hey god,i dont want too much

its been like this all the way through.

just work hard for another x no of days/months/years and then ur life will be a lot better,I AM TOLD.work ard during 10th boards,ull get a stream of ur choice, n life is better.work hard during 12th boards, n ull get into a good college n ur life will be better still.work hard fr CAt,bcos if u manage to get into an IIM ,ur life will be gloriously better than ever.

this is what i was told,or rather i imagined them to be true.

but today when i am lounging here in my hostel room at IIM Calcutta,away from my parents,my home,the place which bears memories of my childhood,i pause to wonder-
is my life better,or is it just my CAREER which is better?

i admit that i suspect my career is on the right track n ill be able to feed my children two meals a day n send them to a decent english medium school.but my life is much more.more than just career.

maybe im not ambitious.i dont know if this is a normal thing but i am happier eating dal-chawal sitting on the floor at my home rather than having lunch at the Taj with Vice president of a multinational .i feel happier sitting on the kitchen floor chatting with mum rather than brainstorming at some plush air conditioned office.i prefer watching cricket with my dad rather than watching powerpoint presentations at a corporate meeting.
i know that i need money.everybody does.but its just an instrument to get what you want,to make ur family happy being one of them.n if u sacrifice these ultimate sources of happiness for money,well,then,i dont get the idea.its like having a pen but not having the time to write a poem.i see old couples living alone,supporting each other's frail lives while their successful children are attending meetings at the silicon valley.it is said that the best ne parent can wish for is the child's success,but i dont accept that this old mother who spent her life caring for this child,and is now left to live her life hoping that the child will remember to call her from his apartment in california,doesnt feel the hurt.

so i just hope that i am not so "successful",that i dont care for the little but real joys of life.i dont want a big car or a mansion or a job which pays me like crazy but makes me crazy with all the workload.

yea,i can do without a great CAREER , but give me a great LIFE god.