Funny Ponders

I would just wonder if I look at my life since my childhood to the state now. I am talking here in terms of money that I spent per month. In school, almost nil was my pocket money. My father used to give me 10 to 20 bucks when he and my mother are going out for 2 to 3 days. Those are given to satisfy my hunger. Unlike a typical human being, my hunger levels are used to be more during my childhood. I have used them only for eating despite other expenses. I would be waiting all the time for my parents to leave to some place as that was the only way I could get money, otherwise it was empty. I did not even dare to drink a soft drink as it costs Rs 5/- at that time. I used to feel that it was too much at that time. When I went for college to study +2, it was the first time that I am out of home. Fees and other charges were paid in advance as I was living in hostel. Pocket money at this point of life is 150 bucks. This is being used for watching movies(Rs 20/-) , travelling to uncle’s house, eating onion dosa, mysore bajji (my all time favorite) , little fund to saibaba temple which we used to visit every thursday. I could not ask more as my parents were already spending than they could afford. Those 150 bucks not even for one month, sometimes two months also. I sometimes used to sacrifice and keep my tongue under control when my fellow friends are enjoying masala dosas at mid-nite. This was because, I dont have enuf dare to spend money at that point of time. I used to keep it as contingency fund. Two years passed like this.

Now I have moved to engineering. For the first two years I used to get 1500 per month as pocket money. This was the time my life has entirely changed and I was exposed to so much in life. I have developed dare to spend money without thinking about the next day. Sometimes I resort to borrow also. 300 bucks go for rent, 70 for buss pass, 900 for mess, 50 for washerman. I am left with hardly 200. Everyweek one telugu movie was mandatory. Slowly expenses have increased because of partys, movies etc which are very frequent in engineering. This is the time I have not regretted for the money I was spending. It was fun everytime with lot of friends. After two years my pocket money has rised to 2000 bucks as it has been difficult to cope up with so many things. Sometimes I used to get few more bucks which I have taken for computer classes :). Every month I used to borrow and pay them back in the succeeding month. Almost every friend of mine used to be in same position.

Now my next phase of life is in IIT. Now I am a bird with wings which is let out for freedom. I used to get stipend. No need to borrow from dad. This time money the pocket carrying was 8k bucks. It was good enough. Expenses at this point are different altogether like mobile bills, movies in city like chennai (costs around 100 bucks) and frequent dining outside bunking hostel mess. Ofcourse I am left with negative balance at the end of the month. There were times where my father used to send me 1000 bucks sometimes.

Ultimately the point is, no matter the money we have in our pocket the expenses continue to raise. The law here is, the rate at which our expenses raise is double the rate at which our pocket money raises. Outgoing (expenses ) is greater than incoming(salary or pocket money). Expenses and pocket money raises often and what is common always is debt.

Dont get bewildered by the title. This is the name of the article which comes every sunday in TOI LIFE. Every week the real happenings in once life are given here. Whoever reads this will definitely be moved by the plight of the narrator. Basically what is given in the soul curry is: a person narrates tough times in his/her life and how did they get on and how well they dealt with the situation to move on. I am sure that if somebody reads this article once, one will feel that their problems are nothing. In last weeks article , one female was explaining that she lost 2/3 part of the body in an accident. She also lost her relatives in the accident. Her husband is the only source to get on with the life. After few years he also expired. Imagine her position where there is nobody to take care of her and she cannot take of herself. After reading all her story to the point how she is living today, my opinion about what I feel as a problem and difficulty has changed. What I would feel as a problem is not a problem at all if I compare mine with the problems that many people in the world are facing. I retrospected myself that my disappointment with the small issues I have at the current moment is nothing and unnecessary. Move On should be everyone’s ultimate philosophy. This reminds me the Zen way of living which says that, like a stream flowing down the mountain that finds its own path is finding your own way. If you try to block the stream or resist it, it just goes around without a pause and it will finds its own way. This way is like a fallen leaf moving along with the stream. If you allow the stream to carry you, its strength become yours, you are one with nature , without clinging, without attachment leaving the past behind, living in this moment.