Walking, Working, Wokking

Those three words signify the times of my life and the passages of time that I have partook in and most of the time, revelled in.
When we were little, most of us would sometimes wonder when we were going to be all grown up and be independent. Afterall, did our parents not have a great, carefree life? Or, so we thought.
The years came and went, and in the midst of it all, we struggled through our teenage years. Those were heady days. Books, outings and partially successful exams. Sometimes, for those of us who are Catholics, we rushed to the school chapel to put in a plea of clemency from the Big Man upstairs.
Now, on looking back, it seems so funny but it wasn't so back then. Somehow, the exams didn't seem so important now as they were back in those almost forgotten, ancient days.
From school to college, from college to university. Each learning institution formed part of a passage from young adolescent to maturing adult. Yes, the years have passed.
We struggled as a toddler to stand and then to walk, rather gingerly though at first. When school days came, most of us, at least for me, it was walking all the time. There was no money for modern transportation.
Everywhere I needed to go, I walked. OK, sometimes I rode on the bicycle. But walking became as natural as breathing in and breathing out. Little did I know that all those years of walking was good for the heart. Now the doctors tell us so in their newspaper columns.
To think that these days, professionals pay a monthly fee to walk on the mechanised treadmills when we used to do all that and more for free. The scenery was rather great then, at that time.
Marriage came, children followed. As with most Asian families, there is always that ubiquitous wok in the kitchen. Wokking simply means food on the table. Which normal Asian family does not have a wok?
It is probably one of the most essential culinary tool ever invented. And so life proceeds.
These days those of us who live in modern suburbs, or city centres, are in constant pursuit of life's easy paths. We hardly ever walk anymore. Yes, we do walk from our bedroom to the bathroom and then to the dining hall and kitchen.
But really walk for kilometres? That couldn't be furthest from our minds. People hardly walk anymore, they commute. That means aircon cars, light rail transit or mass train transit.
Basically, our limbs are going to the dogs. Our humanly forms were built for exercise. Maybe not the kind Hercules is used to, but definitely a human body with its myriad sets of muscles should be subjected to the kind of activities that will hold it in good stead for a better part of eight decades.
In the old days, people work as a matter of course. These days, people are always thinking of retirement. The earlier the better, it seems.
See how a person's eyes widen when you tell him that so-and-so has retired and he's only in his mid-30s. Some of us even have friends like that. How we envy these people.
A life of partial inactivity spells atrophy or distrophy. These are words used by doctors and people in the medical profession. It also means that you have surrendered yourself to a life of useless inactivity.
To those who are presently contemplating on pursuing a life of leisure and other less stressful pursuits, let me remind you that you need not be a hobo to be happy. You can work. Perhaps not in the profession that you have become so familiar with but rather doing something that brings a smile to your face.
If you are sick and tired of working as a pen pusher. You can now make up your mind to pursue your hobby full time. It would be writing childrne's stories or doing carpentery work. Whatever gets your adrenaline pumping, man!
Life is meant to be lived to its fullest. Anything less than that is falling short of its target. Let it not be said of you and by you when your hair has turned all white or youl can no longer walk upright that your life is just a waster string of years.
You are your own master. Don't you forget it. If tomorrow is your last day on earth, then do all you can, with all your heart and touch the hem of a glorious life with that boundless spirit that's in you all this while.
Do not seek to understand the deeper aspects of life. Just wake up early every morning and proceed to enjoy life.
Nothing more is asked of you.