Giving while living!

There was once a very rich man in town who had everything that any one would want. He lived a life of extravagance and had all the worldly pleasures that anyone could ever think of: expensive attire, jewels, delicacies served everyday, innumerable mansions, a fleet of cars and help at his every beck and call.

However, despite his lavish lifestyle, he neither gave a needy person a penny to comfort nor did he say a kind word to soothe a hurting soul. Thus, everyone ended up calling him a miser. This perturbed the rich man and so he decided to do something about it. He informed one of his friends to let the enire village know about his plan to donate his entire wealth to the village after his death. Despite knowing this, however, the villagers spoke behind his back and continued to make fun of him. This further aggrevated his depression. One evening, the same friend came to meet him and sensing his disturbed mood, he narrated to him the story of "The Cow & the Pig".

There was once upon a time a pig who was unhappy that despite all the perceived help and assistance provided by him, he got only rude comments in return whereas his friend - the Cow was loved by one and all. So, one day the pig out of sheer curiosity, the pig asked the cow as to why the world treated her so reverently and the pig so crudely. The pig said, "All you give them is milk, while here I am, who gives them a lot more – I give them my hair to make brushes, I give them my skin, I give them my entire body but still they treat me so badly."

The cow heard all his complaints very patiently and then after taking a few munches replied – "maybe if you try giving something, even a little something while you are alive, you may be treated differently. Think about it!"

Received this as a forward. Source unknown.

For the teacher in me

Someone sent this to me today and asked me to replace Math teacher with FM teacher! Thankfully, it was a friend who sent this and not a student :)

I'm sure a lot of my students would read this and say 'I wish'! :D

On a kind-of-related-note, I think I'm starting to lose traits of a professor/teacher. Ofcourse, the assumption here is that I had those traits at some point in the past!

Current Affairs.... the Lighter Way

Received them as a forward.

Flickering lights

It was a ‘blanket of blank’ as far as I could see,
Came tearing through the darkness, a tiny little refugee.

The tiny tot, small at his might, trembled,
Will I be able to survive the world, he fumbled.

Couple more joined him, to render strength,
Soon there was an array of flickering lights through the length.

The flickering lights…
Give me courage to face the world,
Wisdom to gather every stone hurled.

In togetherness, they lit up marooned streets gazed by yearning eyes,
In creativity, they give a new dimension to horizon-less skies.

In deafening silence, they create musical symphony.
In excess of stillness, they give a ‘reason to be’.

In times of rue, they epitomize victory over despair,
In times of iniquity, they symbolize en era of just and fair.

The flickering lights…
Give me hope for life,
Strength to cope through strife.

We may not be as bright as the big street halogen lights, they say,
But at least we provide twinkle to the eyes that pray.

We may not help you see all obstacles that lay,
But at least, through the falls, we give you strength to rise and walk away.

We may not bring jazzy colors, shapes and patterns to the variety tray,
But at least we bring variety to someone’s life’s monotonous, melancholic play.

The flickering lights…
Give me inspiration to light others’ lives,
Chance to spread optimistic vibes.

An en-route experience by Payal Sinha

(PS is a dear friend of mine, based out of Noida. Feedback & comments on the poem are welcome.)

Double ton

Few days before my blog turned 100 posts old, Sachin had surpassed a Test record. This time, when my blog turns 200 posts old, Sachin has just surpassed an important double ton too! I noted this little co-incidence today when I realized about my count (with the posts-count displayed in Blogger, it is easy to keep such track).

Do not have much thoughts to write about. Been a lull period, blogging wise. No real reasons to offer, just avei. :)

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar

I have been wanting to write on this phenomenon named Sachin, but somehow could never match my words to his feats. While browsing today, read this well-written paragraph by TIME magazine on what Sachin has been:

When Sachin Tendulkar travelled to Pakistan to face one of the finest bowling attacks ever assembled in cricket, Michael Schumacher was yet to race a F1 car, Lance Armstrong had never been to the Tour de France, Diego Maradona was still the captain of a world champion Argentina team, Pete Sampras had never won a Grand Slam.

When Tendulkar embarked on a glorious career taming Imran and company, Roger Federer was a name unheard of; Lionel Messi was in his nappies, Usain Bolt was an unknown kid in the Jamaican backwaters. The Berlin Wall was still intact, USSR was one big, big country, Dr Manmohan Singh was yet to "open" the Nehruvian economy.

It seems while Time was having his toll on every individual on the face of this planet, he excused one man. Time stands frozen in front of Sachin Tendulkar. We have had champions, we have had legends, but we have never had another Sachin Tendulkar and we never will.

A year of discovery?

Turning a year older seems to be quite normal. My birthday yesterday was absolutely 'normal' like any other day. Deliberately so. Looking at the year that went by, I do not know how to tag it. Perhaps, it was the year of discovery. Rather, self-discovery. One of the key things I have started to realize is that I really do not have any passions, so to say. If you asked me a year back, I would have said I am passionate about teaching, or finance, or reading. Now, it may not be the case. All these and even the other stuff feels 'normal' and 'ordinary'. Good for me, me thinks.

What I have also realized is I am extremely fortunate to have some awesome people around me. The value that they add to me is amazing. This has been surely a year of true learning owing to interactions I have had with them at various points. Also, the time I spend in the lectures interacting with a magnificent set of students also helps in keeping the mind steady. When you are trying to explain a concept to a batch of eager students, the world outside the concept comes to a stand-still. I cannot think of anything much - my deliverables, health issues, other trivial matters that would otherwise be plaguing my mind - when I am into a lecture. It's an awesome perquisite of teaching.

Things that I have discovered and realized over the last many months are quite contrary to my 'older' self. Moreover, I am loving the transition, if I could use that term. I think I have found my footing in the world. I know what my stance must be, talking like a batsman. I am at peace with myself. The noise inside me is surely dying down and I am letting myself just be. I do not remember the last time I 'seriously contemplated' my career options or the 'time-effective way to garner resources and build wealth'. All these things and a whole lot of related materalistic aspects of the world seems like a big, worthless zilch to me.

So here's to another year of discovery and realizations. A year ahead towards NOTHING. Let more and more of nothing come to me!

By the way, I completed 27 years of my physical existence yesterday.

Important & Useful

Came across this at a site. Must share this in any way you can.

Colorful India

Do see some awesome photographs on India and her different shades. Enjoy.

Tired..

Tired. Exhausted. Completely saturated.