Contradictions galore

I saw a person at the restaurant.  He was impeccably dressed, looked gentle, wished the gate-keeper good morning as he entered and wore a smile at people.  I thought of him as a gentleman.  He chose a seat at the centre table.  The bearer came to him.  He smiled at the bearer and ordered something, which the bearer took down.  A little later the bearer returned and told him what he ordered was not available.  I saw a twitch in the man’s face, and he started shouting at the bearer.  He told the bearer that he should have checked the position before he took the order… that he was a regular customer and not once did this happen… that he comes to the restaurant only for that item… … .  He threw expletives at the bearer and generally at the restaurant.  And walked out.

He left me wondering at my big mistake.  I thought he was a gentleman.  Well… he may still be one, but perhaps one that cannot take a disappointment.  For all that, not many of us handle disappointments particularly well, but the thing that got me astonished was the striking contradictions in the man.

I have a friend who is very intelligent, but extremely talkative.  He is so intelligent that I don’t do without his advice on matters of importance.  If I have to call him, I think well before lifting the phone if I have enough time.  It is very hard to focus on topics, for he often goes tangentially into unrelated stuff, and gives me a run for my money to bring the core subject back as the focus of talks.

There is a store nearby.  The owner started it as a petty shop a few years back and grew it into a sizable store with sheer enterprise.  But he is so forgetful that I often find myself in an argument with him (he was the owner cum cashier) over the change that he has to tender.  He forgets what he received, and asks me how much did I give him.  He looks at me with suspicion when he tenders the change.  He may be doing it to many, but still survived in business.

I once worked with a guy, who is extremely smart.  He took our organisation to great heights.  But he was eccentric, unpredictable, frequently changed his stand on matters, cared a damn for co-workers’ welfare and generally looked troubled.

Contradictions galore, I thought.  Everywhere around.

I couldn’t understand why people can’t stay in balance.  I thought to myself that I was blessed not to have such contradictions in me, until one day when my boss told me, “You are very efficient.  But you are lazy at the same time.”

We see several polarities in the society we live in.  Rich and poor, police and thief, the dominant and the submissive, … … .  Why can’t we have a better place, more balanced?

A while back I was looking to buy a car.  I wanted a particular variant, many features were amazing but the audio system was a showdown.  I asked if that could be taken out for I wanted to buy one of my own choice.  The vendor said, “Sorry sir, it comes as a package.”

Does life come as a package too?