Diwali – a Festival of Caring and Sharing

‘Cheerfulness is in the air, Oh! It’s Diwali everywhere.’ What does Diwali actually mean to all of us? Is it one of the biggest festivals of the year in India which is about an amalgamation of a gathering with family, wearing flashy clothes, eating lip smacking sweets, illuminating diyas and doing all efforts to make you and your home look good. We all get a charge out of this festival. “Many Diwali festivals have arrived and passed. However the hearts of a huge majority are as dark as the night without stars.” But what about those who cannot rejoice this festivity, the people who are not so blessed to live with their family or are not that luxuriate to buy the fancy items that can add a sparkle to their life. It means for them there is nothing so special about this day? No, we people are enough privileged that our small efforts towards them can actually boost up the spirits of those people and see a smiling face and also a smiling heart.

The helpers of our homes like the housecleaner, garbage collector, milkman, newspaper seller etc. work so hard throughout the day despite being a festival or a normal day so that our work turns out to be an easier task. But have you ever imagined how painful it is for them to see you enjoying and their family just making their two ends meet. We can take that small yet a bold step by celebrating the merry making with them and their kids. We should make a few efforts to make Diwali – a special occasion for them. The reality is that we people celebrate on the day of the festival and give the leftovers of that night to them on the following day, which is a slap on the face of humanity and also disrespectful behavior towards them. If we are willing to share our joys with them we can buy a few gifts that could genuinely come into their daily use like clothes, food hampers etc., and give it on the day of festival or before it. We can make graceful rangoli designs at our as well as their home. We can even invite them to our home for a gathering as after all they are the ones who act as a support for us. Celebration is about being with people who think and care for you so as this is the best time to return this caring back to them.

We can also share our amusement with our neighbors like the old people whose kids may not live with them. Your pleasant gesture of going to their home and spending a quality time with them would lessen their loneliness and add to their festive spirit. We should always take care of safety and security of pets and stray animals by saying a ‘no’ to crackers. Diwali can be a better if the celebration is made with physically challenged, orphans, people living in old age homes. As they have necessities but not the kind of jolly time they really want. A visit to them with a token of love from your side would make their day. We can also buy a few handmade items from them like diyas, torans to make them feel great. Diwali actually means the celebration with all the people who are around you and with you. By simple ways we can make our and other’s Diwali a better ‘DIWALI’.