What next?

What are you planning to do next? Where are you planning to go next? Which school for your boys? Now that you are finally settled, have you invested somewhere? How are you saving your money?

When are you expecting? When are you getting married? When do you plan to invest? What shall be your specialty subject? Do you plan to complete your residency? Do you plan to pursue residency in foreign land?

What next??????

This has always been a strange perplexing question for me. I am one of those people happily living in the present, and then someone comes and interrupts my calm. It is supposed to be general gentle banter. But it is always bound to come up. It slithers along a convenient conversation and then strikes you in the face. You know it is out there, but every time it is uttered, this question baffles me.

Talk about history, geography, culture, current affairs, emotions, feelings or even plain gossiping! You will find me in my element. Here, I am trying to live one day at a time, enjoying my present, counting my blessings. The most I can plan is for next day and after that. But the questions about an uncertain future, more precisely about my plans for the future has always put me on the back foot.

Why does everyone have such a fascination for the future. I remember lot of my class fellows, lining up to meet an astrologer or was it a palm reader? at a Rajasthani fair that we all once visited. Some sat there for fun, some pondered seriously. And one big guy got very visibly upset, when a late or null marriage was predicted for him. Understandably so! Now, I hear he is happily married to a beautiful girl.

It starts right in our childhood when affectionate well meaning elders ask us playfully, what we want to become when we grow up? The question becomes a part of our existence as we navigate through our basic secondary subjects with bare minimal understanding and the crippling question nagging us is which field? Is it maths or biology? Is it Medical or Non medical? Do I have an aptitude for science, or literature or art or commerce it is?

While in our so called professional college also, the stream of questions about our future, our choice, our pursuits, our decisions continue unabashed by our indifference. They provoke us constantly and there is nowhere to hide. Shamelessly these questions follow everywhere. Like a shadow lurking in all dark corners.

They derive unseen pleasures in questioning our choices, deriding our journey, pushing their own glorious beliefs and theories on the experiment of our life’s experiences.

Who can explain to them the futility of their actions, when we all know explicitily that in this world and all other dimensions that exist – it is always, has been and will be – Que Sera Sera – whatever will be, will be. The future is not for us to see. Que Sera Sera- what will be, will be.

No, the harbingers of these how, why, when prophesize — destiny is a design for the weak. The strong, the iron willed find their own story to carve in stones, they say. Is that true? I do not know. I have not lived long enough to know.

But I beleive in the universal truth of my inner voice or gut feeling or God or whomever is in there and leading me and guarding me. Protecting me and nourishing me. I believe that faith in this innermost spirit is the most important thing that has played a part in my life till now.

There are no regrets. Even mistakes have been a life’s learning experience. And yes, failures are stepping stone to success. Success might brings arrogance, but failures always bring humility. A true voice has its own reasons, better reasons, unknown to us. But faith in that voice is like the giant leap similar to the one which Lord Hanuman had taken once, back in treta yug. Jai Shri Ram.

Not to say, that I do not have resolutions or plans for a better me. I hope to become a better version of me every day. I hope to learn and read about our ancient scriptures. My dream is to learn atleast one form of classical dance. My aim is to imbibe good values and habits in my life. My purpose is to do best that I can everyday.

When will people come to the real questions. The questions which matter. What is the purpose of this life? What are you doing for your environment?have you unravelled the mysteries of the world around you? How close are you to defining your true self? Have you understood the enchanting world of geometry around you? Have you understood the deeper philosophy of 369 magic of Tesla?

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Have the questions about what next? ever bothered you. How have you defined your life? What are the real questions that you are working towards. Do tell.