Spice of Life: Learning to appreciate green in joyful world
We have to be able to revel in the ordinary, the green, before myriad, extraordinary, and more intense joys can present themselves
Recently, I read Deepti Naval’s memoir, A Country Called Childhood. She mentions how she didn’t exactly find the colour green attractive, but was allotted the same colour as her house back during the school days. And that, how, slowly, she learnt to appreciate and like the colour. I couldn’t help but draw a simile with life. Rarely are we given what we want or like, nevertheless the only trick to be happy is to grow to enjoy whatever is on the plate.
That made me ponder and analyse, the way I, as an individual, not completely sans my upbringing, environment and experiences, see cum feel for different colours. Pink: Has always been my favourite, and my weakness. Intersperse it with purple and white (or even if not), and I invariably get drawn to it. Blue reminds me of the vast sky expanse and ever-soothing gurgling river water. Yellow: Happiness (the colour of marigolds denoting auspicious occasions and celebrations… I can almost smell their fragrance as I pen this). Coming back to green. Though I’m not an ardent fan myself, I’m also deliberately learning to enjoy and appreciate it, because after all green is the colour of greenery, something immensely calming for the eyes (and the soul). As said by Sir Bernard Wiliams, “We might pass violets, looking for roses. We might pass contentment, looking for happiness.” Putting it another way, we have to be able to revel in the ordinary, the green, before myriad, extraordinary, and more intense joys can present themselves.
Sometimes, I feel that our lives are also like the green-blue sceneries. We have our dreams and hopes - and I see that denoted by the limitless sky, that is blue during the day; and countless stars at night. We must learn to appreciate whatever green there is underneath, even if it seems like an average colour, and soon pinks, reds and yellows will appear both magically and colourfully - indicating joy.
Here, I’m reminded of my mother’s love for our garden. While I’m also pulled by Nature and its beauty, I can’t surpass my mother’s passion. Every day she has to, has to, visit the lawn. Once I spotted my parents guffawing over their handsets. Turned out it was a meme on the screen: A couple was on a drive in their car. The lady while driving, spots a nursery, and exclaims her desire to buy plants. The husband mentions a lack of space in the car. The next scene shows the husband standing outside while the wife drives off with (breathtakingly beautiful) plants and flowers kept on her husband’s seat!
I recall reading that spending five to 10 minutes in close vicinity of a plant/tree, and simultaneously focusing on one’s breathing plus admiring the rooted being is a mood up-lifter and helps strike a connection with the entire cosmos. The role of greenery in improving mental health and well-being cannot be undermined, particularly with perpetually rising levels of stress in every person. I’m so (desirably) affected by quotes like, ‘You should sit in Nature for 20 minutes a day… unless you’re busy. Then you should sit for an hour’. And, my all-time favourite is, ‘To avoid straining your eyes when you’re continuously working, follow the 20-20-20 rule. After 20 minutes of work, look at something 20 feet away, then spend 20 years in the forest’. A bit exaggerated, but, oh so calling!
reemaban@gmail.com
The writer is a Jagadhri-based freelance contributor