LIKE BUBBLES FLOATING IN THE AIR

 

 


“Joy is the infallible sign of the presence of God.” 

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

 

I remember my excitement as a kid… I loved making the Christmas crib… Back then, in our village home, there wasn’t any electricity, not to mention money… The crib, that kids like me set up, was in today’s lingo – purely organic… The hills raised out of mud fetched from nearby paddy fields, the stones from another hill – a real one – nearby, the grass from a neighbour's backyard… the  light for baby Jesus' manger  came from the desi jugad – a candle placed inside a coconut shell , or - if there were some coins to indulge in - a little bulb lit up through torch batteries and wires…

Whatever that was, it was pure joy… As I grew into adulthood, I saw it dimming, slowly dying…

But, the child in us seldom dies…Don’t you agree?

As you become an adult, the excitement of setting up the Christmas crib gets replaced by several other simple things… Each one of us has his/her own. Frankly, we need the child in us alive. As Peirre Chardin (You know who he is!!!) said. “Joy is the infallible sign of the God’s presence (in us).”

That’s why baby Jesus and baby Ganesha are two of the most loved deities across the board…





On this Christmas day, my friend, Rupali, a Maharashtrian Hindu, shared, so delightfully, a video in which she and her two children – Siddharth and Saanvi – singing Christmas carols around a beautifully set up Christmas crib and the tree… Saanvi, who is in her teens, is a special kid… Seeing excitement on her face was so priceless… It melted me to bits. The next thing I did was: I sent across a plum cake, which, Rupali told me, Saanvi loved…

“The most beautiful things in life are, often, the simplest, like bubbles floating in the air.” This anonymous quote captures the joy on the faces of Rupali and her kids – specially Saanvi – and yes, on my own…




Last evening, Poonam, another dear friend of mine (and a student close to 40 years ago) sent to me this song saying:

“Sir, thought of you while listening to this song, this afternoon…”





It’s truly an ‘enigma’ why each piece by this group ‘Enigma’ – transports you to another world… This music is one thing, that defies ‘The Law of Diminishing Returns’… the more you consume it, the more you die for it!

Well, I was thinking: How simple, how childlike, is!

We don’t need ‘big things’ or ‘loads of things’ to keep us joyful in life. The wise words of Francis of Assisi remind us:

“Do few things, but do them well… Simple things are holy.”

 

GERALD D’CUNHA

Pic’s: Pixabay

Video: ENIGMA/Jazz J       


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