Recently, I got an opportunity to spend some time with an infant of 7 months old. Generally,I am not so great at engaging and playing with children. My husband engages children very well. He is loving, kind and patient and automatically becomes the favorite person of children. This time, for a change, I spent some time with this infant.
This little girl is a beautiful child like every other child. Her smile is enchanting. She stares into the other person’s eyes without battling her eye lids. Sometimes, I wonder if this girl practiced tratak in her past life. That’s the kind of intensity with which she stares at people’s faces. And when I look into her eyes, they feel so innocent and carry some kind of purity.
This is a small incident which happened with this child but it taught me something profound.I had my mobile near me and she wanted to hold it.I kept it away from her. She again tried to get it. This time, I got a curious thought. I wanted to see how many times will she try to get the mobile.I wanted to test her. So, I brought the mobile near her and when she tried to grab it, I moved it away. I thought she will cry.
No. She did not cry. Now, I became more curious to know her strength and perseverance. So I brought the mobile near her for 5 more times. She tried to grab it all 5 times.I wanted to still test her. So, I tried 20 times(yes,I counted). And I was amazed that she tried all 20 times to get the mobile. What fascinated me more was her attitude in these 20 times. I had below observations about her in these attempts.
- She gave her best try to get the mobile all 20 times.
- She is not disappointed when I took away the mobile from her after each attempt. She did not cry or feel bad.
- She trusted me even after many failed attempts.
- She had hope and continued giving her best even at 20th attempt.
- She did not give up trying.
- After 20th try, I gave her the mobile as I initiated the game and it would be unfair on my part if I denied her the joy of success. Once I gave her the mobile, she took it and kept it in her mouth.I took it away now as it is unhealthy for her. She did not cry at all and she moved on to another activity. She did not care about the mobile.Though she tried 20 times to get the mobile, when it is taken away, she was ok with it. She demonstrated detachment beautifully.
This experience made me reflect about my life and my attitude. Can I be like this little girl who tries to achieve her goal with passion and zest even after 20 failed attempts? Can I be so detached in life? Can I trust my Guru and God when I get a failure? Can I let go of situations when they are beyond my control? Can I accept loss?
Well, my answer is no to these questions because I am a kind of person who becomes upset with my Guru when things go wrong in life.I give up certain goals when I cannot achieve them even after multiple attempts. I am attached to people and things. I lose my hope at times. So, this infant taught me the attitude which I should strive to develop in me, when things don’t happen like I wish or plan.This infant taught me that I have a long way to go.
Apart from this, I also noticed that in general,many infants carry certain traits.
- They just care about the present moment. They are not bothered about the past hurts and they are not worried about their future. They live moment to moment.
- They are quick to move on when things don’t happen their way.
- They have curiosity for life.
We all were infants once and had these qualities. In the process of growing up, somewhere we lost them. How beautiful our lives will become when we can embrace these traits of a child! May be, children come into our lives to remind us of our true nature. May be, they come to inspire and teach us something about life through their innocence and purity.
Thank you little girl for teaching me these insights. Next time when I fail, I will remember you and find my inner strength. I will try to be as hopeful as you are. I will keep trying.Thank you.
And my gratitude to every child out there. Thank you each one of you for being so awesome and inspiring. May the blessings of Guru and God be with you.
Sarve Jana Sukhino Bhavanthu!