Diwali evening - Are you rich?
Last week, after many years, I stepped out to buy crackers - some sparklers and sprinklers for my daughter. It was her first Diwali in India.She has not seen or heard so many noises and so much of light on the roads until then. So after two days of preparation, she finally agreed to light sparklers herself. That's how I stepped on to the road, full of joy for it is different buying things for yourself and very different when you buy for others and more so, when it is for your child.
At the shop, there were five people in different age groups, all buying crackers per their budget. I asked for five packets of sparklers, hoping for ten pieces in each pack. I couldn't imagine my daughter spending more time on sparklers. The shopkeeper gave me a look that almost said " Why are you wasting my time on a Diwali day?". I immediately added " It is for my two year old daughter". Then he smiled and asked me what else I wanted. I also picked up a pack of Flower pots and long sparklers. When he billed my purchase which was exactly seven packets, I could not believe the maths. I asked to recalculate myself and paid him a few hundreds.
When walking back, I saw many families where children wanted to burst crackers and wanted to buy sparklers but everything was just way above any one's budget. Immediately my thoughts traveled back to my childhood when my sister and I had enough to enjoy and there came a time when we didn't want to burst crackers at all. We used to give ours to others who didn't have any. I don't recall thanking God back then, but this day I did.
The short road seemed longer, or did my thoughts travel too far? I was brought back to the road by a little boy with three of his friends, all collecting money for their Diwali purchase. I knew what I was going to give them would not make a huge difference, but I still gave each of them some money. I believe that there would be many others who will have the heart to give some cash to these kids, so they can finally burst crackers that day.
The importance of bursting crackers or spending too lavishly on crackers, whether they are worth or not, is all a different tangent in a child's mind. A child is a child.. whether mine or yours or anyone Else's. Rich or Poor, all that a child needs is the same until the first few years in life...Fun, Food,Love, Attention.. are few pointers I can quickly name. All children have the same mind, same kind of wishes and it is pathetic to see that some children get to enjoy everything in life and some others don't. The fate/luck/karma is sometimes very strict!!!! Sad.
At the shop, there were five people in different age groups, all buying crackers per their budget. I asked for five packets of sparklers, hoping for ten pieces in each pack. I couldn't imagine my daughter spending more time on sparklers. The shopkeeper gave me a look that almost said " Why are you wasting my time on a Diwali day?". I immediately added " It is for my two year old daughter". Then he smiled and asked me what else I wanted. I also picked up a pack of Flower pots and long sparklers. When he billed my purchase which was exactly seven packets, I could not believe the maths. I asked to recalculate myself and paid him a few hundreds.
When walking back, I saw many families where children wanted to burst crackers and wanted to buy sparklers but everything was just way above any one's budget. Immediately my thoughts traveled back to my childhood when my sister and I had enough to enjoy and there came a time when we didn't want to burst crackers at all. We used to give ours to others who didn't have any. I don't recall thanking God back then, but this day I did.
The short road seemed longer, or did my thoughts travel too far? I was brought back to the road by a little boy with three of his friends, all collecting money for their Diwali purchase. I knew what I was going to give them would not make a huge difference, but I still gave each of them some money. I believe that there would be many others who will have the heart to give some cash to these kids, so they can finally burst crackers that day.
The importance of bursting crackers or spending too lavishly on crackers, whether they are worth or not, is all a different tangent in a child's mind. A child is a child.. whether mine or yours or anyone Else's. Rich or Poor, all that a child needs is the same until the first few years in life...Fun, Food,Love, Attention.. are few pointers I can quickly name. All children have the same mind, same kind of wishes and it is pathetic to see that some children get to enjoy everything in life and some others don't. The fate/luck/karma is sometimes very strict!!!! Sad.
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