Hope 2 - Sun n Plants

August 23

Around 7.15 am, as I step out of my door with a steaming cup of tea in my hand the sun peeps from top of the buildings to land on my door. Bright but not  bright enough to hurt your eyes. Warm and gentle like a friend who is helping you wake up and set the tone of the days.

We have a small patch with pots of ‘sadabahar’ (always flowering) plants and the light falls on the pink and delicate flower, green leaves making a place of wonderment and hope. 

I feel the small piece of soil around the pot to feel the earth as best as I can and smell it before I head back to chase the day filled with hope and sunshine.

Hope (1) - Running to stand still

It was a difficult choice to make early in the morning, especially after a tough morning. And took some time to get my shoes on and hit the road. In the start it is always easy but it becomes difficult halfway through. And this time it was not different. 

Last week I ran 8k - I was thinking I will do 15 K on 15th August, but with my sleep issue it seems NO GO. So did another 8K to at least finish 15k before 15th August. I was feeling very tired and exhausted but the sweating out was good. 

Also the mind space when you run is very different from Yoga - It’s like the difference between surfing and floating. More importantly it is good that I could fix and reach a goal. A personal one and hence a personal victory. An affirmation to my subconscious that ‘I can’. 

These days I run to stand still.

HOPE

As I was walking down the stairs for my walk, I saw a young parent carrying a 2 month child very carefully in a car seat and probably going for a drive. She was really small wearing pink but her eyes were open and she was probably seeing some coats of color in her vision. She was not smiling or angry, just peaceful and staring. On asking I was told, he was 2 months old. The parents had happiness and bliss written all over their face like one would feel when in first love.

As I came out of the stairways I saw another child, again wearing ping, must be 3 or four years old walking with her father. I saw them from behind but I could feel the spring in the girls' walk and I could hear her asking questions in an animated way. Even though I was 500 mts away I could feel the excitement, thrill and happiness in the girl.

As I began my Sunday Run, many thoughts criss crossed my mind,

At some point in life we live life cradled in the necessities and responsibilities which are thrown at us because of raising a family and meeting our responsibilities at work. Our hopes get linked to work and family. While work is more like meeting requirements, family helps to rekindle hope and keeps it alive in us. Marriage is a new beginning and so is a child or two. It’s a green shoot, a new branch where like the tree we live our life once again with our partner or child. 

In our sunset years it becomes difficult to keep our Hope alive. With your body reacting in a different way, plants start growing on their own creating their own ecosystem, challenges from your aging parent throws challenges at you on a daily basis.

Seeing these girls took me back to the green shoots which came our way 23 n 20 years back. Now, the joy is in seeing your tree grow, branch, flower and bear fruits. 

Like my little magic.😍