Lessons from Nature: Flexibility

    Reading the title itself must have made you curious. Yes! It’s about flexibility, literally and metaphorically. The next question that arises is, is flexibility here about the yoga asanas or a virtue? Yes, it is about the virtue, I believe like other virtues flexibility too helps us to live better lives and also improve the lives of those around us.

    It has taken me quite a few days to come to the conclusion that you’ll find as you continue reading. Most of my learning or reflections are sudden insights but this has come out of a lot of observation. There are mostly strong winds here at my week-long temporary abode. The mighty winds make even the strongest trees sway according to their tune. The tiny ones are really at the mercy of the wind and are turned and tossed as it commands them. I saw them, pitied them and called them weak. Ironically the next morning they stand tall once again. Later during the day, I saw a man clearing up the wild growth of weeds, but he ignores these tiny plants, firstly because they look beautiful and secondly because they are weak and tiny and anyone could walk past them or trample them easily.  While focusing his attention on the more rough and harsh plants, the man stamped over these tiny plants. When I revisited the place the same evening I saw these plants standing tall again and I was surprised.

    Lightning, thunder and heavy rain all night, the destruction was massive. Huge trees were uprooted and were kissing the ground in the morning when I saw them. The strong flow of water had washed down the soil from the hills and flooded the plains. Though I enjoyed the rain and the cool all night, I was unhappy with the destruction. I came out for a walk more out of curiosity than routine. I saw the tiny plants and the long blades of grass completely flat as the water had found its way over them to nearby ponds and rivers. Finally, everyone succumbed to the pressure of the rain and the wind. I went back as it was still cold and a little windy.

    The sun began shining brightly by 11 am, I came out once again and to my astonishment, these plants with the tiny yellow flowers were standing tall once again, not as beautiful as before but they were standing. These tiny beautiful yellow flowers are wild but they can beautify any garden or bouquet. They shine as the sun shines, sway as the wind blows, grow as the rain pours, and withstand practically anything because they are flexible.

    We need to be flexible to the changes around us. We often make our lives miserable because we always want things to happen and for people to behave the way we want. We sometimes need to bend and bow so that we can stand again. We often are crushed and destroyed because we are not humble enough to accept other person’s points of view and in the bargain, we are sometimes so miserable that we are unable to rise again. Oh gosh! These cows are marching towards me….. they just trampled over these plants. They aren’t broken they are standing once again. These plants are amazing.

    Moral: Let us be flexible so that we can, not just survive but also thrive.

Lessons from Nature: Living together

 

I’m sure we have all seen fish in the aquarium. They are so beautiful; shiny, unique, colourful, fancy and attractive. This aquarium which has inspired me is in a house that is already surrounded by natural beauty; rugged trees, smokey hills, swaying plants, strongly blowing winds, creeping insects, wiggling worms, hoping frogs and crickets and chirpy birds. I had to describe the surroundings because the aquarium gets less attention, unlike the city aquariums since here the ambience is different.

There is something special about this aquarium, it houses a variety of fish – a black aquarium Shark, Kois, Glowing tetras, Black-skirt tetras, Swordtails, Shubunkins, common Goldfish, Fan-tailed Goldfish and even an Angelfish. I observed the aquarium continually because I was surprised by the variety in a single aquarium.

I sat near the aquarium like a great thinker. I felt good about myself and wanted to observe something poles apart that no one has observed and share it with my friends. I was already feeling like the great Isaac Newton and thought that the fourth law of motion will be formulated by me. It was already 15 minutes, nothing unusual yet. I was as bored as the aimlessly wandering lone black Shark in the tank. I felt as useless as the solitary Angelfish. I too wanted to spit bubbles like the Goldfish and clean the pebbles like the Kois.  I would at least be doing something rather than whiling away time. The sudden sprint of the swordtail across the tank disturbed my trend of melancholic thoughts. I realized that the fish though so different were living together. They had no choice but to choose their companions. Similarly, we too are just placed in firms, communities, society, industry, teams, groups, etc. Do we just coexist or do we live well?

These fish are very different with different temperaments, but they are living together. I’m sure they haven’t fought because every fin and tail of every single fish was beautiful and unharmed. Can we take a clue from these fish though unique, living together sharing and caring? The sight in the tank is mesmerizing; the tiny tetras giving way to the impatient Goldfish, the Koi cleaning the huge Shark, and the swordtails making way for the slow and graceful Angel. I’m sure they must have taken time to adjust, but the way they are living together now looks like they have done a course in group dynamics. We rational and social human beings have all the more reasons to live well. Not just tolerate each other but to help, support and adjust so that everyone is happy.

Moral: Even apples can coexist in a basket with mangoes and many other fruits. Let us live together caring for each other and adjusting to make others comfortable.

Lessons from Nature beyond the Background

Isn’t the water lily a grandiose flower? I’m sure many will agree with me as soon as their eyes witness the image that is below. This water lily is growing in a large artificially made pond. It is the highlight of the garden. Its beauty can attract attention from any corner of the compound. Every passerby makes brief stops so that the beauty of this plant refreshes the mind. I did the same and drew nearer. At a closer look, I noticed something. Oh yuck! There are dead guppies (tiny fish) turning white, an ugly greenish-brow frog, a lot of decomposing leaves, and dead insects floating as though there was a Tsunami and that’s not it; these beautiful flowers are growing in some stinky black muck. Sorry for all the unpleasant descriptions, but that’s the reality. More importantly, this description is needed because it created confusion in my mind but that quickly turned into inspiration.

“You become exactly what you surround yourself with, it is a human inevitability that you will be influenced by your surroundings, which is why it is important to choose who you surround yourself very carefully.” This is a direct quote from a research study. Psychology teaches us that we behave the way we behave because of our upbringing and surrounding (but at the same time psychology doesn’t deny human efforts that can make persons totally different despite of his or their surroundings). This water lily doesn’t fit the description, it’s not like the surrounding. You would argue saying that it’s a plant and the research study is about human beings. You are correct, but there is no harm in learning from these plants.

            This water lily is an inspiration and a motivation for those who curse their surrounding for their character or personality. The water lily instead of getting rotten and awful by the stinky surrounding uses it to its advantage. It uses the decomposing leaves and dead fish as manure and springs up rather than getting polluted by it. It doesn’t allow the ugly-looking frog to steal away the show; it outshines it with its beauty. The lush green leaves gloriously float on the dirty black water. The plant grows rapidly and covers up the pond leaving the muck in darkness. This water lily by its efforts to make a difference makes its surrounding more beautiful.

We do not need huge changes. A little inspiration and a lot of determination on our part can change our lives and we in turn can be an inspiration to others. There are so many people in this world who blame and curse their surroundings and upbringing. Some point fingers even at society for their flaws. We have watched movies that portray a robber's son becoming a robber and likewise but some others inspire the world by bringing a change. Research in personality science points to the possibility that personality traits can change through persistent intervention and major life events. We know of Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the best footballers to have graced the football field has come from a very poor background and had no one in his family who would play the sport. Hard work and determination have made him the best. Let us stop blaming our surroundings and make efforts to stay afloat and prosper.

Moral: Let not our surroundings determine our future, we have the potential to change our life.