There are many ways to the top of the hill

Living one’s dream and if that dream benefits the world at large, then it’s a big dream. Ambitions can be personal, but it’s how far we would go to achieve it.  

Lakshmi Kothaneth -

lakshmiobserver@gmail.com

Oman experienced one of the coldest winters in years on a weekend that saw an ice-covered Musandam.

All this due to the blowing of northwesterly winds. When the Met office talked about low temperature, not many thought how low it could be. It gave travellers a different perspective of Oman’s terrain. The weekend gave me an opportunity to meet up with two unique travellers.

Shaikh Majed al Sabah is known to bring destinations to the electronic canvas as his followers on social media continue to grow. His second journey to Oman began with an exploration of Musandam.

He, however, missed the hailstorm that saw a ‘white’ Musandam going viral with pictures of snowman.

As for Shaikh Majed, his portraits of the nation are quite different from that of the traditional media. It is what he sees and experiences that he shares.

Watching him oblige the social media enthusiasts was interesting because he does it with ease. Some had gifts for him as a token of appreciation. That is when I realised it is all to do with the personal touch. Shaikh Majed has established a connection with the Omani youth.

People matter and I realised that when I came across Lok Banbhu Karki cycling his way through the streets of Muscat Governorate. He is from Nepal and he has one mission: covering 153 countries. He has just 17 countries left and he has to accomplish his task by 2017.

He wants to spread the word of universal brotherhood and world peace. Seeing the post on Lok on the social media, one person commented, “Isn’t this a waste of time?”

How could it ever be a waste of time when he is living his dream and mission? He chose to travel within Nepal with the message of peace after seeing violence that cost thousands of lives.

From being a teacher, he chose to be a cyclist. A cyclist with a difference. He has travelled across the globe, crossing the hills, coastlines and cities. The first thing Lok does when he arrives in a country is get that country’s map and flag. He likes to do it the traditional way.

He is living his dream every day. Is he spreading his message? Every few metres he proceeds on his bicycle, someone wants to stop, talk and take pictures. Every time each person shares it on the social media, his message of world peace multiplies. He feels there are many countries that suffer from conflicts and violence.

But for that moment when a person gets to know about Lok’s journey, the individual would naturally think of the unfortunate incidents that have taken place in the world which could have been avoided.

Just one thought, a reflection, makes a big difference to this universe. Most important of all: the intention.

Living one’s dream and if that dream benefits the world at large, it is then definitely a big dream. Ambitions can be personal, but it is how far we would go to achieve it.

Lok too had a normal profession like others. A teaching profession. Seeing a peaceful picture being torn into pieces due to conflict can break any person. But Lok and his friends decided to go to the root of the cause by being positive.

He has the air of a teacher. And just like a teacher, he makes us quietly wonder about the dreams we have pushed aside.

We can blame it on expectations, responsibilities and lack of time. But the truth is our dreams took a back seat. Somehow the wait for the right time went on and the right time never arrived. Some of us even forgot about it.

There are others who started towards their dream and one hiccup and they had to give up. But the dreams are waiting to be achieved. There are many ways to the top of the hill. If we encounter impediments on one way, there are many more waiting to be explored.

Shaikh Majed could travel the world with ease but when he shares the moments and images, the world becomes a bit smaller.

When Lok travels around the world on his cycle, he proves to us that the countries of the world are accessible.

The earth, after all, is round!