Human Paradox

I met a guy today in a coffee shop. I had escaped my gym routine today. 10k run yesterday morning with barely any proper sleep had definitely taken a toll on my body. The muscles were hurting and the body felt tired. After the daily grind of the office, driving back home listening to some country music, the soul inside me couldn't escape the thought of sipping in a coffee. I ordered one at a nearby barista on the way back home. A tiny timid guy in his early 20s came in to serve the same. The place barely had human souls. Blame the 9:30 slightly cold night after a busy Monday for commoners; most of them would preferred to go back home. So I tried striking a conversation with the guy who served my coffee. The young timid guy courteously kept the cup on the table and walked away. I said - "You seem to be new here. Do you work here during evening hours ? " He didn't reply. I couldn't control my urge. I asked again - "Hey". The guy just walked away. For a moment I took his behavior to be rude. I tried ignoring him but the human tendency of being ignored couldn't just sublime. Leaving my coffee midway , I strolled past the gate and went to the counter to talk to the cafe manager. I asked him why does he have such a rude staff and if they treated their customer same. He apologized and said, "Sir, I would like to apologize on behalf of him, but unfortunately he is deaf and cannot speak too".

I was left speechless. Coming back to my table I thought, how quickly and easily we judge someone without knowing the other side of story; How easily we expect from people without knowing the other side of story, how easily we extrapolate without knowing the other side of story. I thought, here is a guy who cannot speak and cannot hear but still he is working hard to make a living for himself, who still respect himself and not let his weakness come in between his survival quest. As he came back to collect the left over's from my table. I stood up, shook his hand. He smiled back. His smile sounded so comforting. The coffee tasted much better now.

As I was driving back I pondered paradoxes in the human context are abound. We are all human; but few are humane. Most of us think we are virtuous; but few are bereft of vice. We are all uniquely blessed with the power to imagine, extrapolate, inquire and to perceive beyond immediacy but so few see beyond the reach of their noses and so much consumed by the grind of daily existence. Many of us feel self-righteous; but few shrink from hurting the weak and vulnerable. To be fallible is to be human but individually we think we are infallible. Why does human intimacy rob mutual respect and interpersonal relationships so hard to sustain when man is so gregarious and craves for human contact? We are endowed with the unique power of reason, viveka (wisdom) andvichakshana (discrimination) but we act so often without them. We are infinitely creative but often mindlessly destructive. Instead of feeling ashamed for our anger and avarice, we use them as a cover and justification for their actions arising from them.

We make daily choices but often avoid facing the consequences.