Tiffins are one of those things that define your character much more than any other thing conceivable. Probably because what you do with your tiffin in the formative years of school going, is what you'd do with Life during your lifetime.
Think about it. Some of us loved eating out of others' tiffin even if our own tiffin was better. Some would keep the box to themselves and guard it like it was the greatest treasure on earth. Others would be loath sharing it cause we thought the contents were too 'modest' compared to that of others. Then there would be those who'd leech at others' tiffins but would never share even a bit of theirs. And of course, there would be guys who'd never bring a tiffin but would try and make do with whatever was available in the cafeteria or with the vendors. But whatever it was, our tiffin sharing habits would go on to define how we'd shape up as adults.
Cut to professional life and the aftermath of our tiffin sharing habits still looms large over our lives. And things are much the same except that in Workplaces, tiffin sharing or whatever little of it is there, is possibly one of the very few indicators to a person's real self. My office is no exception to this except that we have an additional category of people who have their lunch at 5 in the evening, apparently cause they cant find time any earlier :-P
Workplaces are strange. You could work for years with someone without knowing even the most simplest of things about them. I had a colleague who handled a support function. Very withdrawn, taciturn, assiduous and somehow very inconspicuous. He rarely spoke to others except whenever it was absolutely unavoidable. In my limited interaction with him, I found him to be an extremely affable, very intelligent, very sincere and a very well informed guy. I was surprised therefore, that he always partook of his lunch alone. That too sitting on his desk surrounded by a swarm of people who would be more interested in raising fictitious peals of laughter than having lunch.
This beat me no ends. How could someone like him have no friends or nobody to have tiffin with ? I was myself far from being social. I shunned much of public interaction. But even I had a few friends I'd usually talk to or share my tiffin with. But he seemed unusually worriless. And the more I saw him, the curiouser I became. Why didn't he ever share his tiffin ? A brief look at the food and anyone could tell it was extremely well cooked. I also noticed that often he would leave part of it so it was fair to assume he shouldn't have mind sharing a bit.
I mentioned this to my friends but they werent much bothered. Finally the day came when I couldnt take it anymore and decided to speak to him about this. Soon as he took out his box and started to arrange the grub on his desk, I ambled down to his desk nonchalantly on the pretext of retrieving a file and broke into his soliloquy.
"Hey this looks great ! Mind if I have a bite ?"
He looked up somewhat startled, as if coming out of a reverie.
"Oh, sure go ahead"
I took a nibble or two and after a bit of small talk finally put forth the moot question "I noticed that you usually take your lunch all by yourself. Why dont you join us ?"
He looked back at me. A wry amusement in his eyes.
"Thanks a lot ! I'd love to lunch with you guys" said he, " Its just that I've been having my lunch alone all my life. Now it has become so much of a habit that I am completely oblivious of the people around me whom I can share it with ! It just didn't occur to me that anyone else might be interested in sharing my tiffin."
I was stunned and completely speechless... and terribly sorry !!
No, not for him.
For the rest of us !!
