Just a long long drive...

Maddening rush
Keeping pace with 9 to 5
A lot we miss under the sun
A lot to keep awake at late night
How far we shall bear?
How much we will sacrifice?
Life is not a complex labyrinth
But a long long drive…

A sip of chai with your love
Hide and Seek with your child
Listening to your Dad's old wisdom
A return smile when a stranger smiled
It won't cost us money
It will bring twinkle in our eyes
Life is not a complex labyrinth
But a long long drive…

Burn midnight oil growing up
Slog to keep up in the race
Miss all in unwanted seriousness
Nothing of it, we will take to our graves
Why drench in overloaded clamor?
Why we over-surmise?
Life is not a complex labyrinth
But a long long drive…

I watched this documentary on Chief Official White House Photographer, Pete Souza and stumbled upon this interesting part where President Obama tells ’Why we shouldn’t take life too seriously’ in reference to a picture which was displayed in White House Gallery for a year and a half.

I quote President Obama,

"A little boy came with his family. He was the son of someone who works at the White House. It couldn't been more than 3 or 4 years old. And he very boldly told me that people told him that he and I have the same hair cut. He want to see that if that was true. I put down my head so he could examine my hair and helpfully pointed out all the grey hair and he decide to pat me on the head, just to get a feel for it. I took that picture and it stayed there for whole year and a half, just because it reminds you not to take yourself too seriously. If a 3 year old can pat you on the head in the Oval Office then you are probably keeping your sense of humor."

If the most important person on Earth can feel so, we should also take a break and think about unburdening ourselves. As…

Life is not a complex labyrinth
But a long long drive…

Just, Enjoy it!


P. S. - Forward the video to 59 secs to watch this part.
*Image Source - Youtube Video

Comments

  1. What a wonderful reminder to ENJOY life!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Woww.. Life beautifully portrayed! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. All said and done, Obama should be more serious! But ya, all of us lesser mortals, should follow ur words,print them and paste them in our office cubicles! :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wish everyone would be so... well written :-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. thoroughly loved and enjoyed this one Saru..the poem as deep as the awersome President Obama..often an entire lifespan passes and only when wisdom dawns upon us we realize the luminosity of beautiful life..your posts particularly the poems reflect beautifully the timeless reality of life..throughout shimmering with the eternal truth..the show must go on~

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great message there -- something we ought to be reminded of from time to time. And that picture is sure precious!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Indeed life is not to be taken too seriously but enjoyed as a long drive! Lovely anecdote at the end, Saru:)

    ReplyDelete
  8. long drives are always enjoyable .. well written as always :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Firsst thing I observed after reading the post is the pics whch occupy almost the whole page !

    such a cute anecdote and a lovely lesson!
    Like they say dont take ur self too seriously. No one else takes

    ReplyDelete
  10. A lovely read Saru. Life is nothing but a long, long drive..so true.

    ReplyDelete
  11. RIghtly said Saru. It reminds me of William Henry Davies' lines-
    " What is this life if, full of care,
    We have no time to stand and stare."

    ReplyDelete
  12. A reminder to live life the way one should be.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I totally agree. While running after different things in life we forget the most important thing we need to do with it i.e. Live !

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hah now that is something!!
    Life isnt meant to be seriously taken!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Very true! Life's a very very long drive but the road is getting murkier by the day. Good reminder to enjoy life.

    ReplyDelete
  16. A beautiful way to enjoy life!!! And a wonderful video Saru!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Thank you for this special post Saru!! The thoughts embedded in the poetry is intriguing,

    ReplyDelete
  18. Wish th world had a little more of those

    ReplyDelete
  19. Loved the pic and the gesture shown by Obama is also great...:) Very well worded Saru and thanks for sharing...:)

    ReplyDelete
  20. Nice gesture from Mr. President.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I loved your poem and I adore Obama..:)

    ReplyDelete
  22. Lovely Post, Saru! Great lesson to keep in mind!
    Congrats for your Asian paints win :) Take the prize seriously! :)

    ReplyDelete
  23. Saru...u r an amazing writer...u put big thoughts in simple words!

    Ur blogs r worth reading at all times :)

    ReplyDelete
  24. It gives us a lovely message. I will try to implement it sincerely. :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Very glad to see a post about the hectic pace of most people's life... boy can I relate to this one! We all need to be reminded to stop and enjoy life every bit that we can.

    Thanks for another great post, and for that video. Loved it! :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. Indeed our life is a long long drive :) Good one Saru :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. Well, I don't believe much of what Obama says. But yes, Life is a long, long drive, and not a complex labyrinth. The poem was good enough and the point you brought up is genuine - the pace and situations of life kills most of what life means to us actually.

    ReplyDelete
  28. So beautifully written about hope and inspiration as we tread on the long and complex journey. Love every word, Saru:)

    ReplyDelete
  29. This picture is of the time when this kid wanted to see if Obama had the same hair as his, and Obama had gladly bowed down before him :) :)

    ReplyDelete
  30. @Everyone - Thanks a ton for reading and for your generous comment.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Bricks, brickbats, applause - say it in comments!

Popular posts from this blog

यूँ दो चार घंटे के लिए नहीं

Rewind - September 2023

Death of a Nation