A Cat Crossed My Path Today

A Cat- Crossed My Path today
and - Nothing happened
I stopped a moment
and continued to walk
Thinking about
The innumerable days
That had gone bad
when the Cat had'nt crossed
And the many wonderful days
when it had....
But the very fact
I spent so much time
thinking about
A harmless feline
Running across a 50 feet wide
road, with cars zipping by
At stake its lives, all 9
Speaks volumes on the effect of
inane beliefs ....on our thinking ....

Inviting Danger

Today morning while on my usual walk/jog I saw a watchman sitting on a ledge - not more than a foot deep around 6 feet above ground level. It was a dangerous pose - if he slept even a wink he would have lost his balance and fallen as there was no support - just a plain wall without any grip.

I wondered if it was his way of keeping himself entertained.Nothing compares to the monotony of a watchman's job. As I thought about it some more - I felt that by inviting a little danger upon himself he was actually doing his job better. Afterall who would want to fall half asleep from 6 feet up - but this way he was keeping himself awake. Not exactly a "Eureka" moment but - insight neveretheless.

So often we find ourselves to be more alert and awake to our surroundings when we perceive danger. In my own case it happens when I take up clients in entirely different businesses from my core areas.

But, In our pursuit of security we enclose ourselves in a cocoon - of known pathways - eschewing any event or path that may lead us into unknown territory. In the process we never get to test our instincts - there is no real need for us to develop the kind of alertness which kicks in when we are thrown into peril.

Staying away from danger is good. It helps us to stay alive.

But, zero danger ?

Would it not be better for things to go wrong when you are fully alert and aware - rather than when you are in your comfort zone - relaxed - and at peace and all of a sudden something goes wrong out of the blue.

It would be better to get into situations which involve risk - much like - jumping into the unknown with your senses on alert you would land on your feet or perhaps you might even latch on to something as yet unknown for support and make a safe landing.

Car towed

Yesterday I went to a Client meeting. I parked the car in an area where already a few cars were parked and went off.

Came back after an hour to find the Santro missing. And so were all the other cars.

For a brief moment my mouth went dry. Just a week ago I had deactivated the center locking ( pulled out all the wires leading to the siren) and the thought of increased chances of theft was in the back of my mind.

Just then I looked up to see the No Parkig sign at a distance of 40-50 feet.That raised my hopes. :) . I checked with a couple of guys - they did'nt seem to be aware of any police towing. A third guy, sitting in a triwheeler for handicaps, correctly informed that a Santro got towed and would be available at so and so location.

So off I marched to this place. Got greeted by a Traffic sub-inspector gleefully sipping tea. In fact he offered a cuppa to me , which I politely refused. The bill 400 bucks.

As the transaction progressed he took my details and on knowing my Profession he revealed that his son-in-law who had finished Masters in SW in London was back in India in search of a Job.I gave my usual dope on doing whatever best I could to help his SIL.

As it turned out his son and Daughter In Law were both in well known Software firms.
I was quite surpised. My views of the Traffic Police moved several notches in the positive direction.

In future when I have an opportunity to interact with a member of this tribe I might give a genuine smile.