Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Grass is always greener on the other side . . . or is it?

It was seven in the morning. she was standing in her bedroom window staring at her neighbor. Dressed smartly in a grey skirt and white shirt, her friend was off to work. She felt a pang of jealousy.
This could have been me. 
She sighed. she knew she had left behind the competitive corporate world for a life of quiet domesticity. It was her decision to get married and stop working. It was her choice but, sometimes, when she saw her friends going to work with their smart phones and their Mac Books in tow, she felt envious. When she heard them talk about their work, their travels and their every increasing paycheck, she always felt a twinge of regret. It was not that she wasn't happy in her own life but there were days when she couldn't stop her mind from questioning her heart.
Is this it? Is this my life now? 
Today, standing in her bedroom, framed by the window she felt claustrophobic. she longed to leave the shackles of domesticity and sour high in the sky. she wanted to not think about the grocery shopping and laundry but wanted to worry about figures and presentations. She was lost in her thoughts when she felt someone tug at her pyjamas. she looked down and saw her two year old standing beside her groggily rubbing his eyes.
"Momma!" he said happily and motioned for her to pick him up.
she smiled and bent low.
"Good Morning."
She turned and looked back at her husband. he came towards her smiling, carrying a tray with two cups of tea on it. he placed it on the bed and handed her one cup kissing her lightly on the cheek. her son rested his head on her shoulder and heaved a content sigh. she couldn't help herself, she smiled broadly.
"What's with the smile?" his husband asked, sipping his tea.
"Nothing." she took a sip, "Good tea."
she looked back at her friend who had climbed into her new car and waved at her. she waved back with a smile on her face.
Life is not so bad.
She put the cup on the window sill and hugged her little boy tightly.  

Sitting in her new car, she waved at her friend, smiling tightly. A wave of jealousy swept over her.
Here I am all dressed up and off to work and some people are still in their pyjamas!
She started her engine and reversed her car from the parking lot. Her phone started ringing. She glanced at the screen. it was her assistant.
"What?!" she barked into her smart phone.
Her assistant told her that the meeting has been postponed by an hour. she listened, with her temper rising, and then threw the phone on to the passenger side seat.
This is just perfect.
Involuntarily, her eyes again went to the window on the third floor where her neighbour was standing cuddling her two year old son in her arms with her husband by her side, sipping the morning tea. she looked at herself in the car's tiny rear-view mirror.
Is this it? Is this my life now? 
She had decided to pursue her career going against her family who wanted to get her getting married. Now, five years later, she was the youngest manager in her organization with an impressive bank balance. She was happy with her life . . . she liked her work, she liked going on dates, she liked her independence. But, then there were those days, like today, when she couldn't help but think about her life, about how lonely it sometimes felt to be on her own all the time. There were days when she felt like giving it all up and getting married and having a brood of kids.
Where I don't have to worry about profits and losses and just think about my kid's grades. 
Her beeping phone brought her back to reality. She picked it up, frowning. it was an email from her boss. As she scanned her mail, her face lit up.
Another promotion! 
She pumped her fist in the air.
Life is not so bad after all!
She started the engine and drove to work, smiling broadly.

4 comments:

  1. Very nicely out Megha :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. The other comment was for this write-up actually. I don't know how did I post it there :S Both are very nicely put up
    Good work!

    ReplyDelete

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