Fifth or Reverse gear!!

“How does a suicide bomber feel when he is about to explode the bomb?” asked Rahul, my little one. “Is RDX the main ingredient in the bomb?” he nudged me again before I could answer his first query. Flabbergasted at his innocent queries, “How intelligent and well aware the children of this generation are!” I murmured to myself.
Times have changed. Today’s children may perceive our childhood as bland and lackluster. It was almost the same routine everyday for most children of those times. After school hours were spent in playing with the neighborhood children till the final call for dinner came. A hearty meal followed by a long story session from grand ma was something we all looked forward to. Stories of fairies, demons, animals, ghosts elevated us to another world. As time passed, the life changed first gradually and then swiftly. Satellite invasion replaced grandma stores with soap operas, cartoon channels and the like. Fast changing technology, modern means of communication, free flow of information and the ability to travel speedily across nations and oceans changed our lives for ever.
We now lived in global village. Swanky cars, sleek mobiles, fancy gadgets, designer clothes, dot coms…, one look at the tremendous achievements the man has made…we cannot resist patting ourselves on the back.
We have come a very long way indeed. Right in our living rooms we can watch live dramas of destruction, barbaric mowing down of thousands and crumbling down of very symbols of modern existence like a house of cards and what a novel way to achieve the ulterior motives. Each method of mass annihilation is more advanced than the other. Our vocabulary has gone overboard; we can talk of bio terrorism, global terrorism, suicide bombers over a cup of tea.
Whither man’s intelligence! I wonder if we are becoming regressive or progressive.
God save this world.

Problem of Plenty

Life without emails and mobiles!! Is it possible? Forget about mobiles there was a time not so long ago when having a landline at home was a luxury. One had to wait for eight to ten years to get a phone connection. Going to neighbor’s house to make a phone call or watch Sunday movie on T.V was common and nothing to be ashamed of. I get nostalgic when I think of those days. A week long wait to watch Chitrahaar on Wednesdays (half an hour show on Hindi film songs) added on to the exhilaration of watching a T.V programme. Now, what’s the great fun in watching a movie on T.V, it is available 24x7 or get a DVD and watch it whenever you want. People had various reasons to laugh and cheer about - getting a trunk call ( long distance call) after four hours wait, waiting for the postman in the hope of receiving a letter from a dear friend or a telegram announcing the birth of a child in the family. People traced happiness in small things.
Fast forward to the new fast track age… everything happens at the click of a mouse. Want to keep in touch with your friends in US, send an email or just pick up your cell right now (unless it is night time there!). Possessing a cell phone is no more a luxury, it is taken for granted. Every member of the family possesses a cell phone, sometimes even two - one official and another personal. Each one has an independent room and vehicle.
You may buy anything for children but their happiness is momentary. Every weekend there is a get together or an outing so what’s the big deal about another invitation for a high profile party or eating out? There is an abundance of clothes, toys, books, household items and even marks; a child scoring 85% is an average child; earlier we distributed sweets on getting a first division (60%). Now people look for happiness in bigger pleasures which are elusive.
Everyone has everything in plenty except Time. We have time neither for us nor for others.