‘The world needs dreamers and the world needs doers. But above all, the world needs dreamers who do.’ – Sarah Ban Breathnach
It is 2021, and here we are, the fortunate ones still talking about the pandemic with an increased sense of loss and pain. It is understandable, considering the situation that we are in. It is probably situations like these that bring the best of resilience from within to stand up and fight to survive, literally.
Times like these don’t stop with just raising the questions, they also push us to look for answers like we never looked before.
Times like these compels us to pause for good to think right and do the best.
Times like these differentiates the doers from the dreamers and sets them as examples to motivate the rest to take notice and be urged to make the change.
We parked by a busy roadside in the heart of Tirupati town, after a long drive on a hunt for a most suitable retail space for a client that we consult. It was right then, one such doer, who made me remember reading this quote (as quoted above).
It was an auto (Auto rickshaw) alright, but was definitely not like any other autos that we see on the road. He rode right in, where we were standing, to drop off his passengers who seemed to be happy about taking that ride as he signed off with a big & warm smile. Now what made this auto very different was that his vehicle was nothing short of a moving garden. It appeared that he had meticulously executed the fabrication to place all the pots with plants in an orderly fashion and at the same time not to harm the other road users. No wonder his passengers were happy as I am sure they had a breezy ride with an extra supply of oxygen, particularly in the current times that we live in. It was also evident that he takes good care of all the vegetation that he has created around his vehicle, as they looked well maintained. More than anything the message that he conveyed is mighty and so is he for what he does.
I stood there in awe of this person trying to take some pictures of his vehicle. He saw me as he was turning, gestured with a smile asking me if he should stop in such a way that I can get a better shot of his mobile garden. I was happy and impressed just not for what he dared to do but also for what he is as an example for. The pictures of his vehicle explains the rest.
Right from our school days we have heard and seen much that communicated a lot about saving the environment and the world. We may or may not have contributed. But we do come across people like these who never fail to inspire us. And to me this man is probably one of those who Sarah Ban Breathnach called the dreamers who do.
And the world needs them indeed as it all comes to doing it right to create that change that most dream of.
Happy World Environment Day.
-Immanuel Raj Kumar
