THAT DREADED ROUTINE
The deadly disability we are burdened with is not disease,
old age or toxic relationships. Oh nooo, all those have an end in sight even if
it is death that bangs the door firmly in our face.
It is, don’t hold your breath, that ‘Deadly Routine’.
The trap that has us firmly in its steel jaws of monotony,
shackled to its rusty chains, and unable to move forward or break free.
So few of us realize that we are hobbled and wonder why we
feel the leaden despair of leading our lives in that same relentless routine
till we become meek slaves to this dull disorder!
You know you are caught in that treadmill of routine when
all it takes is an unexpected guest to throw your gears out of whack. Not just
a guest, it could be the maid who has no concept of time, children who do not
respect it (your time, not theirs!) or nature who unkindly chucks a four day
virus at you that no pills or potions will cure- routine has to suck it for 4
days as you lie chained to another master.
Not having your bath at the usual time can reduce your brain
to jelly even if you are not indulging in any activity that aids your cerebral
health after that bath at sharp 7 am!
Nothing fills us with greater unease than not doing
something at the precise time we were supposed to. We are unable to shrug and
just change our compass.
Alter the course and ride with the waves!
When routine gets upset it can drag you down quicker than a
virulent attack of dengue.
Routine affects the bored housewife and the CEO in the same
way- once it has you in its deadly grip there is no getting away. It does not
matter if you have a ladle clutched in your hand or that Styrofoam cup of
coffee- you are similarly stymied by that deadly routine.
How does one break free?
Everyone has to find
one’s own Nemo.
I found my release by axing the ‘help’. I do my own ‘thang’
when I want to. I rather die than be
trapped in the suffocating manhole of routine.
Far more likely though it will be due to eating out of a
dirty dish I found too routine to wash!
Nimmou Nilakantan
