A hurt can bring growth!

 

The Christmas tree in our garden has a story beginning from 1997. This tree was in a pot, when it was given to us at Christmas time in 1997 when colleagues at Developmental Paediatrics Unit at CMC Vellore visited us at home. I remember the resident in the Unit Dr Mathula Thangaraj,  who chose this gift for us, wishing us that our time at CMC Vellore be a flourishing experience, as it was only a few months since we relocated from Chennai.  

The tree grew in a pot till 2012. When we began living in our cottage, we planted it in our front garden, which grew into a sixty feet tall tree leaning on to the cottage. This made it necessary to prune the tree to reduce its height.

For the last three years there were only sprouts in the pruned stem.  During the recent months, two shoots grew parallel to each other to continue its upward growth, which is what is in the second photo taken today. 

The tree was hurt by pruning and took a while to recover from the arrest of its award growth.

The touching aspect of this experience is that there are two shoots growing up now, from the earlier one stem !

The tree with one stem below shall now grow up with two stems above!

There is growth beyond any hurt and grief !

That is what this tree stands to announce to us in  our garden! 

I pause and reflect over this. A hurt can stunt the growth for a short time! But new life takes over to continue with even more vigour! 

I had memories of some hurts returning to me, while pondering on this theme of life ! The latter seasons after hurtful experiences became doors of opportunities to live with a new consciousness of acceptance and gratitude! 

The twin shoots of stem growing vigorously from where it was hurt, is a wake up call,  to process hurts patiently and wait for the good hidden which shall become manifest!   

Life is a journey of discoveries, healing and new growth experiences! 

M.C.Mathew (text and photo)

The dissimilar looking buds, flowers and fruits!

 

The buds, Flowers and fruits in the photos above do not have a uniform appearance. They are different in size, height, or colour! The plant life is such an expression of differences and similarities, while some common features are consistent! 

The political order in the nations of the world are different in their ideology, governance structure and economic structure. We have democratic, autocratic and theocratic countries. We have free press, regulated press or state controlled press and media. The social order in the countries differ with practices of  communism, socialism or capitalism. Some countries are are on the top of the economic ladder and others in different rungs of that ladder. 

Some countries lead by examples. Some countries in Europe are known for their welfare centric approach where health,  education, employment, and social security are provided by the state. The country that is leading the global war currently, is a country of capitalist orientation where the wealthy get additional benefits whereas, the less privileged in that country do not even get medical aid. That country invaded Vietnam, Iraq, Venezuela and now Iran with its military power and domination.   

What is disturbing is, it is that country that is deciding the global affairs of economic, technological and industrial policies and not the United Nations Organisation. Its partisan view to approve atrocities of the Israeli government on the Palestinians and approving the one nation theory of Israel to take away the right of the Palestinians to have their territory and national identity are alarming  signals of authoritarian world order! We rested hopefully for distributive justice and global cohesive relationships after the second world war. But that is still a dream!

The followers of two major religions,  Christians and  Muslims are currently in a lenten season or fasting season. This season is a time of penitence, confession and recollection of their faith journey in God. 

It is during this season a country, who affirms in their national currency that 'In God we trust', is leading the war and engaged in harming human lives and destroying facilities built for human benefits. When I see photos of people waiting in long queue in some places in India, to collect cooking gas cylinder, I feel even more disturbed by the suffering that this world order imposes on citizens globally ! 

 

I feel disturbed by the paradox in the ethical outlook of the president of the country that leads the war cry! That president in his campaign for presidency spoke heavily against abortion and gained sympathy for his position! It is the same president who is now using words like, 'eliminate' 'decimate' while referring to the political regime in Iran! If the reports are correct in the media, a few thousands of people have already  died in Iran  war since the beginning of war. I suspect that it is an ethics of convenience and compromise!

The nations of the world are diverse culturally, anthropologically, religiously, politically and socially! A globalised world will remain diverse and different and not uniform or ideologically identical.

The differences in size, height and colour of the buds, flowers and fruits in the above pictures, give me a message that the togetherness and cohesiveness amidst the differences is the order in the plant kingdom. 

It is towards that reality I long for within in a globalised world!

We live in a divided and wounded world! The voice of pope Leo of the Catholic Church to stop war and seek for peace is a refreshing voice of reason ! To me it symbolised the act of the Good Samaritan in the parable of Jesus of Nazareth !  

M.C.Mathew (text and photo)

Leaves and flowers !

 

The garden around our cottage has an adorable look with leaves and flowers celebrating the springtime of this year! 

The world is in turmoil with war and suffering ! People live in fear, loss  and grief! 

This sight of colour and jubilation with which the plants begin their new life in spring time had an effect on me to see the current affairs through the optic of hope and transition! 

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)

Learning to feel enlarged!

A caterpillar, spider and an ant happened to be captured in the photos, during my morning visit to the garden! I noticed them only when I downloaded the photos! 

That made me realise how the colourful flowers by their brightness and radiance would hide the presence of the insects! 

One can get carried by what is obvious and loose sight of what remains hidden!

In an exercise I did during a group activity recently, the details of  a picture were captured only by two out of ten in the group in one minute. The eight who missed more than fifty percent of the details stayed looking on what was obvious or prominent. The obvious being catchy held their attention and blinded their eyes to the smaller details in the picture. 

This bias in seeing or hearing is blind spot most of us carry with us. We can have a tendency to listen in a conversation to what seems interesting and miss the rest! This can be one reason for divided opinions when we interact with each other in a group. Instead, if we can be attentive to all opinions during a discussion it is more likely to be representative of the truth or facts. 

The technician who came to attend to the air conditioner yesterday had a check list to guide him to inspect all the different functional components. He was guided by the check list lest he missed anything that was not obvious.

This is the role of recollection and reflection! It was when I revisited the flowers in the photographs I noticed the caterpillar, spider and an ant. 

I know of few people who take about five to seven minutes three to four times in a day to be quiet to reflect and recall! It is a practice of both debriefing and revisiting. It is an exercise which can bring cohesion and integration of thoughts. We become objective, recollected and refreshed through such a practice! It is one way of becoming connected with details that escaped attention initially. I know of occasions during a discussions,  someone having listened to the conversations patiently, brought an opinion that gave a new direction to pursue! 

This is one aspect of self-directed learning! We listen to ourselves inwardly, in order to feel more complete and to go beyond the initial impressions!

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)

Peace as our birthright!

The cashew tree started flowering in our garden in December. Now the flowering continues with fresh cashews appearing.  By the time the tender ones become ripe fruits, it will be another three months. The cashew tree would been flowering and fruiting for six months during this season! It is unlike what happened in the former years where the flowering season has been confined to about three months. 

I know of experiments that are being done to prolong the flowering and yielding season in cash crops. In our garden, it happened on its own. A possible reason is the climate change when the day temperature was higher than the usual in the winter months in this region. 

I was wondering about the atmospheric pollution taking palace due to missile attacks and bombings in Iran, Israel, Middle East  Ukraine and Russia,  since war broke out in those regions for  months. I wonder if rulers of these nations think about the adverse effects on the flora, fauna and human health! The chemical effects of the toxic products of warhead might not be immediate, but can be generational! 

When I see photos of damages created to buildings and the neighbourhood, It creates shockwaves considering the extent of damage! The loss of human lives and those injured bring another disturbing outcome of war!

The territorial aggression starts with aggressive attitudes towards others. To live with an attitude of violence, aggression, invasion and destruction is not a natural human instinct. The usual human instinct is mindfulness and thoughtfulness. 

We therefore live in a season when normal values of regard for others is on the decline! 

 

The cashew fruit tree in our garden defies adverse weather conditions and flourish to bear fruits even more ! It turns an adversity to its advantage!

I have a message from a group of people who called out to remember people in war zones at a fixed time each day. The call to people in India is to remember people in war zones in our quiet prayer at 9 am each day for a minute or so!  I understand that some peace activists had sponsored such a prayer vigil during the second world war. I am not sure if the current effort  is linked to Quaker movement !

We need political leadership in our countries to have a tolerant, accommodative and dialogue based multilateral relationships. 

 

When I listen to the debates in the Indian parliament, I come across angry, accusatory and intolerant engagements between the ruling party and the opposition parties! Why the debates have drooped to a low state of hateful conversations! I wonder, how a nation which regards Mahatma Gandhi as the father of the nation because of his non-violent approach to independence movement, can dip so slow to think and talk of each other unkindly and rudely in the parliament! Have we stopped being neighbours to each other! 

To me, the cashew tree in our garden in extending its fruit bearing season, is sending out a message! The enduring spirit of resilience in harsh weather conditions! 

Let the world leaders wake up to seeing an opportunity amidst hostile setting, a window for negotiating for peace! The United Nations passed a resolution a few days ago to disapprove Iran attacking Middle East countries! An anaemic response far too late of a half hearted commitment to peace! 

I want to think that peace is our birth right! Any departure from that is against human wellness! 

Let us, while living in India  join together at 9 am to remember people in war zones and pray for peace to return to human hearts and relationships! 

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)

 

A bud, young and old Flower!

The desert rose bush in our garden brought a message that engaged me for the day!

While one bud is yet to open, the two other buds which opened two days apart from each other had different hues of colour. The younger flower had a mild yellow tinge and the older carried a pink tinge ! The three together brought the message of its biographical becoming!

There is a difference in appearance between a young and old flower! It is biological and inherent to every flower! 

We live in a climate when the age pyramid of people are shifting with older people living longer. The birth rate having declined or become stationary the young population in a country like India, of people below 25 years is probably about 40 percent of the population. The vital statistics of nations like India suggests that the people above 60 years would also become about 30 percent of population fairly soon. Which means that about 30 percent, which forms the active work force.  will be the feeder population to sustain the younger and the older population. 

This demographic reality raises some questions, the important one being the sustainably of the social support system for the younger and the elderly!

During a conclave of young start up professionals working on technological innovations, a question was raised whether their initiatives are well blended with the wisdom of the elder statesmen and technologists! The ascending spiral of inventing the new wheel was gestationally longer, when the young professionals were exploring alone. When the start up had an integrating influence of the elders, the progress was faster and steadfast! 

The cross conversations between the younger and the older take place, but not sufficiently in frontiers of innovations and inventions. 

 

The advanced version of the lap top I use now would cost me four times more than the price I paid for the current one. This happened in just five years. 

The impact of technological development when computed, the cost is directly transferred to the end user! The social benefits a start up company receives in the form of subsidised factory premises, electricity, import of equipment, tax exemptions for first several years, and promotional subsidy the banks offer, by way of loans repayable over a long time, etc do not get transferred into costing the product. The investment into developing a technology came from different sources. But does the benefit of these get shared by making product affordable! 

Is this not a faulty system which creates millionaires, for which the society has also paid for! But the benefits do not get shared with the enablers who made the start up successful. I was alarmed to hear that that many startup up companies create millionaires in the first ten years. 

This is the gap in the social ethical orientation of the younger and older people in our society. The younger grow up acquisitive and the older grew up altruistic! The mandatory corporate social responsibility expected from the corporate world is a hope that the millionaires would share their plenty with those who still live in the edge of a prosperous generation!

The young are enterprising and adventurous. The older are wise and socially oriented! 

Two flowers and one bud in a desert bush! The bud waiting to  open would open into this world of uneven distribution of resources. The young in every society creates vibrancy and progress. Are they sufficiently motivated to be socially conscious and liberal to be mindful of many denied of aspirational journey in life! Are the elders in a society able to bring a leavening presence to create consciousness  about opportunity for all! 

I have these thoughts which often get sidelined by virtue of it being assigned to be a philosophical issue! 

I regret that the 'takers' are multiplying in a society who become millionaires! The 'givers' are also many, but their giving does not bring social equity as much we long for!

One of the entertainments which the social media provides is to show forth the garages of some of the millionaires with several imported cars of brands that cost beyond our imagination! Why is that the social media does not give equal or more attention to tell the tales of givers and philanthropists! 

Have we got preoccupied with the fortunes of the millionaires and lost sight of the people who live longing for a respite from the daily grind of  living !

What is the mission in Living!

Obsession with Self-sufficiency or occupied with self-giving !

M.C.Mathew( text and photo)

The blooming lilies and fruiting tree!

Each day I find more lilies blooming in our garden!

Amidst the gloom of war in West Asia and Middle East, one keeps looking for signs of hope for peace and respite from further escalation!

Although there is no sign of any peace initiative in the horizon, with more Lilies flowering, I feel drawn by a mystery. The bulbs of Lilies remain in the soil dormant for most part of the year. At one time the bulbs give only foliage ! During this season every year, they give flowers. This season of about three months brings a colourful look to the garden!

All of us require consoling thoughts to bring rest to our soul when we live in a disheartening ambience of human suffering due to war! 

My first impression of seeing only one cashew fruit in each of the bunch of flowers above, brought a disappointed feeling. While staying with that thought, a consolation sprang within. Each of the cashew when ripe has the potential to be a seed, sapling and tree in future! The prospect of three trees from one tree in the future, with each tree blossoming to give many fruits! That changed the way I received this scene! There is more insight beneath than just the first impression in most instances. 

The above Lily flowers bring the message of blossoming in due season. The fruits bring the message of the prospect of the little multiplying! 

I have two photos of Berlin city, one covered in snow sent by a friend in December. The second photo from this friend is a recent one of the sign of spring in the garden!

             

I found this contrast to be a reconciling reality to live with. The current global situation is akin to a frozen season where harmony, peace and relationships remain hidden. But the spring shall be the norm sooner or later! 

I feel drawn by this message of hope the garden gives me when I feel visited by the blooming lilies dancing in the breeze!

A hymn comes to my mind:

"O Lord, all the world belongs to you;

And you're making all things new,

What is wrong, you forgive,

And the new life You give

Is what is turning the word upside-down

The world's loving to its friends;

But Your way of loving never ends

Loving enemies too

And this loving with you

Is what's turning the world upside-down.

The world lived divided and apart;

You draw, all together and we start

In Your body to see

That in fellowship we

Can be turning world upside-down...."

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)