So today I was the store with my Mom and we were walking by the chocolate aisle. I picked up a bag of candies that I thought may work but later changed my mind and was too lazy to go drop it back off where I had found it. I still remember her voice in my head from my childhood “always put back things where you found them.” We had walked further away from the chocolate aisle continuing with our grocery shopping. As I changed my mind I just put the chocolate down close to another area, then she said “Oh Sameyh beta (means child in Hindi) you should put this chocolate bag where you found it and she immediately took it back to where it had belonged. Even though, I had realized I’d be making someone else work harder to return that item back where it belonged, I still put it down there because I didn’t feel like going all the way back to drop it off from it’s section. Point being, even though this is such a minuscule thing in the big scheme our lives but this is how it can begin, why should someone else take charge of my mistake, carelessness or laziness. This incident was interesting for a few reasons. One, it made me realize as her actions often do that her love, care and selflessness is unconditional it makes me a better person even in the hectic moments of life. Similarly, next time it may not be as small as putting something back where you found it or even dropping off your grocery cart in the lane where attendants pick them up from. I believe that if we are cognizant to realize these things as we take action but still choose to ignore the right thing to do then it can tie a small karma to our soul. Next time, it could be something bigger like being too lazy to return something you borrowed from a friend, which could impact your relations. Or it could be something like not returning a loan back, or leaving extra work for a colleague to do. Many bigger or negative habits take birth from our small small habits as we grow older, don’t they? So I say pay attention to the small details in life and then make an analogy to other possible potential bigger mistakes that could be made as they often become your habit. Please use and muse.
A Happy Humanity Begins with Striving for the Utopian Self! Sameyh’s Blog