“What is that you call as your memory? Do you remember everything that happened to you till date?”, Ajay asked.
“Okay Atul , let me ask you a better question, tell me 10 things that you thing worth telling to others about your life?”, Ajay asked point to me while we were enjoying our relaxing tea with a half plate poha at Shiva’s adda before our meeting life starts.
If you are wondering what is meting life, let me explain. As part of our daily rituals and considering the geographical location of our fellow team members we spend most of our late evening/night in meetings. So what is ‘night life’ for others , we call it as ‘meeting life’.
Although we all pulled Ajay’s leg about having a ‘out of memory error’ in life but it really stuck to my mind. It did not let me sleep. I found it difficult to find even 7 such memories in my 27 years of life. I reviewed the list of 7 such memories I could think.
- I spent day and night studying in college for 2nd semester so that I can score 90% in the examination.
- I worked so hard in my initial 2 years of my career to get recognized that at times I did not go home at night.
- I went with my friends on a trekking through an abandoned railway track through a restricted part of he reserved forest.
- I was about to be rusticated from the college for leading protest against college management regarding basic facilities that should be provided to the students.
- One day while taking packed dinner for my family I found few kids at the footpath and I gave them the packet and went again to the restaurant to get food for my family.
- We spent whole night at a platform because we missed the last train to our destination.
- I was about to be jailed for having bhaang.
Whether good or bad acts that I considered as my memories worth telling others but all situations where such where things were not perfect. Either I had to sacrifice something or there was fear of failure associated. This made me realize that we don’t remember things which were perfect while we always try to shape our life so that it is perfect.
Life is not about how to make things perfect. It is how I sailed through imperfect situations.So if I have to call my life as life, then I must get myself into such life situations which are not perfect and try to make them perfect. Finding opportunities to contribute rather than playing it safe and smooth.
I was extremely motivated after this thought. I was on vacation for a week but as soon as I resumed work, went to Ajay’s desk to thank him for asking this thought provoking question. I never took Ajay seriously but after this incidence I was interested in his thought process and philosophy. There are so many people whom we ignore or misunderstand but we never know who can change the direction of our life.
I found his desk empty with only one sticky note on his cube, “If you can’t find enough in your memory then start by being part of other’s memory. Life will get enriched. Good bye Atul”. He left the organization while I was on vacation and he knew I will come back to him.
Namaste!!!
Stray dog
Life as Sakti 