The Golden Phase of Life

“Childhood is the kingdom where nobody dies. Nobody that matters, that is,” said the famous poet, Edna St. Vincent Millay.

Often, we pace about, scratching our heads with frustration as consternation sneaks into our conscience. We’ve got tons of duties and responsibilities waiting to be fulfilled. The real world is very harsh. It takes a great toll on us, both physically and mentally. We always yearn to be able to escape into an ethereal, utopian world devoid of the perils and evils of the callous realm where we reside. Sauntering down the tortuous road of our destiny, riddled with ravages, we often forget that unique phase of life which had infused it with the benedictions of mirth, vigor, and enthusiasm. When we do recall, it is with rueful nostalgia, wistfully pondering on our golden past.

The phase of life that was synonymous with innocence and brevity – isn’t it beautiful? The whole world appears to be warmly welcoming when observed from a pair of inexperienced eyes. There is excitement in the air. People avidly watching us would be mesmerized – every now and then they would exclaim at our trivial mistakes – “Aww! Isn’t he/she cute?” It made us feel special (though, at times it does get nettling when you attract too much attention). Amiability and compassion become defining traits of people in proximity (there’re exceptions of course, but this is generically true).

The weeny moments in the learning curve of an inquisitive toddler elucidates his/her exuberance. They’ve resilience coursing in the blood through those veins – an indomitable spirit that adults need to learn from when they despair and give up so easily. Peek into how typical babies take their initial steps. Almost inevitably, they stagger when treading the nascent steps, but their visage does not betray their anxiety. After tottering at length, the final result would be immaculate. Seeing the grin on their faces on having accomplished a supposedly indispensable task would make our day. It also serves as a stern reminder that however undaunting a task might be, hope is always omnipresent. Despondency should be dispensed with; it shouldn’t be allowed to become a contagion that can corrupt an individual’s mind to the extent that he contemplates suicide as the ultimate solution to alleviate his distress.

The stark reality of the savage world outside would be instantaneously effaced when grumpy, aggrieved grown-ups come home to cherish the warmth that emanates from effusive toddlers. From the tantrums of an esurient kid to singing a lullaby to put them to sleep – they can heal us of our weariness and make us find pleasure in supposedly trifling stuff. Betwixt those moments of toothless grinning to mature laughter, we find an uncanny solace that many jokes these days are even devoid of.

A countenance that abounds in zest, demeanor that lacks concepts of bigotry and scorn – something that grown-ups need to imbibe and nurture. We teach idealism to the kids with the hope that when they grow up, they don’t repeat the same mistakes as we committed. How ironic, isn’t it? And that idealism doesn’t materialize fruitfully – somehow or the other, sooner or later they’re introduced to radical, divisive notions that possess the potential to completely transform any individual. Adults seldom realize that their squabbles and inappropriate demeanor have a profound impact on their children’s upbringing. The virtues of tolerance, secularism, equality, fraternity, optimism – the list may be incessant – all get buried in coffins dug by ourselves.

We are not oblivious of the fact that children can make or obliterate the future. So, why not impart the proper ethics and encourage the inculcation of values? Alas! The modern world has become too materialistic. Most of the children are treated more as profitable progenies who will fulfill the unachieved ambitions of their ancestors - at least in India. Oh, the mighty folly! The period of childhood is on the brink of tottering – all because some stolid, apparently stoic adults decide to control the fate and will of their brash brats.

And this problem is getting frustratingly unbearable. It seems that not only the parents but also certain companies have taken too literally the axiom that our children build the future. Take for instance – WhiteHat Jr. The proclamation of the New Education Policy this year had emphasized the importance of introducing coding to the students early on so that it enhances their problem-solving and critical thinking skills. It had specifically suggested venturing into an approach wherein grade 6 students would experience this for the first time. Now, the causes were noble – to upgrade the obsolete curriculum which only exhorts rote learning rather than reasoning. But the capitalist hunger that propels modern companies never dies. WhiteHat Jr, a hitherto unknown edtech company jumped into the bandwagon to cash in this opportunity by offering courses tailored for kids who are in primary school. But what was more flummoxing was that they were offering advanced courses of ML to kids at such a tender age! This coupled with the fact that their hiring criteria for teachers had explicitly mentioned that no prior coding knowledge is required. Education has shockingly transformed into a business with profits being preferred over imparting knowledge.

“There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children,” goes a wise counsel by Nelson Mandela.

The imperfections that we moan about, the eternal sadness that we lament about, the wickedness that we denounce, the impoverishment that ails us and so many other problems can go away if only we learn how to treat children properly. It goes without saying that they’ve got a great responsibility for sustaining the legacy of mankind and thus our succulent investments for their growth and development becomes indispensable.

- Priyanshu Mohanty

Image Credit: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/programs/vfc/parents/index.html