Blog #3 (Living)
Joshua Roberts
A few nights ago I had the privilege of chatting to VJ, the founder of the Magicians Rugby Club in Bombay. I posed to him the question: "Why rugby?"
In a country dominated by cricket, where the basic laws of rugby are unknown to most, it seemed to me like a strange choice of code. He replied by saying that he had fallen in love with the sport in part because of the core values which are integral to the playing of rugby. These are, as outlined by the irb: integrity, passion, solidarity, discipline, and respect.
He explained to me that in these values he sees more than just a guideline to playing rugby, he finds in them a guideline to living life. In the children who pass through his programme, he sees a huge shift in the direction in which life is taking them, a change in the hand that has been dealt to them. Rugby teaches them these values, and these values teach them how to live. During this chat I was reminded of Tom's talk at the Leavers' Lunch just before we left. He outlined seven things that he would have told to a younger version of himself, seven things which I believe are extremely applicable to all of us. These are:
1. You are extremely lucky
2. Your CV does not define you
3. Chill out, have a beer
4. Certain people will add immense value to your life; honour them
5. Define yourself by what you love
6. Don't rush
Through spending one month travelling throughout India, far away and far removed from the society in which I have been raised in, I have seen for myself some of things our society has gotten wrong. More money does not always equate to more happiness. More Instagram likes does not always equate to more happiness. More Snapchat streaks does not always equate to more happiness. More popular friends does not always equate to more happiness. Neither does a bigger house, or a newer laptop, or even a holiday in beautiful Goa. In fact, from my point of view, these things are so incredibly minor. We have to make the most of life as it is, and for us in New Zealand, we are incredibly lucky. How can we worry when there is a mother standing on a platform at Siliguri Railway Station who must wake each morning and beg for the sake of providing her child with enough food to stay alive for just another day? Life is about living, and instead we tend to spend so much of our time worrying about the small things. We worry about building up an image of ourselves so that 'they' might see us as 'cool'. Turns out 'they' are of little importance to living a fulfilling life and being 'cool' means nothing if you forsake staying true to who you truly know yourself to be. What if we invested that precious time into building healthy relationships with the people who will actually add value to our life? As you may have noticed, Tom refrained from sharing his seventh point with us. I believe that that is because, firstly, he himself is still learning and doesn't know all the answers - nobody does. But also it is because this list can never be complete. As humans it is only in our nature to learn, grow, and adapt as people over time. Sometimes in life we don't know the answers, and we have to learn to accept that that is okay. Other times we have to forge our own answers.
A few nights ago I had the privilege of chatting to VJ, the founder of the Magicians Rugby Club in Bombay. I posed to him the question: "Why rugby?"
In a country dominated by cricket, where the basic laws of rugby are unknown to most, it seemed to me like a strange choice of code. He replied by saying that he had fallen in love with the sport in part because of the core values which are integral to the playing of rugby. These are, as outlined by the irb: integrity, passion, solidarity, discipline, and respect.
He explained to me that in these values he sees more than just a guideline to playing rugby, he finds in them a guideline to living life. In the children who pass through his programme, he sees a huge shift in the direction in which life is taking them, a change in the hand that has been dealt to them. Rugby teaches them these values, and these values teach them how to live. During this chat I was reminded of Tom's talk at the Leavers' Lunch just before we left. He outlined seven things that he would have told to a younger version of himself, seven things which I believe are extremely applicable to all of us. These are:
1. You are extremely lucky
2. Your CV does not define you
3. Chill out, have a beer
4. Certain people will add immense value to your life; honour them
5. Define yourself by what you love
6. Don't rush
Through spending one month travelling throughout India, far away and far removed from the society in which I have been raised in, I have seen for myself some of things our society has gotten wrong. More money does not always equate to more happiness. More Instagram likes does not always equate to more happiness. More Snapchat streaks does not always equate to more happiness. More popular friends does not always equate to more happiness. Neither does a bigger house, or a newer laptop, or even a holiday in beautiful Goa. In fact, from my point of view, these things are so incredibly minor. We have to make the most of life as it is, and for us in New Zealand, we are incredibly lucky. How can we worry when there is a mother standing on a platform at Siliguri Railway Station who must wake each morning and beg for the sake of providing her child with enough food to stay alive for just another day? Life is about living, and instead we tend to spend so much of our time worrying about the small things. We worry about building up an image of ourselves so that 'they' might see us as 'cool'. Turns out 'they' are of little importance to living a fulfilling life and being 'cool' means nothing if you forsake staying true to who you truly know yourself to be. What if we invested that precious time into building healthy relationships with the people who will actually add value to our life? As you may have noticed, Tom refrained from sharing his seventh point with us. I believe that that is because, firstly, he himself is still learning and doesn't know all the answers - nobody does. But also it is because this list can never be complete. As humans it is only in our nature to learn, grow, and adapt as people over time. Sometimes in life we don't know the answers, and we have to learn to accept that that is okay. Other times we have to forge our own answers.
Comments
Post a Comment