Annual Clearance

Probably there is no other creature on earth as selfish and greedy as the human beings, and this is not something that we can be proud of. All around us we see the fruits of human greed, in the economic melt-down; the small-scale investers and producers find it hard to keep the shutters, and they are looking up to the government and industrialists to work out a magic formula that would ease the tension that hurts the pockets and purses. But will there be a viable solution to this global phenomenon? We are yet to see the signs of a reversal of processes.

If only we had the humility to learn lessons from nature, the earth would be still full of flowers for us to admire, grains to fill our barns, fruits to keep our stomachs full. But we are all too proud to take lessons from nature. The animal world too has so much to teach us. Is it not a wonderful thing that a tiger would never hurt the best of prey, once its stomach is full. Have you heard of a lion which kills a prey, and after eating its fill, stores the rest for the next day? It would leave the rest in open for others to eat.

Sometimes I feel guilty when I open the cupboard/almirah in my room, and find clothes that I dont need to use in the next three months, when there are millions in the far flung corners of the country who have nothing to wear. Is it not a crime on the personal front? It is because many of us have the compulsive tendency to hoard things (often superfluous objects of pleasure), that the deserving dont get a chance to enjoy them.

May be it is possible for us to undertake an "annual clearance" day, and clear all the excess that may lie in our cupboards, and give to the people who are in real need of them. They could be clothes, gadgets, equipments, books, objects of pleasure... anything that costs a price. It is a fact that the more we hoard, the more will be the greed to acquire more, and that will never come to an end. On the other hand, once we start clearing all the excesses (just like shedding of the extra kilograms in our bodies), we would feel so light, so joyous.

Today the Lord calls me to keep a check on my life-style - am I floating with the trends of the world, which are far too removed from a contended life that I can live within the means I have, or am I fully in control of the means to a happy life at my disposal. My prayer to the Lord of the Universe is that I may have the generosity and the heart to tell Him/Her, Enough Lord for the day. Let me share the rest with the deserving brothers and sisters around me.