Goodbyes...

The best goodbyes are the ones that don’t ever actually happen. The stuff that doesn't necessarily come to an ending so much as is slowly disintegrates into less and less over the months and years. Consider a person you used to be close friends with, but no longer speak to regularly. Someone you never had a falling out with, but you simply grew apart from. These situations can be a downer, especially when you realize the former friendship is covered in so many web of spiders it’s no longer recognizable. As big of a bummer as that striking may be, it doesn't have the sudden shock effect of an actual goodbye. No hugs, no kisses, no handshakes, no airports, no packed bags or tears – just time.

Goodbyes are never going to be something we can adapt to. They’re all different and each one is followed by a different person, place or thing being absent in our lives. There are the necessary goodbyes that we feel a sense of relief after, but even then, to know that something we once felt strongly about or comfortable with is going to cease to exist can be scary. Maybe we should eliminate “goodbye” from our vocabulary. Cia, farewell, later, ta-ta, take your pick — any of those feel a lot less concrete and final, even if goodbye is the sad reality.

Money has no memory...Experience has...

Money has no memory. Experience has. You will never know what the total cost of your education was, but for a lifetime you will recall and relive the memories of schools and colleges. Few years from now, you will forget the amount you paid to settle the hospitalization bill, but will ever cherish having saved your mother's life or the life you get to live with the just born. You won't remember the cost of your honeymoon, but to the last breath remember the experiences of the bliss of togetherness. Money has no memory. Experience has.

Good times and bad times, times of prosperity and times of poverty, times when the future looked so secure and times when you didn't know from where the tomorrow will come. Life has been in one way or the other a roller-coaster ride for everyone. Beyond all that abundance and beyond all that deprivation, what remains is the memory of experiences. Sometimes the wallet was full. Sometimes even the pocket was empty. There was enough and you still had reasons to frown. There wasn't enough and you still had reasons to smile. Today, you can look back with tears of gratitude for all the times you had laughed together, and also look back with a smile at all the times you cried alone. All in all, life filled you with experiences to create a history of your own self, and you alone can remember them all.

The first time you balanced yourself on your cycle without support. The first time she said 'yes' and it was two years since you proposed… The first cry… the first steps… the first word… the first kiss… all of your child… The first gift you bought for your parents and the first gift your daughter gave you… The first award… the first public appreciation… the first stage performance… And the list is endless… Experiences, with timeless memory… No denying that anything that's material cost money, but the fact remains the cost of the experience will be forgotten, but the experience never.

So, what if it's economic recession? Let it be, but let there not be a recession to the quality of your life. You can still take your parents, if not on a pilgrimage, at least to the local temple. You can still play with your children, if not on an international holiday, at least in the local park. It doesn't cost money to lie down or to take a loved one onto your lap. Nice time to train the employees, create leadership availability and be ready for the wonderful times when they arrive. Hey! Aspects like your health, knowledge development and spiritual growth are not economy dependent.

Time will pass… economy will revive… currency will soon be in current… and in all this… I don't want you to look back and realize you did nothing but stayed in gloom. Recession can make you lose out on money. Let it not make you lose out on experiences… If you are not happy with what you have, no matter how much more you have, you will still not be happy.