Passion…unbridled

An innovative product in the market is released

And everyone who uses it appears pleased

It is the next best thing after sliced bread, people say

Its company’s share prices skyrocket, everyone scurries away

To buy it, suddenly in everyone’s possession it appears

People are going to miss out if they don’t buy it, they fear

*

Initially it appears nothing can go wrong

The product is promising, its market presence strong

Then there are whispers of faults and defects

Being few and far between, they have minimal effect

On the popularity of this product wondrous

Sales of the product keep soaring thus

As more and more units are sold

More glitches and malfunctions start to unfold

Safety features thought to be among the best

Now appear to be failing in real life’s tests

The company scrambles to improve the design

But similar products are already in pipeline..

*

People still buy it, but it no longer generates

Owner’s pride and neighbor’s envy, its fate

Is now relegated to just one of many available

It has lost its sheen, it’s no longer a status symbol

“A social media influencer I aspire to be,”

Declares my high-schooler audaciously

At my involuntary eye-roll, she lets out a sigh

She’s bedazzled by this “profession”, she wonders why

I do not take content creation seriously

It requires hours of labor, talent and creativity

To make an aesthetically pleasing video that needs

To grab attention of its audience in nanoseconds indeed

But if successful, it is the easiest way

To make all good things come your way

Money, shiny objects, experiences and fame

For aspiring to all of it, how can a youngster be blamed?

*

Isn’t it amazing how a living you can make

By selling dreams to people, how you can take

An idea and convert it into an online business

Using a little creativity and showcasing it with finesse

By giving people a peek into your life, heavily stylized

By luring others to mimic you, follow your advice

Promoting brands through collaborations paid

For a nice sum of money, your own self you can trade

*

When the going is good, you have influence

Over your followers, but any day you can lose relevance

And be replaced by an influencer fresh and more vibrant

Despite your efforts to create more engaging content..

*

All this show and tell is good while it lasts

But style without substance can fade away fast

So besides selling dreams, you should try to learn

Conventional methods by which most people money earn…

Artificial intelligence is here to stay

Can it wipe social inequities away?

*

Or are the AI systems designed to propagate

Our current biases and perpetuate

Them in their applications everywhere

Create a complex web of which we should be aware

*

Take facial recognition technology, for instance

That is biased against darker skinned citizens

You cannot teach a bot cultural sensitivity

The AI system cannot on its own become bias-free

*

We mortal human beings have insight

Into our limitations, we know we are not always right

We know we have biases that can influence

Our judgment, at the same time in our defense

We can say that as fallible as we may be

We can unlearn and relearn, become free

Of our preconceived notions if we try hard enough

We can process simultaneously strong emotions and reasoning tough

*

Our brains may be complex neural networks but our minds

In an intangible realm nourishment find

The complex interplay of thoughts and emotions that creates

Our behavior is not something that AI can replicate

“You’re good at this,” whenever this she was told

She would find her imposter syndrome unfold

She would get flustered and worry about

Disappointing everyone, she would doubt

Her abilities, afraid that people would come to realize

That she was no good at all, perhaps she was telling lies..

*

People told her what she was good at again and again

She honed her skills; her efforts did not go in vain

Yet she never quite believed in her own competence

She never could find that level of self-confidence..

*

When people tell you that you are

Capable of something more, of going far

When they tell you that something better you can achieve

They are not giving you false hope, try to believe

What they are saying, because they may be able to see

Your true potential, unaware of which you may be

You may be in a web of your insecurities mired

Unable to trust in your ability to achieve goals to which you have aspired

If people praise you for your competence, take that as a sign

For you to work towards the goal for which you are destined

Consider it your lucky charm, or a prophecy

Leave aside self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy

You try to take decisions in a manner objective

You try to weigh a situation from different perspectives

You step away and examine a problem holistically

So that you don’t miss the forest for the trees

You do not want to be swayed by emotion

You want to decide with eyes wide open

*

Then there are times you close your eyes

When going with your gut feeling seems wise

When your heart is at odds with your head

You silence the voice of practicality, instead

You go ahead guided by your intuition

You hope you can bring your dreams to fruition

*

Some decisions need reason’s impartial voice

For others, your instincts should let you make a choice

For a decision that impacts others my mind I use

For personal decisions, my heart over my mind I choose…

No matter what you decide, you wonder about

The road not taken, you sometimes doubt

Whether the best decision was taken by you…

Whatever you decided, you would have to follow through

We all grew up being taught

Basic etiquette in school

To treat others with kindness

Was supposedly a fundamental rule

Most of us more or less stick to those norms

When with other people we’re face to face

But when involved in online discussions

We fail to extend to others such grace..

*

When people turn to social media forums for advice

With mockery and scathing criticism they are met

Behind a veil of anonymity people feel emboldened

To tear down others on the internet..

*

It is time we all learnt a new set

Of rules of engagement for the internet

Think before we type vicious comments

Practice in the online world real-life etiquette

This poem was inspired by an Indian movie I watched titled “Kho gaye hum kahan” (Where are we lost) that explores the story of 3 youngsters trying to find meaning in the digital age and eventually discovering that life is meant to be lived in person and not online.

(I think this blurry image captured from a moving car is apt for this poem)

You do not realize how far you have drifted

From who you were, how your priorities have shifted

Though your goals and dreams are the sane as they used to be

You’ve let yourself be pulled in different directions unknowingly

You are bedazzled by the highlights that you see

Of others’ lives, you compare them incessantly

With your behind-the-scenes life that a big mess appears

You are flailing while everyone is succeeding, you fear

*

Do you realize that less than two decades ago

There was no way for you to know

The business of most people around you unless

You interacted with them or they had achieved considerable success

But now every person behind an instagram reel

Appears successful, and makes you feel

You are not enough, that you need to be

Doing something that the world can see

And applaud you even if the story is fake

Think of the toll on your emotional state this can take..

*

Step away from the phantasmagoric universe

Of social media, do not make yourself feel worse

Remove the unreal comparisons and find

A way back to your sane, less conflicted mind

You’ve lost yourself in a world that is beyond your comprehension

Discover yourself in the real world, leave your device and pay attention

I had somehow assumed artists were their own special breed

To be an artist, a completely different set of qualities one would need

I was convinced my world could never intersect

With that of artists, my personality lacked an artistic aspect

I thought my manner of thinking was completely objective

I did not dabble in ideas creative or subjective

*

Not long ago, I stumbled upon, by serendipity

My own ignored creative ability

I could develop it further, I realized

It actually came as a pleasant surprise

*

Giving artistic expression to the chaotic thoughts in my mind

Has led me on the path of self-realization, I find

I can process complex emotions through art

I can better align my mind and my heart

*

While I do not have the audacity to call

Myself an artist, I can be artistic on a scale small

Each time I flex my muscles creative

Much needed nourishment to my soul I give..

I don’t know if this is posttraumatic stress

But a recurring nightmare, I confess

Is one I have related to school examinations

I wonder if so traumatic was my education

As a child that for life I’ve been scarred

Overcoming the dread of a test is hard

*

In nightmares I reach the test center late

Or during the test I procrastinate

I am unable to complete the test timely..

And then I wake up, my heart pounding wildly

*

To be clear, periodically I still have to appear

For tests in my field, so far my fears

Have never materialized, I always complete the test

In terms of punctuality, I am at my best

*

Yet this is the most common theme of my nightmares

(Thankfully bad dreams are quite rare)

I’d like to know I am not the only one

Traumatized by this necessary part of education…

I am ready to start work as soon as I get there

Most days I have no time to spare

I get galvanized in a flurry of activity

Seeing patients in a clinical practice busy..

*

Today is not one of those days, it appears

On this cold winter morning my schedule is clear

I have no pending tasks to complete right now

I should be relaxed, but I am annoyed somehow

I know that my schedule shall fill up shortly

And that I should enjoy this respite from being busy

But it seems I am wasting precious time that could be

Utilized better if I had known I would be free

*

Alone with my thoughts, philosophical I turn

From my inability to enjoy free time, what can I learn?

*

Why does time that is unstructured feel uncomfortable?

Why do I think that I should be able

To do something productive constantly

Why can I not be at peace when I am free?

*

“I do, therefore I am” is the mantra to which I have subscribed

Perhaps it is time to question this belief that I have imbibed

I keep myself occupied constantly, therefore

Being alone with my thoughts is not something I do any more..

*

I do not get more time to ponder anyway

Because my schedule has now been filled for the day

It is ten o’ clock and I take a pause

To acknowledge my gratitude because

Today has begun with a morning perfect

In a chaotic world, this gift I should graciously accept

My productivity is a few notches higher

A good start to the day continues to inspire

Me to work smarter, make good decisions

Motivates me to tackle tasks with greater precision

*

What made this morning special was my patients

Who had improved on and were satisfied with treatment

The best form of positive reinforcement for me

Is to witness my patients make a near-complete recovery

Not everyone I see in the course of a day

Is at the same point or on the same pathway

Therefore, when several patients in a row are doing well

It makes my heart with gratitude swell

*

Riding high on endorphins released early today

To see my next patient, I sprint away

Recommendations for a life-changing book I see

As an avid reader, I start pondering over the question instantly

Is there a book that actually changed how I view

The world, is this something that a book alone can do?

*

The more I thought about this question, the further back in time I went

To an age at which I was impressionable to a greater extent

I thought about all the books that left a mark indelible

On my mind, to see if there was a common theme identifiable

*

Of course some outstanding books I recalled

But the thread that was common to them all

Was that at pivotal points in my life’s journey

Those books had provided guidance to me

When I was struggling with illness, strength I had found

In reading a memoir by an author with an illness profound

When I was conflicted in taking a career decision

An excellent book had helped me make a choice with precision

A beautifully crafted book stood out in my memory

Because the setting in which I had read it had a memorable story

When I was learning to grapple with death as a new physician

A powerful treatise by a doctor was an invaluable companion..

*

Regrettably I have not read anything that has left an impact

In recent years, though I read much more these days, in fact

I am not as impressionable as I used to be

When I was younger, with more cynicism the world I now see

I would love to find a book that has the potential

To change my life, to answer some questions existential

Until then I shall continue to read for the usual reasons

Stress relief, entertainment and education