Something that happens during our wet monsoons is the stubborn defiance of jammed doors, unyielding windows, and cupboard drawers with an attitude that could put the most obstinate of politicians to shame.
We pull, push, heave, haul, and hoist, only to be met with rigid resistance, quite akin to an unperturbed opposition and a bullying government response.
One morning, I found myself an amused spectator to such a battle of wills. My wife, with determination written all over her face, was attempting to push a small dressing seat back into the cupboard niche I thought I had so thoughtfully designed many years ago.
But, like a spoiled, strong-willed schoolboy, the wooden piece refused to budge. It stood its ground, unmoved by my wife’s efforts. much like an immovable, uncooperative government clerk staring blankly at a file that requires urgent processing.
I hadn’t quite realized my wife possessed such muscle, but there she was, a female Dara Singh, wrestling with an equally determined Laila Ali of the wooden variety. Forgive my comparisons, but as I watched the unfolding drama, I couldn’t help but feel like I was witnessing an epic battle, one for the history books. The dressing stool, though appearing meek and harmless, had clearly made up its mind—it was not going in.
Predictably, the dressing stool won.
My wife, in a huff and with an air of deep frustration, turned to me. “Stupid seat! And stop grinning! You designed it, let’s see you put it back!”
I wasn’t about to risk a burnt breakfast, so I wisely decided to postpone my engineering skills until she left for work. Once she was gone, I approached the seat with the patience of a saint. I slowly slotted it in place, nudged it to the left, gently tapped it on top, and—without a single murmur—it slipped back into its niche, settling in as if it had never resisted in the first place.
There it sat, smug and innocent, betraying no hint of the battle it had waged earlier. As I looked at its now cooperative nature, a thought struck me—how often do we encounter a similar resistance in life?
The truth is, almost every day, we face situations that mirror this struggle, particularly in human interactions. People, much like my dressing seat, have their own rigid mindsets. They resist change, dig in their heels, and refuse to yield.
And yet, brute force—whether in the form of sheer physical effort or aggressive persuasion—rarely works.
Consider what is happening in Delhi: The ruling party with a sizable majority feels they can pass any bill, and change anything without bothering to think what the people have to say.
But the only thing that happens is that either there’s a ruckus in Parliament or the bill gets struck down later by the Supreme court.
This can also be seen in how Trump is handling the rest of the world, and will soon learn a bitter lesson with his bludgeoning attitude.
We need to learn how to tap and nudge.
You’ll be surprised at how even the most obstinate obstacles eventually yield to wisdom and gentleness.
Just ask my very pleased wife…!
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and author. He blogs at www.bobsbanter.com and can be reached at bobsbanter@gmail.com
