My Uncle who was a sprightly 84 years young, died last week after a trip to England, Wales and Ireland to attend the wedding of my cousin. He was a person who enjoyed his life to the fullest and lived life king size. He spent most of his youth in factories and workshops and was fit as a fiddle till his last days.

He had to undergo all the vagaries that life had to offer and he triumphed through them all through perseverance and fighting against all odds. He led a tough but thoroughly enjoyable life and was a fighter till the very last.

The Israelis, the Chinese and the Japanese are said to be one of the most patriotic of all nationalities. They have fearsome pride and have rebounded back from very difficult times and have braved all odds on a regular basis. They have epitomized the phrase “When the Going Gets Tough, The Tough Get Going” with their discipline and ability to face adversity.

Now, coming to us and the incidents, which we witness on a daily basis. Many states all over the country have set a precedence wherein schools were asked to extend their summer vacations on account of the heat wave. Though, if I were a child, I would have thoroughly enjoyed this extended vacation, but as an adult Indian, I have my reservations. Aren’t we making our next generation too soft??

The story of the Human race has been all about “Fight” and “Flight”, those who have fought no doubt faced a lot of hardships but came out triumphant at the end and are still remembered with reverence, a shining example from Mewar being Maharana Pratap. But those who believed in flight and ran off from adversities, what about them? Actually does anybody really care about them??

The soft lifestyle that gradually more and more Indians are embracing is a sure sign of prosperity but is it not making us sissies? Life without air conditioners or coolers during the summers is suddenly becoming unimaginable, why? Walking a few kilometers is looking like a mission impossible, why?

Is the average Indian psychic becoming more and more accustomed to a life of comfort? Though this process is not bad, per say, but a life accustomed only to comforts will face the greatest discomfort in face of adversity and then flight would be the only option left, as the spirit to fight is slowly but surely getting diluted.

Easy money, misplaced notions of development and freedom, a “chalta hai” attitude coupled with an urge for short cuts to success, is gradually becoming the bane of the average Indian. Doing things by hook or by crook might help you reach your destination once or twice, but it is always dedication, sacrifice and fearlessness in the face of adversity, along with smart work which will lead you to your destiny.

But the soft lifestyle that we have gradually embarked upon in no way promotes the way to destiny; on the contrary it acts as a hindrance to even correctly helping our own selves during testing times. In the look-out for quick fixes and stop gap solutions, more and more Indians are getting under the spells of depression and frustration or are indulging in petty crimes and the rest blame the Almighty for their misfortunes.

Indulgence nurtures growth but over indulgence is the beginning of the end and it is here that one has to learn to draw a line, so that idiom “God helps them, those who help themselves” continues to ring true!