Category: Responsibility (Page 2 of 3)

On Good Gossip

June 25, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

For the past four days I have been riding in the mountains near the lower Himalayas. Most of the other vehicles on the road run on fossil fuels. There are motorbikes, SUVs, buses and Army trucks for the most part.
I barely saw another cyclist on the road.

And while all other vehicles on the road have it much easier, my vehicle runs on pedal power. All throughout my journey I have seen people mumble the word ‘cycle’ across the windowpane of their car. If it were a bus or a motorbike, I could hear the word, ‘cycle, cycle’ in the conversation that followed after spotting me.
I could make a good guess that for another five minutes, the people would be talking about the bicycle, the challenge and the spirit of human endeavour.

After a point, I realised how natural it is for people to talk about other people!
Some people like to call it gossip.
The word gossip has a bit of a negative connotation. But can gossip not have a positive spin to it?

As I imagine it, there could be two ways how we can create a culture of positive conversation.

1) Do something remarkable, something positive so that people can notice and talk about it

2) Always be on the lookout for good things people do. Try to start a conversation based on that inherent goodness.

I believe that by bicyling uphill in such a challenging terrain, I inadvertently gave people a positive topic to talk about.

Our actions need to be engineered such that they are remarkable, sharable and worth talking about.

While we are doing something as natural as talking about other people, we should also be mindful of the culture we are creating in the process.

Next time, when you’re with friends, choose a positive aspect to talk about and when you’re busy with work, always strive to do something remarkable, so that others have good things to talk about.

We can’t help but gossip.
Let it at least be refined
Let it be inspiring.

On Age, Marriage and Responsibility

June 11, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

‘You have grown up quite too much now!’ remarked my mother over a phone call on my birthday.

‘Well yes, I have turned 28!’

‘Now it is time to be more responsible in life !’ she alluded.

‘We are not talking about marriage mom !’

Laughing at her fruitless attempt she said,
‘ But you are at the right age to take the next step in life.’

‘Will you listen to what I did today Mom before we continue further ?’

‘Yes , surely. Tell me.’

‘Yestersay, while trekking up a hill in the lower Himalayas, we noticed that there was a lot of garbage lying around everywhere on the route. It left me quite sleepless the whole night. The next morning, with our heavy backpacks and a garbage bag, we set forth to do our bit to make things better.
All throughout our 5 hour downhill journey, we knelt down and picked up as much trash as we could. In the end, my friend and I had collected a total of 5kgs of plastic from the trail.
Now, my dear mother, tell me,
Am I not taking responsibility ?’

‘ Yes, I am glad to know about how you decided to do your bit, when it was easy to just walk past and not do anything.’

‘Mom, I feel that one should not wait for an age to start taking responsibility.
I cannot promise to bring a bride home,
But I promise to be a responsible human being at every living moment.’

‘Do what makes you happy my son.’ she said encouragingly.

The conversation with my Mother on my birthday made me realise how we use an age as a benchmark to start being more responsible.
At a certain age, you should take responsibility of another person, start a family, earn a living, buy a house etc…
And most of us in the urban middle class succeed in doing all these things.

But accomplishing all these life imperatives does not necessarily mean we are being responsible.

Let me cite an example.

If one is not responsible enough to take care of his own health, exercise, eat well and sleep on time, is he in a position take care of another person?
If someone chooses to jeopardise his own health with vices and endanger his life,
Is he being responsible about the gift of life that has been bestowed upon him?

Once someone is responsible about his own health and well being, does he seek more responsibility to change things in the little world he dwells in?

Only when we start looking at the act of taking responsibility as a way of life, do we head in the direction of creating positive change both within and without.

Maybe while talking to kids, instead of saying ‘Be Careful’ we should say ‘Be Responsible’ more often.

I urge you to think about how responsible you are being about the immediate world that you interact with.
And try to be a little more participative, a little more responsible with each passing day. It should be a way of life !

Today, as I was approaching the end of the downhill trail, I saw two contrasting events.
Behind me was a group of young urban yuppies, choosing to throw wrappers on the trail.
In front of me was a group of village kids, sweeping the streets to keep the lanes litter free.

Now,
Who is older?
And who is being more responsible?

I leave you with that thought,
And the promise being responsible holds.

To a better world of our own making.

The Blues of the Sky

May 22, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

I opened my eyes to see Buddha’s golden statue glint feebly in star light. It took me a moment to place myself and realise that I had been sleeping in a Monastery the whole night. The toil of the days cycling had anesthesized my wakefulness as soon as I lay down.

Once I awoke, I stepped outside the enclosure. There was not a single artificial light in the vicinity. I was in a remote part of the country, virtually untouched by light pollution.

I looked up, and heard a call,
Of countless clusters of stars , shining light years away, revealing themselves in the absence of moonlight.
Transfixed, I ogled as if I’d found a treasure all for myself.
I clicked many pictures with the lens of my eye, the shutter of my lashes.
I would not move an inch until the sun rose and claimed the sky for itself. A surreal experience from my last few days in Thailand.

A few days ago, I reached Kolkata, India.
I landed at 3am. I felt an excitement to witness the night sky again.
I quickly assembled my bicycle outside the airport and headed out excitedly, to embrace the sky.
But alas, the stars were all in hiding. Lights from sodium lamps blended with the haze in the sky to obscure the marvel of the milky way.
I waited patiently for the sunrise, hoping that it would be treat for the eyes.
But the haze in the sky casually relegated the majesty of the sun.

It was such a contrast to witness these two different night skies in two different realities.

I happened to read a newspaper article yesterday which threw light on the rising pollution in Indian cities that led to respiratory ailments in citizens. I imagined people would go to a doctor to ask for a medicine to help them cope and recover.

It felt as if we are trying to save ourselves from a world of our own making. And we are trying to solve our own individual problem with pollution and letting things be, as long as we can afford to brush the dirt under the carpet.

But what about the dirt in the sky?

One effect of technology on culture is that we do not look too far beyond. We have the world at a distance of half a feet, in the confines of our glowing smartphone screens. Much of our gaze never goes beyond this vantage, to look up and sense, that the we are deserting the sky, effacing a star from our view with each passing day.

While one can go to a doctor to find a cure for his own respiratory ailment,
Where do we go to find a cure for an ailment that inflicts our collective extended being, that includes our view of the night sky?

Maybe we need to rename the institutions that monitor how much further we can push our polluted existence.

Maybe we need a ‘Nightsky Saving Board’ than an ‘ Air Pollution Control Board.’

For we will be reminded of the problem at hand and have to look no further than the sky to realise our responsibility to act as windshield wipers for our dirty skyline.

Sometimes renaming can bring us closer to the reality we must collectively rise up to change.

The most severe of tragedies is when a tragedy becomes mundane and commonplace.

Let’s find a way,
So that our kids don’t get used to
A hazy sky,
A starless night.

The sky is feeling blue.

Let’s find a way to cheer it up !

The two paths

May 9, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

Change is the most constant thing in the world. It applies to all things around us, and of course, within us.
With every experience, every interaction, we are changing.
Regardless of whether we are aware of it or not, the evolution is underway.

We all desire for positive personal changes. But working towards them consciously isn’t what we are best at.
We often take ‘the path of least resistance’ in doing something.

Citing an example of this phenomenon in nature, water always flows from high altitude to low altitude since it needn’t face any resistance in doing so.
In human behavior, the path of least resistance is the one we are on at the moment. We are satisfied with the status quo not wishing to do much about improving a situation since it will be met with resistance.
For instance, choosing a smartphone over a book is an easier way to get a dopamine rush.
So we find the path of least resistance to gratification. But this path doesn’t challenge us. It does not foster our creativity or make us a better version of our self.
It does not help us to grow as a human being.

Yes, we are changing, evolving at every moment, but are we influencing the change by our mindful choices or just letting life happen ?

There’s a better way than ‘the path of least resistance.’
It is called ‘The path of maximum learning.’
We can choose if we want to stream hours and hours of self improvement videos (the path of least resistance) . Or we can actively pursue the smallest self improvement plan we can devise.

When you are confronted with a choice that will inevitably change you,
Ask yourself,
Is my decision, the path of least resistance? Or is it the path of maximum learning?
Start with the smallest everyday choices that you make in life. It could be your diet, your data consumption, your parenting…

A choice made in the favour of maximum learning will make sure you evolve in the direction that serves you and the people around you best.

To your eternal learning spirit.

On realising your own unique voice

May 4, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

Recently, a friend of mine shared her design work with me. It was a poster she has designed for an event.
I must share that I found the design to be extremely pleasing. There was a seamless coherence in the elements, colors and font.

Happily I remarked,
‘I love your design ! Do you?’

‘Yes, I’m happy with the design too’ she said.

‘I must say that you have a unique voice as an artist!’

‘Hmmm.., I don’t know about that !’

‘Most certainly you do.’

‘Maybe!’ she said hesitantly.

I smiled. And wondered, how an artist perceives her own self.

I’d like to pose a few questions before I elaborate.

‘Do all of us have a unique face?’
‘Do all of us have a unique, identifiable voice?’
How about physique?
Worldview?

The answer to all of these questions is undeniably in affirmative.
Why are we so comfortable with accepting our physical uniqueness, yet hesitant when it comes to our art?

For me, every person is an artist. It doesn’t matter if you wield the paintbrush or the broom or a chef’s knife. And every person does even the smallest of things in his own unique way. It’s our karmic signature so to say.
It is unique, much like our fingerprint.

It is upto us to first accept ourself as an artist. Then, we have to realise and embrace our uniqueness.

No two mother’s ever cooked a meal that tasted alike. Delicious in their own ways, their art of cooking is still peculiar.

Unique.

Modesty is a great virtue.
But modesty to the point of self denial of one’s own artistry doesn’t serve an artist.

Then, it is our job, to compliment each artist for their own unique voice.
Uniqueness is beyond good and bad, black and white.

As we accept our own true signature and let it express through our work,
It shall enable others in our world to do the same.

We need a thriving world.
Full of artists,
Unique in their own creative ways,
Expressing without inhibitions.

So next time,
At the first opportunity,
Compliment and celebrate the unique artist you find around you.
And most certainly,
The one within you.

Paving the way for youth

May 1, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

Deep inside we all realise we could be in better physical shape. The modern lifestyle is designed in a way that we have to make time for fitness related activities. A few decades ago, the mostly physical nature of work made sure we got sufficient exercise during the course of the day. Fitness was integrated with life.

But times are changing and so is the nature of work. We earn much more than our ancestors per capita, but we are poor when it comes to affording the time to be physically fit.
To make matters worse, we have so many distractions that steer us from activity to passivity that fitness remains a distant dream, even for people in the prime of their youth.

Most people think that once they grow older, assume familial responsibilities, they can let go off the possibility of cultivating vigorous physical health.
As a consequence they grow older much earlier.

But today, as I biked with a 72 year old youth named ‘Phulong’ all day long, I realised something.
The older we get, the more power we have to inspire younger people.
When we see a physically active elder person, we feel motivated to sweat it out too and reach a better physical shape.
A forty year old marathon runner has great power to galvanise people younger than him that haven’t put on sports shoes in a few years. The older one gets, the more power of influence he has.
Phulong bicyled up the highest mountain in Thailand at age 68. He showed the way to the summit to an entire generation!

Ageing is inevitable. But our youth is in our hands.
And with preserving our youth through physical activity, we can create a fitness centric narrative for the younger generation.

The elder you get, the more responsibility you have. Not just of your own health but also of the health of the younger generation.

So remember,
when you choose to go out for a jog at the stroke of dawn,
You are paving the way for the younger community to tread along.

To smiles borne out of sweat.
To a youth that never ages.

I Love You

April 29, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

I had been staying at my Hostel in Chiang Mai for four days. The hostel was quite a dynamic place with people checking in and out all the time, changing personality with departures and arrivals.

But in my four day stay, there was one constant in terms of occupancy.
A frail old English gentleman with a disfigured face lay in that quiet corner in the common area, much the same way as I saw him the first time, four days ago.
He didn’t even seem to move. Occasionally he would turn a little with great discomfort to get to an agreeable bodily position.
I felt a bit afraid to approach him. I felt he wanted to be left alone.
As I was leaving the hostel, I mustered the courage to approach him.
I had a few Rose Apples fresh out of the fridge, just at the temperature they taste best at. I patted him on his back and offered it to him.
He opened his uninjured right eye and accepted it.
I left for the next destination soon after.

A week later, I happened to pass through the city again and chose to stay at the same hostel. Much to my surprise, most of it was deserted with people leaving to cooler places in Thailand as compared to a hot and humid Chand Mai.
I entered the common area to find the elderly Englishman still lying at the same spot. This time I felt more responsible to act since there was barely anyone around.

With a ripe mango in my hand I approached him gingerly.

‘How are you?’ I asked.
‘Ah, it’s you!. I am much better than last week. I can finally walk on my own.
You know what happened to me? I fell off a bus after getting nudged by a heavy backpack. Once I got up, I had my money and phone stolen and I did not recall much at all. I forgot my bank passwords, my email…It was like a complete reboot.
Gradually I remembered things and I wrote to my bank to send me a new card. I have just been waiting for it all this while.
I was a reporter for BBC you know, I’ve covered news from war-zones, but never in my life have I felt so lonely and helpless, on a holiday for God’s sake, when I am supposed to be having fun.’

‘That day when you gave me that fruit’ he continued,’ I felt I could eat a hundred of those. I hadn’t eaten in a while and my body didn’t feel ready to accept anything. But since that day, I’ve been eating and recuperating.’

‘How about a mango today?’ I asked him.

‘Oh, I love mangoes. That would be a dilight !’

I left him to savour the mango and retired for the night.
The next day as I was leaving, I stopped to check if I had any food left in the common fridge. I had mangoes and a few packets instant noodles.

I took the food with me to the English man.
‘Care for another mango?’ I asked.
He slowly opened his eyes.
I placed the cold mango in his palms.

‘Oh thank you so much!’

‘Okay, Michael, I am leaving now. I wish you a speedy recovery.’

The staff at the hostel interrupted to inform Michael,

‘He also left noodles for you. You can have for dinner tonight!.

Joining both hands together in gratitude,
He just said,

‘Thank you so much. I love you.’

We waved goodbye and I left the hostel happily.

While bicycling, many questions arose in my mind.
‘It must have been a long time since he made a new friend.’
With age, we lose the openness of making new friends. Kids have a new friend an hour. But adults barely make new friends after an age.
But finding a friend, especially when you need them, in situations you least expect, is such a cathartic joy.
You feel like a child again.

And once the gentleman felt like a child again, it was second nature for him to say ‘I love you.’
That’s something people don’t even say to their spouse after a decade into the marriage. We guard our hearts with utmost caution in the real world. But the moment the heart turns into a child’s , a guarded, 70 year old man, sings these words like the song of a canary.

I also got thinking about
‘How hesitant we are to ask for help. Even sadder is how reluctant we are to help people who could use some.’

It is easy to not help when there are many people witnessing the same problem. We think that ‘someone’ will help. A classic case of diffusion of responsibility.
But once we get past that and be proactive in helping someone in need,
Not only do we gain goodwill, but also the prospect of making a new friend.

As they say, ‘A friend in need is a friend indeed.’ Especially a new friend, who chooses to stop being a bystander, a passive sympathiser.

It helps to keep an open heart.
When you need help, ask for it,
When you are in a position to,
help in the best way you can.
That’s how we create the possibility
Of new friendships,
Of blossoming hearts,
Of having faith in humankind.

I LOVE YOU.

On what we truly represent

April 28, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

Two of my traveller friends and I were relaxing in the hostel’s lounge. It was quite late at night. We were sharing stories from our parts of the world avidly. On one hand,with eyes agape, we were eagerly listening to stories from lands far away but at the same time, yawning from the tiring day we’d all had.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Since it was late at night, the hostel staff was fast asleep. We wondered who it could be at this hour !
We used the spare key to the common door and welcomed the person waiting outside. He looked tired, quite likely from a long day of travel.

‘Hello, my name is Ahmed. I have a booking here tomorrow, but I reached early and thought I could come here to stay.’

‘Hello Ahmed. My name is Eugene. We are not staff here. We were just hanging out and heard you knock on the door.
Why don’t you put your luggage down. We can show you around.’

Eugene showed him to the washrooms and lounge and let him settle down.

‘We don’t know what to do in this situation. The staff is asleep. But you can sleep on the couch in the lobby.
You’re tired. You should rest!’ I said as I turned the table fan towards him.

Gradually we all made our way to the dorms. Ahmed lay snuggled up in the couch, texting people back home that he’s safe.

I came back to he lobby to wish him good night.
‘Here’s a bottle of water Ahmed. In case you’re thirsty at night.’
‘Oh, Thank you so much brother.
You must be from India right?’ he asked.

‘Yes, I am Ahmed.
How did you guess?’

‘Because Indian people are very kind’ he shared as he accepted the bottle.

‘Good night Ahmed.’ I wished smilingly.
‘Good night ! See you tomorrow’

Walking back to the dormitory, I realised how much more I represented than just my individual self. I represent my whole nation as I travel.
It was extremely comforting to witness how the compassionate nature of Indians in the past has given such a wonderful identity to us travellers in the present moment.
It is only my duty to carry the spirit forward.
And most importantly,
Even before being identified by a nationality,
I represent being human.
And my actions are only a microcosm of what the world is,
what it could be in future.

So many reasons to be kind.
So many opportunities to help.
Undoubtedly, the spirit shall carry on.

It’s an opportunity to wonder, what more we represent than just our individual selves.
The warmth of a nation, the spirit of a human, a parent, a sibling,
A friend…

Thinking like this will only make us more responsible in our actions.
And we will create a kind, warm and welcoming energy in our world.

To the ever eveolving beauty of the human spirit.

Tidying up our home

April 20, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

The sun shone feebly over the hills covered with morning mist. Alive with nature’s clarion call, the valley arose to greet the new day.
It was my first morning at the Mindful Farm Community. I awoke bright and early and savored the surprise of the magical dawn that unfolded.
Amid the calls of curious birds, I heard the clink and clank of kitchen utensils at a distance. I descended the stone stairway and made my way to the kitchen.
Pi Nan, the former monk turned farmer, the founder of the community, was cooking breakfast all by himself.
Brim with enthusiasm, he enjoyed each moment of involvement.

‘Can I help you Pi Nan?’ I asked.
‘Yes, of course. Can you cook something with Zuccinni? We have a lot from the farm but I don’t know how to cook it.’ he shared humbly.

‘No problem Pi Nan, I can do that ‘ I said and got to work.

I made a broth of Zucchini with lemongrass, fennel and mushroom sauce. At a wizardly pace, he made four dishes at the same time.
At 8 am, Pi Nan rang the breakfast bell. Everyone assembled and got themselves a plateful of food.
We sat facing the rising sun and enjoyed the meal in complete silence, mindfully.

Once we finished, I got up to wash the dishes. In the community people take turns to cook and clean. I chose to help my friends cleaning the dishes.
Down to the last dish to clean,
My fellow work-mate Rafa and I smiled at each other.

Just twelve hours ago, I was completely new to the community and now suddenly, I felt quite at home.
After a moment of thinking, I realised why.

‘You know, the easiest way to feel at home anywhere Rafa?

‘No, What is it?’

‘ The easiest way to feel home is by helping to clean up. Once you do that, you’re not a guest or a stranger anymore.
You’re part of the home, part of family.’

‘Oh yes ! I too feel the same ‘ said Rafa laughingly as we washed the last dish.

Breathing in the fresh mountain air, I wondered,
‘ Isn’t this beautiful planet we all share our home too?’

‘And if so,
Then are we tidying it up in the best way we can?’

The mist in the valley and in my mind, cleared up at this realization.

And with a clear mind, ready to act,
I picked up the broom,
And my spirit,
To do my part,
One choice at a time.

Harnessing Help

April 10, 2018 / Sreenath Sreenivasan / 0 Comments

Back in school we had a story in our textbook that I still remember vividly.
There was a huge trunk of a fallen tree blocking half of the path leading into a nearby town. Most people chose to do nothing about it. They just passed by from the other half of the road that was still accessible.
However, a little boy saw this scene and was determined to change the situation. He kept his school bag aside and started to push the mighty trunk out of the way.
The onlookers were amazed by the boy’s spirit. One by one the onlookers joined him, as did the people passing by. Before too long, the trunk started to roll. Everyone put in all of the energy that they could and soon enough, the trunk rolled out of the way. The road was clear for everyone to use safely.

Where did the energy to move such a mighty trunk come from?
It came from a little boy’s mindset.

There are seemingly insurmountable problems all around us. And we have learnt to navigate our way around these problems to live a life of compromise.
We tend to feel that people are too busy with their own lives to help fix a situation that needs collective effort.
But the parable of the little boy only reaffirms us with the faith that if you are willing to take responsibility of a mighty problem that plagues all, helpful hands will manifest around you.

So, it is never a problem of there being enough help available. There always is help around, albeit in latent form.
That help can always be galvanised.
The only question is,
‘Am I willing to take the first step?’
‘Do I have the heart to take a humongous responsibility?’

If so, the trunk will roll off the road.
It is only a matter of time.