Cacaphony & Waiting (previous Monday's Muse)

Singer, Sonu Nigam tweeted about being forced to wake up due to the disturbance caused by the loudspeaker blaring out calls for prayers. Although, he mentioned a specific instance in his locality, he added that he was against all cacophony that violated the peace as well as the legal restrictions.

The virtual space turned cacophonic. Some accused him of insensitivity and selective prejudice. Some agreed with his basic assertion against use of loudspeakers in public space. Some found it yet another excuse to play polarising posturing by diverting the discussion.

It is pertinent to note that cacophony refers to ‘loud, confused, and usually inharmonious sound’. And the response (to a valid request to observe basic civic sense) was selective in its indignation. So often we find that persons, who use loud jarring ringtones, are irritated by the ones used by their neighbours.

It was obvious that we find our own cacophony as a necessity while that by others seems a nuisance. If we all lower our own volume of sound, the world will be a better place. This should be followed by all occupants in public space. Our right to be heard cannot be allowed to deafen others by excessive decibels.

Cacophony is the same, whether thine or mine
Lower volume in public spaces is truly divine!

~ Pravin Sabnis


Also MONDAY 17 APRIL 2017 which by mistake was not posted here

WAITING

Last Monday, my smart phone went silent as the battery had to be replaced. It took me five days and four long visits to the service centre to get my phone back into action. The predicament kept me off the whatsapp platform and gave me more time to observe life at the service station.

Most customers would be agitated over not getting fast service. While some customers had complains that they were kept waiting endlessly, the service personnel kept explaining that they had connectivity issues which affected their ability to close the need. But most customers were averse to waiting.

Interestingly, waiting is a two way process. When I was waiting to get back my phone, the persons at the reception desk and the repair desk, too were waiting on me. As a noun, ‘waiting’ refers to a period of pause, interval, or delay. But as an adjective it refers to those serving or being in attendance. And, we must have respect for those who wait on us!

The tolerance for waiting is a fast diminishing trait. Everyone seems to be in a tearing hurry. We end up hurling indignation at the ones who serve us. It is pertinent to note that we may have heard similar words from those kept waiting by us. When we ‘wait’ due to delay, we must have empathy for the ones who ‘wait’ on us.

Avoid opting for trigger happy fighting...
Empathy empowers tolerance for waiting!

~ Pravin Sabnis

Keeping a friend alive

When he was alive some would refer to him as ‘your friend’
And then mock him for what he said or did against the trend…
Now that he is no more, they say he was ‘their close friend’
As they declare they were with him on issues together to fend!

Some cry more fiercely than the ones who truly grieve
Some lament louder than hearts turned into a sieve…
Some talk about memories that the world always knew
Some stalk on the stage as if they are the heroic few!

But time will show who really were under his spell
Who were the ones that he inspired so well…
For the many fans, their hero will never be felled
They will continue the story that he lived to tell!

The one who has died can live on forever
in minds, in hearts and actions of the lover…
His legacy of empathy would diminish never
If we choose focus over occasional fervour!

The thoughts of his mind, should be ours too
Where actions are more and words are few…
With words to be used for deeds that are new
We can keep him alive, in a legacy that we sew!

We can keep our friend alive if we rededicate
To his commitment to compassion predicate
In the end, our actions over time will indicate
That his worthy living we chose to truly vindicate!

~ Pravin Sabnis
(Written in the aftermath of the death of a compassionate combatant for human dignity and justice, Satish Sonak… with the intent to trigger a resolve in self and others who want to keep him alive)

Fed back

Salt is a crucial ingredient for most culinary preparations. If it is in lesser than normal proportion, we point out the error to the cook; so that the necessary amend can be made. While we, so easily, point out the deficit of salt, we forget to point out when the salt is in the right proportion!

It is pertinent to note that we find it easy to identify the fault but we often forget to appreciate the absence of an anomaly. We take for granted that feedback is only to point out deficiency. Surely, it is unfair if feedback only identifies mistakes and does not involve in appreciation for an action done right.

Feedback is a process in which effect or output of an action is 'returned' (fed-back) to modify the next action. It is the information that helps the recipient adjust current and future behaviour to improve performance. But it is not only the pointing out of mistakes that help improvements. Appreciation has its own impact as motivation.

We have to respect the hand that feeds when we give feedback. There are so many who serve us… the cooks, the helpers, the servicemen, the hygiene keepers, the farmers, the utility workers… so many who ‘feed’ us but do not receive appreciative ‘fed-back’. Instead, we keep harping on errors till they get fed-up. We need to ensure that the ‘fed-back’ remains fair at all times!

The ones who serve may occasionally err
But the ‘fed-back’ must be constantly fair!

- Pravin K. Sabnis