Essays

For most of us living in towns and cities today, the answer to the above question would be a definite Yes.

The reasons are obvious. Look at an ordinary schoolboy from an average home in a city. First and foremost, he has to go to school. After spending five hours in school everyday he needs to attend extra tuitions, swimming lessons, art lessons and various other activities so that he ran learn as many things as possible. Finally, when he arrives homo, takes hath, has his dinner and if hp is lucky, gets to watch television for a while. Then he is back to the grind; finishing his homework. Come weekends, there will be picnics, parties and other functions. In short, the poor kid has no time to relax. Whether purposefully or not he is being pushed all the time. The parents ought to realize that their child is not a superman. If pushed beyond the limits, the consequences would not be pleasant.

The result of his incessant pushing is not a well-rounded person, as is hoped, but one who does not know how to relax. This kind of person is exemplified by many adults living in the city. Such an adult is aggressive, harried, intolerant and all geared-up for success. Not everyone is going to attain roaring success. Most will not be able to. Failure becomes a dirty word, a condition that is considered shameful. So the poor trapped soul struggles to prove himself. He tries so hard to make a good 'living' that he foregets to live. He does not enjoy his life anymore. He has no time to live, really live.

To fan the flames of this hectic pace of living are innumerable amounts of consumer goods in the market, increasing rapidly with no end in sight. I remember few days back I wanted to buy a bottle of shampoo in a local mall. I picked a bottle and looked at it. That was my undoing. Two salesgirls pounced on me and insisted that I buy another brand they were promoting. They had anti-dandruff, conditioner for dry hair, oily hair etc. After a couple of minutes of continued hassling, I walked out empty-handed. I bought my bottle of shampoo from a sundry shop in my locality.

That is just an example of how hectic our lives have become. Maybe some of us are already numbed by the amount of advertisements on television, radio and the newspaper. What do they all preach? Invariably their products are the best. By using their products we improve our lives; better cars, luxury beds, pens, soap powder and a million other things, all made for d better life- Have our lives become any better because of all these products'1 If so how is it that we have pollution everywhere? How come the hospitals and clinics are always full? How do we explain the rise of crime, pornography and all manners of human perversion and discontent?

Look at the pace of life in a city; rush, rush, and more rush to do more and more things in a short span of time as far as possible. The rush for buses, traffic jams and the resulting frayed nerves are part and parcel of the city living. Try walking slowly in the crowd and you will be jostled and pushed if not trampled upon. People's rush knows no end even during lunch-time. Everybody has got only a short break for lunch. So it is rush to fill the stomach, as quickly as possible, at a fast-food shop.