Kids teach us

You never know from whom and from where your next learning would come. My daughter is 2 year old and we had a guest visit us yesterday along with his 3 year old daughter. They are Maharastrians and we Keralites. My daughter only speaks Malayalam and does mix some Hindi words in her conversation. Our 3 year old guest on the other hand only speaks Marathi. They had met just once before, long time back. I was wondering how would they interact. However it was interesting to observe what transpired between them. They started playing with each other like they knew each other for ages. Language wasn't a barrier at all in communication. Both were talking to each other but words hardly mattered.

 For them what mattered was that they were playing with each other and enjoying it. For feelings to be understood, it only takes a heart filled with love. The analytical brain plays spoil sport. The more you think, the more differences you will find. For my daughter and her new found friend it did not matter at all that they were from different communities. It also did not matter that one was younger and the other a year older. Though religion was same I do not think it would have made any difference in the equation that they had.

Now think for a moment how two adults would have behaved in a similar situation. First thing that we would have done is to figure out the name. As soon as we do that, our brain would start analyzing. His name indicates that he belongs to this religion. From last name, it seems he belongs to that caste. From the way he is dressed we would try to figure out the class of the person. So by the time our heart comes into picture our brain has done everything possible to create a barrier. Now any interaction that  happens would be restricted based on the perceptions formed about the other person.

I think we need to learn a lot from these kids. They teach us how to lead our life. It isn't as complicated as we think it is.