Gerald D'Cunha

  “In the first thirty years of your life, you make your habits. For the last thirty years of your life, your habits make you.” Steve Jobs   M ost of our habits are our blind spots… We cant’s see them, while others can. I have many such habits – things I do mechanically, unknowingly, through sheer habits… They are so deeply-settled in me, that, unless I make a conscious, determined and persistent effort to unsettle them, they will never go away from my system. Often, our closest people in our lives - like, in my case, my wife or son – only can tell us as-it-is… Others, don’t like to offend us, you see. Well, in this Post, let me touch upon some harmless habits. I mean, even though they are unrequired, useless, their presence wouldn’t harm us or anyone else around us. At worst, they can make us smile, even laugh… It’s okay… It’s okay… They are like our good-old habits… If they they can make someone giggle, good… But, our nearest ones keep screaming, “Stop it,”… “Get...

  “We all have a blind spot; and it’s shaped exactly like us.” Junot Diaz   I took some time to grasp the meaning of the quote mentioned above. Our blind spots are those flaws of ours which we are not able to see. I can hear you say this: “No. Blind spots are those flaws of ours which we are unwilling to see… Unwilling to accept.” The above quote reminds us, that each of our blind spots is there in us, exactly how we  would want it to be there through our vanity. It takes real strength of our character – honesty, humility and innocence – to bring us to see, accept and take corrective action about our blind spots… Vanity complicates this process, you see! S ome days ago, I was at a family gathering. It was a beautiful evening, with good food, singing and bonding. The party was almost over… Just before we were to leave, one of my sisters-in-law (who is known for her straight-forward attitude) yelled, “Hey, there is a hole in your sock!” Before I could look dow...

Pic. Usha Prasad “O ur humility comes from our character strength... a healthy self-esteem,” I was telling our young PD students, this morning, “But, our submissiveness – non-assertive behavior – comes from our weakness... a low-self-esteem.” I have spent so many years teaching so many of college students, that, sometimes, it is not easy for me to be ‘teachable’ when somebody points to me my mistakes. Do I make mistakes in my routine work? Oh yes, plenty! Then, why is it not easy for me to accept my mistakes when someone points them to me? Because of lack of humility...  But,  many a time , it is because of the way someone tries to correct me… his tone, words and intention have a big role to play… I have seen, that if the tone, words and intention of the other person are good, I gladly offer myself to be corrected… I thank the person profusely… and feel really good about it. On the other hand, if someone tries to undermine my goodne...

  Nine-year-old   Dhruv* was fantastic, this morning. He had won our hearts with his vibrant recital of a poem and the entire class had given him a long applause. “Excellent, beta … You have won our hearts!” I went to the stage to pat the little fellow’s back. “Keep it up… Keep it up,” I repeated, “Dear angels, give our Dhruv darling a very big hand, once more!” The little angels sang, “Alleluia… Alleluia!”  Praise be to the Lord… the little ‘Lord of the Ring’: The Public Speaking! And, when the praises were being showered upon by all our little angels and when I was pouring my heart on him, the little master, Dhruv, looked all frigid. Just bereft of all expressions… Lifeless. It sounded like all the expressions which he had exhibited just a while ago, for his poetry recital, were only reserved for his recital… and, that’s all over now. It looked as if he could go about his little world wearing a dead-pan look. Co...