Prejudicial thoughts

We came into earth equal with everything. As unfamiliar as that may seem, it is a disappointment that we have forgotten each and every one of us came with rights. What right, have we to disregard people of what they should have or should not have. Quoting our national pledge, it is indeed “regardless of race, language or religion “

It was a really mellow Wednesday morning. The kinds that blindside you and makes you want to just sit down lay back and do nothing. Think rain was pretty heavy in the wee hours of the morning and hence making the sky look so dead sleepy as if day would never fall, but yet night would never come. Anyways, I couldn’t help but keep my eyes on this family. It played in my mind how family meant and how it really matters no matter who you are. There were 5 of them, a daughter, two brothers who were all little kids a granny and her mother. Anyhow, they were a cute bunch. Know how trains have these two-seater seats and like a window pane and how opposite there’ll be another window pane? That was the situation. The granny and the daughter were on the two-seater and the two brothers with the mom one standing mischievously and another on the lap of their mother. Their smiles were priceless and they really caught my eye despite my constant wanting to doze off.

Stop after stop I watched them until at one stop, an Indian man came in. I would think he was in his mid twenties? Despite his really shabby look, I would think so. He was dressed in the normal pants, a brown shirt that looked rather crumpled and slippers. He had an unkempt and it was clear that he was no one influential. It came to me straight away that he was someone dirty and uncouth. I really felt disgusted at the first sight. I definitely felt we were different and put him in a category that was labeled dirty and stupid in my thoughts. It wasn’t that bad to be honest. But when I saw him I really felt zero cleanliness around myself even though he was sitting opposite me. Yes, you could say I was really racist about such things and really raise the bar this time round. I ignored his presence and soon sprang back into my observation of that loving family.

By this time, the second boy standing got really restless and ran towards the granny where he quickly got on her lap on that side of the window pane. The two brothers looked at each other in much playfulness through the two window panes. The granny, abruptly but aptly, pushed the brothers face into the screen to make his face look squashed and his nose look somewhat like a pig. The mother laughed from the other seat finding things really funny and it was not long before the boy on her side pressed his face on the pane to look extremely funny. Around me, people were either sleeping or just not paying attention to the love between this family. I laughed at them out of pure envy and adoration of the naivety and cuteness of the kids. As I laughed, I turned back only for my eyes and the Indians eyes to meet, at a time of which both of us were laughing, at the same thing. It felt like thunder struck in my heart. A rude awakening I must say.

Regardless of how different we looked, what color we were or how our lives were like, we contained the right to know what happiness was, to smile to feel and to express. In that train, on a day where my thoughts were prejudicially inclined against Indians, a family changed that. What right had I to condemn who he was when it was something he could not control? Every one of us is different in our own way. If I may quote again,” Regardless of race language or religion”, we all have rights to happiness and knowing what that is. The smile is ours and so is our right. In that very cabin, the happiness of a family brought two different people in unison, for me at least to realize that we were equal. All of us are.

Night.