Sunday, October 26, 2014

Sky

The sky can be the blandest thing on this planet; it can also be the most beautiful. It all depends on how lucky you are -- and whether you have the time to gaze at it.

Sometimes it is a blank sheet of paper; sometimes a scintillating watercolour that only a child called Nature is capable of producing; and at other times it is its usual self -- the sun, the moon, the clouds -- and how beautiful you find it depends on what mood you are in. Sometimes, though, the very sight of a blue sky can lift your mood. I know this because of late -- for the past one year or so -- I have been spending a lot of time in bed, writing, and since the bedroom window opens out to the sky, I have been closely watching it change colours. Ah, the blue wiping away the blues; the grey carrying in its bosom the romance of rains. And then there are nights when I wonder who has placed that halogen light outside my window, only to find it is the moon -- and then rush to take a picture, only to realise that the smartphone camera does not effectively capture what the eyes see.

The sky, however, is at its beautiful best at dusk. I am sure it must be as beautiful even at the crack of dawn -- but then I am not a dawn person. Moreover, there is fundamental difference between dawn and dusk. Dawn brings along the burden of yet another day; whereas dusk marks the end of the day, when the burden is off your shoulders and when you become the master of your own time. Dawn is responsibility, dusk is romance. Under the orange glow left behind by the sun, the world looks beautiful. The light is sufficient enough to see what you like to see, and yet insufficient to hide what you don't want to see. That's the time to look up at the sky.

I suspect there is also something deeper about my recent fascination with the sky: ambition.

Every time I feel hopeless and wonder where I am headed in life, I look up at the sky and find it urging me to keep climbing up to it. I keep climbing, even though I know there cannot be a destination up there. The sky is limitless: even when you are in an aeroplane, way above the clouds, you still find a sky above you.

And so each time I look up, I receive the message: Screw the destination -- there is no such thing as a destination -- it is the journey that matters. Therefore, I journey on.

9 comments:

Athirupa said...

Can so relate to this. Beautiful and simple thoughts :)

Ardra said...

happy journeying...

Anonymous said...

You know capricorns are ambitious. But writers are the ones who have long chucked ambition. Don't you feel thankful you are not crucnhing numbers in corporate slavery like others.
Reaching somehwere is a concept of greek mythology. You are not a greek hero in seach of el dorado, you are in India where we believe in a sense of continuum; you are here and you will be here again. I lose faith in life when people like you talk of ambition.
And I want to know your dob to see what makes you a good writer.

Vasudha Prakash said...

I read this piece with interest. A new perspective on the difference between the dusk and the dawn - "Dawn is responsibility, Dusk is romance..". Liked that. I find your style refreshingly honest and heartfelt:)

Anonymous said...

Blue wiping away the blues! Good one

Neha M said...

The blog written by you can be felt and give a feeling as if one is looking at his/her life, the achievements one has made and also the failures of a person's life.
An encouraging story which helps a person to fight the negativity and move toward the positive aspect of life.
Thankyou
Neha Mohgaonkar

PM said...

Being a nature enthusiast myself, who has a fondness for poetry, I adored the way you conveyed your analogies and subtly added bigger meanings to them.

Unknown said...

Life is all about living. There is no such word called "end or destination". Sky has no limits just like our thoughts.

Ankur aman said...

Sky:
Sometimes it is a blank sheet of paper, sometimes a scintillating water colour that only nature is capable of producing. It contains the sun, the moon, millions of stars and galaxies. It is so wide, open and limitless even when you are in an aeroplane you still find a sky above you. Each time when I look up at the sky, I receive the message there is no such thing as destination. It is the journey that matters. So keep on moving with your best efforts.