Vision of Life; by Sanjay: Wild Life Week & Why I Visit Forests?

"Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better"...Albert Einstein

I think in one sentence the great man has told the reason why one should visit forests, which is best form of Nature! As come Wild Life Week & many people suddenly remembers about forests & this is why I choose above quote & first & foremost question people ask me when its forests is, “sarkha sarkha kay jato tu jungelat, bore nahi hoat ka?” means why you go every time to forests, don’t you get bored with forests? And on such back ground when we celebrate wild life week, well first let’s know what Wild Life Week! Wild Life Week will be celebrated from Wednesday (2^nd of October) to Tuesday (8^th of October). To make the wildlife saving plans successful, varieties of sanctuaries and national parks have been already launched in the appropriate localities all across the country. A Wild Life Week celebration was planned to arouse the general awakening of the normal people in the country towards the protection of wildlife. It has decided to celebrate the event for one week in the month of October every year by organizing some special activities connected with the wild life conservation. I have been part of such celebrations & events which are organized mostly by the forest dept & some ngos’ for last many years but it seems to be happening in similar fashion & for similar faces! We are unable to make wild life as matter of interest for the masses (read city or urban people) & that’s main concern (read threat) for the forests as forests are directly connected to the wild life.And I have come across many people who ask me, “what’s need of this wild life week thing in the city as where is forest here & then we have many more problems to deal with than forests!”

Let’s understand it’s the forests which are home of the wild life & when I say forests it’s not necessary to be Tadoba or Kanha like celebrity national parks but even our Taljai or ARAI hills around Pune (read Smart City) also are forests & not just that going beyond, even the trees around our buildings or the open spaces (read which are not paved or concretized) with some grass or shrubs & few trees are also forests only, by me! Because all these spaces offers shelter & food to many species other than humans (as well domestic pigs, stray dogs, rats or crow type city species) & any such piece of land which becomes home for ants, termites, butterflies, squirrels, bulbul or maina like birds, snakes & many such are forests only! Forest need not necessarily have to have a tiger or leopard & deer herds as forest is space where trees, bushes, grass, birds, insects, reptiles & animals can live together in balance & without getting disturbed by the human activities! Now you will understand why wild life week is more important in our Smart Cities than in & around actual forests where tiger lives! As these forests are right around us, here in city like Pune which we ignore just because we don’t know what forest is!

Now coming back to the question, “why I visit forests again & again?”; well for that lets take one look at the past 24 hours in your so called successful city life & ask yourself have you really enjoyed every minute of it or learnt something new in it or how many hours of those 24 hours were refreshing types for your mind & body, making you feel life is wonderful! Don’t share answer with me as I know your reply as most of you will say, “forget it man, life sucks”! This is exactly why try to be part of forests where every moment is alive with life & telling (read sharing) you something which you don’t know about life! What’s the biggest different between our so called successful career oriented city life & the forests, have you ever thought about it? Well, here in city, most of the things are dead or mechanical & we just drag ourselves through the deadliness around, may it be a malls or our glass facades which we call workplace Or our posh cars, we try to fill life in this concrete graves by our existence but in forests right from the trees, to birds, to flowing water, to roar of a tiger & even the air, everything is very much alive & there you need not have to fill the place by your existence in it but all you have to is just be part of that liveliness & understand what co-existence means!

Every time when I come back to our city life from the forests, I bring back something new & feel full of life, I think that’s one reason which is enough for me to visit forests! This is my reply & I think this is what the Wild Life Week should target at than just displaying wild life photographs or exhibitions or presentations from the people who has already understood importance of wild life & forests. Try to involve more common people who has once visited forest (read wild life) & seen a tiger, yes that is important just the way most Hollywood movies needs a big name for being super hit. Nothing wrong as every product in this advertise focused world needs a brand ambassador, a face which will make you curious about the product & what better face than a tiger when the product we want to sale (read promote) is forest! Sorry wild lifers but that’s the way today’s world get hooked on anything even if it’s essential still you have to make them realize its importance, such is the world we are living in & that’s why somewhere marketing strategy to promote forests needs to be changed!

In this rat race of success which we call our life, where most people have decided their priorities as education, job, home, car, shopping, travelling to abroad (Dubai or Switzerland types),I-Phone & the list is bigger than Hanunmanji’s Tail (a hindi term for infinite), here dedicating time for forests comes last on the list or even this item never makes in the list & that is the main reason all across this once forest rich country, we have to appeal people for survival of the forests now. And this is a war just like the war between Toyota Vs General Motors or Geo Vs Idea+ Vodaphone+ Airtel. Only difference is the product forest has to fight hundreds of other products & not just few as well this product has less advertising budgets & avenues in compare to all other products. This is why I go to forests & share whatever I have gained from my trips. When you go to Dubai or some European country, then back home you display proudly your shopping as well souvenirs from all such places. Unfortunately when you come back from forests, all you can get back is some photographs but one most important thing you forget to get back along & that is life! And I don’t blame you as in no school or colleges or at your work place not even your mom has ever told you to go to forests (read any green place in your back yard), spend some time with the trees, run behind the butterflies, look how slow but determined the snails walks & feel the fragrance all these & many more species combiningly makes & rejuvenate yourself & comeback home with a smile on your face! But all you have been taught is going to forests is a waste of time instead study or play or work or go have fun in some mall, shop, eat in restaura & be happy, that’s how you become successful in life! And this is why you ask people like me, “don’t you get bore in forests by going repeatedly there”! Problem is not with all the people who asks such question to me but problem is people like me including forest dept, wild life ngo’s, wild life researchers, wild life photographers only, as when we have realized what treasure forests can give us yet we have failed to make others realize (read understand) the magic forest can do to our life & that’s why people asks such questions to us!

High time we should reach out to people for making them know about things forests offers to us & start from school kids. Go to every school & take them to nearby piece of forest, allow them some time to spend with forests & don’t scowl at them for wasting time instead give them marks for this time. Make use of the volunteers who has lived with forests for such jobs as at start the school kids will need to have a guide who can tell them about the beauty & wonders of forests in their school’s back yards. Involve moms & sisters in forest activities as then only these moms & sisters can tell to their sons, daughters, younger brothers & sisters about the importance of forests in their life via the stories they took back from forests, while these kids grow up.

Reach out for common men & women who have spared some time to visit forests & make them share their stories on public forums along with celebrity wild life photographers so the masses will know forests are not for just big names but it’s a treasure open for every that person who opens himself or herself to the forests. At the same time forest dept (read govt) must not look at the parks like Tadoba & Kanha as money making tourism cow but see that more people can visit such places at minimum costs. Let people know wild life is not carrying expensive lenses & full day safaris for riches but it’s just being in those woods & clicking snaps by our eyes & storing of hard disks of our brains forever!

Do something which will reach to common man’s heart & brain as then only the forests will have a real bright green future, sorry then only we the humans will have bright green future or else today we are celebrating wild life week but tomorrow there will be nobody to celebrate “human week”, mind it!

Sanjay Deshpande

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about real estate in Pune at U-Tube link below..

https://youtu.be/g3lx1Nq7pBs

Please do visit my blogs to know about our philosophy at Sanjeevani ! (Click the links below)

http://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2018/08/pune-city-no-1.html