I was returning home after long hours of work on a hot and humid day. I felt tired and was in no mood to engage anyone in a conversation. The children staying in our apartment complex stopped me to draw my attention to the flowers which have blossomed in the garden.
I tried avoiding much conversation with them. But each of the children had something to tell me about the flowers and the meadow, which was just turning green after having been dry and brown fro long.
I walk pass the meadow every day, around which are these blossoming plants. I had not noticed the flowers for their color, brightness, freshness and aroma, till the children led me to each plant and made me feel them. They appeared to know a lot about the flowers. One of them got stung by a honey bee, while standing and watching butter flies and honey bees. It did not deter him from accompanying me.
None of these plants were in shade. They reminded me that these flowers look the same in summer as they are during the winter months. They quized me on the reason for this. They suggested that they are meant to be perennial genetically. They need copious water each day to retain the color and texture of the flowers.
Only then I realized that life has become a routine of work and responsibilities with little attention to larger canvas of life. One needs to be fully alive to be able to take in, what is obvious and inviting. We see, hear and feel less because something within us is clouding our senses. Often it is busyness, tiredness and preoccupations.
I felt that children were awakening me to be fully present, to what is around me. They retain a sense of wonder, curiosity and exploration. In this instance, they were reminding me to view life holistically. I shared with Anna this experience. She commented that, 'it is a long time since we had flowers in the vases. We seem to have lost something '. We lose a lot when we are not present to sights and scenes around us.
M.C.Mathew(text and photos)
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