My friends are really confused! I mean the facebook friends.  For years they have seen my face in various shades on the facebook profile. They don’t quite know what to make of an onion that has sprouted a few strands of the green blades as my profile picture. This is also kind of unlike my personality – linear, direct and simple. If the profile picture must represent me, it should simply show my face. The expression in the picture would convey a sense of my personality and create whatever impression it does on a viewer – a serious, contemplative person in nerdy black glasses or a fun guy dressed up as a ‘mafia boss’.

 

But what on earth does an onion, nesting among oranges and bananas, perched on a

decorative fruit-plate above a counter top mean? That has been confusing my friends.

And I know.  Since my profile-name also no longer spells out my actual name, for an average user it is rather difficult to identify me. Often, I have been ignored for this reason.

The story of this profile begins with the discovery of an onion lost in a dark corner of a kitchen cabinet for an unknown number of weeks.

How could it stay alive, sprouting new life without soil, water, or sunlight after weeks of neglect?  A novelty for me for sure! The beauty of this unattended, natural growth had to be displayed! What better place than a counter-top, where this resilient creation could be seen and admired.

It soon became salad. How could one resist the urge to taste the fresh onion greens?  Where the green shoots were clipped and taken away, new ones developed and grew back rapidly as if urging us to take more!

When the darkness envelopes our lives, when the loved ones neglect us, when we face a paucity of life’s essentials we humans can still thrive, much like this onion. There is something inspirational in this growth. It is natural, it is resilient and it is beautiful. It deserves to be seen and emulated by one and all.

For the onion it comes naturally. Humans must strive to develop it – a generosity that is willing to give away all our material growth. And then be happy to give away some more.