Gems at Our Doorsteps

One of the readers (on another e-journal) responds copiously to articles. Immediately, after a compliment, he tears the entire piece apart, without suggesting any possible options. This he does with other writers, also. I suspect that his destructive tendencies emanate from his leftist leanings. Always with a chip on his shoulder! He also responded similarly to my piece 'Hawaii, A Personal Journal'. He thanked me for acquainting him with Hawaii and the Pacific. Then he lamented that these pleasures are available only to the rich, and how they evade the youth of India, like him. I counted ten and then penned these lines to him:

"During my childhood, my only source of knowing the outside world was the radio. My favorite program was the weekly BBC travel show, 'Those far away places'. Its signature tune was a haunting song crooned by Bing Crosby, 'Those far away places, with those strange-sounding names......' Each week we got a tantalizing sound picture of the week's destination. With sounds of local festivals, folk songs, processions, temple bells and so on. Possibly, that is what sowed the seeds of wanderlust in me. Surely, this program also included places in India, Ceylon and Nepal. I used to stare at maps in my school atlas and dream, conjuring up visions of being transported there. Much later I picked up a book, 'India, Nepal and Sri Lanka on $5 a Day'. As a student I have crisscrossed my country and its neighbors on a budget. Visiting Bhutan, I experienced the last Shangri La, as conjured up in James Hilton's book 'Lost Horizon'. This is the only country, where the Swiss-educated wise King has introduced the concept of measuring GNH (Gross National Happiness) and not the indices used by rest of the world for measuring material well being, like GNP (Gross National Produce)

Discovering that 'far away India', in your own backyard can also give us a thrill of a lifetime. I traveled only with my backpack, jean, jerkin, my faithful camera and a great book for my companion, not knowing where I was going to sleep that night. Have about 800 slides of the Himalayan region itself. I can send you the link for a slideshow of just a few of thousands of slides of my own country. I thought, I knew well Old Delhi, my birthplace, till I chanced upon a book, 'Old Delhi: 10 Easy Walks'. I got to understand the history of our own locality Civil Lines and even our road, Sri Ram Lane, as never before. I discovered how the area was developed around the time of the Mutiny, to house English families at a safe distance from the mutineering Indian soldiers in the city. After that my locality took on an entirely new persona for me.

I am sure that you would also like to discover the gems strewn around you in your city and in your home State. It is so rich in flora and fauna and our country has dispersed its rich architectural heritage generously in every State. Taj Mahal is not the only wonder our country has to offer us. There is a rich world waiting to be discovered just at our doorsteps. Let's stir out and why 'pine for what is not'."

Promptly came his response, "I am transfixed. I have nothing to say". I hope that he too will start seeing the goodness and find much to cheer about in life.