Gerald D'Cunha

Pic.: Chetna Shetty I had dictated some notes in Neha’s* batch, last evening. After the class, I took her book so that I could dictate the same notes in the morning batch, today. And, today, as I began to dictate the notes from Neha’s book, I was doing, what the Facebook lingo tickles us to do: LOL! “Placed an order for goods wid Arun & Co worth Rs. 2,000/-.” “Received Rs.12,000/- from Anil & Co in full settlement of dhere account.” I stopped dictating from Neha’s book and asked my 16-and-17-year-olds the spellings of words such as ‘with’, ‘their’, ‘your’, ‘my’ and so on; and, I asked them what some famous FB abbreviations, such as LOL, P. and D. and what not, meant... We had a good time... yes, doing the LOL in the class... e -mails have killed the fine-art called ‘Letter Writing’... Such a beautiful art it was, once! Today, the young-ones have no patience to write notes... They just click a picture of it. It’s all over in a flash!...

Pic.:  Chetna Shetty S hri Uday Acharya, my good friend, has initiated a FB page and baptized it as ‘Buddha Laughed’. The very first time my eyes fell on this name, my heart just laughed! Strangely, I hadn't even read any content of it... Just the thought that the Buddha – the otherwise a serious holy-man – laughed made my lungs loosen-up a little, and I found my heart just laughing... I think, the idea of the laughing Buddha – with his  laid-back  hands and pot-belly – has come from the same fact: When you come to understand the simple truth behind the harshest realities of life, you do not have to prompt your heart to laugh... It just laughs. And, that laughter is the laughter of true joy and lightness, true freedom and acceptance. There is no  pretense  or ridicule. The carelessness has dissolved into carefreeness... The heart ‘knows’; hence laughs... Simply laughs... So, Udayji keeps sharing with us...

Pic.: Jhuma Mukherjee A ny situation in life can be viewed differently. A grim situation will be grim only as long as we want it to be so... Stress can last only till we want it to last... So are our happy and fun-filled moments in life... When it comes to our ability to laugh at our Life-situations, I believe, that each one of us, in this world, is ‘differently-abled’... For example, two of my close friends, Joe and Bipin, can crack jokes even in a graveyard! It comes naturally to them; it is ingrained in their system...  I, always, tell them, “Good for you.” Take my own case. Finding in, almost, every wayside situation something sublime, something of value and inspiration, comes naturally to me... It is ingrained in my system... And, I can hear Joe and Bipin telling me the same, “Good for you, buddy.” N o matter how great is my ability to weave these inspirational stories out of Life’s routine situations, I still consider, that the ability to laug...

Pic.: Sherry Haridas “Arguing with the boss is like wrestling with a pig in the mud. After some time, you realize that you are getting dirty... But, the pig is actually enjoying.” M y friend, Paul, is known for relentlessly sharing these kinds of messages. This one was sent by him, two days ago. Most of the Posts, which Paul shares, make you really laugh and loosen up. Well, Paul, being Paul, chooses to find something to laugh at in everything the day brings for us... including the so-called tragedies of life. Life is not only short, not only beautiful, it is laughable, too... So, laugh... and, laugh now! That’s the message in the letter of this St. Paul to all of us - the ‘Worryntians’! T he ‘Boss’ in the above message is just a metaphor. You argue with anyone, anywhere, and you come out with the same mud-wrestling experience... I have been through this experience whoever I have tried to argue with bitterly and badly. Like most...

Pic.:Manoj Nair “On this earth, nothing is permanent. Money, fame and success – you have to leave everything here, when you go. So, have your share of humor and laughter on this earth, In fact, your mental and physical health depends on your sense of humor to a great extent.” N o matter how much you accumulate in your life – money, fame and success – you are supposed to leave it all… here on this earth. Yes, you have come with nothing, and you will go with nothing… This plain truth has stared hard at paupers and emperors alike, all through the ages… They all came here with their empty hands, and they all went from here with their empty hands… The rest – how much wealth they accumulated, how much fame, success and power they wielded – yes, all these had to be just a ‘fairy tale’! In life, if the money that you make and the fame and success that you achieve should have a true mea...

It has, always, been fashionable to talk about the virtues of ‘net-working’. Yes, our ‘Social net-working’. We know Social net-working helps us to ‘grow’… socially, intellectually, financially and even spiritually. Most of us have some of these reasons for joining various social circles - Clubs, Gymkhanas, Associations, Religious groups, and even Charity organizations… Out there, we meet people from different back grounds – different interests, talents, and even cultures… and, we hope to learn from these people, share ideas, contacts, and grow from mutual benefits… Definitely, it is the best way to expand our ‘circles of influence’, if I should borrow the famous catch-line of late Dr. Stephen R. Covey. So far so good. But, what is interesting is this: Imagine four people meet at a Club or Gymkhana… each having in his mind his own agenda: how to ‘expand’… how to ‘grow…by net-working with others. So much so, each one is the...

I was in a departmental store, last evening. Diwali being close, there was a long queue at the payment counter. On the large TV screen, just behind the cashier, Mr. Bean show was on… And, after a very, very long time, I found myself just laughing, the way I would do as a little school-child. I really didn't mind the waiting… I really didn't care as to who stood around me… Mr. Bean’s stupid exploits just broke my resistance… For that moment, I really forgot that I have been heavily stressed out all through the day. Stressed out for what? Yes, I can give a hundred reasons why I was stressed out… But, justifying my stress with reasons is the surest way of re-enforcing it in my life… While watching Mr. Bean’s exploits, I found the stiffness in my body all dropping, the serious-as-grave look in my eyes turning into a twinkle of a little child… and, the desire to ‘enjoy life’… laugh… play like a child… springing up in my soul, all over agai...

When I am sad and unhappy, if you give me two options: either to consult a Philosopher or our Mullah Nasrudin, I would, any time, prefer the Mullah. I know, the Mullah is a crazy fellow… but, he can surprise us with some of the best solutions! “Look at the bright side… There are people worse than you in this world… The Glass is half full and not half empty… Every dark cloud has a silver lining… God tests you through your difficulties… Sweet is the pleasure after pain… and, Tough times never last but tough people do...” All these are the ways of a Philosopher… and we all are busy solving our problems by philosophizing… rationalizing… theorizing…  The Mullah may sound like a quack. But, he can offer some of the best treatments. One day, the Mullah was talking to a man from another town. The man began to lament: “Look at my tragedy… I have this wealth, but I am so sad and miserable. In desperation, I have bundled up all my wealth and set on a ...

Some one told me yesterday this: “Gerry, the thing I admire the most about you is, that you are unbelievably simple.” I did feel good when I heard this.  Because ‘Simplicity’ is a value I cherish, it reflects in whatever I do in my life. But, after this person had left, I wondered for a while: “What he meant by ‘Simplicity’?” I really wished, I could I ask this person! A few things come before me when I think about this subject. Yes, these ‘few things’ come to me so naturally, without any effort… and, these things come from my heart… and I feel strong when I go by them. I would like to list them down, here. I E XPRESS MY FEELINGS:   Yes, I do express my feelings openly, frankly and genuinely. If I am happy because of some person’s words or gesture, I would quickly, and with all my gratitude, let the other person know how happy I am because of this person’s words or gesture. There is no calculation needed before I ...