The year end is always so welcome for it brings on a wave of fresh possibilities, dreams, aspirations, all lurking around the corner of a mere twenty four hours.
But what about the rest of the year?
How did it pass?
How much was accomplished?
How much was lost?
Or worse, how much was wasted?
These can never be pleasant questions to answer and so, more often than not, we simply don’t raise the questions at all. Why be uncomfortable when there is a perfectly reasonable option in hand to not be so? But by shifting one’s place around a smoky bonfire, one doesn’t quite get a guarantee that the wind may not want to dance a bit and shift itself as well, eager to greet us face to face yet again.
Truth can be like the wind. Yes, we were comfortable for a few moments in time, but eventually, the shifting winds of our own consciousness, as we grow, as we evolve, catch up with us, time and again, forcing us eventually to stay put, stand our ground, and confront the inevitable – how much was accomplished, lost, wasted?
For each of these, our responses may be many. Some may feel pride or gloat over all their gains; some may humbly offer gratitude for such Grace. Some may pine and curse their losses; some may humbly offer gratitude for such opportunities to learn and make one stronger in spirit. Some may brush aside wasted moments believing all of eternity lies before them to make up for lost time and chances; some may humbly offer gratitude for the awareness of their errors, with an urgent need to make amends for the darkness that shrouded the light for that split second.
Who can say which response is right or wrong, better or worse, ideal or fatal? What we can say however, is that if one confronts the smoke blowing into one’s eyes, a point will come when the smoke will cease to sting or burn. When that happens, whatever be the question put to us by life, one can be sure, our answer would be the right one, the better one, the ideal one.
