"Millions of lemons, lemons for me..."

                               First things first, I stole the title from this really peppy and mellow POTUSA jam, "Peaches". Life's been handing me lemons on all fronts for quite some time now. Mind you, I get the lemons by the truckload. "If life gives you lemons, make lemonade!"- That's the god sent line the mainstream media, supplemented by the pop culture, is trying to shove down our throats. Had it been that simple, nobody in this godforsaken world would ever feel desolated and disappointed. Now I'm pretty sure you know the ground truth. Long term stress, despair and loneliness pave the way for this sneaky bastard we identify as "depression".  According to the fancy WHO statistics, more than "300 million people of all ages suffer from depression". Now that's a big chunk of the global population yet I actually believe the statistics are flawed and underestimated and the actual figures are much greater. 

                             Anyway, back to our sour lemons. Ever wondered why you work your ass off day in day out, try to be good to people, do what's expected, be responsible and still nothing works and you get shit? you still get treated like dirt by the folks you look up to and the folks you are trying to impress? You look at their happy faces and their vibrant lives and ask why you and why not them? I always wonder and to be honest, I still don't have it figured. I know how miserable it feels when all your good deeds slip past them unnoticed, unappreciated, and nothing you do seems good enough. The result; old friendships and bonds evaporate, you become a recluse, a loner and avoid all sorts of social interactions and confrontations. The sour lemons manifest themselves into loneliness and slowly and quietly and gradually into depression. You sob at the drop of a hat and the slightest of things trigger your overflowing emotions. My suggestion, cry it out. Cry as much as you want. It is always better if you have a shoulder to cry on and a good ear to listen to your woes. Unfortunately, I've had neither (Poor me! lol 😅😀). The world is full of assholes and it's absolutely not your job to keep each one of them happy. You can have all the things in the world and still feel deeply unhappy. Want to know what I've started doing lately? I've started looking for happiness in little things. The things which we often overlook. Often happens that I'm at a traffic signal at a junction and I see a bunch of poor drifter kids by the roadside having a merry time. Their scrawny cheeks creased and stretched out in smiles and grins. Their madres looking at them like they're the best thing in the world. It instantly lifts my spirits and my frown cracks into a smile in no time (of course I feel bad for the kids and the hardships they endure). Albeit when nothing works, it's always good to treat yourself to some booze and get wasted :P.

                            Now I'm no expert on human psychology or depression or even the freaking lemons for that matter, but the only solution that seems to nullify the sourness of all these lemons is keeping yourself busy. Keep yourself immersed in work, hobbies and stuff or in anything that you love. Don't let your mind wander and think of all the shit that life's been hurling at you. It always works for me. I have my down times and I don't feel like doing a thing at times but I push myself and get things done. Channel all your rage and your surging emotions into something creative and fulfilling. Keep waddling and soon, the lemons will disappear! Adios!