On Faith, Disability, Social Media and More..

I have been reading some very interesting stuff lately: Farnam Street, Melting Asphalt, Paul Graham's Essays, and Base Hit Investing have been some of my favorites*. I have been able to identify with all of these writings quite easily. Identify , not agree. I could get where they were coming from. I shared some of these on social media...and as is the nature of the social media beast, there was hardly any intellectual curiosity induced responses...Not surprisingly, many reached out to ask "what happened?" and "why the rant?" ...It took quite some time to explain that I was sharing something I found interesting and it had nothing to do with any specific instance. Just being alive for nearly 4 decades, gives you enough experiences to identify with certain thought processes...Which led me to think on behaviour triggers and mind bending thoughts and voyeuristic curiosity.  

I love going to hubby's hospital in the afternoons. That is when babies are born mostly, and to see a new born baby and the hope and love that it is showered with makes me smile. It also makes me think of its destiny - whether it will be loved and welcomed during its lifetime and what experiences await him/her.  

The world is quite harsh on disabilities ! Many abortions take place when even minor anomalies are discovered. Well, minor is a matter of interpretation, and I am not judging anyone's choice, but it is surprising how the quest for perfection starts early - in fact, it is not even a quest for perfection, it is a quest to fit in with the world order, and to me there is a world of difference between the two ! But many seem to disagree. Exam time adds to these thoughts...Our education system is totally screwed up, and I don't have the courage to experiment with my kids. So, I move with the crowd - at least for now. 

And finally on faith - unless it helps you be a better person, it is of no use. Recently I went to a temple and my younger daughter went and touched the prasadam thali. The priest rebuked me saying I should have prevented it. I usually stay away from confrontation, but somehow the scared look on my daughter's face set me off ...I responded that as long as God doesn't have a problem, lesser mortals need not. This didn't sit quite well with the priest, and I beat a hasty retreat as I had gone there for some peace of mind and not to debate about faith. It made me realize yet again why I hated organized religion. Middlemen always exploit - that is the rule of the game, whether it is faith or agriculture or business. I once told a cousin of the hubby that I am not a believer in temples much, and the immediate response was "are you a communist?" . I just laughed that day. 

*I hope to write in depth pieces like those that I find in these blogs someday !