"Happiness on the other side"

Its been almost 24 years now that one is running the Corporate Race, and running hard, that too. And yet - beyond the very 'material' and 'social' fulfillment that it has brought in return, I often wonder what else has it done to enrich my life.

I still feel happier when I am in the woods or by the sea-side, watching nature take its course; I still enjoy taking in the first smell of wet earth, after the first showers have taken place; I rejoice when I watch children dancing, uninhibited; I love watching stars in a blue-black sky; and I definitely get near-delirious when I experience the whiff of freshly brewed coffee in a steel glass in a small eatery down South by the roadside when travelling.

Except for the fact that resources earned through the Corporate life I lead do get me to somewhat indulge in the above by easing things along the way, the joys and happiness I gather from the experiences above don't accrue as a result of the same. And that's what I think keeps the happiness alive.

Just imagine if every bit of happiness in our life were to be directly, only linked to the resources we amassed through work. How transient and insecure that happiness would be ! How conditional and limited in scope and depth such joys would turn out to be. Realisation that needs to dawn upon a lot of today's (and some of mine too) generation - who have learnt to equate everything with money.

Life is beautiful, and far more enriching than what material wealth can fetch you. As long as we can keep that sanity of thought alive in each of us - we will learn how to both run the Corporate race better, as well as keep the happiness alive alongside.