LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL

It was raining cats and dogs. I had comfortably settled in my armchair with a book in one hand and a mug of steaming hot tomato soup with crunchy croutons floating on top...all in all a very lethal delightful combo. I was desperately trying to have a mouthful of those before they sank and turned soggy. My mind and eyes were in close contest between keeping a check on that and reading.
I was savouring this moment of bliss and felt that life indeed  is beautiful.
It's uncanny how a thought or feeling triggers off a memory because that's what took me several years back on a rewind spree.
I had got up in the wee hours of the morning, way back in February 1999 to watch the Oscars live. I vividly remember Robert Benigni claiming the coveted trophy for the best actor in the movie " Life is beautiful "
What stood out for me was his spontaneous reaction of sheer childlike joy as he erupted from his seat like a Jack in the box and raced happily, almost comically upstage to receive it, much to the amusement of  the suited booted cream of Hollywood gathered there. It was his moment and he owned it true to the spirit of the movie.
I envied him and the character he portrayed on screen, to be able to own every moment in life, to live it, love it, and conquer it, to convert the ordinary into something extraordinary.
This extraordinary feeling settled somewhere subconsciously in a remote corner of my mind. I aspired to be like that, to not wait for milestones and events, to enjoy the small moments which are right there under our noses waiting to be lifted. I wish I could be like this at all times. If wishes were horses then I don't know about beggars but I would certainly ride.
I have tried that memory to use as a benchmark over the years, sometimes successfully, most often not, to evolve in my own way however limited it maybe, to continuously change with the times and learn something new.
I knew I was on the right path, so near yet so far as there  were miles and miles to go before I hang my boots and call it a day.
With cheer and hope in my heart , I turned my attention to the whodunnit potboiler that I was reading, sitting literally on the edge, enjoying every page, every twist and turn, every moment to reiterate that life indeed is beautiful.