Significance

Tiny Speck meets Cosmos

I sat on a fisherman’s bench before the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea and the one question that rose to mind as I stared at the vast expanse of gray sea (and grayer sky) was this — what is my significance?

Nature has this beautiful way of delivering a swift and effective reminder of our true significance (or lack, thereof) in the grand scheme of the universe. How different are we from the proverbial frog in the well, when in our minuscule, urban matchboxes, we take on roles that we deem crucial to solve problems that seem pressing and urgent? Of what greater value are our declarations, promises and resolutions than dry croaks that fade into nothing in a matter of moments?

We carry on through life, firmly fixed belief in our heads that we are the Galilean sun in our bubble. Meanwhile, galaxies flourish and perish, stars twinkle and die, mountains crumble to dust and new ones are created, and so on. The waves of the Arabian Sea? Oh, they keep beating upon the rocks along the Malabar coast.