By Pooja Marwah
There’s this thing about life – some say it’s too short and some crib about its longevity. Some call it unfair while others mask up behind flaws to project a fake air of joyousness! Some say make the most of what you have and some prefer to leave behind the complacency and run behind their dreams.
So, what is this thing called life? How does it have the ability to take us from happy to sad in less than ten seconds? How does it give out dollops of confusion, regret, fear and anxiety? How does it decide when to turn course?
I’ve grown up being told – treat life as a journey, as a holiday more precisely. For, when you travel to new cities or countries, however well the itinerary is planned, sudden changes occur which compel you to improvise and change plans. Don’t take it too seriously but understand where it’s trying to take you and trust its path.
But how does one trust something that is beyond scope of sight?
Life moves in a linear line and has with it time as its companion. Neither waits for anyone or anything, no matter how grave or how subtle it may be. And, neither stops either. They move consistently, as though focussed on something that is oblivious to the naked eye. They stay connected to each other for both understand that if they stop, everything around will come to a standstill. And then chaos will reign; so no matter how bare or lush the terrain is, life and time clasp each other hard and keep going.
Sometimes, in this journey, you may have to take a leap of faith and, yes, it scares and unnerves because you are apprehensive about trusting something you can’t see. And, it is at this very moment when miraculously all the inspiring stories you’ve ever read about mankind stream in and out of your thoughts. But, the big question looms up – Should I trust life and its relationship with time?
I am at that juncture. I do have sweaty palms, a heartbeat that’s literally pushing against my ribcage, a mind with a zillion warped ideas and breath that simply refuses to slide down the nasal passage to my lungs. Life and time seem to be on a mischievous path with reference to me and given its latest track record, I am searching eagerly for one reason to trust it.
And the only way to do so is if I stop questioning it. But in the same breath, I do have another question – Should we just sit back and give up control over our own lives?
I can almost see life mocking a smile at this one and saying – When were you ever in control? That was just a mere perception you had.
There are times when each of us has looked at our own lives from the periphery. We’ve gauged it, analysed it and even been brutally dishonest about dealing with it, but it’s still not given up on us. It’s kept its rendezvous with time and ignored us on the sidelines. Its primary focus was its companion, Time, and they kept moving, as they still are.
So, if this dedicated compatibility is not an indication of learning to trust them, I really don’t know what is.
(Pooja Poddar Marwah is an award winning author and Blogger. She writes on contemporary living and offers incisive reflections on the world around us. Her blog, Random Conversations is a go to guide to deal with the myriad struggles we face each day.)
