Saturday, July 2, 2011

Fettered Childhoods...


A couple of days back it rained heavily here. it was indeed a bliss because It rained after a long time. I rushed to the balcony to feel the cool air.
By that time, the drizzle had already become intense. I saw raindrops smiling; perhaps they were reflecting my happiness.
It was then when my eyes caught the sight of the cute little kid, my neighbour, with his face raised towards the sky. I waved at him repeatedly but he did not seem to notice it. He too was enjoying the rain, but sadly like a prisoner, from behind the grills of his house.
I saw the astonishment glittering in his eyes, the tot hardly three, put his little hands out to feel the rain and tried to open the grilles to get out. His smile had the glory of the sun at dawn.
But the next moment his grandpa appeared on the scene. He pulled him away and took him inside, I heard him yell at the little boy for trying to open the grills.
That was not the first time the grandpa did that. I had seen him chew the little boy out many times, once when he tried to pluck a flower from the pot, and the other day for feeding some biscuits to the stray dogs. I felt pity for the boy.
I recalled my childhood days, and how I used to play in the rain.
i was indeed lucky to have born in a beautiful village, to have grown up in the lap of nature.
It was then I thought about the pathetic childhoods in cities. Children are confined to their small houses or rather match boxes-like buildings.
They do not have enough space or space at all to play nor do they have an opportunity to learn from nature. Literally, a fettered childhood.
For these kids, butterflies are something that they have seen only in photos, tall buildings and skyscrapers are trees, as they grow and spread like an epidemic here. Their ears hardly know the sounds of chirpings of birds and pitter -patter of rain but are more adjusted to the drilling and other noises of a city.
In a way, city life curbs the bubbling enthusiasm of these tiny tots to find out how things work around them.
Young mind is a wonderland where thousands of questions take birth every moment. Their Curiosity must be quenched .But sadly In today’s whizzing world where do people have time to answer all those questions? Thus, the interest gradually withers.
Yet it’s ironic that one of the reasons why people move to cities is for better educational facilities. The thing is that education is not something that happens within the four walls of a room.
When these children grow up, losing their true childhood, like machines among machines, and tomorrow boast about how many friends they have in FB and about defeating the enemies in their videos games and about how they love their Ipads, and miss their Ipods, I just tremble at the thought of  the future generations! I guess they wont have a childhood at all, even to lose!

10 comments:

  1. ahh, today it's raining all day long and I just love it! the warm summer rain...

    "Young mind is a wonderland where thousands of questions take birth every moment." - this is one of the best sentences I've ever read :):)

    and it's so true. I feel bad for those kids...

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  2. Wow what a great writer for such a young mind. I completely agree with what you are saying. Children are losing their imaginations due too, to much tv and video games have stolen their childhoods.

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  3. This was so sad, some children today miss out on the beauty of the world and it's these same children who are our future rulers and politicans, wonder what the future world will be like?

    Yvonne.

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  4. this is really sad..but a very common thing you know, now a days kids are not allowed for any outdoor activities...

    kids get confined to their home and all they can do is play video game or watch TV...some of them even don't have anyone to chat with bcoz both of the parents are working to earn that kid's comfort for life.......

    very thoughtful post Haritha....

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  5. "Education isn't something that happens within the four walls of a room"- my fav line here
    i totally agree wid u.BTW wats 'fettered' mean?

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  6. hey haritha :) I just stoped by to let you know I have an award for you on my blog :)

    Thank you for being so awesome, and I apreciate all the nice comments you've left for me :)

    -B-

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  7. Haritha, again, you did it. I can see that you'll be a great writer when "you grow up," as you are now as good as you can be. Keep it up.

    I'd like to see the setting of your village.

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  8. so trrueeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    pavam kunjungal.............
    but city life also has its own beauty n advantage right????
    in fact u too live in a city?????

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