantly said that … “A person needs just three things to be truly happy in this world: someone to love, something to do, and something to hope for”.
Everything falls back in place without reiteration, be it love, a job or even hope and expectation.
Over empowerment gags and asphyxiates livelihood. Claustrophobia thus sets in, like the life of a tiny fish in an Aquarium.
Now it’s your choice … whether you want to be an optimist or a pessimist. “An Optimist laughs to forget, but a pessimist forgets to laugh.”
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Beautifully expressed .I could so well relate to it , trapped like a fish in this daily mundane activities.
Life is too short to be a pessimist,I totally agree on this ,but how does one break this chain of reiteration.
I am also looking for answers.
thanks a lot for the feedback Rachana. I am still looking forward to breaking this chain for good and breathe again. Life has come to a different pedestal which we had not envisaged.
Yes,somehow we are stuck in a loop,not because we want to do so,but as from childhood we are bound to make a routine for waking up to study and to play and then go to bed.
Some how we are bound to do and I think by this way still we are in a loop.
But those who break this loop,can change there life,change the picture and enjoy every moment.thanks for reminding me that I have to add enjoy in my life also in my daily routine so it become cherish .
yes friend, the endeavour is to break that loop and bring out the best in our life. You are right, we have been tuned to follow that loop from our childhood. But, mundane routine makes us weary and depressed.
Thanks a lot for your comments.
Hi Anuj, nice write up . What I feel is…..
Just never give up and there is no claustrophobia. Do not underestimate the abilities we are endowed with. We need to stop ourselves from stopping ourselves. It is just a mind game to get out at just any stage of life we are in.
True, it is surely a mind game and we are trying to play it to our best capabilities.
Thanks for the feedback. It is a treat to read you.
Awesome Post Respected Sir. 📯 Each n every para of ur post is wonderful n with extra ordinary approach to better explain by various experiences of ur life with justified comments. Heartiest ❤ Congrats Ji.
As far as concern of happiness.. It differs from man to man 👨 & 💘 Healthy Brain n HEART 💕WITH blooming feelings always gives it. No doubt 🙏🏻📯it’s to tough to maintain the peace of mind.. Bt 🤔 by Yoga & 💘 Pranayam 👫🌹we can maintain plus ➕ make engaged in any of our hobbies.
….As still it’s too hard to believe it’s symptoms as every fortnight.. 🤔these guidelines r changed as per WHO or by our “Ministry of Health” that’s main issue.. May be due to the change in the behaviour of this COVID-19 VARIOUS.
….. So we should always have a faith in All mighty & be patience @sweet Smile ☺ 💕🌹🌹🙏🏻🙏🏻
hey, Deepak thank you so much for the perfect analysis and your comments. You write so well. I fully agree with your suggestions. It is tough to fight for the peace of mind which should have come peacefully otherwise. stay safe and happy bro. Love