Rise High !

“Rise high and touch the sky!” was what organic chemistry professor, Prof Dutta at St. Xavier’s College used to repeatedly used to say. He always had this theory of life and showered us with thousands of anecdotes where he explained how keeping a higher than possible aim landed you to the zenith of ambitious ladder. Though he is no more in this world but his voice always resonate in my ear. I have always followed this principle of achieving a little extra in all my endeavors.

Being born in middle class family, I was always fed with the concept of compromise and adjust. The sense of fear was injected like a mandatory course of meal. The deadly repercussions of performing a task was mentioned before I set sail even on a trivial voyage of daily work. How on earth would an individual succeed when he is reminded that there was always an individual called ‘failure’, waiting at just around the corner?

I don’t blame the upbringing in the middle class families. The family simply tries to protect their children from the atrocity of the otherwise cruel world. They consider that by installing fear and precaution, they are preparing their children for the harsh condition in the outside world. They may be right in their own way in performing a parental duty but what they forget in the meanwhile that the child is slowly turning into an idol, with fine spots of fear and concern. The idol may look marvelous from a distance but closer you go, you witness the reality.

Truth be told, when I asked my father for a bicycle when I was 14 years old, my proposal was turned down with a concern of me having an accident. I wasn't allowed to ride one, until I managed to sneak with my friends to learn how to ride. I was again doubted when I said that I could take mom on my bike if required. Again, I am not alone who has suffered from this over-caring syndrome which made me vulnerable and an under-prepared person in this highly competitive world. These cases are just an example. Kids are not allowed to go for swimming for the fear of being drowned, they are allowed for trekking for they may fall down.   Dear parents! You are not protecting your child by this but rather preparing them to be meek and submissive.

I was fortunate enough to be let free by my parents in taking my own decisions once I was out of school. He never interfered with career and the paths I chose. He instead supported me by all his means. But, our country does not have fathers like him. I have seen children being smothered mentally by parents when it came to choosing career options. And I am talking about adult students. None of their decisions are their own. What course to study, what tuition to take, what cloths to wear and what not. If you can't let them take their own decisions, then how on earth can he prosper when you parents are not around. Such kids always falter when they have to shift their bases from hometown. They even compromise in a big deal only to stay near his home.

Set them free, only then can they flourish and disperse in the heterogeneous surrounding. Let them rise, let them touch the sky. Make them take decisions on their own, with you being a helping hand and no more. A person is called an adult for a reason. Let them justify to the world outside that they have actually grown up.

If birds can push their offspring for them to learn to fly, let us the human take a leaf from the lesson that birds preach us for free.