I usually take something to read when I go to the toilet. This morning, I couldn't find anything to read, so I took my mobile with me. I logged into Facebook, after a long time, and began checking out what other people were upto in their lives.
As I was scrolling, I came across a couple of videos which left a lasting impression on me. The first one goes like this.
Guy in an SUV looks at guy in Ferrari and thinks "Look at him in a sports car". Guy in a sedan looks at guy in SUV and thinks "I too wanna do off-roading someday". Guy in an old cheap car looks at guy in sedan and goes "When will I have a new and shiny car". Guy riding a bicycle on the road looks at guy in the cheap car and wonders "How much more longer do I have to ride this stupid bicycle, I want a car too". Guy on foot on the road looks at guy in bicycle and thinks "A bicycle would have been so good". Finally, the camera zooms out to a small boy in a wheelchair on the porch of his house looking at the guy walking on the road and mutters longingly "He can go wherever he wants". Moral of the story: Be content and happy with whatever you have.
It was a very moving video.
I had woken up early today, so I had time, so I went on scrolling. The thing is, Facebook doesn't need you to click on the play button of videos anymore, videos just play automatically as you scroll. So the next video played. And it went like this.
This is a normal guy walking on the pavement, on his way to office. Suddenly water falls on him from an outlet from the first floor which was left open. He looks up, doesn't complain, picks up a flower pot from the side and places it right where the water falls. He walks on. He comes across a mother and a girl child sitting on the side of the road begging for money. The board read "For my daughter's education". He gives her some money and continues walking. He is having lunch at an outdoor restaurant and a dog comes to him and looks at him with hungry eyes. He feeds the dog a piece of chicken. He comes back home in the night with a bunch of bananas and places them next to his neighbor's door, an old lady who lives alone.
He does all this every day. After a few days...the same guy is walking to office - today the pot had a beautiful flower which had just bloomed, water was still falling on it from the first floor outlet. He smiles and walks on. He gives money to the beggar lady but she wouldn't take it. The next moment, her daughter comes by, in school uniform. After lunch, as he walks back to office, the dog follows him, tail wagging, pretty much wherever he went. That night, his neighbor, the old lady was waiting for him and when he came with his usual bunch of bananas, she gave him a big hug, with a wide smile and tears in her eyes. The video ends with these lines - "This man goes out of his way to help other people. He doesn't get money or fame in return. He just gets love and kindness. He makes the world a better place"
This was an even better video, almost moved me to tears.
As I came out of the bathroom, I thought to myself "Yeah, money isn't everything in life. I should stop wanting that car, or that bigger TV or that trip abroad. I should be happy with what I have"
And then I came out and saw the electricity bill lying on the table - 550Rs. Next to it was the gas bill - 300Rs. Rent is due in a few days. Credit card bill after that. Internet, grocery, maid and miscellaneous bills need to be paid too. I was charged 120Rs by Uber to come to office. Just when I got to office, sister called me and asked for some money for her expenses. Mom had called yesterday asking for some money for a master checkup which she had to do.
And then I thought to myself "I better have some f***ing money in the bank before I watched videos like those and started believing money isn't everything".
