Ever heard or been in this situation? Somebody talking to their children in the presence of a janitor, garbage man, or even a KFC employee and saying "kalau tak belajar elok2, nanti jadi macam dia tu".
Anyway, our bathrooms had large containers of water, because of the Selangor Water Crisis and all. But our house wasn't hit that badly, so they were just lying there. This morning, i had to empty one of them out by watering the plants, and washing the porch. Might sound arduous to ya, but weird enough, i kinda enjoyed it.
Just the act of me picking up the pail, scooping up the water into a baldi (baldi sounds better than bucket), and carrying it to the porch. Rinse and repeat. And sweating through Malaysia's "i'm gonna be so hot that your butterfly ice-cream will melt before you open it" weather surprisingly didn't feel burdensome.
It was all fulfilling.
And that's what i'm writing about here today. What are we gearing up our kids to do in school? Get good grades, get a good job, get loads of money. Awesome. But based on my 19 years of life experience, i can safely say money won't be fulfilling. What i mean by that is no matter how big your salary is, you won't necessarily be satisfied because being rich isn't the same as having a rich life.
So what is a rich life? Well, here's a quote by Epicurus
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| What did you expect from a guy with "Epic" in his name? |
What'll make ya happy? Fulfillment. But many people, parents, and schools never even bring it up. A fulfilling job is what produces inner happiness (in the occupation aspect). Just because you're making loads of bucks in your job, doesn't mean you'll be happy. So you might get the best job in the world, and you can still be unhappy.
Look at it this way. You have a Lamborghini Aventador, it's fancy, it's powerful, and it's damn expensive. But without fuel, all it'll be is big hunk of metal. So no matter what the job, if it's not fulfilling, you may not be happy. So what is fulfillment?
It's making an honest living, feeling proud of what you're doing, and not doing it solely for the money. So when you get financially shaken, you're not driven to despondency. It's one of questions that's been swimming in mind for a long time. I've met so many people with living conditions that would break a normal human being, and yet they're able to foster a genuine smile.
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| No wonder smiling is considered charity in Islam, they're so expensive these days |
Coming back to my baldi chore, while scooping up the water, i thought of how precious water is in other countries. According to the United Nations website,
- 2.4 billion people lack access to basic sanitation services, such as toilets or latrines
- At least 1.8 billion people globally use a source of drinking water that is fecally contaminated
But not everything is gloom and doom of course. Clean water and sanitation is one of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (think of it as an international Wawasan 2020), and we're making progress. Because also according to their website:
- 2.6 billion people have gained access to improved drinking water sources since 1990, but 663 million people are still without
- Between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of the global population using an improved drinking water source has increased from 76 per cent to 91 per cent
It was always baffling as a kid who grew up in the bourgeoisie how doctors, bankers, and other "successful" jobs (no offense to anyone) was the only ticket to being happy. It was what i was taught. And it's what they're teaching at schools. I'd always think "then, what happens to those who don't get those jobs? How are they still alive?" And most importantly "How are they happy?"
Only through epiphany, did i now see that:
What is considered enough to someone, differs for everyone.
Maybe for us having a house, being able to eat Whoppers, and praying in a fully air-conditioned masjid is the threshold for contentment. But for others, maybe the sheer joy of owning a house, be it small or big, is already enough for them. So what if you're a tailor, so what if you're a tile-maker, they're honorable jobs. And if they don't feel proud doing those jobs, then it's our job to make sure they do.
So in conclusion, don't feel sad if you're not at the supposed "top" whether you're an employee or a student. Everyone has their own Rizq (Rezeki, provision), so just keep doing your best, with the good intention of doing something good in life. I'm not saying you shouldn't strive to keep reaching new heights, and become better. I'm saying maybe you don't have it that bad. It's something not many of us would like to admit.
Sure happiness can be bought, but fulfillment? You won't find that on eBay.
Only through epiphany, did i now see that:
What is considered enough to someone, differs for everyone.
Maybe for us having a house, being able to eat Whoppers, and praying in a fully air-conditioned masjid is the threshold for contentment. But for others, maybe the sheer joy of owning a house, be it small or big, is already enough for them. So what if you're a tailor, so what if you're a tile-maker, they're honorable jobs. And if they don't feel proud doing those jobs, then it's our job to make sure they do.
So in conclusion, don't feel sad if you're not at the supposed "top" whether you're an employee or a student. Everyone has their own Rizq (Rezeki, provision), so just keep doing your best, with the good intention of doing something good in life. I'm not saying you shouldn't strive to keep reaching new heights, and become better. I'm saying maybe you don't have it that bad. It's something not many of us would like to admit.
Sure happiness can be bought, but fulfillment? You won't find that on eBay.
