Dear Readers,
Nature has unmistakeable ways of pouring in her reminders when we get a little too preoccupied in the petty things of life – like ourselves. Every year, as the monsoon season gets into the groove and washes away any false sense of self-aggrandisement that we may have unwittingly or wittingly nurtured, we are reminded of a few things… Firstly, that no matter how rich, strong or powerful one is, in front of what nature would consider an exaggerated trickle, we are rendered quite helpless. We come face to face with two unnerving realities – the fragility of our delusional egos, and the perishability of our defenceless existence. Maybe the rains help keep in check our true sense of self, while balancing out our humility and restoring our sense of gratitude.
No sooner than the rains set in, Mumbai, quite literally takes a nosedive and gets submerged. And life in Mumbai, taking a cue from Mumbai’s lifeline – our trains – comes to a standstill. But we stop complaining about the tardiness of the railways and how flooding disrupts our lives, because Mumbai’s crumbling infrastructure grabs our attention, with collapsing bridges and buildings and loss of lives. Boring pot-holes have graduated into dramatic ‘cave-ins’. Crumbling under the weight of uncontrolled corruption and population, our infrastructure which was built to facilitate human convenience, instead felicitates the drenched grim reaper.
We should be enraged, but we are too scared and too ensconced in our cocoons, plus we can always hide behind that lovely phrase – ‘the spirit of Mumbai’ or the humane side of Mumbai, which helps keep our guilt at bay. Here’s the thing – there’s only so much you can redeem, chugging down large pegs of this so-called ‘spirit’, and only for so long.
There is much thinking and much more acting that we need to do. They say on a sunny day, you can improve your body, on a rainy day, you can improve your mind – and the Rain Gods have given us enough checks with much to think about, for ourselves, for our fellow beings and for our environment. Think about it, and then act on it.
And, here’s wishing our Kadmi brethren a very Happy New Year, which falls on the 18th of July.
Have a good and safe weekend!
Anahita
anahita@parsi-times.com