Clean this up. Now!

8 out of 10 times it so happens that something that I need urgently goes missing. And each time this happens, I resolve to clear up the clutter. In the hope that next time, I will not be wasting my time and effort. A resolution which is forgotten as soon as it is made. And the history keeps on repeating itself.

But when I could not locate the driver CD for my laptop, I finally decided that enough was enough. And I started off with the project “Cleaning the clutter”.

So far it has been going good. And it feels good to.

But believe me; it is not as easy as it sounds.

For one, we just do not hoard up things and stuff. We hoard up smiles and tears that brought it to our drawer in the first place. Every paper that you will pick up will bring back bitter sweet memories. May be that is one reason why I kept postponing the activity. The fear of facing and then loosing those memories forever. But having faced them today … I realized ... I can always hold on to the memories and let the stuff go.

The emotional reasons aside, it is really tough to decide if the life of a given article, clothing or piece of paper is really over. But this is an exercise that sharpens the objective outlook of mind.

Starting with the articles of clothing … does it fit, do I actually wear it, is it useful, out of date, can be used as hand me down … similarly for papers … do I need the receipts, can it be replaced, have I ever used it … general rule says if you have not used a paper in last 2.5 years, you are probably never going to look at it ever. And the list is endless.

Exhausting … but worth the effort.

And one thing that always stands in this exercise is “mental clutter”. Fretting, worrying, multi-tasking – all take their toll on our lives and environment. And getting round this is the real challenge. Only your will power guarantees results.

So, as I am learning to say no to cluttering and hoarding … I pray for de-clutter in your lives too … So that  we can all enjoy the early sunrise and the late sunset, feel the spring air and hear the birds chirping … joyous and peaceful. J J

Time for another goodbye ...

25^th June … I will be writing the last exam for my post graduation.

And almost all of us have been diagnosed with “Farewell Fever”.

This will be fourth time for me.

Does it feel like déjà’ vu to me? I doubt that.

April, 2002. Fresh out of high school. Nestling. Scared, shy, and novice to the ways of this world. National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur would be my initiation to the world beyond family, school and Mandi.

May, 2006. Graduated. Fledgling. Eager, excited and joyous. Capable of short flights. But still rooted to the security of my nest. Deep down in my heart I was happy .. happy because I could cradle my nephew Harjas, in my arms (he would be 56 hours old when I would finally get to see him) .. happy because the fledgling would finally return to the nest. And this joy numbed me .. dulled the spasms of pain. The memories of 4 years of college life were successfully resigned to the hind quarters of my mind. The trail of my life led me to Wipro Technologies, Bangalore. Reunion. With all that was supposedly over. May be the subconscious had known it all along. May be that is why, I had not shed a single tear when I had said goodbye.

February, 2009. Resigned from Wipro. Migratory bird … returning to the warmth of native lands. Sober, reflective, musing. Something stirred in my heart this time and as the plane took off for Delhi, I cried. For good two hours. The flood subsided only when the plane touched the Delhi soil.

June, 2011. Post graduate. The bird will fly out again .. but where will the journey take it now … uncertain, riddled, screened.