All that glitters is not gold

All that glitters is not gold

November 2022

ALL THAT  GLITTERS  IS NOT  GOLD 

By Ramya Kamalakannan

Trading what you cherish the most—your  happiness—for something which seems  promising or attractive is counterproductive,  says Ramya Kamalakannan

Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful  princess. Her skin was as white as snow and  her hair, the colour of gold. Her hair was the  best in the kingdom. Dense, soft like silk, it  glittered in the sunlight and shimmered in the  moonlight. The princess loved it and took good  care of it. Princesses and princes came from far  and wide to catch a glimpse of her hair, which  was famous for being the best in the kingdom.  During one such visit, she met a princess  who wore the most beautiful bow. It was  like nothing she had ever seen before. It had  diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires, all  woven together in an intricate design with thin  strands of white gold. A desire to own it took a  deep root in the princess’s heart.  

The foreign princess was cunning and jealous.  She was willing to trade her precious bow,  not for money or jewels but something much  more. The price of the bow was to be paid  with the princess’s hair. The proposition was  met with shocked silence. Everyone expected  the princess to decline the offer. But blinded  by mad desire and in utter desperation, she  willingly traded her hair for it. Finally, holding  the bow in her hand, she felt triumphant. For  days and nights, she simply admired its beauty,  and only when she finally decided to wear it  did she realise that she no longer had the hair  to tie with the bow.  

Yes, what a foolish princess, to have traded her  hair for a bow that was meant for the hair! How  does one trade the very thing that one is seeking  and not even realise it? This was my life for a  very long time. I started my corporate career in  2008, and, for long, traded my time, my energy  and, most days, my peace of mind for getting  a good performance review, better increments,  promotions, awards, a better lifestyle, and  social status. All I ever wanted from my life  was to be there for my loved ones, give them  enough time, and create happy memories. Yet,  here I was, firefighting every day at work and  going back home exhausted and drained of  energy, only to wake up and continue this drill. 

It was at a spiritual retreat I had attended, to  get some clarity on life, that I had my very  first experience. Tired of the day-to-day drill,  not experiencing the depth I was seeking,  running all the time, balancing all the time,  not knowing what next, and always being a cat 

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Everything about my life  changed once I understood  peace. We associate peace  with wars, battles, and fights  but seldom think of it in our  day-to-day life. Yet it is that  which most of us seek in our  life. While doing anything  and everything, all we wish  for is some peace of mind.  Be it at home, at work, in  our relationships, or in all  the desires and goals we are  chasing, at the end of the  day, we want to be peaceful. 

This realisation hit me hard  and made me rethink the  way I was living my life.  Coming from a middle 

class background, I had  commitments, and leaving  my job was not an option. But  it helped me plan the future  with this new realisation  in mind. I was able to draw  specific goals both in my  professional and personal  life, and work towards them  with a peaceful acceptance.  Today, I am living my life the  way I wish to live it. Giving  time to the things I love  and creating memories I’ll  cherish for a lifetime. 

Is life any easier now? Are  the challenges any fewer?  Definitely not. Moving from  employed to self-employed  was not easy.  

From getting lakhs as salary  every month to scrambling  for a few thousand is not at  all rosy Shifting professions  was not easy. Having worked  in an office all my life,  to suddenly be at home  was difficult. Exploring  possibilities outside my  comfort zone, treading  unknown territory, and  diving head-on into things  I knew nothing about was  an arduous task, to say the  least. So, what has changed?  Has life got any better? I still  chase my goals and go after  my desires. But the peace  with which I live my life has  changed. Nothing seems a  drill anymore; everything  seems like an opportunity to  try, fail, learn, and succeed. 

Peace is the underlying  thread of my life. In all my  decisions—right from the  simplest, like the dress I wish  to buy or the food I wish to  eat, to the complicated ones,  like the job  

I wish to do or the path I wish  to tread—the single mantra  is peace. I ask myself, Does  it make me peaceful? If the  answer is yes, I do it. If the  answer is no, I don’t. 

Life has become simpler and easier with this realisation 

There are times I get agitated,  there are times I am tempted  by the rewards, and there  are times my expectations  from my loved ones are not  met. There are times when  I feel the world is thankless  and wonder if it is all worth  it. During such times, I ask  myself this simple question,  Am I trading my hair for a  bow? 

Holding my peace above  everything is my mantra in  life. When you realise what  it is that you are seeking, you  realise what you are trading  it for. 

What is it that you seek? 

A passionate mother and a trader  in the stock market, Ramya left  her corporate job to explore her in ner self. She is currently pursuing  her passion for writing.