Once in a while in this journey of life there comes a time whereby you meet a person by chance who positively impacts your life. As I recall one such incident whereby without any expectations, I was able to learn a lot within a brief period of time. I had often heard a lot about the Sunset Point whereby people went to experience spectacular sunsets which made me eagerly curious to witness a spectacular evening unfold.
The Sunset Point was not so far away from home, so I decided to walk up to it. The walk took me approximately 30 minutes to reach. Just as I reached the site, I noticed a small café and I walked up towards it as I was thirsty. The café was named ViewPoint Café. The menu had an array of fresh juices, teas and coffees as the choice of beverages, a few snacks and some pastries. The café was a self-service café, I placed an order of an apple beet carrot juice and paid the amount and waited at the collect counter for the juice.
As I was waiting for the juice to be served, I mentally marked the best spot to sit. Within minutes of having been served and without taking further time I quickly started walking with the tray towards the seat. An elderly lady heading in the same direction and we both reached the table and sat down at the same time. We looked at each other awkwardly wondering what the best way was forward. I stood up and politely asked the lady to keep sitting and I began to walk away with my tray.
"Please let's share the table if you don't mind as I am here on my own" she said with a smile. While I quickly looked around in search of an unoccupied table and realised that there was no table available, and I decided to share the table and took a seat across from the lady and thanked her for her kind gesture.
I made myself comfortable and was just about to take a sip of the juice when I realised that the lady had no beverage nor a snack in front of her. I politely offered to buy a drink or a snack of her choice for her. She was quick enough to decline the offer but after a bit of persuasion I was happy to have got her a glass of fresh coconut water.
It was around 5:15pm, we were enjoying the breeze from the nearby trees, the sound of the chirping birds made the evening more tranquil, slowly the magic of in the horizon began to unravel.
I was in awe and astonished to see nature at its best. Different tinges of orange, pink and purple made it seem like the sky was blushing in the evening. Everyone around me hurriedly took photos with their phones. It appeared that nobody wanted to miss the opportunity of capturing these moments and as they were too engaged in taking photos, I decided to capture a few photos of the beautiful scenery as well.
As I grabbed my phone from my pocket the lady asked "are you going to take pictures as well"? I nodded in affirmation and smiled. She then said "put away the phone and enjoy the rest of the setting sun. I wondered why she'd ask me to do so but instead of dwelling on it I decided to put my phone aside and took pleasure and enjoy the rest of the evening to the fullest.
After a while she began to say "Dearie", she continued. "I hope that you didn't mind what I said earlier on to you". I looked at her as she went on to explain. "You see life is not just about capturing stills but instead it's about enjoying these precious moments and holding all these treasures close to our heart and mind". She then continued, "Over the past years through knowledge and vast experiences, I have learned that engaging in activities such as meditation, taking walks or being close to nature can all be a source to cultivate the awareness of the present moment. This in turn can enhance concentration and reduce stress".
In-between taking sips of the coconut water she went on to add "as you are still young you can set some real and achievable goals for yourself. Break them down into smaller steps and create a plan on working out how to achieve them".
I asked her, "what if I fail or probably can't achieve what I aimed for, what would be the best way forward"?
She said, "Dear keep in mind at times your plan might fail or might not be that as you wish but don't let it weigh your spirits down, instead look at it as a challenge. Rise above it and restructure your plans to move forward".
"Dear growth is very important. By this I do not mean compete with others to outshine them but instead make sure that you as an individual become better then whom you were yesterday. Perhaps you might want to enhance your creativity or skills or become more confident".
"Lastly" she said, "make sure that you are surrounded by people who are supportive and uplifting. These are the people who will bring out the best in you. Have meaningful conversations or activities with people who encourage personal growth. Choose your tribe wisely my Dear as people can either break you or help you cultivate positively in your growth".
"I don't know you and I don't even know your name likewise you don't know anything about me either. We met by chance and simply enjoyed the evening together". I couldn't agree more. Everything she said made a lot of sense.
"You are a kind and generous soul," she said. It's something very rare and which I have often failed to see in today's generation". My evening became a very memorable one and I learned a lot in a short span of time.
She left me with a feeling of wonderment and happiness and to sum this experience I would love to share a quote by Mother Teresa; "Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier".
By Disha Sharma
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