"Ting
ting ting.........." goes the sound of the bell on the ice cream vendor's
cart. Colored with bright shades of Red, Blue, patches of Green and covered
with pictures of yummy ice creams, the cart looks spectacular. A bunch of
hydrogen balloons are tied to one side of the cart. Looking at them, I feel
that they want to escape and fly away to a world of their own. I somehow find this similar to how many of us
feel. Written on the front side
of the cart is the name “Happy Ice Cream.”
I ask the ice cream vendor for what types of ice creams he has. He opens the freezer compartment to show me and on looking inside, I feel spoilt for choice. Chocobar (my childhood favorite), Strawberry, Vanilla, Black Currant, and the list goes on. When there are many choices, making a final decision could get a little tedious. After a lot of thinking, my heart finally says ‘Chocobar’, so I tell him to give me one. When he tells me about the various types of Chocobars he has, and asks me what I prefer, I randomly select one of them, pay the money and start enjoying my ice cream.
I ask the ice cream vendor for what types of ice creams he has. He opens the freezer compartment to show me and on looking inside, I feel spoilt for choice. Chocobar (my childhood favorite), Strawberry, Vanilla, Black Currant, and the list goes on. When there are many choices, making a final decision could get a little tedious. After a lot of thinking, my heart finally says ‘Chocobar’, so I tell him to give me one. When he tells me about the various types of Chocobars he has, and asks me what I prefer, I randomly select one of them, pay the money and start enjoying my ice cream.
After
a part of my ice cream is over, my phone starts ringing. It’s an old friend, whom I haven’t spoken to
since quite sometime. I'm happy to talk and get engrossed in talking. Just then, I hear a sweet voice from near me,
saying “Didi, your ice cream is melting, eat it soon.” It’s a small kid who has come with her mother
to get an ice cream. I smile at her. She
smiles back. By now, I have finished speaking to my friend. I gobble up
whatever remains of my ice cream. I then notice the child, enjoying her ice
cream, without worrying about anything else in the world. She is totally in the
moment, completely savouring every bit of her mango bar. Watching her is a wonderful sight. It makes my heart feel happy.
Something
seems to have changed within me. The child
seems to have taught me something that is going to change me forever. I've learnt that happiness does not
necessarily come from big, costly things. Even something small can make us
happy. It is up to us to choose to be happy. The best memories in life are
those that come from small, simple moments.
She
finishes her ice cream, holds her mother’s hand and starts walking away. She turns and waves me goodbye. I wave
back. I am grateful to have come across
this child, who unknowingly made a difference in my life. Sometimes lessons
come to us from the most unexpected people and places. We just need to be open to listening and
learning.
Life is short. It is up to us to make the most of it. Let’s be like that little child and enjoy and
relish what our present has to offer! Or else, a day will come when we realize
that we could have done a lot in life, had a lot more fun, and been a lot
happier, but we didn't. And this
realization will be a difficult one to live with.
