Bending them, Not breaking them – The Rules and Thoughts, my Friends!!!

Dreams, Dreamer, Reality – things work I have noticed in this world, across departments in this order – more or less. The guinea pig in my experiments with life (not Truth – for cannot even phantom or hallucinate being near the Mahatma) has always been me, myself. Its safe that way, for I do not run into any copyright or patent issues!

Whenever, I have dealt with human beings – I am specifying because its quite important that I do – with dogs, cats, in recent times with sheep, koalas and kangaroos, I have never had issues of ego, disdain, jealousy nor pompousness. I have been received quite well by the later species, in fact often they have been indifferent towards my knowledge, my likes, my attitude, my appearance and even my language because they are far superior than us in their assiduity and keenness of understanding of their environs around them: They take no more than they require and give back far more than is required.

Which is remarkable, for with human beings this is hardly ever the case. Coming back to dealing with this species, of which I am a specimen too, I have found them never saying what they actually mean, never doing what they actually feel, never helping with honesty, never standing by friends like they should, never reacting with sagacity of purpose for the larger good, never using prudence of choice of action or words and hardly ever being transparent and unabashedly real. Yet, everyone dreams.

Dreams are also bizarre and anomalous for they pop up in each specimen of our species. Which in isolation of all else isn’t something forlorn but when it starts to drive ambition without the right accompaniments of understanding, values and exposure, it turns ugly and insipid.

So, I have had dreams always – as a child, teenager and adult. My exposure, values and understanding – in that order – always made sure that those DREAMS remained mine to cherish in solitude and comfort of my thoughts and actions and never ever did they hinder, thwart or frustrate anyone else’s. In fact, I took on the dreams of others and helped make it reality for them and for the larger good, often taking inspiration from my own travels, life or mundane everyday happenings.

The satisfaction, the exhilaration and the warmth of the bonhomie and friendliness was such a motivator for me always – was the only instigator which made me do things for others.

I wonder now if in doing so unabashedly, truthfully and sincerely, I was ‘breaking’ some so called established rules in the world of the specimen of my species who never did anything without any reason – hence, time and time again, it was construed as deviant behaviour and the jury was out always!!!

Dreamers are as huge a tribe as their other noun cousin, only they assume an identity which takes a human form. The sad part is that this tribe starts off strong, much like the Great Wild Beast migration across the Serengeti National Park & the Masai Mara National Park but reduces in number by the time it hits the wage-earning age. The Wild Beast migration across Africa is a cycle which completes itself each year depending on the rains but serving the purpose it is meant to serve: to sustain life of all forms in one whole cycle/circle called LIFE!

With snobbish and judgemental and a sanctimonious jury out behind the back of my tribe, in the dark realm of REALITY, I guess the dreamer in others hardly has a chance – well, for the majority it does not remain an option worth pursuing. Those who do, often either fall prey to the perils of this double-edged sword or give it up in its entirety. We are inherently a peace-loving tribe and most of the specimens from this species do not fancy taking up the cudgel on behalf of our own dreams and in that sense for the dreamers either, because in the big bad world outside it’s the survival of the fittest. And in my typical drama queen style, after all Bollywood is what we’ve grown up on most of our teen life, in the rush for the roti, kapada or makaan race (roti = food; kapada = clothes; makaan = house for the uninitiated in my country (!!) and friends from across the world) it’s hardly surprising that dreamers fall off by the wayside.

Yet, I have been a dreamer always – as a child, teenager and adult. My exposure, values and understanding – in that order – always made sure that the DREAMER in me remained intact because the lessons I got from my teachers and my parents was about living someone else’s dream through my eyes. And if it allowed me the scope for unhindered imagination, then Voila! the whole world was the stage to experiment!!!

Have thus given fruition to several ideas, by interpreting them in numerous innovative ways, designing concepts which had long existed just in words on paper or in thoughts, brainstorming, visualising, giving credence and body of vision for others. The whole time, it was never for credit nor attention nor acclaim, nor for being in the spotlight or media attention nor for scoring brownie points nor for the plaudits. The stimulation & gratification that I got from doing it this way – my way – far out-weighed any accolades or recognition or award or certificate or trophy for I was almost always doing it for friends or family.

In my voyage meandering along the different and distant destinations on my life’s timeline, I have met crazy, keen nuts just like me who have been as zealous and ardent fans of the DREAM, DREAMER thought process like no other. They have helped keep my faith in the fact that the REALITY aspect can be defied, flouted and all regard & caution for decorum can be thrown to the wind!!!

I have along with allies, well-wishers and ardent supporters thus trudged this path where sometimes even angels fear to tread. Even so we’ve never hurt people’s feelings though may have bruised a few egos along the way, we’ve never offended any originals though may have annoyed a few other copy cats, we’ve never trampled on any others’ territory though may have squashed a few narcissists – in short, we have bend them, not broken them – both the rules and the thoughts that went with it!!!!