An Ode to Zindagi

Dear Zindagi,

I am absolutely in love with you.

You might be wondering, why I am writing this letter to you today. I happened to see the trailer of an upcoming film “Dear Zindagi” starring Shahrukh Khan and Alia (releasing on 25^th November, 2016). I am very much intrigued by the very name of the film. The trailer is also so catchy.

Click Here to Know the Video Courtesy

I felt that I have never taken any efforts to even thank you my dear Zindagi for what you mean to me. So, here is an ode to you my dear Zindagi.

Every morning when I get up, you welcome me with open arms. I get one more opportunity to fall in love with you and be loved by you. I often wonder, won’t my body be declared as a corpse, if you go away from me. We are together since last 43 + years. Our journey together so far has been an emotional roller-coaster.

It is true that I don’t remember the moment when you gave me my existence, I was just a shapeless entity in my mother’s womb, my mother could feel you in me long before I felt you in me. I was perplexed when I came out of the comfort zone of mother’s womb and I was crying, but you just hugged me and gave me my beautiful family. I did not know, how to survive in this world, but you made it so simple for me. My formative years were in safe hands of yours, it was full of love, laughter, play, fun, movies, street food etc. I felt that you took an about turn when I had to move away from my loved ones for my studies to a distant location at the age of 12 (although now I understand that you had not taken an about turn then). It was tough for me to get adapted to a life away from family in a hostel. I changed from a gregarious one to an introvert person, happy-go-lucky to a lonely soul. I used to wait for an entire year to be with my family. Home-sickness, pain of being in my own shell, longingness to be loved by friends, professors around, and the teenage hormonal challenges often made me ask this question to you: Do you even love me Zindagi? The years ahead were not devoid of challenges, be it facing the death of father, be it financial crisis, the need to complete my education, the priority for finding a job, struggle to make foothold in the professional life, earning atleast minimum luxuries for life, fight to create space in somebody’s heart, heart-breaks, failed relationships, etc. At many occasions I was so much emotionally vulnerable and I might have asked the same question to you umpteen times: “Do you even love me Zindagi?” You always reciprocated with a ‘Big Yes’ and you stood by me, made me sail through it successfully. You gave me so many reasons to smile. Even amidst uncertainties, losses, pain, grief and sadness you held my hand and ensured to show me the path of inner happiness. You taught me to handle myself in a better manner, to love myself, to love you even more strongly. Yes Zindagi, I love you so much for making me what I am today. I may not be perfect, I might have troubled you many times, I might have not understood your love toward me and got into loggerheads with you, but I simply adore you for standing with me in my ups and downs.

I don’t want to simply say thanks to you Zindagi and undermine what you mean to me. But still, let me remember certain vital moments of my life where you reiterated your love towards me through your words of wisdom and making me fall in love with you again and again. So, quoting below a few of those moments of my life and the words of your wisdom dear Zindagi, actually your fifteen Nuggets of Wisdom. (dialogues borrowed from Bollywood films):

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 1

Whenever I experienced failure, you said: हार के जीतने वाले को ही बाज़ीगर कहते हैं I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 2

Whenever I made a blunder, you said: बड़े बड़े देशों में ऐसी छोटी छोटी बातें होती रहती है सेनोरिटा I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 3

Whenever I really wanted something very strongly in life, you said: कहते हैं, अगर किसी चीज़ को दिल से चाहो तो पूरी कायनात उसे तुमसे मिलाने की कोशिश में लग जाती है I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 4

Whenever I forgot to live in the present, forgot to enjoy the ‘Here’ and ‘Now’, and kept worrying about the uncertainties of future, you said: आज एक हँसी और बाँट लो, आज एक दुआ और मांग लो, आज एक आँसू और पी लो, आज एक ज़िन्दगी और जी लो, आज एक सपना और देख लो, क्या पता, कल हो न हो I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 5

Whenever I was in dilemma in life in regard to my career or taking some major decisions, you said: ज़िन्दगी में अगर कुछ बनना हो, कुछ हासिल करना हो, कुछ जीतना हो तो हमेशा दिल की सुनो I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 6

Whenever things were not at all in my favour, you said: पिक्चर अभी बाकी है मेरे दोस्त I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 7

Whenever people / society criticized me (unjust criticism) or wrote me off, you said: जब लोग तुम्हारे खिलाफ बोलने लगे… समझ लो तरक्की कर रहे हो I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 8

Whenever I missed my loved ones around or missed the presence of departed souls in life, you asked me to keep the memories’ treasure trove safe : यादें मिठाई के डब्बे जैसी होती हैं, खोलो तो सिर्फ एक piece नही खा सकते I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 9

Whenever I felt troubled with the uncertainties of the future, you said: कहीं पे पहुँचने के लिए कहीं से निकलना बहुत ज़रूरी होता है I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 10

Whenever I felt depressed, you said: जियो, खुश रहो, मुस्कुराओ, क्या पता कल हो न हो I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 11

Whenever I was broken and inconsolable, you asked me to tell this to myself (gender of the dialogue changed): मैं उड़ना चाहती हूँ, दौड़ना चाहती हूँ, गिरना भी चाहती हूँ… बस रुकना नहीं चाहती I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 12

Whenever I felt uncomfortable to take risk, you said: लाईफ में सबसे बड़ा रिस्क होता है, कभी कोई रिस्क न लेना I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 13

Whenever I got worried about success, you said: Success के पीछे मत भागो, काबिल बनो काबिल; कामयाबी तो झक मारके पीछे आएगी I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 14

I will always be indebted to you my dear Zindagi for the inner re-engineering you have done to my ‘Self’. Please do forgive me for all those moments when I hurt you by not understanding you. Today I live every moment of mine and I can confidently reiterate what you taught me: बाबु मुशाय, ज़िन्दगी बड़ी होनी चाहिए, लम्बी नहीं I

Zindagi’s Nuggets of Wisdom 15

I can go on and on. I adore you my dear Zindagi. I understand very well that life may be with ups and downs, but this is what makes life beautiful. I dedicate this song to you my dear Zindagi (a few lines are written below):

यह जीवन है, इस जीवन का,

यही है – यही है – यही है रंग – रूप,

थोड़े गम है, थोड़ी खुशियाँ,

यहीं हैं – यहीं है – यहीं है छाव – धूप,

यह जीवन है …

Click here to know the Video Courtesy. Film: Piya ka Ghar

I am very emotional at the moment. My eyes are welled up with tears. I know, you are also getting emotional Zindagi. Want to hug you tight now for all the Nuggets of Wisdom that you keep teaching me. Just want to tell you: Love you my dear Zindagi.

Yours love,

Bindu

 

I am writing a letter to life for the #DearZindagi activity at BlogAdda

 

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