What does it mean to be a good person?
What is the definition of a good person and one who is the opposite. It used to be a very straight answer, straight like the 15 cm ruler that many of us used to carry in the pencil boxes. But the ruler has a limitation, but we don’t start with the limitation, we only realise it with time when we look beyond and realise, 15 cm is not long enough.
Likewise, it was straight ‘good habit’ and ‘bad habit’, simply everything within the perimeter of these two terms defined a good person and bad one. That was the basic idea when we were fairly small in school. But as we grew up, we came across the third colour, grey and we realised, so everything wasn’t exactly black and white.
A rare innocent mind still has it quite simple following the same perimeters. Then there are people like my late maternal grandmother who have decided to see only the good in people no matter what. Of course, there is the opposite mindset as well, which makes everyone out there seem suspicious. Majority like me take our time before deciding which side of the court the ball should be thrown in.
It basically comes down to experiences and how one takes them. A lot can be misunderstood and a lot can be understood. The small boy breaking the flowerpot could have done it by accident or he might have a violent side growing within, you can let it go, keep it simple, or you can go ahead and try to remedy the violence that you have assumed is growing.
What I have realised, the closer you go to people, the cracks begin to become visible, things not previously thought of become more apparent. At a certain distance everything is a processed formality of a civilised world, but when you actually become involved with someone, you step beyond that line of formality into something that feels new or you could always come around oa good gossip if you are interested in that.
Eventually, we decide what is still acceptable and what is not, as we ourselves pass the same path with those same unseen filters. It’s all about feeling good about someone despite the flaws depending upon the reason for feeling good, like for a loved one recalling their smiling faces, their caring voice, understanding what their presence actually feels.
Written by Anuran Chatterji
