Control anger before it controls you

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When he was about to return to his country, King Alexander remembered that his people had asked him to bring to them an Indian yogi. They had heard a lot about yogis and were very desirous of seeing one, meeting him, hearing him speak and receiving his blessings. Alexander was told that the yogis dwelt in the forest.

In quest of a yogi he went to a forest. Sure enough, he found one sitting underneath a tree, in deep meditation. He waited patiently until the yogi opened his eyes. They shone with a strange, mystic light.

Reverentially, Alexander requested the yogi to accompany him to Greece, saying. “I will give you everything you need or ask for. But, pray, do come with me. My people would love to meet you!”

The yogi quietly answered, “I need nothing, I am happy where I am!”

This was the first time that anyone had turned down Alexander’s request. He could not control himself. He flew into a rage.

And unsheathing his sword, he thundered, “Do you know who is speaking to you? I am the great king Alexander. If you will not listen to me, I shall kill you – cut you into pieces!”

Unperturbed, the yogi answered. “You cannot kill me! You can only kill my body. And the body is but a garment I have worn. I am not the body. I am that which dwells within the body! I am not the deha. I am the dehin – the in dwelling one!”

The yogi continued, “You say you are a king. May I tell you, who you are? You are a slave of my slave!”

Stunned, Alexander asked. “How am I a slave of your slave?”

In a voice tender with compassion, the yogi explained, “I have mastered anger. Anger is my slave. See, how easily you gave way to anger. You are a slave of anger, and, therefore, a slave of my slave!” 

Anger is an emotion that is inherent in all human beings. It is believed to be a healthy emotion when used at the right place in the right manner. Only when it gets out of hand,  does anger become destructive. Its that uncontrolled anger that affects relationships, job and health. Learning to control anger is a challenge for many. Seeking professional help for anger issues help at times.

Do not Quit

Author Unknown

A dramatic ballad singer studied under a strict teacher who insisted that he rehearse day after day, month after month the same passage from the same song, without being permitted to go any further.

Finally, overwhelmed by frustration and despair, the young man ran off to find another profession.

One night, stopping at an inn, he stumbled upon a recitation contest. Having nothing to lose, he entered the competition and, of course, sang the one passage that he knew so well.

When he had finished, the sponsor of the contest highly praised his performance. Despite the student’s embarrassed objections, the sponsor refused to believe that he had just heard a beginner perform.

“Tell me,” the sponsor said, “who is your instructor? He must be a great master.” 

The student later became known as the great performer Koshiji.

Story Courtesy: https://academictips.org/blogs/practice-makes-perfect-dont-quit/

Education and Experience

Unknown Author

There is a difference between education and experience.

Education is what you get from reading the small print.

Experience is what you get from not reading it! 

But isn't it true that great learning comes from both education and experience? 

Let me tell you a parable:

A young school teacher had a dream that an angel appeared to him and said, "You will be given a child who will grow up to become a world leader. How will you prepare her so that she will realize her intelligence, grow in confidence, develop both her assertiveness and sensitivity, be open—minded, yet strong in character? In short, what kind of education will you provide that she can become one of the world's truly GREAT leaders?"

The young teacher awoke in a cold sweat. It had never occurred to him before —any ONE of his present or future students could be the person described in his dream. Was he preparing them to rise to ANY POSITION to which they may aspire? He thought, 'How might my teaching change if I KNEW that one of my students were this person?'  

He gradually began to formulate a plan in his mind:

·         This student would need experience as well as instruction.

·         She / he would need to know how to solve problems of various kinds.

·         She / he would need to grow in character as well as knowledge.

·         She / he would need self assurance as well as the ability to listen well and work with others.

·         She / he would need to understand and appreciate the past, yet feel optimistic about the future.

·         She / he would need to know the value of lifelong learning in order to keep a curious and active mind.

·         She / he would need to grow in understanding of others and become a student of the spirit.

·         She/ he would need to set high standards for herself and learn self discipline, yet  would also need love and encouragement, that they might be filled with love and goodness.

His teaching changed. Every young person who walked through his classroom became, for him, a future world leader. He saw each one, not as they were, but as they could be. He expected the best from his students, yet tempered it with compassion. He taught each one as if the future of the world depended on his instruction.

After many years, a woman he knew rose to a position of world prominence.  He realized that she must surely have been the girl described in his dream. 

It turned out she was not one of his students, but rather his daughter. For all the various teachers in her life, her father was the best. 

I've heard it said that "Children are living messages we send to a time and place we will never see." But this isn't simply a parable about an unnamed school teacher. It is a parable about you and me —whether or not we are parents or even teachers.

And the story, OUR story, actually begins like this:

"You will be given a child who will grow up to become...."  You finish the sentence.

If not a world leader, then a superb father?

An excellent teacher?

A gifted healer?

An innovative problem solver?

An inspiring artist?

A generous philanthropist?

Where and how you will encounter this child is a mystery. But believe that one child's future may depend upon influence only you can provide, and something remarkable will happen. For no young person will ever be ordinary to you again. And you will never be the same.

YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Dedicated to all teachers on this Teachers day in India, 5th Sept, 2014


Just when she was about to give up teaching profession because she thought her teaching wasn't even changing or helping even one child, her mind was completely changed one day.

When she went to school the next day, one of her first grader's parent came to her and just fell into her arms and cried out, "THANK YOU."

The mother explained that her child had ADHD (the teacher had already discovered that) and no one had the patience to teach or just love her for who she was. She told the teacher that she made a difference in her daughter's life, just by showing that she cared and for having patience with her. The child showed interest in studies when she was with her, but her other teachers constantly condemned her because they couldn't control her.

What a compliment!

Needless to say she is still continuing on with her teaching profession.

Dear teachers, sometimes it may seem like people have forgotten how important you really are.

For every child that says, “I’m not smart enough”, “I don’t get it”, “I can’t”…… there’s a teacher who says, “You can!”

For every child who needs basic skills, knowledge, someone to believe in him……….. there’s a teacher who will do whatever it takes to encourage, to motivate, to challenge, to engage, to inspire and instill a love for learning.

So for every teacher who works with the children building a better future for us, even when it feels like no one is watching or that people have forgotten just how special you teachers really are, I SALUTE YOU!

AND I THANK YOU for teaching each child to become the next great author, artist, scientist, architect, musician, doctor, engineer or teacher.

Never give up, if you teach from the heart, you may not realize it at that precise moment..........
BUT YOU ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN SOMEONE.

Listening skills

Excerpts from Steve Goodier www.LifeSupportSystem.com

Joe, a 22-year-old electrician went to Manhattan a few days after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center buildings. He wanted to volunteer his time, but discovered that his skills were not needed.

But it turns out that Joe was able to help in a way he never anticipated.

For on the train ride home, he sat across from a weary firefighter who was also traveling home from the scene of the disaster. The firefighter was covered in what appeared to be "ground zero" dirt and debris. Though Joe could see bits of rock in the man's hair and noticed that his hands were bloody, what worried the young man most was the look in the firefighter's eyes. They appeared lifeless and dull.

Then the man, apparently in shock, began to talk and Joe listened.

Joe soon forgot his own disappointment about not being able to volunteer his skills that day as he listened to the gruesome story the firefighter related.

The man told about retrieving a shoe with a foot inside. Joe listened.

He talked about cleaning debris from a face, then discovering that this person's body was gone. Joe continued to listen without flinching.

He did not react in disgust. He did not judge. He did not interrupt. He just listened.

He listened as the firefighter lamented about the carnage everywhere and about shoes...there were so many shoes, he said. Everywhere...shoes.

Through it all Joe quietly held the man's attention and listened, which is exactly what the rescue worker needed at that moment.

And because he listened, the man continued to speak. He talked his pain out, as much as possible. In the presence of a stranger, he tried to put his world back in order, to make sense of the day's chaos.

And Joe, for that time at least, helped him carry his unbelievably heavy burden.

That day Joe did not give blood, nor did he use his electrical skills to help with the relief effort.

But he did one of the most important things a human can do for another. He gave a stunned and disheartened man his whole attention, and thereby, in a small but vital way, assisted in the work of setting the world right.

Mary Lou Casey says, "What people really need is a good listening-to." It's not always easy. And, at times, it may not be fun. In fact, listening closely to another often turns out to be difficult work.

But day in and day out, attentive listening may be one of the most important and satisfying ways we can spend our time.

It's true. What people really need is a good listening-to.

Achieving a dream

By unknown

Two grains were lying side by side on the fertile soil. The first grain said: “I want to grow up ! I want to put down roots deep into the ground and sprout from the ground. I dream to blossom in delicate buds and proclaim the coming of spring. I want to feel the warm rays of sun and the dew drops on my petals!”.

This grain grew up and became a beautiful flower.

The second grain said: “I’m afraid. If I will put down my roots into the ground, I don’t know what they will face there. If I will grow tender stems, they can be damaged by wind. And if there will be flowers , they may be disrupted . So I’d rather wait for the safer time.

The second grain was waiting, while the chicken that passed by pecked it.

Taking the first step is perhaps the most difficult thing to do in achieving a dream. But that first small step makes a huge difference. Sure enough no dream is easy to achieve, but not impossible. Having firm belief in one’s own self melts the obstacles away.

An Important Word to Learn

- By Steve Goodier www.LifeSupportSystem.com

An office reports that they have an answering machine that instructs callers to leave their name and address, and to spell any difficult words.

Early one Monday when an assistant was reviewing weekend messages, she heard an enthusiastic woman recite her name and address and then confidently say, "My difficult word is reconciliation. R-E-C-O-N-C-I-L-I-A-T-I-O-N."

Everyone's a comic. (And I love that.) But in another sense, reconciliation IS a difficult word. If not difficult to spell, then difficult to carry out. But it's also an important word.

When my son was eleven years old he came home from school in tears one day. A couple of the older kids had bullied him at the bus stop.

We soon learned that tension had been brewing for some time. For several days there had been taunts, then pushing and shoving. And now the conflict escalated to fists. Rob wanted to stay home from school so he wouldn't have to confront the boys in the future.

We called the school and found great support. "We'll be happy to call the boys' parents," we were told. "And you should call the police."

"We don't know what we will do yet," I said. I felt that calling the police was a resort to be used when everything else failed, and I wanted first to consider other ways of handling the situation. I asked him to hold off calling the boy's parents.

The next day was Saturday. Rob happened to look out the window and said in alarm, "There are the boys who beat me up!" Two older boys were standing in front of our house, as if they were waiting for Rob to step outside.

I immediately began to think of what I wanted to say to them, but my wife Bev, a natural peacemaker, acted first. She opened the door and said with a smile, "Hi guys. Would you like some ice cream?"

They looked at each other in puzzlement. But they were teenagers, after all, so they shrugged their shoulders and one of them said, "Sure. Why not?"

They followed her indoors and Bev promptly introduced herself, Rob's younger brothers and me. She even introduced Rusty the dog. "And I think you already know Rob," she said, pointing to our son. Her idea was to help them to see that Rob was a person, not a target. He had a family; he lived in a neighborhood and even owned a family pet.

Bev drew the boys into conversation while we ate ice cream. After a few minutes, she said, "I know there's been some trouble at the bus stop. I think there may be a misunderstanding."

They nodded that there had indeed been trouble at the bus stop.

She continued, "Maybe we can talk about the misunderstanding so you can be friends."

They nodded their agreement and we talked until the ice cream was finished. Eventually the boys apologized and said there would be no more trouble. And there wasn't. Ever.

The vice-principal of the school called back the following week and asked about the fighting. "Did you call the police?" he asked.

"No, but we've taken care of it," I said.

"What did you do?" he wondered.

I said, "We fed them ice cream."

Reconciliation is a difficult word...a difficult task. But what could be more important? It may be easier to control conflict by force than to persevere and find a way through to harmony and cooperation. Force can stabilize a situation; it can impose a truce. But reconciliation leads to peace, which is a far better outcome.

Blessed are the reconcilers. May they be given all the ice cream they can ever eat! 

Nasrddin's Flower Garden ising Children, Not Flowers!

by: Jack Canfield, A 2nd Helping of Chicken Soup for the Soul

One day David was teaching his seven-year-old son how to push the gas-powered lawn mower around the yard. As he was teaching him how to turn the mower around at the end of the lawn, his wife called to him to ask a question. As David turned to answer the question, the son pushed the lawn mower right through the flower bed at the edge of the lawn - leaving a two-foot wide path levelled to the ground!

When David turned back around and saw what had happened, he began to lose control. He had put a lot of time and effort into making those flower beds the envy of the neighborhood.

As he began to raise his voice to his son, his wife walked quickly over to him, put her hand on his shoulder and said, "David, please remember, we're raising children, not flowers!"

It reminds us how important it is as a parent to remember our priorities. Kids and their self-esteem are more important than any physical object they might break or destroy. The window pane shattered by a baseball, a lamp knocked over by a careless child, or a plate dropped in the kitchen are already broken. The flowers are already dead.

Not to add to the destruction by breaking a child's spirit and deadening his sense of liveliness.

My thoughts: The best way to raise positive children in a negative world is to have positive parents who love them unconditionally and serve as excellent role models. All that the kids need is a little help, a little understanding, a little hope and someone who believes in them. What a child does not receive, he can seldom give later.

Never lose your Faith in Him

Author Unknown

There was once a man who was ship-wrecked and stranded on an island. Every day he prayed asking God to send someone to rescue him, but to his disappointment, no one ever came.

Months passed and this man learned how to survive on the island. During this time, he accumulated things from the island and stored them in a hut that he constructed.

One day after hunting for food and returning back to his hut, much to his dismay he saw that his hut was on fire along with everything else he owned!

All of his possessions were going up in smoke! The only thing he had left were the clothes on his back. Initially he was in shock, and then he was consumed with anger and rage!

In his fury he threw a fist into the air and began cursing God and yelling, “God, how could you let this happen to me? I’ve been praying everyday for months about being rescued and no one has come, and now everything that I have is on fire! How could you do to this to me! Why did you let this happen?”

Later the man was on his hands and knees weeping heavily when he happened to look up and catch sight of a ship coming in his direction.

The man was rescued and as they were heading back to civilization the man asked the captain, “How were you able to find me?”

The captain responded, “We were voyaging across the ocean when we noticed on the horizon a column of smoke going up. We decided to go check it out and when we did, that’s when we found you!” 

My thoughts:

God has perfect timing. Never early, never late. You need to have a lot of patience and above all faith. But when you are answered you'll realize that its worth the wait. 

Endurance and Hard work

Once a king had announced that anyone who wanted the post of personal assistant must meet him.

Many people gathered in the palace. The king led them to a pond and said, "Whoever will empty this pond's water with this pot will be chosen for the post. But remember, there is a hole in the pot."

Many left without a single try. They said, "The king has already chosen someone else. Let's go."

But one man kept filling the pot with pond water patiently. But always within few moments, the water poured on the ground completely. He never gave up and kept trying persistently.

At last the pond became empty. The man found a diamond ring in the empty pond and he gave it to the king.

At this the king said, "This ring is a reward for your endurance and hard work. You are fit for the job."

Message:
1. Tough times don’t last; tough people do
2. Life is just repeated attempts at trying to do better
3. Endurance is patience concentrated

A lesson from Chinese Bamboo tree

This story is very much true in rearing our beautiful children. As parents, we have to patiently exert efforts in teaching and disciplining our children for them to develop right values and to adopt strong character while at the same time defeat many difficulties and different challenges.

A great lesson of patience, persistence and hard work can be learned from the story of planting Chinese bamboo. Unlike most other plants, Chinese bamboo is quite unique on its own. 

When this bamboo is planted, watered, and nurtured for the whole growing season, it does not outwardly develop even just for an inch. Then, on the next growing season, the farmer must continue to irrigate, fertilize and care for the bamboo tree and yet nothing happens – it fails to sprout just the same.

And as the seasons go in and out, the farmer has to continue caring for the bamboo for four consecutive years.

What could really be discouraging is the farmer has nothing substantial to demonstrate for all of his labor in caring and growing the tree. Four lonely years of hard work and caring and yet you have nothing!

And then on the fifth year, you must be prepared for something so amazing and incredible!

All the hard work seems to be paid off on the fifth year because that Chinese bamboo tree seed at last grows and not just growing as we normally see with other plants. The bamboo tree shoots up to more than 80 feet all in just one growing season! Now, that is a very astonishing demonstration of the power of nature!

Was the small tree inactive for four years and then just decides to grow dramatically on the fifth? The answer is quite clear for us to see. The little tree was actually developing itself underground by expanding its root system to make it tough enough to sustain its impending external growth in the fifth year and even beyond.

Had the tree failed to build up a strong and able underground foundation, it would be impossible for it to keep on growing when it is time to sprout outside into the outside world.

If that Chinese bamboo farmer dug up his little bamboo seeds each year just because he is curious or wants to make sure it was growing or what, he could effectively stopped the tree’s growth. 

There are times when we demand our little children to sit still and behave and be patient but big lessons can be deeply taught once they are demonstrated in actions and not just in words.

The impatient monk

How many people get into arguments that literally break up relationships - over petty stuff! One word leads to another and before they know it, it's many years later and they realize they have no idea of why they lost touch. If they backtrack, they realize that it all started over something so insignificant that they're too embarrassed to admit or disclose it.

There was a monk who was very impatient. Why would a monk be impatient? Don't they become monks so that they don't have to deal with the world? Yes, that's true. So imagine how impatient this monk was...

The more he tried, the more impatient he became, so he decided that he must get away altogether, to learn to be patient. So he built himself a little home deep in the woods, far away from civilization.

Years later, a man was traveling in those woods and met him. The man was amazed to find anyone living so far away from the rest of the world, so he asked the monk why he was there all by himself.

The monk said that he was there to learn to be patient.

The traveler asked how long he had been there, and the monk replied: seven years.

Stunned, the traveler asked, "If there is no one around to bother you, how will you know when you are patient?"

Annoyed, the monk replied, "Get away from me, I have no time for you."

So, even at the risk of looking ridiculous, the next time that we are about to lose our sovereignty over our mind and body, let's remember the monk!

Believe in yourself

Believe in yourself, even when no one else does.

Act 1:
The professor stood before his class of 30 senior molecular biology students, about to pass out the final exam. 'I have been privileged to be your instructor this semester, and I know how hard you have all worked to prepare for this test. I also know most of you are off to medical school or grad school next fall,' he said to them.

'I am well aware of how much pressure you are under to keep your GPAs up, and because I know you are all capable of understanding this material, I am prepared to offer an automatic 'B' to anyone who would prefer not to take the final.'

The relief was audible as a number of students jumped up to thank the professor and departed from class. The professor looked at the handful of students who remained, and offered again, 'Any other takers? This is your last opportunity.' One more student decided to go.

Seven students remained. The professor closed the door and took attendance. Then he handed out the final exam. There were two sentences typed on the paper:

'Congratulations, you have just received an 'A' in this class. Keep believing in yourself.'

Act 2:
At the end of a particularly frustrating practice one-day, a football coach dismissed his players by yelling, 'Now all you idiots, go take a shower!'

All but one player headed toward the locker room.

The coach glared at him and asked why he was still there.

'You told all the idiots to go, Sir,' the player replied, 'and there sure seems to be a lot of them. But I am not an idiot.'

Self-confidence? Yes. He was smart enough to coach that team some day.

The great teacher

Author Unknown

Once an unhappy young man came to an old master and told he had a very sad life and asked for a solution.

The old Master instructed the unhappy young man to put a handful of salt in a glass of water and then to drink it.

“How does it taste?”, the Master asked.

“Terrible,” spat the apprentice.

The Master chuckled and then asked the young man to take another handful of salt and put it in the lake. The two walked in silence to the nearby lake and when the apprentice swirled his handful of salt into the lake.

The old man said, “Now drink from the lake.”

As the water dripped down the young man’s chin, the Master asked, “How does it taste?”

“Good!” remarked the apprentice.

“Do you taste the salt?” asked the Master.

“No,” said the young man.

The Master sat beside this troubled young man, took his hands, and said, “The pain of life is pure salt; no more, no less. The amount of pain in life remains the same, exactly the same. But the amount we taste the ‘pain’ depends on the container we put it into. So when you are in pain, the only thing you can do is to enlarge your sense of things. Stop being a glass. Become a lake.”

Hardships make you shine

The more hard knocks we receive in life, the more we shine. Lets us not be discouraged by setbacks, hardships and failures. As illustrated by the following story.

There was this temple beautifully laden with marble tiles. A huge marble statue was displayed in the middle of the Hall. Many people came to worship this marble statue.

The marble tile on the floor was very upset and told the statue one day, “Its not fair. Why do people have to step on me and worship you? Are we both not from the same cave? Are we both not of the same material? Yet we receive different treatment now.”

The marble statue asked the tile, “My dear friend, do you remember the guy who worked on us both?”

“Yes, ofcourse, I remember. I hate that guy. He hurt me so badly when he worked on me,” said the tile.

“That’s right. He couldn’t work on you at all as you resisted being worked on,” told the statue.

“So?” asked the tile.

“That’s why he decided to give up on you and started working on me instead. I knew at once that I would be something after his efforts. Hence I did not resist his tools. Instead I bore all the pain with patience. My dear friend, there is a price you have to pay for everything in life. Since you decided to give up half way, you can’t blame anyone for stepping on you.”

Racing through life

A man observed a woman in the grocery store with a three year old girl in her trolley. As they passed the cookie section, the child asked for cookies and her mother told her "no." The little girl immediately began to whine and fuss, and the mother said quietly, "Now Priya, we just have half of the aisles left to go through; don't be upset. It won't be long."

He passed the Mother again in the candy aisle. Of course, the little girl began to shout for candy. When she was told she couldn't have any, she began to cry. The mother said, "There, there, Priya. Only two more aisles to go, and then we'll be checking out."

The man again happened to be behind the pair at the check-out, where the little girl immediately began to clamor for gum and burst into a terrible tantrum upon discovering there would be no gum purchased today. The mother patiently said, "Priya, we'll be through this check out stand in five minutes, and then you can go home and have a nice nap."

The man followed them out to the parking lot and stopped the woman to compliment her. "I couldn't help noticing how patient you were with little Priya..."

The woman broke in, "Hello, my little girl's name is Tanya... I'm Priya."

They say patience is a virtue. But mustering patience with stubborn folks and certain testing situations like the one that woman Priya faced is something commendable. There is a good news and bad news here. Bad news is one can be taxed beyond reason in these cases. But good news is that exercising this virtue is not as complex as it sounds. It’s in fact easier than that.

If we analyze, we would understand that impatience arises out of the feeling that we want our wishes to be fulfilled immediately. We are in no mood to wait. We go to a doctor. The doctor sometimes turns up late and makes us wait. We lose our patience. We want the doctor to come "now". The snarling traffic in the morning while going to work. We lose our patience. We want to reach the office immediately. The same traffic in the evening while returning home. Story repeats. We want to reach home "now". Delayed departure of flights—we want the flight to take-off "now." 

It’s that “now” that creates the havoc in our minds. The secret is to erase that “now” from the mind and look the other way. The best way to cheat the mind is to start enjoying the situation. By reading that book which we otherwise don’t find time to read at home, while waiting for that doctor. I normally utilize this time for solving my Sudoku and crossword. It’s the best time that I enjoy. Listening to some good music and enjoying the jokes that the RJ cracks in that FM instead of sulking, while waiting for that traffic to move. These RJ’s have real knack to lighten up any situation. By lazily watching the myriad of people breezing around you while waiting for that flight to take off……. life is interesting! Enjoy. 

I came across a beautiful real life story by Gina Wehman that I would like to share with all of you.

Last fall I hung outside my window a bird feeder. Now not knowing the first thing about wild birds, I assumed that as soon as I hung this bird feeder outside, a multitude of beautiful birds would be swooping to my new addition. Days, weeks and months went by; NO BIRDS. 

I asked so many people what to do? What was I doing wrong? "Nothing" most of them replied. "Just wait." So I waited and waited and waited trying everything possible, to attract these birds. 

I cleaned off the deck, I changed the feed, I washed the feeders, I even made the cat go out the other door! But nothing seemed to work. So......I waited, "with patience and hope." 

Two (2) months later, on a Saturday afternoon, I FROZE! What to my eyes had appeared on the bird feeder but the most beautiful bird I have ever seen in my life! All of a sudden HUNDREDS UPON HUNDREDS OF BIRDS WERE APPEARING FROM EVERYWHERE! 

What a beautiful lesson I learned from this little creature. "Patience and hope" and "things" will attract the beautiful things in life. I never realized how much patience I really do have and how much I do rely upon "hope" to sort out the questions in my heart. 

So I keep hoping and waiting, waiting and hoping. I will try to use this "little lesson" with so many other things in my life. I guess "patience is a virtue" after all.

The lesson that life is trying to teach us here is that there are certain things in life which cannot be rushed. They would happen when the time is ripe. We have to wait patiently. When the ripe fruit falls in our hand at the right time, it tastes heavenly. Nothing else can match that feeling. The feeling of Bliss.

"Don't race through life too fast. Life is a journey to be savored each step of the way," said someone. 

Patience and Perseverance

First things first. Our day begins with the sound of doorbell in the early hrs by none other than the Milkman. "Dhoodhwala" as he is fondly called. Of course, the concept of Milkman exists only in Indian States. In the place where I live, we pick up 3 days’, sometimes even 1 week’s quota of milk from super markets. Nevertheless, whenever I’m in Mumbai, I eagerly look forward to this man in the mornings. Lest my morning cuppa will never get done. I recently read an interesting news in dailybhaskar.com under the heading “Mumbai milkman’s son is India’s London Olympics hope”.

To quote from this source, “Mumbai: The nation will soon be cheering for the Jogeshwari milkman’s son as he will represent India in the upcoming London Olympics. The 24-year-old freestyle wrestler, Narsingh Yadav, has qualified for the prestigious competition to be held in July. He became the fifth Indian wrestler and the first Mumbaikar to do so for the 2012 edition of Olympics.
The youngster worked hard to prove his mettle while his family has been supporting him in his quest to make history. His father operates as a milkman in Jogeshwari, western suburb of Mumbai.”

I admire the zest of this young lad. Perseverance under the pressures of a middle class family, with absolute focus on a goal and working towards it. Isn’t this worth admiration? As against another news which talked about an increasing number of students, weighed down by load of academics, approaching counsellors and psychiatrists seeking ways to fight 'suicidal tendencies'. Not to forget the actual suicides that have taken place in the student community, which is unable to take the pressures of studies, failures, etc and succumb to this tendency.

Life is teaching us about patience, tolerance, perseverance here. Those who pay attention to these are like the milkman’s son. Whether this young lad wins the olympics are not is not my concern. He may or may not . I look at how he paid attention to the small voice that prompted him to venture. How he didn’t ignore it. He has certainly enriched his life.