Praneeta Kochhar – 
Humans are the most evolved species on the planet.
We have developed various skills over millions of years of evolution that set us higher than our fellow earthlings.
One such skill is the ability to reason, and this is perhaps the most important aspect of being human.
A bird flies across the skies and reaches new horizons. There is no limit to how far a bird will fly, as the wind beneath its wings is both the force and the reason for it to be airborne.
Governed behaviour
On the other hand, we humans are limited in many ways, from self-created boundaries and borders to barriers in our hearts and minds.
All of our thoughts and actions are largely governed by the society around us.
Our actions are mostly based on family beliefs, or on the acceptable concepts of right and wrong within the confines of a territory or society.
But in the process of being a part of a crowd and to attain acceptability among everyone around us, we forget to value the most important thing we have- Freedom to be, and the freedom to dream.
Burdensome living
Our greatest gift, the ability to reason, becomes a burden at times when we reason with ourselves to go with the set norms and traditions and convince ourselves to let go of that the child like wonder.
No concept of impossible for children. They believe in fairies and know that there is magic everywhere in the world. They know that they arefree to dream, and free to make them come true.
But as children grow older, they learn to reason and hence start to lose their freedom to imagine, and freedom of thoughts. They are restricted to the real world, and logic takes dominance over imagination. And soon, we limit them to the realm of reality, practicality and acceptability.
Misunderstood concept
As part of a dynamic Society, backed by reason, all of us discuss and emphasise the idea of freedom. We unanimously agree that freedom is the most basic and the most important right of every human being but have we truly understood the meaning of freedom?
I believe that the best gift we can give the coming generations is the gift of freedom – freedom to think and believe in whatever they want and to pursue any dream.
Only then can we have a world of magic come alive, and only then can we have the power to touch the skies up above.
For, how can we be superior to any other beings, when even our thoughts are enslaved in self-created prisons, while all the creatures of this planet are free, guided by the force on nature, acting on will and following a code of natural love and harmony?
Praneeta Kochhar recently migrated with her family to New Zealand. She lives in Hamilton.
