The Metamorphosis of Life, Nature and its interconnectedness

As the season begins to change, I can see delightful changes around me. The days are now brighter and livelier, and nights longer. While the hot, humid summers are giving way to cool, gentle breezes, the leaves are slowly turning their colors from verdant green to burnt orange hues, marking a transition towards the autumn. 

In my natural surroundings, a sense of renewal fills the air. Every kind of life form, fauna and flora alike, seems to prepare for the metamorphosis of birth and rebirth, completing the cycle of life. It is like shedding old selves and becoming better, novel versions of themselves. I wonder how each living entity on earth undergoes that transition like clockwork, in perfect harmony with Mother Nature. Be it the birds, trees, moths, or humankind––we all must undergo the transformation. 

And how fascinating it is to watch these tiny, delicate events unfold in my everyday life.

In a metropolitan city, botanical parks and gardens are akin to an oasis in the desert. For us, the city dwellers, it is a sanctuary where we can unwind and reconnect with our surroundings in its utmost natural state. To be able to listen to birdsongs and their cacophony and watch tiny critters crawling from underneath the soil, while playful squirrels scurry about, and flowers unfurl to their own rhythm, I feel a deep sense of gratitude and heartfelt joy for what I can experience with freedom. 

On many occasions, while taking a stroll in the neighborhood park, I would pause to take a whiff of a familiar smell lingering in the air, a sweet fragrance that would immediately transport me back to my childhood days spent at my grandparents’ home. I find my way to the source of that scent, and there I spot the Indian Medlar or Bakul as commonly known. 

I couldn’t have told you how delighted I was!

I remember how in the early morning hours my cousins and I would run outside to pick the fallen Bakul flowers from the dewy grass. And later in the afternoon, we would sit together, chatting and weaving simple garlands to our heart’s content.

The simple joys of life often come from the least expected things, such as the sight of fluffy cumulus clouds against the blue sky, or the glimpse of a rainbow across the horizon. The view of meadows and a herd of cows grazing on it makes for a lovely view, and sometimes just a ray of sunlight filtering through the window is enough to make my day blissful.

The continuum of life––birth, growth, and end––reminds us to live our lives gracefully. It tells us to let go of what does not serve us or make us happy. Old resentments and bitterness must remain in the past and one must go ahead without any baggage. To embark on new beginnings, we must shed our old skin, our old selves. No living being thrives without this process. We are designed to undergo the cycle of rebirth and renewal, mentally, physically and spiritually. And just like Nature does, we must keep learning and evolving at every stage.

Perhaps, this is the ultimate key to transforming our lives.

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