THE CAMPFIRES OF GENTLE PEOPLE
“Even in a time of elephantine vanity and greed,
one never has to look far
to see the campfires of gentle people.”
Garrison Kaillor
As
the international schools , IB and IGCSE (Cambridge) in particular, have the
subject of Accountancy during their Grade 9 and 10, I get to teach some of
these students, these days. Imagine, what traditionally the college students
were learning, these 13-14-15-year-old kids have to learn now. Initially, I was
reluctant to take up teaching commitments to these kids, assuming, that it’s
too much for them and too early. But, the more I assumed so, the more and more
parents began to approach me. “Sir, that’s how it is in these global schools,” I
was repeatedly reminded.
Thus, with a lot
of caution and discretion, I started teaching some of these students during
last couple of years…
And, my
experience?
Well, wish to
reserve my comment…
The world is
changing faster and faster… Along with it, let me say this: human ambition, too…
dreams and aspirations, too. And, why shouldn’t they? I have been a staunch believer
in human ambition… dreams and aspirations. I keep drilling into young heads
this, “Your motivation to succeed always stems from your goals in life… Have clear
goals, burning ambition to achieve them, and with determination, commitment,
passion and perseverance work for them.”
In the same
breath, I caution them, “Don’t go for short-cuts in life… Know the difference
between your needs and greed… Don’t compromise with good-old values, don’t
cheat.”
Old-fashioned counselling?
“From the first
day to this, sheer greed was the driving spirit of civilization,” says Friedrich
Engels. There is nothing ‘old-fashioned’ when it comes to learning the
difference between need and greed… The greed has no end… If at all, there is an
end to it, it is one’s downfall… a bad, miserable downfall. History is a
witness to it. And, as it’s wisely said, “Those who do not learn history are
doomed to repeat it.”
At 66, after my
own quest for ‘success’ in life, I find myself asking these questions, reflectively:
How much more can my little balloon (stomach) take now? How much more wealth
can give me a peaceful sleep in the night? How much of it all will I be able to
partake when I go from this planet?
The idea of growing
rich, powerful and famous is a big fairytale… What goes up has to come down.
Nothing stays on top forever… Nothing.
Last
afternoon, in the middle of my online class, this 9th-standar kid
(from an international school and quite a well-off and educated family),
abruptly said to me, “Sir, I am very sad and upset today.?
“Why beta,
what happened?” I asked him.
“Sir, I have
lost a lot in Adani shares,” the boy said.
I was aware of
the Adani story which was exploding all over yesterday. But, I was quite
apprehensive if a kid like this one was aware of it, and worse, was affected by
the nosedive of this company’s shares.
I did not probe
further with this boy, hoping to get some update from his mother later in the
day.
I called the boy’s
mother later in the day and briefed her about what her son had said during the
class. The mother explained to me, that the boy hadn’t directly invested
anything in the Adani stocks, but the family had. However, she did stress on
the fact, that the 14-year-old was extremely interested in the stock market.
She thanked me for my concern and said, “Yes, Sir, kids must remember, ‘Easy
comes, easy goes’.”
Even when the
learning goes global, young kids have to be taught to keep their hearts
strictly at home. True, as Garrison Kaillor said, “Even in a time
of elephantine vanity and greed, one never has to look far to see the campfires
of gentle people.”
GERALD D’CUNHA
Pic’s: Pavel Danilyuk
Video: 20th Century Studios
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