Random Thoughts on a Re-Union

Unbridled & random thoughts during a Re-Union of 1967-70 batch at KV.IIT, Chennai…..  07.01.12.

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Through the window I could see some of them playing, while others just stood by watching something of interest to them, few were huddled within the shade of large trees, couple of boys and girls were walking along talking and giggling….they were the students of various classes in the Kendriya Vidyalaya, IIT, taking it easy and about to go home, on that Saturday afternoon..…. the school now has a new multi story building, in place of the  single floor structure resembling an aeroplane built in 1965, … within the confines of the uniquely styled structure, were all of us, about 33 in numbers that spent few teen years of our school age…..  and  now seated in the new auditorium, facing the podium of dignitaries… in the midst of a re-union of ex-students of the very same school, from a by-gone era…

What separated the students outside on the playground and the ex-students inside the auditorium, was not just the window pane or the concrete wall….  42 to 44 years of a  journey through life…      the transparent glass in the window, suddenly seemed to reflect our own youthful days of carefree abandon, when our entire future and the destiny was before us, waiting for the choices we would make ….. the choices we did indeed have taken and that which have taken us to this day… . seeing and contributing to the building of 2 generations growing up, giving our best to the society, in a chosen walk of life to enrich ourselves while making life meaningful to others, stories of success,  failures, lessons learnt, wisdom gained, shared destinies, tales of woes, moments of ecstasies, pangs of agonies, times of joy, pangs of sorrows .. what a bag of mixed experiences each of us held within our memories    …  …  if the children hanging around in the playground were to watch us through the glass window, they would have seen their own reflection, at the end of their career path… their faces slapped with the wear and tear of a 44 year travel or travails… !!

I felt like we were in a Theme Park, as if we were watching these young ones about to enter a “Time Tunnel”… out of which we had just emerged.. and we felt, if only someone had cautioned us of the danger zones ahead and precautions to be taken…!! The temptation to stop some of them and caution them of the pitfalls ahead …. was overwhelming, but had to restrain consciously … almost like a ‘spirit’ wanting to touch and feel and speak .. but cannot be heard or felt… 

Almost all the 33 ex-students assembled were seeing others for the first time after leaving the school. Each of us could so easily identify many of those who had shared our fun filled days at school… the girls and boys of yesteryears are today grandparents having borne witness to the spectrum of a 44 year time span – the passage of time, unable to dent the raw enthusiasm bursting forth from many as each face was recognised and acknowledged!

On the podium were a handful of ex-teachers who chiselled us to the present shape, status, titles and  Character … one of them opened his speech with the remark, “if it was about 44 years back, I would have addressed this gathering as ‘my dear children’, but today I can only greet you all as esteemed ladies and gentlemen..” … as a rejoinder, another  elderly august faculty member addressed us as “my dear children”.. and suddenly we felt indeed as children once more.

44 years ago, the eldest student and the youngest teacher may have been separated perhaps by about 10-15 years … this difference then, was very significant. One was a student and another a Teacher…  but now in the re-union, this apparent difference was  narrowed to insignificance… both being branded as “senior citizens”  for all practical purposes.

The fragmented pieces from the panorama of the past jelled into a brilliant seamless mosaic … where the details and contexts can be vague or inaccurate… but the feelings and the experiences would weave over time, to form a beautiful tapestry.

As the curtains came down to a few hours of a re-lived camaraderie,  we could understand the full significance  of the famous expression – the child is the father of the man.  Did the poet in  Wordsworth go through a re-union experience to have  felt as we all did ?... perhaps, we may have still come up with this saying to sum up our feelings… on our own, if the poet had not penned those words.

Mohandas KP. (1968 )

Something worth understanding.

  SHARED THOUGHTS….. 24.12.11     

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SOMETHING WORTH UNDERSTANDING Let me tell you a little story of a rich landlord who once asked his parish priest-- 'Why does everybody call me stingy when everyone knows that when I die I will leave everything I have to this church?' The priest said; 'There once was a pig and a cow in this village. The pig was unpopular and the cow was loved by all in the village. This puzzled the pig. The pig said to the cow, 'people speak warmly of your good nature and your helpful attitude.They think you are very generous because each day you give them milk, butter and cheese. But what about me?I give them everything I have. I give them the famous Goa sausages, bacon and ham. I also provide ingredients for mouth-watering sorpotel. Yet no one likes me.Why is that?' The priest continued:' Do you know what the cow answered? ' The Cow said, ' Perhaps it's because I give while I am still living.' ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I expect to pass through this world, but once; Any good thing therefore that I can do,  or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now; Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again. ============================================================   A POND FULL OF MILK..   Once there was a king who told some of his workers to dig a pond. Once the pond was dug, the king made an announcement to his people saying that one person from each household has to bring a glass of milk during the night and pour it into the pond. So, the pond should be full of milk by the morning. After receiving the order, everyone went home. One man prepared to take the milk during the night. He thought that since everyone will bring milk, he could just hide a glass of water and pour inside the pond. Because it will be dark at night, no one will notice. So he quickly went and poured the water in the pond and came back. In the morning, the king came to visit the pond and to his surprise the pond was only filled with water! What has happened is that everyone was thinking like the other man that "I don't have to put the milk, someone else will do it." Dear friends, when it comes to help poor people, do not think that others will take care of it. Rather, it starts from you, if you don't do it, no one else will do it. So, change yourself to the way of God to serve Him and that will make the difference. =============================================================   The people who make a difference in your life are NOT the ones  with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones who CARE for you. Only those who care, make a difference. To make a difference to others, care for them.   ==================================================================== You make a living by what you get. You make a life by what you give.  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The value of a man redides in what he gives and not in what he is capable of receiving.  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You can't get unless you give. Anad you have to give, without wanting to get. (Theodore H. Whte ) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I hate the giving of the hand, unless the whole body accompanies it.  ===================================================================== WISH YOU ALL A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and have a safe holiday / week, leading to a A VERY HAPPY PEACEFUL NEW YEAR.

 

MOHANDAS. KP.

http://mohandas-sharedthoughts.blogspot.com/

A NEW YEAR MESSAGE. ...

SHARED THOUGHTS…….31.12..2011.

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For some strange reason, or a convention handed down from ages, the birth of a new calendar year, in all faiths, calls for a sort of celebration… of hope, for better days to come, wishing for more happiness, good health et al… as if the year gone by, has been less merciful.. the closing days of the current year do not receive enough thanks or gratitude, instead we look ahead at the unborn year hoping for the best…..  to be better than whatever we received until now. Jan 01..the birth of yet another day it is, just as any other day..  still, it warrants a lot of introspection, new resolutions to live by, looking at the trial balance of our life and adjusting those odd factors to bring about the right balance for the year to come.

 

Messages by all means of communication go around wishing near and dear, Success, happiness, peace of mind, fulfillment, good health; without a second thought.. words like “wish you a happy new year” are dished out to whoever we come across.... in a sense of casual exchange of greetings, the words coming by without a thought of its deeper inner significance,  an automated forwarding of messages…… as hollow and casual as the Good Mornings, Good day, God Bless.. etc.

 

Going back to the elements we wish others… Success, Happiness, Peace of Mind, Fulfillment, Good Health.. are but the most priceless of human treasures mankind is in perpetual search of…. Yet, these  are already available to all… these are not the prerogative of a chosen few… these treasures are there to be enjoyed, inert and dormant within us, around us, following us all through… if only we could just  recognize its presence ;  among these human treasures, I would rate Peace of Mind, being the single most critical component, around which other ‘treasures’ revolve. Each of the other treasures is a by-product of being in a state of Peace.

 

It is this Peace within, that is the most elusive and most sought after.. people go to any length in search of Peace, spend a fortune, battle with sleepless nights .. just to be able to experience the pristine pleasure of pure peace .. within.

 

We read and hear discourses of how we can find and experience Peace.. yet we are victims of our own personalities, confining  ourselves within factors that lock up the treasures, within sight or know-how, but beyond our  reach. Simple truths to master in order to experience Peace, are very difficult to put into practice.

 

-          unload that baggage of hate, grudge, ill-will, sense of revenge. Buy Peace, even if you have to compromise with your ego, pride and                     position.

-          think good, do good ; be a source of joy to others..

-          write an eulogy for yourself … and die to live in others, the way you choose.   

-          Keep company of simple good people, who have achieved success and contentment and who are at Peace with themselves.

-          Endear yourself to kids of all hues… they are the personification of Peace within their unadulterated minds.

-          Reduce the importance of money ‘per se’, in your life… this is a one stop solution to  a lot of problems.

-          Don’t let Envy and Jealousy rule your heart. It is the Heaven’s order, that some are .. and some must be greater than others.

-          Know that everyone has their own tales of woes and stories of missed opportunities ; you are not alone; reduce your own problems in                   comparison and be happy.

-          Ageing is natural and mandatory. Becoming ‘old’ is optional. No need to sweat or worry with the passing of another year, taking the tally               up…. Everyone has to get old…some are ahead of us, some are behind us.

-          And so on and so forth…

 

Spiritual discourses and enlightened among us, can show more means to experience Human Treasures within us...in my own small ways, I wish all of you to be able to look forward to a rewarding New Year, while not forgetting to thank the past year  for the blessings we enjoyed, the lessons learnt, the success that came our way, the failures that made us more resolute, and very simply .. for just being here to have lived another year….

 

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Story: The missing watch

There once was a farmer who discovered that he had lost his watch in the barn. It was no ordinary watch because it had sentimental value for him. After searching high and low among the hay for a long while; he gave up and enlisted the help of a group of children playing outside the barn.

He promised them that the person who found it would be rewarded.

Hearing this, the children hurried inside the barn, went through and around the entire stack of hay but still could not find the watch. Just when the farmer was about to give up looking for his watch, a little boy went up to him and asked to be given another chance.

The farmer looked at him and thought, "Why not? After all, this kid looks sincere enough."

So the farmer sent the little boy back in the barn. After a while the little boy came out with the watch in his hand! The farmer was both happy and surprised and so he asked the boy how he succeeded where the rest had failed.

The boy replied, "I did nothing but sit on the ground and listen. In the silence, I heard the ticking of the watch and just looked for it in that direction."

Moral: A peaceful mind can think better than a worked up mind.

Allow a few minutes of silence to your mind everyday… and see how sharply it helps you to set your life the way you expect it to be. 

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Anger Management And Prevention

How often has your anger ever made any positive difference to situations?
Probably never.

 

Have you ever noticed that when you get angry with someone it seems to push
them away, they go into hiding, they go underground, and then it’s not
possible to influence them and help them to change.

Then some people think, that if you don’t get angry about anything and with
anyone you might as well lie down and be a door-mat, one on which anyone can
walk over.

 

Well you could if you think door-mat is a role you would like to
play, but it’s not compulsory. You could be assertive (confidently
aggressive in a positive sense or self-assured) instead of being angry.

 

We are fortunate to have an intellect, unlike animals, that knows the way to differentiate between right and wrong, we are human so we have the ability to be understanding and compassionate (merciful), and we have a unique contribution to make to this game called Life.

 

So why not ‘do something’ to help situations become better
by applying the qualities of generosity, kindness and mercy instead of becoming angry?

If you care about the situation so much what are you
waiting for? Trouble is, the angry person is a bit like the ‘compulsive
complainer’ about situations. If you complain (get upset) about situations
it means you have an image of how you would prefer things to be but you are
not prepared to actually do something about it.

Remember, Anger is a SILENT KILLER and an excellent Enemy Creator too.

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Sometimes we must be Hurt in order to Grow, Sometimes we must fail in order to Know,
Sometimes we must Lose in order to Gain, Because some lessons in life are best learned through PAIN....

 

Begin your Heart with a light heart ....!!

let all your worries be set aside ...!!

Smile a moment & thank GOD for this new day, the New Year. ...!!

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Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned. – Buddha.

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Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret. – Ambrose Bierce.

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if a small thing has the power to make you angry, does that not indicate something about your size? – Sydney J. Harris

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Anger is one letter short of danger. – Eleanor Roosevelt

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Have a safe weekend holidays..  enjoy the year ahead and be at Peace, devoid of Anger. 

 

MOHANDAS. KP.

http://mohandas-sharedthoughts.blogspot.com/

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