Gerald D'Cunha

  “If you want to leave your footprints on the sands of time, do not drag your feet.” Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam   T hree of my favourite people – who I, always, admired -- and even idolised –- come before me, today. And, all three of them are no more now. Let me talk a bit about each one of them… R . K. Laxman, kept us all enthralled and inspired for long decades as a gifted cartoonist. Like millions of people in this country, I, too, would eagerly look forward to each morning to see his everyday political satire, and, yes, his famous ‘Common man’ saying so much without uttering a single word… What a genius R. K. Laxman was! The legend has it, that the famed ‘J. J. School of Art’ of Bombay rejected him as a student, saying, that he lacked talent. In other words, according to the selection panel, he wasn’t worthy to be a student of this ‘coveted’ institution. Ironically, today, you walk into this very college campus to witness a statue of this ‘rejected’ student’s fine...

  “The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.” -      Dolly Parton   A couple of days ago, a lady called me seeking some help for her young son, her only child. She held a good position in a large organization. “Sir, my son is doing his grade 10 in so and so school (one of the sought-after ones). He is excellent in his studies, and communication… He is a voracious reader and writes, too, well. But, I want him to learn how to structure his presentations better, face interviews efficiently (for studies abroad, perhaps) and manage some of his anxiety…” From my experience, parents of grade 10 students, normally, are so stuck with academics, that they don’t think about things like soft skills. But, here was a mother, who, apparently, wanted her young son to be ‘perfect’, the ‘best’. I tried to calm her down saying, “Ma’am, from what you said, I understand, that your son is a bright young boy. Trust me, he doesn’t need an...

  “That fear of missing out on things makes you miss out on everything.” Etty Hellesum   T oday is 7 th Jan., exactly a week since the advent of new year 2026. In the evening, I received this message from my dear, old student, Rekha: “Good evening Sir, wishing you joy, prosperity and endless blessings in 2026. A Happy New Year to you and your family.” She added, “Sorry for the delayed response, Sir. Your new-year message, somehow, got lost in the mountain of messages!” I loved that imagery – ‘lost in the mountain of messages’... My reply went to Rekha, instantly: “HaHa... ‘Lost in the mountain of messages!’ Rekha, I found the title for my next Blog.” “All the best for your next Blog, Sir,” Rekha cheered. Rekha and Srikar were my students when they were doing their TY BCom. They were in love... Soon after graduating, they got married... and, they never forgot to invite me for their wedding reception... A few years later, their little girl Sharika was born, ...

  “Light yourself on fire with passion, and people will come from miles to watch you burn.” John Wesley   A couple of weeks ago, a 60-year-old woman called me. Apparently, she had asked, on one of the FB groups, about a place where Public Speaking was taught for ‘adults’… And, you know how willingly - and, often, weirdly - some of us are ready with our responses. The woman, must’ve received dozens of recommendations… many saying, ‘So and so person/place is the best.’ When the woman called me, she said what one of the young girls, who had attended our Public-speaking course, had written on FB: “Gerry Sir… the best in the entire world!!!” The woman and I both laughed at it… and, then, started discussing about why the she was keen to learn the public-speaking skill… The woman said, that she was a pastor at a certain Christian congregation and felt she lacked the gift of speaking with passion. “I need to speak like great evangelists,” she said… I remembered a hu...

  “Whatever you are ready for is ready for you.” Mark Victor Hansen   A while ago, a gentleman had come to see me. He had brought along his 17-year-old son. “Sir, I want him to do your summer programme. But, I want you to convince him to join it.” Well, I knew, from my years of experience, that no one could be convinced against his free will. So, the father had brought his son to the pond, but, would the son drink from the pond? Yes, only when he is thirsty… In Life, our thirst to drink is our readiness… Everything happens from there. Until then, as this father put it, the good-ole way, “What comes from one ear goes out from the other.” I get this feeling throughout the day… Most of what I say, with such intensity and passion, seems to enter in from one ear and go out from the other… What stays in, goes deep inside… Those are the fertile fields, which Jesus refers to in His ‘Parable of the Sower’… A farmer went about sowing seeds… Some seeds fell on the pave...

  “There are, obviously, two educations: One should teach us how to make a living, and the other, how to live.” James T. Adama   I   see, both, respect for time and respect for food, are correlated. To go even further – many other things are correlated, too… There are these two young boys in my class. Their academic year is almost over. But, I have never been able to make them come ‘on time’, leave alone ‘before time’. I have used all possible motivational tricks in my arsenal… gentle words, harsh words, love and anger… No. Nothing has worked. Their favorite excuse for reaching late is - ‘stuck in the traffic’. First time, one can understand… But, every time ‘stuck in the traffic’? “Will they accept this reason at the airport? Will the airplane wait for Your Majesty?” “Will they accept this reason on the day of your Board exam? Will they wait for you, or give extra time to complete your paper?” “Will the surgeon and his team wait for you on the operati...

“Universe is made of stories, not atoms.”         Muriel Rukeyser   O ne of my students, a 16-year-old   from class X1, is very fond of my blogs. “Sir, can you share today’s blog?”… he keeps sending this request, mostly, when he sends his homework. This morning, I was asking them this question: “Do you know the difference between Carriage, Freight and Cartage?” I keep asking this to my T.Y. students, too. Though Commerce (Accountancy) students use these terms almost every day, in every sum of Final Accounts, they seldom pause to know the difference… Invariably, all Commerce students. So, I try to catch my Commerce kids young and encourage them to ask questions, so that they find the answers early. “Unless you ask the right questions, you won’t get the right answers,” I keep reminding them, “Enquire… Be curious, childlike.” “Carriage, Freight and Cartage – all these terms refer to transportation cost,” I explained, today. I continu...