I'm back to thinking just how lucky we really are. There are times when you feel a kind of slap in your face or a kick in your back that gets you 'kick'started. Perhaps now is one such moment.
I came across some news articles which had shades of what we see quite regularly these days in the paper: story of a wife being abused by a drunken husband, story of prisoners who were tortured by policemen who poured acid in their eyes, story of a lottery millionaire who spent so much that he became quite literally a beggar. And at night, after a long time a blind kid chatted with me about my Dubai trip; his voice was filled with joy when he said, "I liked your blog describing the flight and the airport." And I had a tinge of sadness when I thought over what he must be going through - how much he desires to see the world outside but for now he just has to be satisfied with mental visualization. And when you look back, I think most of us would feel (ought to feel!) we are a lot more privileged; we've been given better circumstances; we have a lot more things in our control. With greater power comes greater responsibility, right?
We watched the BBC movie Earth 2007 (BBC and Disney venture) on Earth day which showcased the struggles of different species - how elephants had to walk for days without water in the Kalahari Desert; how a polar bear swims for miles in search of land and food, how birds brave extreme conditions while migrating across the mighty Himalayas - and all this not for finding better pastures or fortunes but just for survival. I wonder what the animals would think of us if they saw our typical day and the amount of time we had at hand! The movie centers around 3 families - polar bear, elephant and the humpback whale; and interestingly in all 3 families it was the mother that took care of the young ones; getting food for them and protecting them from the dangers of the wild!
Nature reminds us that we are a privileged species.
And if you haven’t watched the movie, then do check it out - 90 mins. visual treat along with some impressive scenes of the Himalayas; supposed to be the first production to shoot aerials of Mt. Everest!
