Article for Bethlehem Matrimonial - Dec 2017
One day during a casual walk
I noticed an elderly couple coming from opposite direction. The husband was
walking ahead in full stride with the wife slowly following him with a half
drooping head. This picture reminded me of a common sight from yester years
with respect to the bedroom arrangement for a couple. You may have even seen
this in some of the movies from the past as well. There will be a bed which is
used by the husband whereas the wife either sleeps on a mat on the floor or on
another bed placed separately from husband’s bed.
Those were the times when
there were clearly marked boundaries for expressing your love towards your
sweetheart. Times have changed and life now zips through a fast lane where new
trends get set with the blink of an eye. Even in such a jet setting time we
still have people around us who believe in limiting the display of love to the
person they chose to share their life with!
A lot has to do with how
history influences us with respect to how we express our love to dear ones. Before
the colonial era people living in the present day India used to have an
absolutely free way of disclosing their love. With colonisation quite a few
constraints came into place and we being a product of such a constrained
society, continue to follow most of these customs even today. Hence many such
acts including an innocent kiss or a hug or an embrace is considered as taboo
or non-acceptable in most part of Indian society till date.
Being afraid of these social
norms, a lot of us restrict ourselves from truly sharing the emotions we carry
deep inside, even to the ones with whom we are licenced to love. Ask yourselves
these questions. Do I knowingly or unknowingly stop myself from expressing my
love to my better half? Do I ever think that I need to express only this much
love towards him or her? If the answer is ‘yes’ to any of the above questions
probably it is time that you start thinking about a change that you need to
bring in your life.
We live in 21st
century now and who is stopping you from displaying your genuine love towards
your loved one? Why do we need to still adhere to the rules from colonial era
that stops us from opening up our hearts and let the most significant other in
your life know how much you love them?
We all live in a time when we
dedicate ourselves more towards the social media that revolves around us than
those innocent souls that long for us. We make it a point to post in Facebook
about our recently acquired model of phone, but find it odd to acknowledge our love
for dear ones on a special day. We shout from our roof tops about the recent
movie we’ve watched but find it difficult to even whisper in the ears of our
better half how much we love them.
Let us wake up and realize
that the world is in need of much more love than what it gets today. The moment
you exhibit your love for your dear ones you are sending a positive note
especially to the little ones in your family about the need for love and care. This
is the only way we empower them and the next generation to realize the value of
love to make the world a better place to live. Teach them the need to love and
that too unconditionally. Share with them stories of care and compassion so
that when they grow up they too will spread the wings of love for those who are
in need.
May the social taboos not
stop you! May you be able to open up and make yourself believe in the power of
love! Realize that through holy matrimony you are even more empowered with a
license to love. Let that be the guiding force that motivates you further not
to hold back but to embrace the need of this world to experience candid love.
Love as much as you can because
you'll never know till when you are given time in this world to love and be
loved.
God bless!
