Thursday, June 19, 2014

Are you Normal?


Picked up my kid from school and as we were waiting for the green signal, we saw a funky kid crossing the road on his roller blades with his earphones.

He had tattoos and piercings. Whatever I would hate was visible on this teen. I eyed my boy who was sitting behind from the rear view mirror and saw how he was scrutinizing him.

"That kid is not normal?" I commented quickly

"Oh!" came a quick response, and after a pause, "What is normal mom?" came a meek query.

I was stunned.

He was right, " What is normal? Is there a guideline to be normal?"

Rules, Codes, Instructions!

They form a sheath around man at every step of the way! This sheath helps protect him from any adversities.

Every gadget has a manual. A manual that tells how this particular machine operates/ behaves and the individual is advised to press certain buttons to keep the machine operable for years to come. If we do not follow the instructions, there are chances the machine breaks down.

Comparing machines to humans. Men have also written our codes of conduct. Men who have two legs, two hands and same features like us. Their pea sized brain was smart enough to pen down some guidelines for our behavior especially in public.  Public where all men come out in the open and form a community.

This collection of people ought to have some rules of conduct.

Now some would wonder why the rules/regulations in the first place?
On one hand we talk about democracy vs. dictatorship, and we still have some rules for living?

We all need something to clutch upon. We could call it the rope or a stick or just a bunch of instructions to make us march forward.

Words such as Karma, Kismet, Do good to get good, Hope, Belief are some of the words that had to be inscribed within us to walk on this journey called life. These words not only help men to endure what is thrown at them as they tread along but also works as a destination or a goal thus, helping them choose between right and wrong and thus inspiring them to be "normal"

Definitions of normality vary by person, time, place, and the situation – it changes along with changing societal standards and norms. Normal behavior is often only recognized in contrast to abnormality. In its simplest form, normality is seen as good while abnormality is seen as bad.

Good and Bad takes us back to the books where guidelines have been imprinted. Some of us choose to follow/read them while some want to follow their heart.

Question is what your heart says?

That takes us back to the time when the heart of an individual is developing. What that person got exposed to, and what is his take on challenges and trials?

We are social animals. Men learn from men thus making it a society and helping us thrive in all possible ways. The emotions that flow within us is thanks to the brethren around us. Thus, making it a society and how we react to the emotions that surface around and within us depends on the kind of influence we have.

Thus, next time when someone asks you this question, "Are you normal?"

Just look around and count the number of eyebrows raised or the actions that have been performed by you. Have they helped stretch those muscles around the mouth wide with a gentle expression or has it twitched eyebrows or made someone sneer?

Then, it does not matter how you look, how many piercings you have or drawings on your skin. It's the number of hearts that you have touched that makes you normal.

Mantra for today: Actions speak louder than physical traits.


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