Wasting food

We all are highly educated and as a consequence have lucrative pay cheques too. Some are still getting educated. But does that education or money make us any better? I think no. It drags us more towards the abyss. And the more we stare at the abyss, the abyss stares us back, the golden words utters by the great philosopher, Nietchze. We always deny the easy jobs taking them for granted and concentrate more on other crucial things like getting good job, travelling, maintaining a good relationship etc, but alas! we forget common sense on petty things, like saving water,electricity, food, keeping our surroundings and ours neighbours surroundings clean.Which I call as the easy jobs.That doesnt mean to sweep their outdoors daily but not throwing any of our garbage in their arena. These petty things have become more of an concern in the present world. All the environmentalists are talking about it and they say it right. 

My concern here is for wastage of food. Roti, Kapda aur Makan is the basic necessity of any human being and these days, these basic necessities are being exploited as the problem is of surplus for some and still a basic necessity for numerous. The whole onus of working was to earn bread and butter. Now if we have the money to add other dishes to the basic bread and butter, would that mean we would buy in surplus and waste them? Do you find it easy to throw away food? I guess its very easy for many people. They over cook and over eat and the left overs are thrown. Few friends of mine don't like to eat the left overs of previous day,even when preserved in refrigerators. I know they are being health concious at the cost of throwing money.The whole act of throwing food seems so much emotionless to them. I just cant see that happen infront of my eyes. I just warn my friends  not bothering  about the consequences, but the dog's tail cannot be straightened. Few statistics from the website of UN about food wastage can be read here

As an individual, an ''educated individual'' it is my responsibility to tell people around me not to throw the food in a polite way as many times as possible. I take this issue very personally. A person who doesn't have respect for food doesn't have respect for anything, that is my understanding. Well there is a problem of throwing away food, you tend to eat less and keep your weight under control.But eating less is of no harm either. If we are hungry we need not fill upto the brim, we can keep some gap by eating less preceded by cooking less. Seriously we humans should not be so lame enough to waste food around us.I can only tell someone what to do, but ultimately the realization should come from within.This is a problem of responsibility and our education has given the direction to choose our responsibilities, if not then our education should be in the thrash. 

Making our own choices

Society surely most of the times plays a silent role, dictating terms in our life. In most of the cases I find parents encouraging their kids to do whatever they want to in their life, but when it comes to marriage, the conservative lot, restrict their kids from going for an intercaste marriage, even in this present generation. Because society is the impetus which is the reason behind their thoughts. I feel the situation similar to asking a person to wear the clothes of their childhood when they are complete grown ups. But all parents don’t fall in this category. All parents want to see their kids happy and with some resistance and with lot of talking few of them agree for the marriage, which is agreeing to the choices of their kids. So my question here is for the parents who don’t agree especially in this marriage scenario, what is the correct age or when it is the correct time for kids to make choices for themselves?

When we are growing, almost all major choices of schooling, clothes,food, etc is decided by the parents. Again our career choices are too in their hands. Ofcourse the scenario is changing presently. Now for the choice of partner the choice is again with them. Again after marriage,kids, living with parents etc is again in their hand. So I really don’t know what and when does an individual decide something for themselves. The kid’s choices are always belittled because they don’t have enough experience in life. But in this case, if a couple has given a good thought, ie acted more from their minds then their hearts, then what is the problem to accept. The rational couple will surely think through all the pros and cons of being together. Couples who think and act, their relation never fails if it is an arranged or love marriage. Few couples just act with instinct marry and then all their life regret. Mind should play a major role. And if parents and the couple decide it together, imagine the bliss in the relation. The parents who agreed for their choices later, when they realize, feel very happy about their decision. I know parents are worried about their's kids well being, but if they talk and rationalize things, then it gets easier, albeit removing the umbrella of society and focusing on individual choices. 

On Children by Khalil Gibran

After many days, I am posting. I was busy reading few important books and travelling. On my reading saga, I came across this poem by Khalil Gibran, on children. Few days back, I had a discussion with my friend on poets and my stand was for the ones who are exceptional in their ideas and simple in their web of words and surely Khalil Gibran is one of them. I like the language used by him, which is very simple to understand and easy to interpret. This poem surely is for every parent and every individual who would one day be a parent. Such simple words and so difficult to implement. May be this poem was written very long back, but in the present world and time this has to be taken seriously.

The poem ...

Your children are not your children.

They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but not from you,

And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts, 

For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls,

For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, 

which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them, 

but seek not to make them like you.

For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children

as living arrows are sent forth.

The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, 

and He bends you with His might 

that His arrows may go swift and far.

Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;

For even as He loves the arrow that flies, 

so He loves also the bow that is stable.