Colors...

I was watching the movie " The Constant Gardener" last night. It is a very well made film and of course the 2 lead characters are played by 2 of my favorite stars. This blog is not about the film though. It is about a thought that sparked in my mind while I was watching the ravaged African continent in this movie - the women wore the most amazing colors. Their tired faces and bodies were beautifully draped in most beautifully colored fabrics. They had amazing beads around their neck that ranged from flaming oranges & reds to the deepest turquoise. It seemed, that for all the natural, socio-economic and political strife in that cursed continent, the starkness is ironically compensated by these brilliant sparks of color.

The scenes made me think of Rajasthan. The barren sands of Jaisalmer have given birth to the most romantic folklore that has been enhanced by bright and beautiful ghaghras and dupattas, the clink of sliver anklets and other rustic and intricate jewelry. It also made me think of Alaska where Nature herself takes on the role of adding color to the desolate starkness of that place during the few months of summer.

Colors play such an important part in our lives and shape who we are or want to be in so many ways. On my first visit to NYC , I was in a lovely pastel peach business suit and felt like a total fish out of water in that Waldorf Astoria Seminar Room. Everyone was in black; during subsequent visits to NYC I have been more conscious of wearing the power colors !!!

I find it so interesting that in the US , there is a color scheme for every season. You have the pastels during summer and spring, the earth tones during the fall and of course Christmas has the greens , reds, snowflakes etc. 4th of July has to be blue and red while green is in on St. Patrick's day. Back home, we wear colors all the time.. be it in the saris, dupattas, salwars, kurtis .. the hues are breathtaking for any foreigner.

I could ramble on about colors, but as I continue to think more on this, I feel there is a palate of colors right before our eyes that we don't take the time to appreciate. The differences in people, in the colors of their skin, their smiles, their attitudes and outlooks, it is so fascinating and so enriching if one can really learn from it. It is a rainbow of the most brilliant shades that can truly change our lives. As one reads the papers, or watches any news channel, one wonders, do we really take the time to immerse ourselves in these differences or do our pride and ego make us more monochromatic than we truly care to admit?

Success... a misnomer....

I sat down to watch the Olympics the other day and they were showing the press conference where the announcement was being made about Michelle Kwan stepping down from the US Figure Skating team owing to her injury and in the process losing her final chance to win the Olympic gold. They then showed her talking to one of the reporters about this whole incident in a manner so mature, so charming and yet so honest, it left me speechless.

She may have cried bucketful of tears inside and will have to live with the thought that she lost the opportunity to win the coveted Olympic gold. She was so close to success and yet so far, yet in that moment, I really thought success was a misnomer for all that it is associated with. We define success as the accomplishment of a goal, achievement of some kind of reward, an incident of recognition etc, but to me the way Michelle Kwan handled the situation was the epitome of true success.

Often times in life, we really crave for something. Whether it is to be with someone, to get that promotion, to be recognized for something remarkable professionally or in the community. Once it happens, we feel successful, happy and sometimes it is a feeling of complete and utter fulfilment. However more often in life, we are faced with situations where we don't get what we want and that is when we have the choice of either categorizing has having been unsuccessful in life and in work or making the best of the given situation at hand and emerging as a stronger, wiser and most importantly.. a better human being...

To end with my favorite verse from Emerson...

To laugh often and much,
To win the respect of intelligent people
And the affection of children,
To earn the appreciation of honest critics
And to endure the betrayal of false friends,
To appreciate beauty,To find the best in others,
To leave the world a bit better,
Whether by a healthy child, a garden patch
Or a redeemed social condition,
To know even one life has breathed easier
Because you lived,
This is to have succeded.

------ Ralph Waldo Emerson