Attachment.
This 9-letter word seems to be so simple yet has a dictionary’s worth of
definitions. Sometimes it is a feeling that cannot be put into words. Sometimes
it is an addiction that can destroy lives and sometimes it’s a mere word that
the snobby kids these days love to use. But when I sit and write about it, it
does fill my stomach with butterflies, and yet there is a sense of fulfillment.
It takes me back to that one person, that one situation or thing that meant so
much to me, and suddenly when I don’t have any of it, it doesn’t bother me that
much.
Recently I
came across a class photo of mine that was taken on one of the latter days of
10th standard. I stared at it. Smiled at it and then laughed. The people in
that picture (including myself) had no idea that these faces that they are
surrounded by, are going to disappear in the coming days and life would still
go on without them. Thousands of promises were made, including those “friends
forever” and “to love always”. Eventually, each one of them was broken by each
one of us in that picture.
This brings
me to a few questions. The questions that are asked frequently. Is it that easy
to move on? What about the memories? What about the genuine bond that was
shared? What about that feeling of ATTACHMENT? Does it just go away?
I have no
answers to these. All I know is as and when you meet new people, they start
replacing the places with those who left. It might take some time, but in due
course, the empty chairs are filled again. It can be by anybody, a friend, a
guide, a parent, or even by a not-very likable person for that matter.
Those lost
people might meet us again somewhere in the path of our lives, but do they have
a place for us now? Or vice versa? No one knows.
However, one
thing I could say for sure, every individual, situation, or thing that I was or
am too deeply connected to, could only bring a slight grin to my face. Each of
us has our ways to deal with attachments and detachments. Perhaps, the one that
supports a peaceful mind is the one way always preferred.
