What can the middle class do that the rich and poor cannot do?

A year ago, our family had an Omni van for ten people. We don’t have money to travel to exotic places or stay in hotels, but we often go on pilgrimage and live in Dharmshala. Most of our trips have the same route and similar experiences.

No matter when a trip is scheduled, everyone wakes up at 3am to avoid driving on a hot day because the car has no air conditioning and we have to sit cramped. Then mom and aunty would make fried potatoes and pooris and pack them with pickles, mutton, and sweets. Dad and uncle would load all the luggage into the transport truck. My grandfather would carry sweets and hajmola with him. Then we can get in the car.

After the first few hours, it was difficult to adjust, but we still talked, played antsaskshari, my grandmother told stories, and we passed the time gracefully. On the way we often stopped to buy cold drinks and potato chips. It feels great to drink a cold drink after sitting in the hot weather for a while.

Once we arrive at our destination, we sleep for a few hours, and even a regular room with its musky smell feels luxurious. We would enjoy our evenings, have local food for dinner, worship together, sing aarti songs, take long walks in the evening and buy unrelated cheap items like toys, sheets, utensils and choirs. We will get up at 6 am the next morning, after taking bath, we will visit the temple, after the feast of Kachori, Samosa, Jalebi and poha.

We will leave this place before 11 am. On the way we will stop at a monastery and eat delicious food. After lunch, everyone would sleep for a few hours while dad and uncle drove one after another. We returned home exhausted and content. Once we'd settled in, we'd have bread and butter for dinner, drink ginger tea, and talk about how great the trip was.

Today we have many nice cars with modern features and we stay in hotels, but I still cherish those old times more.

Middle-class life is a sweet and salty one; you have your struggles and luxuries. The struggle associated with every good thing makes you enjoy them more and appreciate everything you have or achieve. For the rich, everything is so easy and enjoyment turns into boredom, while the poor have to struggle for the necessities of life, which keeps them busy throughout their lives.