Noel Manuel
Kayaking is a fascinating water sport and the manner in which the kayaks are maneuvered through the mad gush of flowing currents in the midst of unseen rocks poses a high risk and is often seen as life threatening. Even though the currents and boulders are unpredictable, what really makes the sport dangerous is the fact that those who maneuver the kayaks can hardly escape the onslaught because of the style in which their bodies are positioned, trapped in the lower part of the hull throughout the rigorous journey.
Kayaking may be an interesting water sport to watch, but the sailing is never smooth. The real thrill, according to some friends, who got a taste of the excitement, comes from the success of a smooth landing – devoid of the cuts, bruises, cracked hull or even a broken paddle, that is so widespread in most cases.
To think of it, kayaking is similar to the journey that we call ‘LIFE’ – Where the sailing is never smooth, but the best that you and I can hope for is a smooth landing. The unpredictable dangers and unforeseen problems that surround the kayaks are half as much as the dangers and problems that surround each of us in our day-to-day lives. And most of these dangers and problems, almost 70 percent of it, exist during our youth.
Small and rickety fishing trawlers that leave the coast of Chennai to earn a daily living encounter some of the most difficult situations in the not so friendly sea. These dangers and problems have become a way of life and what makes these fishermen so daring is that they have learnt to accept and tame these dangers and problems with solutions. And the greatest solution that these fishermen could hope for is to have a safe landing, even if the catch is not as big as they may have expected.
Most of us, mainly our youth, are enslaved with problems of different kinds in this day-to-day journey of life. No individual can claim that he or she does not have a problem or situation on hand. Can the sea coast ever boast of being calm? The solution that you and I are looking at is to have a safe landing at the end of our day-to-day journey. And how do we go about doing that? Before we discuss this any further, I would like to narrate a short story of two boys who had gone trekking.
No sooner had they reached the base of a small mountain, the boys began strapping on their hiking shoes. After a couple of hours of rigorous climbing, they finally reached the top. The boys’ ecstasy of having reached the summit was however short lived. A bear had appeared out of nowhere and the boys’ happiness soon turned to fear. The journey to the top of the mountain had also brought about the end to their journey of life, they thought. The younger of the two acted quickly and began removing his hiking shoes before slipping into his sneakers. The friend appreciating his younger colleague’s idea started to do the same. Soon, both the friends were running for their lives and fortunately the sneakers had saved the day for them. On reaching safe ground, the older friend congratulated his younger counterpart and said, “The idea of changing into sneakers was a good presence of mind to outrun the bear.” To which the younger friend replied, “I changed into my sneakers to actually outrun you and not the bear.”
Our presence of mind and bravery to act in situations can sometimes become a life saving measure for us. Situations, expected or unexpected, are programmed to happen however and wherever we choose to go about in our day-to-day activities. The objective from each of these situations is to prepare ourselves for a smooth landing.
Passenger aircrafts are very particular about weather conditions before they take off and landing. The meteorological office constantly feeds information to ensure that aircrafts land smoothly and safely. But weather too, can’t always be predicted or speculated and more so in cases where flying exceeds more that 12 to 14 hours across different continents. Turbulent weather conditions often force aircrafts to change directions and forced landings are not common. But forced landings too need assistance and to ensure that every landing is as safe and smooth, the Instrument Landing System (ILS) has been installed in key airports all across the world.
Irrespective of the turbulent weather conditions or the mad gush of water and unpredictable boulders that we encounter in our day-to-day lives, and in reality we all do, the thrill from each of these experiences is to have a safe landing.
As youngsters, we are constantly in the midst of turbulent storms that come out of nowhere and though many of us are not so professional in planning a safe landing, we are also unwilling to divert ourselves to other destinations for the time being. Things will not always go as planned nor will they get any better despite our best efforts. As a matter of fact, you and I may not actually land ourselves in the destination that we have planned. But the truth is that whatever and wherever the objective and destination, the actual purpose of this journey of ‘LIFE’ is to return to the harbor safely.
Planning our landing largely depends on how we choose to live our lives. As mentioned before that 70 percent of our life’s problems occur during our youth, it is equally relevant to understand that the turning point in our lives in what we choose to become and how we decide to do that is decided upon when we are in the exciting days of our youth. The landing strip on the runway or the harbor and even the calm waters that pour out at the bottom of the waterfall has to be prepared by us and more importantly at a time when most of the situations are actually taking place in our lives.
Youth, who are fast getting addicted to drugs, alcohol and other substances are not the only cause of concern nor is this the solitary bone of contention. We also have many, who, despite their degrees and diplomas, remain unemployed for years together. These are situations that confront us daily and unlike the weather, that can’t be predicted, we can see these occurrences unfold before our eyes on a day-to-day basis. This is an advantage for us because we can see it. And what can be seen can’t be ignored.
The kayaks can’t predict boulders or the mad gush of water currents. The fishermen can’t see the next approaching wave nor can they predict a storm. The boys could not see the dangers that waited for them on the mountain top. Passenger flights can’t see the runway during inclement weather and so they depend on the ILS for smooth landings and take-offs.
The bad news for us is that our lives are forever bound to encounter violent storms in this journey called ‘LIFE.’ Most of which, takes place during the days of our youth - Our experiences with drugs, alcohol, substance abuse, unemployment, anti-social activities, idling our time and wasting of money. But at the end of every day, we can rest our hope on some good news as well. The thought of whether we have actually managed to brave the storm and save our boat by returning safely to the harbor.
noelmanuel@rediffmail.com
The writer is the Bureau Chief (Nagaland) of Eastern Panorama (News Magazine of the Northeast), Coordinator of the Northeast Region (Poetry Society of India) and Life Member of the Poetry Society of India, Phonetics Trainer.
