"The Happy Prince"

The day started off with a bang! Literally! There was a loud sound and the electricity supply went off. I was surprised- even when there was the “revolution” going on, the water supply and the electricity had never ditched us –so what happened today?

The intelligent teenager went to check if the lift was working (saves the energy to check if the supply had tripped as this entailed going to the box; opening it and peering at all the switches!) and it wasn’t.

There was breakfast to make; the kitchen was dark; the hunt for candles ensued; not finding any I picked up some tea candles and put it on a stand and made breakfast (Thank God! There was the gas supply intact!) In fact I had rejected a lovely sea facing house because it had only electric burners- kudos to my farsightedness!

Normally the electricity is very well behaved in our area and I was sure it would soon be back. Bur breakfast got over and there was no sign of it reviving so the lazy adolescent and her father started on their way to their place of duty via the good old staircase from the tenth floor! I wondered how and when my maid would turn up and shut the door a little worried. But there was still an hour before she was due.

I suddenly realized with horror that there would be no internet- how would I check my mail, my blog, my bank accounts and my game sites? (My normal activities till my maid turns up). Oh well, the I-pad was there and I had my books on it. After clearing up, I sat down to read my books which I had downloaded. Then horror of horrors! I had actually deleted them the day before and had not put in any new ones- what would I do? I didn’t want to knit neither to stitch nor to clear up or anything worthwhile for that matter; this particular hour was given for my leisure, so I stubbornly didn’t want to do anything productive! I then fiddled around with the pad, played with “talking tom”, “finger scan” and the smurfs- still I felt restless(the finger scan had said I was restless!) so I opened the library folder and decided to read “The happy Prince and other stories” by Oscar Wilde.

I had first read this when I was in third standard under duress (I still remember Miss Angela!) and then again in the sixth standard because I wanted to illustrate some essay and this was the third time after thirty years that I was delving into this book!

I loved it! The sarcasm and irony which Oscar Wilde has so cunningly hidden into each of his sentence were so transparent and obvious to me now. The seemingly black and white narrative of the good and the bad so wonderfully utilized the shades and shadows to express all facets of the human character was so brilliant that it struck me like a slap on my face and woke me up.

All of us put up some kind of facade not so much to hide our faults but to actually protect ourselves from the harsh realities of life. Once the gilt has been removed we are all alike, ordinary to look at; with a desire for shelter, food and clothing; with goodness within us and to be accepted by God (or the unknown creator). Like the Happy Prince most of us lead sheltered lives within high walls of our palace and when we realize that there is more to life than the pursuit of happiness it is normally too late! We are not living in a fairy tale world where we can help others in their pursuit of happiness even after death.*

I continued reading the other stories “The devoted friend” was hilarious and the “Little rocket” was such a wonderful caricature of many pompous people that we know of. I started putting people I know into folders titled as such in my mind! I was being a little wicked; but how can you appreciate goodness if there is no evil to compare it with!

The realization that I had almost everything I desired yet the small scar of discontentment always itched and took away my peace for the most trivial of reasons shook me and I sat pondering on this. I never resolved this to my satisfaction......

The maid came huffing and puffing up the stairs and I got back into my daily routine forgetting Oscar Wilde and the fact that my Blog’s name has been derived from one of his famous books. The electricity came back and I was once again on the path of searching for pure pleasure........

*there have been great men who through their writings have inspired many even after death; many who have donated their organs and given a chance of life and happiness to others but they are few and far between!