Gerald D'Cunha

  “You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.” John Bunyan   E ight days ago, (on August 20) Judge Frank Caprio passed away after a gritty battle with pancreatic cancer. He has been my inspiration as he was for millions of people around the world. Judge Caprio was just a judge in the Municipal Court of Providence, Rhode Island, in America, where he served for nearly four decades. Yes, his heart of gold – blessed with compassion, empathy and healing humour   - made him a household legend… He did it in his courtroom by dispensing justice to very ordinary people who appeared before him for some routine traffic violations like over speeding, wrong parking etc. I n this fast and furious, seemingly heartless world, most of us had never come across anything like this in a courtroom. So, when we saw the way Judge Frank Caprio communicated with people who presented themselves before him, it was hard for us to believe, th...

  “We cannot live only for ourselves; a thousand fibers connect us with our fellowmen.” Herman Melville   I had taught Simmi Kochhar when she was a T.Y. B.Com student. It was some 36/37 years ago. Soon after graduating, she married her sweetheart, Manoj Balwani, and began to be called Rashmi Simmi Balwani. Simmi came from a family of academicians. Her mother was a school teacher and father wrote for leading newspapers on financial subjects. On the other hand, Manoj came from a business family. Soon after their marriage, Simmi got involved with Manoj’s family business. They raised their two children, providing them with fine education. Meanwhile, Simmi ventured into new businesses and succeeded quite impressively. Then, came the Pandemic and the lockdown… Simmi started reaching out to the helpless people, especially children, from the nearby slum areas. She, with the help of many volunteers, went around the slums with food packets, medicines and groceries. This was ...

  “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; God has no poor children.” Dwight L. Moody     T he book that we brought out, this summer, was about Values… It was titled – ‘Some Things in Life Don’t Move’. Our little ones, young ones and even many adults had written beautiful articles on one or two values they cherished the most in their lives. What fascinated me the most was, that many young kids wrote about ‘Kindness’… Who says, young kids are ‘heartless'? You must read their articles to imagine the size of their hearts!   But, when it comes to ‘kindness’, the question comes – “Kindness towards whom/what?”   So, if young kids like Vaidehi or Laksh are moved by the sight of urchins along the streets, Manasi and Vridhi are just moved by the strays – be it dogs or cats, who have no shelter, food or loved ones… Someone like Mrs. Shyla, a widow and a housewife, who is the mother of two working girls, is extremely drawn towards physically and mentally challenged ch...

  “In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” Mahatma Gandhi   P resently, Anant Ambani, the younger son of Mr. Mukesh Ambani, is in news for two reasons. First, he is getting married; second, his magnificent project – ‘Vantara’ - for animal rescue has just been unveiled… ‘Vantara’ is a mind-blowing, amazingly planned and executed project, which is spread over 3,000-acre land in Jamnagar.  Well, Anant is only 28… and, you and I can feel jealous about him for being able to live his dream the way he does. Yes, you and I aren’t born as Ambani’s. So, we can only feel amazed and numbed by the magnitude of the dream this Ambani scion   has been able to live… and, along the way, quietly, feel a lot envious, and even critical… Not true? Let it be… This Post is not about waiting to become an Anant Ambani in order to help the helpless animals… That wait is not only futile, but also a grand excuse… “If only I was rich like Anant Ambani”… Alibis, Sir… The old-man...

  “There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up.” John Holmes   S unil, who has been printing all our books (for over two decades), is deeply involved with many religious and charity works. They include seva relating to Shirdi pilgrimage, reaching out to poor village kids in schools of interior Maharashtra, serving food on Thursdays at the local Sai mandir or during Ganesh festivities, and so on. Being a printer, he, also, volunteers to do, free of cost, most of the work relating banners, souvenirs and certificates. “This is within my reach, and it gives me a lot of peace,” he says. But, Sunil gets annoyed when people around him start posting pictures and videos of such charity work on social media. “I tell them not to make any publicity or show of any seva that we do,” he says, “but, many of them don’t listen.” “Let your left hand not know what your right hand gives,” Jesus had advised. But, that advice seems outdated. Peo...

  “You never know where a blessing can come from.” Teena Marie   T his morning, I met a young lady (let me call her Vishakha), after a very long time… She was on way to her office. During the brief course of our discussion, I learnt, that she was presently working for a reputed CA firm after completing her CA exam some years ago. She seemed very happy about the progress she had made. “Thank you Sir, for the help you had offered when I needed it the most,” the girl said. “I can’t help enough Nilesh Sir, too,” she added, “It was because of his financial help, that I could venture into doing Chartered Accountancy.” Years ago, when she was doing her B.Com, Vishakha had come to see me, along with her mother. I learnt, that the mother was raising Vishakha all alone as her husband had deserted them. They lived in a small, rented house and faced a lot of financial problems. But, Vishakha was not only a bright student, she was, also, a confident and articulate girl. I had immed...