Tuesday, December 30, 2008

A Mother and her Son

During this mornings walk in the park I saw a mother pushing her son in a wheel chair.
Actually this is not the first time I saw them. I had seen them a couple of days ago in the park itself. The boy must be in his late teens. He looks spastic or mentally retarded. What touched me today was that the mother was crying silently as she pushed the chair.The boy was in his own world, twisting his body and looking around, oblivious.

I wanted to tak to this mother. But I was afraid. Would she be annoyed at my intrusion?

What I really wanted to do was tell her something that could make her feel better.

I believe in rebirth and also that life on earth is part of the journey to evolving towards a higher state, what has been variously called moksha or Nirvana, liberation from the cycle of rebirth.

There is a belief that cildren born retarded and helpless, unable to understand and respond to their surroundings, are actually the rebirth of holy souls who have narrowly missed moksha.These souls choose to be reborn in such a state so that they are unable to think or do anything in this life that can set them back in their journey to liberation.By make sure that they cannot do anything negative.

I wished t tell this mother that perhaps she was mother to a great soul?
Anyway, I didn't have the guts to tell her anything today.

Walk, Again

I have taken up a walk in the park every morning. This is not the first time I’ve started this ritual, though. But each time I did this earlier I could not sustain it beyond a few days. There was always the excuse of having to walk on roads, and the threat from stray dogs and vehicle pollution . I am allergic to both.

Both these excuses are not available now. There are dogs in the park, but they mind their own business. The park is also just across the road from my house and is big enough to give reasonable workout for my legs and circulation in just two laps.

This time I must follow through and do the walk for at least 21 days without break.

Why 21 days? Because I have read that it takes at least 21 days of consistent “do” to make any practice a habit. By the time you make it to 21 days, you have also become used to the benefits of the new practice that you don't want to stop and lose these benefits.
Perhaps I should also say that we will continue with the practice just because we do not want to change - the new habit has become a part of the routine, and changing it might seem uncomfortable?

A Nest

Finally settled on a place to stay. A DDA flat just across the district park. Satisfied with the space of a MIG flat. Although the windows doors don’t close well, the toilet is tiled, something I didn’t see in any of the other places I was shown. And the second floor gives the additional space of the rooftop and freedom from drainage worries.

This should be okay.

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Oh For a Roof..


My search for a house has sort of narrowed down to Dwaraka and Janakpuri. Dwaraka because it is on the Metro line and also has newer apartments. Janakpuri because it is also on the Metro line, is safer, one can find transport at any time of the day, and although most of the DDA flats are badly maintained and few of the doors and windows close properly, the place has “proven” conveniences, water comes on time, vegetable vendors visit everyday, you can even expect power cuts.

And of course Janakpuri probably has the most common community spaces in residential areas. And it is not only the district park.

The hitch is that in the past 6 months or so rents have gone up by half. What was available for 6500 then is now 9500, much more than what my employer pays me.
Also there is this business of having to go through a broker – “property dealer” as he likes to be called – that is another month’s rent gone out of pocket.