Gerald D'Cunha

  “Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration; the rest of us get up and go to work.” Stephen King   W e do not know how long we are going to live in this world. Still, all of us want to live a long and healthy life. But, whether we live a   short life or a long life - how does it matter, unless that life is a ‘productive’ one? Now, I do not want to discuss here on what is meant by a ‘productive’ life… Suffice it to say this: If our stay on this earth has helped, impacted, inspired people around us, I think, it’s a productive life. Else, it’s just a ‘long life’… just a number. Yes, we ‘existed’. That’s all. Joe Gonsalves, who passed away on Sunday due to Covid, in my hometown Mangalore, would have completed 100 years had he lived for another four months or so. But, his 99 years and 8 months on this earth was not a mere number… It’s an eventful, inspiring and humbling journey. If we ever wanted to know what's the meaning of the expression - ‘To die with one’s boots ...

  “Faith is walking in the dark until you find the light.” Geraldine Vermaak   “W hen you know what you want, the whole Universe conspires in your favour.”   I have used this statement so often; and I have, also, heard people using it so often. But, if I have to cite   examples, as to how Universe has conspired in my favour through my 63-year-old journey, I can write an entire book on it! So, in this Post, let me cite just one such example… I must’ve been 22-23 at that time. Fired by Napoleon Hill’s   philosophy – ‘Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve” (‘Think and Grow Rich’) -   I had decided to burn every bridge behind me and focus on only one dream of mine: ‘to start my own teaching space’ – call it a coaching center or a coaching empire, or just ‘tuitions’… I knew clearly what I wanted… Where I wanted to go. But, I was absolutely new in Mumbai… lived with my hand-to-mouth relatives, had no strings to pull, no   exp...

  “A winner is the one who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses these skills to achieve his goals.” Larry Bird   A couple of days ago, I saw a missed call after one of my online sessions. I called back and found it was Gitanjali. Gitanjali is the wife of one of my dear old-student, Sunil. Apparently, as my students often do, Sunil, too, had spoken about his old teacher   so much, at home, that this woman who heads a sales team in her organization   – a mother of young son who pursues Engineering – wanted to get some help from me… “Sir, I am good at my work… both my seniors and juniors have been giving me excellent feedback… But, I find myself tongue-tied in many situations and struggling for words and how to convey whatever I want to… Can you help me to overcome this problem, Sir? I want to improve my English.” I haven’t changed anything in   the above dialogue of Gitanjali… She spoke fluently,...

  “If you want to test your memory, try recalling what you were worrying about one year ago.” E. Joseph Crossman   T hose who know me only through my blogs and books, think that I am a calm and composed person, who they can seek advise from whenever they are anxious and worried in their lives. On the other hand, those who know me closely through my daily association with them – and not through my blogs or books – yes, they think, that I am a perpetually anxious and worried soul! They fondly call me ‘Worry D’Cunha’, instead of Gerry D’Cunha! And, yes, they seriously think, that I need to take things not so seriously and should do something about my ‘nerves’. Which means, seek help from some therapist! So, who is the real ‘Me’ – the one who is ‘sought’ or the one who ‘seeks’? Let me confess, all over again, and with all the humility in my heart: If I wasn’t an anxious and worried soul, I wouldn’t have written my daily blogs or any of my books… Anxiety and worryin...

“Silence is the language of God; all else is poor translation.” Rumi   E ver since I remember, I have been a shy, anxious and quiet ‘kid’. I said ‘kid’… because, that’s what I am, still… I am still a shy, anxious and quiet ‘kid’! And, the only reason I took to writing my private notes was to deal with my private ghosts… I felt relived after I expressed my feelings in words… I felt good about myself. Healed and empowered.   Rumi says, ‘Silence is the language of God; all else is poor translation.” Every time I come across a   great   song, painting, composition, speech,   film, novel, a piece of architecture or design – even a lovely spread of food – whatever that man creates out of nowhere – yes, every time I behold it, I become only convinced, that everything has come from a quiet space… In the beginning, there was nothing… It was quiet and dark everywhere… And God said, ‘Let there be light’ - and the Sun, the Moon and the Stars came. I haven’...

  “When you choose one way out of many, all the ways you don’t take are snuffed out like candles as if they’d never existed.” Philip Pullman   I was talking to a friend of mine, last afternoon. He is slightly younger than I am. He hailed from a very humble South Indian family and had to go through a lot of hardships to complete his education. Being very focused and determined, he completed his Chartered Accountancy in his first attempt. It was time to make the crucial choice: to accept the best offer for a well-paying job, or to set up his own Chartered Accountancy firm from the scratch… My friend chose the latter. With that choice came the endless struggle to make his way up! My friend and I, both, started our respective careers almost simultaneously; and our journeys, of being self-employed professionals, very much resembled. Idealism, dynamism, simplicity, loyalty, commitment, hard-work, passion – everything seemed similar. The kind of households we both came f...

        “If it’s out of your hands, it deserves freedom from your mind, too.” Ivan Nuru   O f the many Good-morning messages I received last morning, two related to ‘Letting Go’. One is mentioned above. Let me present it, once again:   “If it’s out of your hands, it deserves freedom from your mind, too.” Ivan Nuru   It’s, often, said, that we can easily forgive; but, we cannot easily forget. To forgive or not to forgive is the job of our hearts; while, to forget or not to forget is a job of our minds. Forgiveness comes from a choice which springs up in our awareness… In fact, when we ‘see’, without any prejudice, what holding on to our pain, hurts, sorrows does to us, that very ‘seeing’ – that awareness - can liberate us from the bondage of holding on. Thus, as Jiddu Krishnamuti says, it is our ‘choice-less awareness’… That’s how it is… The reality… the truth! So, in that sense, forgiveness is not an ‘act’… It is a state of ...

  “If war is the answer, we are asking the wrong question.” Anonymous   I am aware of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in neighbouring Afghanistan. It’s a matter of grave concern for all of us. As we all know, the fire in our neighbour’s house – even if our neigbour is our bitter enemy – is not something we can sleep over, leave alone rejoice over… The fire spreads fast; yes, it does. So, we are flooded with the news about what’s happening in Afghanistan – and how ordinary citizens, like Indians who had been living in that country for their livelihood, are caught between the crossfire – many of us are hooked on to the TV sets – feeling helpless, anxious, worried and, even angry! But, what can ordinary citizens like you and I do in a situation like this? Blaming or debating, in my view, is futile. If war could solve this problem, America would have gone home, long ago… The truth is, that you cannot fight fire with fire… You can fight it only with water! So, while m...

  “Extraordinary things are always hiding in places people never think to look.” Jodi Picoult   T his morning, while our teacher was guiding us through the meditative Tai Chi session (online), I suddenly became aware of my breath… my heart… my lungs… my spleen… my liver… and, my kidneys!  I am 63… I have been knowing about the role my breath and these organs played in my life. I have been writing about them – particularly the heart and breath – in my writings, so often. Still, this morning, when our Tai Chi teacher guided us to rub rigorously our palms, and place them gently over each of these important organs of our body –   heart, lungs, spleen, liver and kidneys… to feel their presence, to thank them profusely… to caress them with the smiling, loving and healing energy of the Mother Nature… yes, as I was doing it, this morning, with a striking awareness, I could see an overwhelming feeling in my being… Breath felt anew… Heart felt childlike… Spleen...