Nickel n dime me!

Living in the US without a dish TV connection can make you feel pretty disconnected from people back home in a very uselessly wasted way...if you know what I mean! Everybody I know has something to share about what's new on Indian TV channels. And in any conversation...I just hate to say I am clueless about the topic. I am no desi TV junkie but I watch anything that my brother or friends recommend. It somehow makes me feel more connected to my friends' world back in India. I like that.

So recently he asked me to watch this show called "Love 2 hate u". Totally seemed like one of those junk shows on mtv, but I still watched it. The show starts with a celebrity coming face to face with one of his/her biggest critics, and after that it just meanders through depths of sheer idiocy. No real result, just a silly hate-o-meter that the host abruptly ends the show with!

I happened to watch this one episode where a girl called herself the greatest critic of Chetan Bhagat. Loud disclaimer here - I do not appreciate his books in any way at all. So much that I did not mind giving away my copies of his books...which is extreme given that I don't even let anyone borrow my books. 

But I am not the kinds who easily criticizes anything publicly. Or at least I no longer do that. And I think I stopped doing that way before some other people my age did. In fact I have come to be a person who doesn't have very strong views about other people's business. I feel everyone has a place in this world. I might or might not like what they do...but I am definitely ok with them doing it. 

And today when I saw this girl bitterly criticizing this man for what he does, it filled me with pity for her. And then Chetan Bhagat said just what I could have never pointed out myself..."You can tell when someone is missing love in their life". Spot on. 

Love, I think has a lot to do with who I am now. It made me way more tolerant than I ever was. It made me look for the positive in everything. Of course I no longer get to enjoy heated discussions about "random stuff" or prove my point to anyone anymore but I guess I can live without it. Accepting that everyone is entitled to their opinion and 'love' more importantly, has set me free!

I felt pity for her because by being obsessed with her opinion and not willing to see anyone else's perspective, she is rejecting a lot of goodness and missing out on the most beautiful things in life.

Back when I was like her, I felt like I could stay happy with just a few people who really understood me and that will be enough for life. But I realized that by being open to people's beliefs and actions, I allowed myself to grow and fill my life with a lot of peace...which I absolutely treasure now. And my relationships feel just as meaningful as ever.

I know life doesn't always stay the same. Sometimes I wish I still had the energy to speak up against things I dislike, but in a more saner state, I am glad I don't. The last thing I want is to be a prisoner in my own head.

Its nice that people change. Some of us need it.