Wanting to make our loved ones happy is natural. Among the many ways to make them happy, giving a pleasant surprise holds special significance. To accomplish this, people do varieties of things, like buying gifts and showing uncommon gestures. Offering or receiving a pleasant surprise is indeed a unique experience for all involved.
For example, on her 60th birthday, you may bring your mother a toy that you cried for as a child, you may gift your grandparents their wedding photo on their marriage anniversary, or surprise your friend on his birthday by handing him a tiny yet beautiful gift article intriguingly wrapped in an unusually big box. There are practically unlimited ways to offer pleasant surprise to our loved ones. What it needs is a sense of creativity and understanding of the nature of the receiving party.
Generally speaking, the suspense behind pleasant surprise is all about fun. It’s fun from beginning to the end. However, the reason I thought of writing on pleasant surprise is a little different. It is rather a cautionary note to those enthusiastic well wishers who go to any extent and take unnecessary risks to surprise others.
The story of a Brazilian bride and her was-to-be husband shows how reality of life can be ruthlessly cruel. The bride’s party wanted to give a pleasant surprise to the boy’s party on the day of their weddings. They planned to land at the marriage venue by helicopter, unknown to all guests, including the groom, except only six guests who knew the plan.
The to-be husband and relatives kept waiting eagerly, and anxiously, as there was no sign of her arrival and the time for marriage ceremony was approaching fast. The pastor was ready to perform the ritual.
A short video filmed by the photographer showed a joyous bride and her brother seated in the back of the helicopter cockpit as they flew through what appeared to be thick cloud or fog. As the helicopter began to encounter turbulence, the bride clutches her brother’s arm for comfort. Minutes later the turbulence worsens and her brother shuts his eyes in fear. The pilot urged the passengers to calm down. All of a sudden alarms went off and the passengers erupt in screams, the camera turning rapid circles before coming to rest on a forest floor. The helicopter ride was planned as a surprise for the groom, who – together with a few hundred wedding guests – was kept waiting at the wedding venue.
Sadly, the fate had unveiled its cruel face. The pastor instead of performing the wedding ritual, had to inform the groom of the unfortunate crash. One can only imagine the pain that enveloped the hearts of those affected after the devastating news. Unreserved sympathy and heartfelt prayers poured in but… Yes, that was the story.
While this could be one of the most tragic accidents you may have heard about, and while there may be thousands of even worse accidents reported throughout human history, what we need to learn is, where to draw a line in our attempts to offer a pleasant surprise to our loved ones. The argument could be, “this doesn’t happen to all”, but the sad reality is it did happen to some, and there is no guarantee it will never to anyone else, despite all well wishes and despite all precautions. That is life in this world.
By suggesting you read this first if you plan to give a pleasant surprise, my whole intention is to caution all concerned not to take things for granted. Remember, we are never the controllers howsoever we want to believe we are, and whatsoever it may appear to be so. In a fraction of second things can go out of hands.
This reminds me of an event that took place in Bharat more then 5000 years ago. King Yudhisthira was asked by a yaksa who posed threat to Yudhisthira’s life if he did not answer some questions before using water from a particular, mystical pond. One of the questions the yaksa asked was- what is the most amazing thing in the world? King Yudhisthira soberly replied that although people see regular deaths, they think and hope that they will live forever!
Let us not remain in illusion. Like it or not, we all will have to leave this world one day. The body you are in now is not yours. God has given it to you and to all of us on purpose and we have got a mission to accomplish using that body.
There are better ways to make others happy than offering surprises. There are gifts that last for years and decades, and there are gifts that last forever. We need to identify the best gift.
Being eternal children of God, who is the reservoir of bliss, to be happy is our fundamental right, but we need to follow the path given by Him for achieving that lasting happiness. If we follow the path under the expert guidance of a bona fide spiritual master, our success is guaranteed. Wishing you all success!
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