One Month

That is how long it has been since I last wrote on this blog.

The last 30 days have gone by in a haze and a blur. I spent three weeks in USA traveling to various cities. I started off in Chicago and then went to Detroit. Returned to Chicago. Then off again to Pittsburgh, followed by a weekend in Long Island...and back again to Pittsburgh before making the long flight back home. I had jet lag on the way in, jet lag through much of my stay…and jet lag for a whole week after I was back. I really don’t know why I have such great difficulty dealing with long distance travel. Partly it has to do with insomnia. Just when I thought I had seen the end of it, back it comes with a bang and haunts me for weeks. I could hardly sleep on the 19 hour transatlantic flights, even though the airline does much to make things very comfortable for the long distance business traveler. I tried every trick in the book – switched to the new time zone by staying up during the day time of the destination, ate little, drank little…and that too only a bit of wine hoping it would put me to sleep. But no. Neither would I be able to sleep, nor could I be productive as the brain would be whirring around in circles and refuse to centre on anything of consequence. The haze would envelope me for days…and it is only recently that I feel it lifting. Anyhow, enough whining! Like many other things, insomnia too tests one’s endurance and persistence. It challenges my ability to be productive. As it does my resolve to open the laptop and give a coherent outpouring to my thoughts through the means of this blog. So after a hiatus of a month, I am determined to resume my tryst with myself and a few other people who sometimes drop into this little corner. I feel rusty…somewhat like out of form sportsmen desperately trying to get back their rhythm. But try I shall!

The trip to USA was interesting. I have been a regular visitor there, especially in these last couple of years, and have closely observed changes in the mood and public sentiment. Not very difficult to do in a country of fairly expressive people! A common theme evident to me over the past year has been a sense of resignation, apprehension, stress...even tiredness in the people of the nation. You would expect that in an economy which was steadily sinking into recession. And now, that sense is pervasive across the globe as the vast majority of countries are reeling under the impact of a wave that emanated from Wall Street, spread to Main Street and has engulfed vast portions of the world.

But during this visit, I did discern signs of change. Not that anything was fundamentally different– the economic indices continued to point downwards signaling further troubles, the financial institutions were still battered, the iconic automotive industry gasped for breath and unemployment levels continued their upward surge. More and more people – vastly experienced corporate, economic and political leaders - have stated that these are the toughest conditions they have experienced in their lifetimes. However, the pervasive sense of doom and gloom has now given way to something one had not felt in a long time. Hope! Very subtle and not evident at the surface, but I am sure I sensed it. And given that I had visited after a long, harsh winter which had also heralded one of the greatest and historic change in the political landscape of this country, I am bound to attribute this hope to the one man who is looking to chart a new course, not just for the people of his wonderful country, but for much of the modern world. Barack Obama - the man who can do no wrong! He has indeed inspired the people of US to see beyond their troubles of today and strive for a better tomorrow. I wish this new age icon is able to realize his dreams and those of the nation he now leads.

However, as I said before, there is no evidence of this change at the surface. What is visible instead is the effect of recession in daily life. At the airport, passengers are made to pay for their carry on baggage, up in the air they are not served snacks and drinks, restaurants in downtown areas bear a deserted look. And the malls! An endless array of sales with each retail outlet jostling to outdo the other to capture the attention of passers by…but still not much luck! Clearly more people are browsing than purchasing. Not something I had seen at this time of the year and at such scale. So…what few visible effects I could capture digitally found their way onto this blog in the post below.

How long will this recession last? Will things get even worse? When will the stock markets rebound? When will companies offer a positive outlook? When will people be able to stop worrying about losing their jobs? For those that have lost theirs, when will they regain employment? Are we talking months, quarters, years???

All of us have these questions in our minds. And many have predictions…which range from a relatively quick rebound, to what is being referred to as the “long freeze”. Explanations abound on the causes of this recession. As can be expected, there are also a fair number of remonstrations of the “I told you so” variety. For a person that cannot fathom the various complexities and intricacies of this world, all I have been able to gather is that the prevailing climate has been popularly attributed to the unbridled greed of a few. Greed that pervaded the entire globally interconnected economic system which eventually collapsed under its own weight. I do not know which theory is right, what analysis precise or which prediction accurate…but I do feel that all of these are not of much consequence.

What really matters is the lesson we learn from this new challenge. As is the case with any challenge or calamity, this one too presents opportunity for learning. Some challenges that we face in our lives we attribute to our own actions, others to the result of collective actions of people. And then there are those whose causation is beyond our comprehension and we attribute it to the will of the almighty. Irrespective of its cause, adversity can be a great teacher…if only we choose to be keen students. So this recession can be a unique opportunity for individuals, organizations, and even nations to learn, adapt and progress. I do not have the wisdom to make predictions or offer lessons. But I do know that there are those who will emerge from this wiser, some will be wealthier and stronger, and yet others healthier and happier. A few will fade away with shattered dreams and broken wills.

Certainly virtue is like precious odors, most fragrant when they are incensed, or crushed: for prosperity doth best discover vice, but adversity doth best discover virtue. Sir Francis Bacon (1561 - 1626)