Do you remember the ‘standard’, pink, floral, gift-wrapping paper used in the 80s and 90s? One that was used across the country for all sorts of gifts, no difference there. You may be moneyed or not, your gift may be worth a few thousand, the wrap paper was the same. It was sort of an equalizer (of course driven primarily by lack of options).
Today, after a day ‘dedicated’ at the feet of corporate fiefdom, the fatigued mind finds its way back to memories. Recall all the birthday and wedding parties from those decades when mountains of pink gifts would adorn the room. I tried finding a picture on the great G. Nothing! If you happen to come across one, and you have my number, do share.
Recollection is funny business. What was mundane then is recreated with a touch (or more) of magic now. As if some fairy dust was sprinkled on that memory. Back in the days when I was compelled to tuck the gift box in one such sheet, I would squirm and wish for things to change, wishing for a gift-wrapping revolution almost. Now that, variety of options have landed, the mind plays tricks and induces nostalgia.
Lack of options, closed economy, small-town sleepiness, or whatever you may choose to term it, the basic and simple did exude a class of their own. They were neat, no-nonsense, served the purpose and taught us a way of life deeply embedded in the philosophy of acknowledging, ‘Enough’. Now, chic, hyper-consumerism drives our lives. Not getting in the merit of this or that. Yet, the era of Limits is, more often than not, romanticized. Wonder why? Does the human mind like glorifying the struggles? Nights spent counting pennies and saving for the rainy day? Who is to say?
As we moved from ‘Hum Ne Ghar Chhoda Hai’, to ‘Kabootar Jaa Jaa Jaa’, to ‘Dekha Hai Pehli Baar’, to ‘Tujhe Dekha Toh Yeh Jana Sanam’, the boyfriends and girlfriends were spoilt for choice. The world of wrapping paper was hit by Liberalism. There were the shiny, slippery ones, the pastel ones, the cute ones, or the transparent ones. The pink, floral sheets were relegated to the back shelves and soon to oblivion. Like all else, I was drawn to the dazzle of the neo-wrappers, so much so that I was embarrassed to hand a gift to a friend as it was covered by the Plain Jane pink paper. Well, we are not always proud of our teenage years, are we? Silly years!
We all experience flashes from the past, don’t we? Yours would vary from mine. That’s plausible. Where we all converge is the experience of journeying back in time and back and the resulting reverberations. Yes, there is cringeworthy stuff too (we can share notes in person!) and there are these archetypal (or everyday) episodes that elicit a chain of memories and unanswered wishes.
As the winter night deepens, I curl up in my grand-dad’s cushy chair, imagining the holiday gifts I may receive. Maybe one of those would be my favourite book, neatly packed in that gift wrap we lost to changing trends. Oh, all our wishful attempts at reminiscing about the past! We are creatures of Hope, you see!
