If you had to be stuck in some of the worst traffic in the world in one of the top polluted and densely populated cities for more than two hours every day, how would you feel?
Would you still feel like life is okay? Would you still be creative?
A few days ago, while I was out doing some work and stuck in traffic, this is what was on my mind. How life is very different here!
And all I could think of is how we expect the people to be creative. How we can be the leaders, the inventors, and the change makers for the world when we are struggling for every penny?
Rickshaw- the man-pulled tricycle is still a popular vehicle in our daily lives.
The man who pulled me for $1.20 for the whole ride was covered in sweat after the ride. I could do nothing!
And the thing is, I'm also not living a lavish life. Maybe better than many but we have our struggles. Life is not easy here. Giving them handouts now and then doesn't solve any problem in the long run.
Yes, there are many programs, and many NGO's, and the government is trying to solve the issues. But it's a long run. And seems like no matter how much effort we give, we are still falling behind.
"Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up." — Pablo Picasso
This thought reminded me of the quote above.
It's not like people are not creative here. Rather I would say, because of the circumstances, they are more creative to mask their vulnerability. But they can't flourish after a certain time.
We need to give up our dreams, and our creative thoughts to make a living, to feed our family. And it's not for a luxurious life but I'm talking about everyday bread and butter.
Many still earn only $1 or a few dollars in a day. Can you believe that?
We all have our struggles. But living in a system where we continuously have to fight for the very basic needs is kind of crazy. I see the fight every day. It's a pain to go through like this and see people living like this.
No magic word can change the situation nor do I have a wand. No individual solution is enough. We need many more things to make a better system.
I'm never sure if that would be possible in the next 50 years, let alone in my lifetime!
It's weekend and I'm talking about all the depressing things. No need to take this rant seriously. We will continue to live like this and try to be happy and creative! Maybe things will change.
Have a good day, everyone.
