A normal working day. My wife had left to office before me. The responsibility of dropping my two year old son to the "day care" lied with me. I had a training on that day on innovation!!! Well, I could not innovate a way to wake my son who was sleeping wild until 9.45 a.m. He had woken up in the middle of night and slept only at 5.00 a.m. I played " a good dad ". I had done all preparation for myself to go to office. Finally once my son woke up, I could successfully ready him up without making him cry. I leave him at day care. 10.10 a.m. The Innovation Training would have started at 9.30 a.m.
Not relating to any of the above context, my mind was recapping on totally a different incident - on my way to office from the day-care. That happened during my vacation at home town a few weeks before. A poor boy, of age around 10, was begging money on the street. I was overwhelmed. I asked the boy, "don;t you go to school"? "I was going to one. But my parents had pulled me out. On their insistence, I am begging.", a soft reply. Sometimes, it is better we don't ask questions, for which we can do nothing when the answer is known. That was the situation of mine. I had just got him a fruit juice to drink and gave him 5 Rupees. Obviously, I did not have to ask question about the school to show this gesture.....
The thought process continued now. What could have been done in that situation ? I should have put him in a school and should have taken the responsibility to pay the school fees(including that of his hostel stay!). I spend at least 60,000 Rs every month. The study would cost a max of 1000 Rs. 1/60Th of my monthly expense - big deal!!!!. The thinking rolls further. It is not just this boy. There are numerous such boys. I see many babies, boys, girls on the roadside - begging, rolling on the mud, doing trick in front of the traffic waiting for signal...so many!!!!. When will the day come, that each and every human being on this earth is assured - with a little effort of its own - of food, shelter, clothing, medicine, education... The basic needs of life. Is it not an irony that the world has seen so many great people.... philosophers, politicians, philanthropists, scientists, administrators.... what not. Why has it not happened ? Just could not find an answer. The mind continues the search, but my scooter had already reached office. The intensity of search slows down internally. The routines at the entrance gate is done. Finally, I enter the training room with a session's delay.
The training room is silent. It's dark. I realize that everyone is set for a video clip as part of the training. Boom....boom......Music starts. A 30 year old is on his daily jogging routine, with all weird electronics gadgets on him. "Paul, I am reaching the office earlier than we planned. i.e. I will be in office ate 8.00 a.m. Can we reschedule our discussion early by an hour ?". The technology revolution of wireless network, transferring the email arrived to a man who is jogging on his morning routine in voice form over his ear phone!!!!. Paul shortens the jogging and comes back early. On entering the house, he just switches on the TV. Starts giving instructions - to open his mail box, to choose his dress colour, to prepare a printout for the discussion rescheduled.... The message is loud and clear. The future living is going to be on a different plane of technology.
I could understand the context. Working in a software solution company for communication business, the objective of the movie clip is to present the revolution that is expected on the industry. To stay ahead, we needed to innovate. Innovate - in view of our future customer needs!!!
The time is passing in the same direction, same pace, same units; for the poor - for the rich; for the one who is looking for salvation - for the one who is looking for satisfaction of fantasy. It is not realistic expectation to solve the problem of the needy before satisfying the fantasy; because that would mean the later giving up his time for the former. Why should he do so ? May be this is how the life on earth is destined to be.....
The poor and others (I don't want to call the "others" as rich. Richness is a state of less need. The needs of the non-poor, in the current world, seem to be no less than of the poor) run in parallel. The only link between them is that both are tied to the same context given by time. However, they will never meet, never unite. It has not happened for years - from the time of civilization to now.
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