Ever since I have become a stay at home,I make it a point to go out at least once a day not too far but just around the neighbourhood to look at things to see changes and to enjoy myself.Every journey has a lesson or a truth to uncover but I don't always record them but sometimes a thing just hits me so I do.
For sometime now I have been witness to a lot a hatred between people based on religion and politics or gender and it disturbs me this trend.When I was growing up in this multicultural country we went to christian schools and colleges.In my day they were the majority when it came to educational institutions.We never once saw children as Hindu,christian or Muslim.They were just children and we were friends.We never worried about safety,we didn't worry about being raped,or killed or kidnapped.We were told not to speak to strangers,to always use well lit streets,to always look both sides of the road before crossing and to never lie,cheat or speak ill of people.Simple common sense,I thought.But obviously the world as I know it has changed.On facebook I shudder at the kind of hatred and venom that is unleashed at people because of their religion or politics.The one sightedness of our debates disturbs me because it means we have lost our ability to empathise and to appreciate our differences.Unfortunately the more affluent the more intolerant,the educated people seem to be worse off than the rest.Which is why i see simplicity and togetherness in people who don't have much.
Yesterday for instance I was driving by a slum (a lower middle class community that was once a very poor slum) and there was a woman fast asleep on the side of the road with not a care in the world.She was sleeping the sleep of the very tired.In madras she also slept without fear.I wondered if she had done the same in Delhi.Wouldn't she have been gang raped and then the action justified as "she was asking for it".I sent up a silent prayer for living in this city.Then I went for a swim and in the pool was a father and son.The boy is around 18 and mentally challenged,but his father comes every single day to swim with him for an hour.Such dedication and the boy enjoys it.Well as we went about doing our laps,the boy came very close to me almost within bumping distance.Since this is a common occurrence when the pool is crowded,I moved away despite hearing the father telling him to shake hands.I wasn't sure what he was trying to communicate so i went away but turned around as I thought I has missed some communication.The boy actually wanted to shake hands,it was some form of communication and me with my education didn't get it.The coach on the other hand who is around twenty saw this and swam over and shook the boys hands and was so gentle and understanding (despite being in the middle of coaching a class) that I waited to see what happened.The boy was obviously overjoyed and I continued to swim albeit a little ashamed of myself.On the way back through the same slum there was biryani being prepared by some Muslims,the Hindus waited patiently for a taste and a christian was being buried in a funeral a few feet away.Another example of communities living together and dying together.Recently a Muslim shopkeeper lost all his earnings when his shop was gutted in a fire in the early hours of the morning.The neighbours,one a builder and another a government official turned up to help him get back on his feet with an interest free loan,christian,Muslim and Hindu helping each other simply because they are neighbours.I emphasise the religion because we tend today to always talk of minorities in derogatory tones and as being non Indian.The people who rise in politics today are those that pursue rabid doctrine and disharmony and unfortunately we the so called educated elite fall prey to it most of the time.My forays into my neighbourhood continue to teach me that the differences exist only in the minds of the petty few but to the people who care to go out and have a look there is goodness in people if only we choose to see and learn and appreciate.I have lived in this city all my life but I can say without doubt that this city has a lot more to offer than hate or communal discord.small wonder then that I love living here.
