My take on Freedom

Freedom holds different meaning to different people.

• For the freedom fighters it was the idea of an independent and British free India.
• For children it is to play & watch TV whenever they want.
• For a woman it is to choose her career & lifestyle and
• I don’t really know a man's point of view in this but from what I understand they would be really happy to be free from all the nagging. Actually, I think we all would like that J

This is a very generic or a very broad look at freedom. I feel that the perception of freedom undergoes changes with every stage in life. At least mine has. At preschool, I just wanted to play & watch cartoons Mickey Mouse, tom & jerry, he- man, spider man, etc. At Primary, going for a school trip would define living freely. At 18 going for overnight parties was freedom.

Now that I think about it "freedom" is not just going out for a trip or choosing a career or choosing your partner. Freedom is much more than that. Freedom is to be free from apprehensions, inhibitions, discriminations, thoughts of jealously or pulling people down and most importantly to be free from one's own past.

To me, freedom means to be able to learn from my mistakes. If I didn’t have freedom, I would have to do what the top authorities always tell me to do. I don’t have any room for mistakes so it would be harder to learn about life.

Freedom also means having the time to do things right. No freedom, in this case, would mean that I wouldn’t have any time for fantastic, clever thoughts. I would have to do things extremely precise and quick. When I don’t have freedom, I am under pressure constantly. While I am under so much pressure, it makes it a more stressful world to live in.

Freedom is to live in the present. Past always stops us from doing a lot of good for ourselves. Past gives us instances that many a times stops us from doing something or trying something new. Past experiences & lessons from them are important, but that should not be used as a barbed wire that stops us from venturing new areas of life.

I have been fortunate enough to have family & friends who have been supporting me in new ventures & giving me handy tips that keep me from getting hurt by the barbed wire.

To conclude, freedom is not just a term that comes up during Independence Day or republic day to prove a point but it’s something that is relative it varies from person to person & changes with time. The sooner you accept the truth you can be free & walk towards a better future! 

One last example of what freedom means to me is being able to do many things without being forced into doing anything. No freedom means that I might have to enlist in the army reluctantly. I might even be forced to quarter troops and watch them take over my home! My life minus freedom would equal being controlled with everything. When I don’t have freedom I can’t do anything except for what the strict laws tell me to do.

In summary, we are lucky to be in a society of freedom. Just remember, we are the land of the free and the home of the brave.

 

Author:

Shipra Kundu - Project Manager @plugHR