Success can mean different things to different people. To some, it may encompass financial accomplishments or business triumphs. To others, it may mean an unburdened heart and the knowledge of a positive impact delivered by one’s actions. The most fortunate of us figure out how to succeed at both!
Life is precious. This is said so much that often these three words lose their meaning and the sentiment is taken for granted. But we must concede that life is indeed precious, and in the vast expanse of endless space and infinite time, life is also rare. Thus, we should take time out of the pursuit of routine life to remember to celebrate this beautiful gift of life by looking at nature and treasuring each and every moment.
For my twentieth birthday, I expressed to my father that I wanted a family picnic on Badkhal Lake in Delhi. I thought it would be a small group—my brother, sister and my parents—picnicking by the lake. January in Delhi is usually very pleasant. The weather is perfect, the worst of the winter has passed and the season dips its first toes into spring. As the days rolled up to 28 January, my birthday, there was some secrecy in the house. I had not been involved in all the planning. The day of my birthday arrived and there was a huge bus outside our house. My bedroom in Moti Bagh faced the main road, so I was the first to see the bus pull up.
‘Strange,’ I thought. DTC buses usually stay on the main road. Then, my parents came out and when we got into the bus, Usha baji, one of my favourite aunts, wished me ‘Happy Birthday!’ in a shrill voice, brimming with excitement. ‘We are all going on a family picnic to Badhkal Lake.’
Surrounded by my family and extended family, my parents had created this extraordinary celebration for me. Complete with our helpers, the gas range and the fresh food cooked on site, it was a marvellous day of celebration that stands out as a particularly memorable day in my childhood. We swam in the lake, ate and chatted merrily and then, exhausted, we started to head back around six o’clock in the evening. We arrived home at 8.30 p.m., and soon, I tumbled into bed — exhausted, happy and full of gratitude to my dear parents who always went the extra mile to make our birthdays so very special! Here’s to life and celebration!
Be aware of life: Actively think about your life and choose the moments you want to celebrate.
Celebrate others: Make sure others are celebrated; when we choose to celebrate others, we automatically feel a sense of lightness, a sense of joy and even a sense of euphoria.
Choose positivity: Celebration is a state of mind. Choose to be positive and choose to celebrate every moment. It’s in our hands.
Excerpts from 3 TIPS: The Essentials for Peace,Joy and Success by Meera Gandhi)
