Let Your Desire Keep YOU Going

We’ve all had those days when you don’t want to get out of bed. It is not because we are feeling lazy, but there is simply no drive, no desire or no urge to do anything. 

Routine can pretty much sap the fun out of doing most things, but it is up to us to find ways to add some spice back into our lives. I’m not saying throw a spanner into the wheel because we wouldn’t want chaos, right? Just up the turbo instead.

Simply put, find something that you deem desirable to do aside from your routine. Automatically you’ll see a newfound pep in your step! You will look forward to not just getting out of bed but completing your normal routine stuff to get to what you crave to do, desire or learn.

The Japanese have a term, Ikigai, which refers to having a sense of purpose in life or your reason for waking up each day. The French call it Raison d’être, which translated to the reason for being. We all have one, we just need to dive deep and find it.

Your desire could range from learning a new language to making baklava, art of brewing beer learning a musical instrument or even carpentry. The point is to find out what you desire to do outside of the routine. Routine is good. It gives us structure, discipline. But we aren’t robots and so finding what truly makes one happy is very important for a balanced life.

The past two years have been rough for many people world-over. So much pain, suffering, loss of human life, loss of finances, have all put a kind of gloom on the human race. It is in times like these that we need to look inward and tap into things that can put a smile on our face, things that can distract us and help us have a positive outlook and get us through the tough times.

This is where one’s desires come into play. Your desires are your own, they are something that defines you. Never be ashamed of them, however frivolous they may be.

If you love your sarees, settle your cupboard and try on a few. Adorn yourself with the jewellery that enhances your saree, wear that beautiful shade of lipstick, click a few pictures and look at yourself in the mirror, you will see that sparkle in your eyes. So what if you aren’t going anywhere? You’re dressing up to feel good about yourself.

A few months into lockdown, I realised that I could fit into an outfit that I was hatching for a couple of years. Why? Because it was too tight on my tummy. And after all the sweeping and mopping, which I used to curse, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I could wear my beautiful dress even though I had nowhere to go but that is fine. You see, I became aware of the simple joys of not having my house help around. The next day I was humming away and sweeping. That three months later I was thrilled to have my house help back is another story altogether!

Baking, cooking new cuisines, photography, stitching, learning a new language, searching and researching about where to travel next, zoom calls, making silly fun videos, all became the perfect distraction for all of us during this past year and a bit. 

The desire to try out new things with so much added time on hand gave people a certain joy of creativity. Overnight adults and kids were becoming chefs and bakers. So many people discovered their hidden talents which their regular routine wouldn’t permit them. 

Many gave in to their desires of learning to stitch, dabbled in sketching, writing poetry and some even wrote a book. Some desired to reach out to a long-lost friend or rekindle an estranged family tie and now when they realised ‘life is too short’ had a very real meaning, they gave in to what their heart desired.

And that feeling of satisfaction, of gladness, cannot be compared to any money in the world. We all have desires, who is to judge what is good or bad as long as you don’t hurt another person. I feel we should indulge ourselves, after all, life is too short!

Written by Joanne Albuquerque

A lover of the universe and a die-hard optimist who believes that everything happens for a reason, even the unpleasant stuff. That doing random acts of kindness can heal the world one deed at a time. I believe that what’s meant for you will find its way, there’s no need to chase after anything. And there’s nothing more attractive than a grateful heart.

Week 20, May 2021