Jadav Payeng: The man who planted trees.
A few weeks ago, I found myself stuck in thoughts about how small and insignificant I am. The negativity felt overwhelming. I don’t know what triggered it. It could have been my ongoing struggle with financial independence, or discomfort with my own body. Whatever it was, it pushed me into thinking about legacy.
I realized I hadn’t been paying much attention to it, even though I do want to be remembered in some way. Not as someone extraordinary, but as someone who mattered. I don’t think that desire is unusual.
I’m not denying that I have skills or potential, but there are times when it feels like I have nothing meaningful to contribute. When that thought takes hold, everything starts looping. Time keeps moving, and I imagine myself fading out of relevance, eventually forgotten. That idea has a way of flattening everything else.
Around that time, I came across a video about Jadav Payeng, the man from Assam who spent his life planting trees. I’d seen it before and dismissed it. Just planting trees. Nothing remarkable.
This time, it landed differently. What he did wasn’t loud or symbolic. It was slow, repetitive, and deeply committed. Over time, it reshaped an entire landscape. I don’t think I can fully explain why it affected me, but it reframed something important. Impact doesn’t need an audience. Meaning doesn’t need scale.
It made me realize how often we overlook quiet lives that are lived with intention. People who don’t announce their purpose but embody it. That recognition shifted something in me. Purpose doesn’t have to be grand. It just has to be real.
I still don’t fully understand why I feel compelled to write things like this. Maybe it’s a way of tracking change. Maybe it’s a way of staying honest with myself. Either way, I’m learning to sit with the uncertainty, trusting that movement matters even when direction isn’t clear.
This was a thought I had weeks ago. I know I can’t recreate the feeling exactly, but I think I’ve captured what stayed with me. If not, i suppose I’ll come back to it later, with different eyes.