OLDER - BUT WISER?

Shopping at malls is an experience.Live life to its full. If you have not visited a mall then well you do not deserve to live were many of the comments which nudged me to visit a supermarket in a mall. The purpose was to purchase some essentials as well as to be baptised into the mall culture lest yours truly is left in a low strata of the society. After a customary security check and wading through a sea of humans, I managed to enter the supermarket which was on par with any of the retail chains with more floor space. Chaos reigned supreme in my mind as I ventured to find the goods of my choice. Temptations to purchase was brushed aside by the price tags and the 'princely sum' I held in my pockets. Luckily, the credit card honchos could not tempt me into one lest my home would have been cluttered with all unwanted things probably!

Slowly, as I created space for myself to reach the counters of my choice, I heard the wail of a child and on looking around found a boy clad in blue jeans, a yellow t shirt and a green jacket clutching the hands of a young lad. I bent down to reach the young fellow who was well below my knee and softly told him not to cry. As I searched for a response, the young lad questioned me on my credentials. It was then that I noticed the young lad was one of the helpers at the supermarket. A small chat later I realised the boy had been lost for more than half an hour and despite he being taken around, he could not identify his guardians. Lord, blessed are the guardians of this lad. Shopping could make them forget that a kid had accompanied them. I ventured to suggest that an announcement be made to identify the guardians which the lad said had already been done. Then I told him that may be an effort should be made to announce in more than one language. He smiled and said he was trying to get the name of the lad who would do nothing but clutch the hands of the samaritan and wail.

Soon, we heard a trilingual announcement and after a good fifteen minutes later, the guardians appeared unperturbed pushing their shopping cart. The kid sprung to establish the genuineness of the claim of the strangers. While my heart walked away with the child, I could not help saluting the young responsible samaritan.

Is the attitude of the guardians of the ward the actual meaning of "cool" ? The air conditioner of course cannot be faulted for the "cool" attitude. Should the mall be blamed for such attitudes? Obviously, No. The need for the bonding over in flesh and blood than over the net or the phone is the need of the hour. Again, it is the empathy, concern and understanding that is required and not the display of emotions. Boy, am I growing too old? Maybe a poll could give the answer to the query. The other inevitable query would be whether am I growing any wiser. But this is again for the people who deal with me to decide.

DNA- A POSITIVE SALUTE

The hibernaton from blogging has done little to alter the pace of thinking. A lot of events occurred in this period but the one that really caught my attention was the India Positive campaign launched by DNA - the English daily. At a time when all insitutions in the country were denigrated and a sense of despair had crept in, the message was clear that the layman mattered the most. The media did its bit to convey the frustrating scenario in the darkest shades possible while the people who indulged in such activity only gloated over the apparent success of their endeavour to derail the ethical values. Values really matter was one of the tough things that I realised in the interim period. The neo literacy has robbed the society of basic values in life. Persons occupying seats of executive, bureaucracy and judiciary now prefer to flaunt their clout rather than seek anonymity and discharge the onerous responsibility of maintaining the pillars of democracy.
However, as DNA points not all is lost. I had the opportunity to visit the International Airport on official duty and as we were on a tour of the terminal accompanied by the protocol officer of the airport, we were politely stopped at the arrival area by a CISF jawan. Neither the badge nor the designation mattered to him. The duty entrusted was paramount and he declined permission for entry. Soon the commandant appeared. Contrary to the normal tendency of overruling a diligent subordinate and flouting the rules, he firmly stated that the area was out of bounds as per directions received. We saluted their diligence, shook hands to congratulate them for being dedicated. Our congratulations was accepted with grace.
Could we have more of the breed who have it in their DNA to know, express, explain and discharge their duties without fear or favour?