Run of the mill

Have you ever come across a thought, wherein you felt that moments seem epic when you are in them but as soon as you move some distance away, they no more seem fancy? Rather, if they are to be put down on a paper, you would immediately start scanning for something special, beautiful, interesting and out of the box. The little tokens that once seemed attractive would now seem usual, and just like a game board, no matter how many times the die is rolled, it would be these little tokens just moving here and there thus making every second ORDINARY. So you continue adding these jiffs as if there was something you forgot to count, some stash of glory that fell off the back of a truck. This is the point where “being average” starts to gain a negative connotation. We are hard-wired to be a social climber and conditioned to believe that in simple thrive we should be anything but simple and thus we crave to be something EXTRA than the ORDINARY.

It is special to be ordinary and go on. It is okay to enjoy a game and not make it to a national team, it is okay to be generous without being declared as an admired hero. Our perception of “average” solely measures the superficial criterion of self-celebration and disregards virtuous qualities like compassion and dependability. One of the major reason behind biblical times being considered as quintessential is the presence of MORAL-REALISM. Today almost everyone aspires to be more accomplished than the rest of the crowd and it is absolutely alright, however, wouldn’t it be better if it stands on a strong foundation of self-awareness? Now it may have crossed your mind that a combination like this is nothing more than an illusion, but let me clarify, you have encountered it. Some of the most seemingly USUAL folks who don’t make it to a magazine cover, don’t receive maximum attention yet live a modest life and contribute the greatest to the society are TEACHERS. Wasn’t it a quiet ORDINARY example??

Its time we redefine ORDINARY with terms like “free of unnecessary drama”. Being a happy average Joe doesn’t mean that one should dim the lights and play down on strengths. It’s no excuse for laziness, rather it is a way to dream big and be CONTENTED not STAGNANT. The ironic part is, our underlying need to stand out has aggravated to such an extent that, if ever we have to be simple and average we would strive and aim to be EXTRA SIMPLE and EXTRA AVERAGE than the rest of the flock.