New year resolutions

By RK Lilapati Devi *

Time flies so quickly. December came and went off giving way to a brand new year. The caption in the cartoon published in one of Manipuri newspaper that read - "Wishing You A Happy,Extortion Free,Chinese Grenade Free,Ak-47/56 Free, 9mm Pistol Free, National Highway Blockade Free.....2010" was the real wish that every Manipuri would ask for.

A cartoon from Hijam Satya - TSE

We are really tired of bandhs and blockades and the inactivity of the government. Beloved Sharmila's fast still goes on. Will this new year let AFSPA be scrapped or reviewed? How long the students' have to suffer simply because the agitators and the government are at a deadlock.?

Our lives have become boring with the news that hit us everyday .Is there not any day that a person is killed. You wake in the morning to find the gory and gloomy pages in newspaper. We dream that all that is bothering us be taken away. But, when will the angel come in our courtyard and take away all our pains and leave a peaceful memento.

In this turmoil ridden society, we nevertheless give up our entertaining spirit. Come rain or sun, bitter winter or scorching winter, we never let go any festival in silence. We love Christmas, we love Eid, we love Diwali and we love Imoinu.

The last month of the year december brought many festivals. We waited each of them whether or not we belong to the core community. In entertainment and festivals, we are global citizen.

We enjoy the Christmas all Christians do with its all 4 good air spreading cheers smothering the chill of the winter. We felt we were truly blessed. Gospels that sang from far away places kept reverberating whole night for days.

Then we had Gaan-ngai. Then Imoinu puja was celebrated with our meitei spirit. Fish, vegetables, candles, fruits and so on were offered.

The the night of 31st December came reluctantly to hand over the new day of the year 2010. Youths danced, sang , get togethered to welcome the moment of the new year. Everybody wished a happy and prosperous year. Calls , SMS's went on to their loved one's .

Networked was jammed. Cheers, happy new year! That was it.

Every year , the same moment celebrated likewise everywhere. Every one of us, old and young has our own fond memories of new year parties. It is the time we exchange gifts , flowers to our loved one's, We cannot date back when this festival started its celebration in the soil of Manipur.

Through out the month of January, we keep wishing our friends , near and dear one's a happy new year. Things goes on like this every year. But we never gauged properly were those wishes really work. Were there happiness, prosperity, enjoyment fulfilment?

After January, other months followed soon. And amidst festival after festival, we got carried away in the day to day activity of the life. When good thing do not happen with us, we do not seem to heed by those good wishes of our friends.

Troubles and difficulties that came in our way too have their ow ways. Of course we are humans and we live the so called LIFE. We can remember one of the lines of a famous darma of Moirangthem Inao, "Keidoungei loigani Imungi lanjaose".

The couple were facing the hard times of their family life , they were hit by poverty, they were always quarrelling with each other and finding faults. They had had real good times in their youths and had great new year parties with gifting and all .

In the midst of quarrel, the husband lamented shockingly and quoted "Take away all those your hankies that inscribes "Let the new year brings happiness and prosperity", it never brought anything pleasant, take away all those hankies " That part of the play was one of the well appreciated lines of among many people who had not met happiness and prosperity with the new year.

Well, we have a great year ahead. There is a word, future is in our hand, past is a cancelled cheque, burry the past, cultivate the present. As for our personal life some of the things like what should we eat, what should we wear etc. are in our hands.

When the political and social turmoil builds up in the air, we do not have much control over our so called life. Our personal life too starts affected. Our basic rights too starts mutilated.

Well, in a kind of such prolong happenings, we are all accustomed to this way of life. Everybody well understands now how should one fare, staying immune to the news of bomb blast, killings, kidnappings, extortions et all.

If we had a calendar of bomb blasts, kidnappings, extortions, wakat miphams, bandhs, blockades, boycotts etc, it would be a marvellous thing. A small state and great happenings indeed!

What about our new year resolutions? Well, whose famous line was that " promises are meant to be broken". Certainly, in this escapist's world, is there anything worth glorifying somebody's word.

Do for the present, do not think for the future, it will be dealt dully with the situation and time. Try to escape the present. These are what escapists do. Unfortunately, when our leaders become escapist, common men are hit by the hard times.

Yes, a really a hard time. A slow down in the progress of our work. Not only slowing down of our activity, but sometimes a complete halt to our life. So, with the heralding of a new time we need to make new resolutions .

Resolve to reform something, try to mend the hole, flush out the dirt, plant flowers and make this world a happy garden. New year resolutions are the need of the day, be we the common man, administrators or law maker.

Yes deeper, new year resolutions for a safer, beautiful world.

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* RK Lilapati Devi wrote this article for Hueiyen Lanpao (English Edition) . This article was webcasted on January 12th, 2010.

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