Me — So why is it like that? Mr.K — Don’t ask why. Just do as I say.
Let’s think of a dark phase in our life. There might’ve been lots of people who gave advice and our mind might’ve got confused about whom to listen to.
Well, don’t worry, I was in the same boat too. So whose advice do we seek? Whom do we serve?
Serve yourself and no human.
You own your life and no one else does. You’re responsible for whatever happens to it. History has taught us that serving people didn’t do humans any good.
Now the question might arise whether we should serve someone as noble as Mahatma Gandhi. Before we go ahead, brush through this article and I must warn you that your outlook towards Gandhi might change after it.
Surprised?
You’ve been respecting Gandhi’s fight for independence all this while and not the man’s character or his other desires.
I’d encourage you to know more about the person you admire to see which part of that person you serve. We need to serve an ideology or a solution or an environment. It’s part of the experience they’ve gathered.
Do you know why we’ve to respect elders?
During the stone age, the caveman taught his children how to hunt. If he had never taught them, the cycle of figuring out would start over again with the children. The path of discovering is fun but also time-consuming. It couldn’t be compromised for a basic necessity like food.
The caveman made sure he took his kids hunting. They looked at his actions, listened to his voice, learned the techniques. It was a short-term course which the caveman acquired over years. The children respected that experience and they accepted this type of learning.
Fast forward to today, we’re not that different. We learn from people who have more experience than us. In most cases, it’s someone who has lived longer. They can be a stranger or a relative but they’ve lived through tougher times than us.
So next time when you’re respecting your elders, keep in mind that you’re actually respecting their experience.
To end with, the important fact we need to understand here is the fine line between serving no one and having an arrogant attitude. Serving no one doesn’t mean you should not listen to people. A conversation always starts with listening and not with talking.
So what did I do when I was in the same boat of darkness? I found solace in a poem, Invictus by William Ernest Henley. I hope it will help you too.
Out of the night that covers me, Black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.