The Pursuit of Maturity
A journey that begins with gratitude
Sara was in love, her first love. The truly, madly, deeply, soul-filling, and the most special kind of love. Just a call from him would lift her spirit, no matter how bad the situation was. She was so much in love that she expected nothing from the relationship, neither she took time to understand what she wanted for herself from it. After 5 years of courtship, they finally tied the knot, in a dreamy private wedding kind of affair. She was all excited and ready to step into her new phase of life with heaps of dreams and expectations, firmly believing that she had found her happily ever after.
Little did she know that her life had just begun. There were a bunch of emotions at her doorstep, patiently waiting for the right time to step in. Slowly life taught her that her expectations didn’t have any place in the actual world, and life is not as perfect and romantic as portrayed in the mills and boons series. There is a reason why it falls under ‘romantic fiction’…
Sara learned her lessons hard, she realized how immature she was to have all those expectations in the first place, eventually to find herself hurt beyond words. On the other hand, we find some set of people who have their outlook right from the start; they know how to view life in a realistic and mature angle. Do you think Sara could have handled her situations better, so she could have saved herself from all the hurt? Alternately, what teaches some folks’ maturity at early stages in their life? Doesn’t maturity need the time or a certain age to set in?
Maturity has a lot to do with our life experiences and the way we choose to perceive our lives, rather than the age of a person. I have seen young people who are well matured beyond their age and have equally met adults who act childish.
Most of the time it sets its foot amidst the deepest scars in one’s life. Imagine the instance of an unfortunate child from any of the developing nations, who is forced to work from dawn to dusk at a tender age for a meager wage of $5. The longing on the child’s eye for school education, good food, and a loving childhood is inhumanly daunting. But eventually, after enduring immeasurable pain and agony, he would have accepted his ill-written fate. With a hope that one day he will rewrite his future. For souls like this child, the journey of maturity begins here.
Life is not fair! And most of us would have realized this in our lives. Instead of throwing tantrums like a silly child, one could gracefully learn to accept the reality and work towards their best shot at life.
Power of Gratitude
I recently volunteered for an event, organized specially for differently-abled children. The NGO I volunteered for, had come up with an exciting day for the children, in a sincere attempt to provide the kids a break from their mundane school activities. Close to 500 kids took part, and we had an entire set of activities planned for them — starting with scrumptious breakfast followed by singing, dancing, skits, open field activities, brief educational sessions, and more.
For the volunteers, the day started early at 7:00 am. The pre-decorated venue was shining in colors, which we had pulled off with limited resources and time. Some volunteers were working at the cafeteria preparing the tables to serve food. Some were at the auditorium, ensuring all logistics were in place. And few enthusiastic volunteers draped up in costumes like Mickey and Pikachu, ready to greet and entertain our young guests for the day. All the volunteers mentioned here were working professionals who had volunteered despite their hectic work schedule, in the hope to contribute towards their community.
The buses started arriving one by one. The children inhabited the venue with their contagious smile and enthusiasm, ready to explore what’s in store for them. The day went as planned and we pulled off a fun-filled day. We all worked 12 hours straight, from 7:00 am to 07:00 pm on a Sunday, and not a single person complained.
It was a soul awakening moment for all of us. For the teachers managing the kids, the volunteers, the employees of NGO, for we all had the privilege to witness one unanimous thing. It’s the choice of the children to showcase gratitude. Not a single kid took that day for granted. They ensured that they conveyed their heart-filled appreciation and gratitude to all of us for providing them a memorable day - a gesture hard to find these days.
Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for — Zig Ziglar
How many of us practice this in real life? To feel grateful, for the very fact that we are alive this very moment? We all are so busy comparing our lives to the Instagram version of our friends and family, and in due process, we fail to live and count our blessings. Gratitude doesn’t change what we have in front of us, it just changes the way we choose to see what we have. It is one of the hallmarks of maturity as a human being.
The next time when you are upset about being passed over for a promotion. For not able to afford the Paris vacation you always dreamed of. For not able to own the ultra-macho Porsche. For not able to get hold of the latest iPhone or for not able to click that perfect Insta worthy picture to flaunt to your friends. Just take a moment to feel grateful for all the blessings you have, for we never know what’s in store for us next.
And the moment you realize this, cheers mate, you are on a profound start to the lifelong pursuit of maturity. After all, no one knows if they could ever master it, but it’s always the pursuit… that’s meaningful!!
