What’s something you used to believe as a kid that seems ridiculous now?

The content reflects the transformation of a haunted house into a modern restaurant, illustrating how perceptions and superstitions have evolved over time. A teenage boy, once terrified of the place, revisits it as a young man and finds it vibrant and far from its ghostly reputation. This shift prompts deeper reflections on childhood beliefs, the process of growth, and the influence of external factors on perception. The narrative expands into themes of evolution, acceptance of change, and the importance of knowledge. It emphasises that experiences and wisdom can dispel unfounded fears, allowing for personal development and a more nuanced understanding of life’s complexities.

Haunted

It was a big but old-fashioned house situated on a large chunk of land. Surrounded by thick, haphazardly growing vegetation, traversed by serpentine beaten paths. Crisscrossing paths led to a pond filled with muddy water, where some small wild animals would quench their thirst and spend time. The watch of vegetation and the house on its edge looked like Halloween. The place was declared haunted, where no one normally visits. A teenage boy felt horrified as he passed by the place alone. The place was on the way to a school which the boy used to go to daily on foot. Every day, the terrified boy would walk on the road that leisurely went to his school, passing that “haunted” house and place.

Revisit after transformation

The teenage boy, who was now a young man of twenty-five, revisited the place after a decade. There was a complete transformation. He was surprised to find that the old house had been completely changed. It was converted to a modern restaurant, “Haunted House”, and the whole area was filled with modern-looking houses. He is no longer a timid, superstitious boy. There was no sign of a phantom or ghost-like thing except the name of the restaurant. He entered the restaurant to find it bustling with activity. The young man ordered a cup of coffee. He looked around. The restaurant was decorated with a horror theme, and visitors were enjoying. He started sipping coffee and gradually slipped into the memories of the past.

Old memories

More than a decade ago, he was residing near this place and would regularly go to his school using the road, which was totally renovated now. The school was still there, but the transformation of the haunted patch made it modern. During his childhood days, the horror stories and folklore used to float in the air. Different people would describe it, mixing their figments of imagination, trying to make it more horrible and eerie. The spooky stories and ambience added more to the horror of the teenage boy. Thinking about that time, the young man smiled.

What was this all about? He thought. The external factors influence an impressionable mind to a great extent, and things appear blown out of proportion. The story starts from the day an infant arrives in the world. (Wikipedia)

Infant born

Soon after the birth, an infant is not in a position of reckoning with the situations around. They cry after they come out of the mother’s womb. Their vegitus is the declaration of their arrival. People around the infant start performing rituals, some important, some fake and vague. The latter type of ritual is to satiate their whims and fantasies. It is performed in the name of god and faith. They do not think with prudence and perform the ritual.

Growth and transformation

To regulate life, antediluvian thinkers divided the life of an individual into four distinct phases, which they called “Āshram”. It was to experience every form of life from birth to the end. This transformation helps in contributing to society in its progressive development. In this process, the individual accepted given things in the beginning and returned them in various forms to nourish different social strata variously. With growth, the infant picks up experiences, learns from them and grows. This is a natural process. It is augmented by external forces that help chisel out a perfect human being. Nonetheless, are humans perfect? Probably yes, but not majorly. Searching for perfection in humans is like searching for a needle in a huge heap of hay. It needs a little deep deliberation.

Perfection

Perfection is near impossible. It does not give space for evolution and development. Change, thus, is a continuous phenomenon. It shows the vitality and liveliness of a living body that is common across all living organisms. It gives rise to transformation. Inanimate or animate, every individual exhibits change. Saying that everything that exists in the universe is changing would not be an exaggeration.

Change

It is a common observation that a seed germinates in the soil, grows to become a sapling and ultimately to a fruit-yielding tree, provides shelter, food and fresh air for the animal world. It is the transformation of a seed into a tree that presents a good example of change. On the same token, a river like the Ganga, for example, emerges from a Himalayan glacier, starts as a stream, gushing and roaring through canyons and gorges, and becomes a full-fledged river which becomes wide and nourishes millions in its alluvial plains. It ultimately empties itself into the sea, where it forms a delta before merging with the sea. These are the various examples of changes that keep taking place every moment. The change allows us to adjust to new circumstances and conditions, helps in the learning process of survival, and to evolve.

Finding Joy in Nature’s Beauty

Change makes Humans unique

Evolution is a natural process. In reference to human beings, it becomes all the more important. The reason is obvious. The most important of all is the highly developed brain and the development of cognitive power in humans. This makes them outstanding among other animals. It is noteworthy that humans have evolved through a long process of natural experimentation, transformation and the selection of the fittest to survive by Nature. It is natural for humans to have several qualities which make them almost invincible. Humans can survive in almost any environment and under almost any condition by using their brains and making things work for them. Bear Grylls and other intrepid warriors like Edmund Hillary have shown their mettle to survive in the harshest of conditions and conquer. This itself is a testament to Nature’s power of experimentation for further evolution.

Perpetual learning

The learning process is perpetual and never-ending. Curiosity, thirst for knowledge and ardent desire to acquire knowledge are the instinct that pushes humans towards searching for new things, venturing out deep in space, take drastic and accepting difficult challenges.

Knowledge Changes perspective

As humans progress and acquire knowledge, many baseless things that used to enslave the mind suddenly volatilise. Like the rising sun clears the darkness, soon it rises, the light of knowledge and resultant reasoning clears ignorance and unseen and fake fear. Uncanny stories start tinkering with the mind to entertain. People who love horror stories enjoy jumping into the puddle of suspense to solve the riddle. The famous novel “Dracula” by Bram Stoker plays well with the human brain by crafting imagination into a horror story. Most of the suspense and thriller work of fiction, like the films of Alfred Hitchcock, uses a plot which challenges the human mind and its logical abilities. People feel thrilled when something different comes to light, other than what they had perceived.

Transformation: Mature humans

As they grow, their knowledge base broadens, expanding their experiences. The transformation by the wealth of experiences makes them mature and grounded. Imaginary stories of ghost become a thing that can now be entertaining. The reasoning seasoned by the lashes of time makes a human strong and enduring.  The advancement of science and technology has strengthened the mental calibre and given humans reasoning. Asking questions and seeking answers is the way to get rid of unfounded beliefs and orthodox thought processes.

Accepting changes

Accepting changes and taking them positively is the way to improve and evolve oneself. Change brings new things that not only refresh the perception, it allows to see things differently. It is all the more important for aged people who sometimes become stubbornly rude to the younger generation and start criticising things without thinking of the consequences. This creates a “generation gap” that needs to be filled by the seasoned prudence of the older people. Things that seem good are not always good. The choices should be reconciled and calibrated to adjust to everyone.

The older persons were once young, and they enjoyed the period in their own way. It has to be remembered that it is a cycle. The wheel is revolving. Nothing remains at the top forever. Mixing and matching different thoughts and practices gives a colourful piece of cloth that enchants all.

Some other interesting reads:

• Finding Joy in Nature’s Beauty
• The Quest for the Coolest Thing: A Philosophical Exploration
• Understanding Fate, Luck, and Destiny: A Clear Distinction
• The Impact of Influential Teachers on Learning
• Guiding Adolescents: Key Insights for Parents

-END-