wheel of civilization…

My father hated noisy ceiling fans, disliked watching television for extended period of time and seldom used car air conditioner. He cycled till his last few months and would walk to near by market instead of driving. He told us that his maternal grandfather never sat under a ceiling fan because he experienced vertigo! (hard to believe considering our current level of heat endurance) Instead, he used a hand held fan in the night. Life was less complicated in those days. Simple habits, less pollution, negligible traffic, pure food, clean water and importantly no television and nerve racking news channels. Early to bed, early to rise was the routine. It is not my case that we reverse the wheel of civilization. What bothers me is becoming slave to gadgets. We can’t walk; need a car, can’t drink tap water, can’t live without idiot box; can’t sit/sleep without air conditioner, can’t tolerate heat, mosquito, humidity, dust… and I forgot can’t imagine travel without mobile phone. When I leave for office I check my pockets for mobile, watch, pen drive, keys, purse and handkerchief. During the day I keep checking again to ensure all is there. On the way back I repeat the ritual and carefully stack the items on my writing table when I reach home. The essence is that modern life has made us live on edge of nerves. The balance needs a major correction.