Gerald D'Cunha

“Do you understand the violence it took to become this gentle?” Nitya Prakash   M ore than two decades ago, I had published a book by the title – ‘Why The Sun Burns’. It carried some of my notes, which I had scribbled in my diaries over the years. One such note – passage – was this: “The light doesn’t emerge unless the candle burns; It’s not my wish that I should suffer, to spread a little goodness around.” Anger, hurt, pain – these are very much present in our lives. No matter how sagely you may find me from outside, that’s not what I am inside. Inside, yes, inside this mountain, there is burning lava... waiting to be exploded... and, now and then, it does... But, anger is like the poison a cobra is blessed with. Did I say, ‘blessed with’? Yes Sir, I did say that... The presence of poison and the presence of anger inside us – both make us who we are. The cobra doesn’t go on a rampage, just because, there is poison inside its head... Likewise, you and I do...

  “It’s not the man who has little, but he who desires more, that is poor.” Seneca the Younger   I have blogged about this elderly woman many times before. I call her Maaji. She lives in her small room in a chawl, which is situated between my residence and workplace. She lives all   alone, gets up very early every morning, does her morning puja and does every household chore by herself. What’s endearing to see is, that this elderly woman has always some women to talk to her. I rarely see her ‘lonely’, and I have never seen her complaining about anything... Every morning and evening, I walk past Maaji’s humble room. And, every now and then, she asks me to wait. And, I know she has packed some fresh Maharashtrian delicacy for me. Invariably, it’s something simple, but prepared with exceptional love... and, more than anything else, keeping someone like me – who walks by her room every day – in her heart. “Wait, wait,” Maaji   literally called me back, whe...

  “Be watchful... The grace of God appears suddenly. It comes without warning to an open heart.” Rumi   W hy certain things happen in our lives, in a certain way – yes, this is a real mystery to me. What looks, on the surface, as a good fortune, may end up being a bad one; similarly, what looks, on the surface, as a bad fortune, may end up being a good one... “A blessing in disguise”... It’s what a seemingly bad fortune delivered to our doorstep  with an amazing blessing concealed inside! Y esterday, my wife and I had visited the residence of an elderly uncle of mine, Frank, (my mom’s first cousin). He is 80 and lives with his affectionate wife, Cissy (75). Their children are well-qualified and wonderfully settled abroad with their respective families. Uncle and aunty had always been self-reliant, judicious in their conduct, very pious and great believers in serving the society in their own little way. Last afternoon, uncle and aunty were reflecting on several...

  “I have always imagined, that Paradise will be a kind of library.” Jorge Luis Borges     O n last Sunday, my friend (once, my dear student) Shankar and his wife Swetha had invited some of us to their house located in a plush society. They have two beautiful, talented daughters – Anvesha, 13 and Avyakta, 9. I had carried two books – a novel for Anvesha, another book of   Japanese Folktales for little Avyakta. While the novel was a new one, the book of Japanese Folktales was an old one which I had at home for quite some time. Did I hesitate before gifting this book to the little girl? Not at all... It’s what the book contained inside, and not how new or how nicely it’s packaged – yes, I firmly believed in this. The little girl, I am sure, will appreciate the amazing folktales from the land of Japan... and, once she is done with it, I am sure, she will pass on the book to another deserving kid... Books are meant to be circulated... While we were at...

  “All human miseries derive from not being able to sit quiet in a room alone.” Blaise Pascal   S ome days’ ago, I had attended the wedding nuptials of my nephew, Wendel in one of the churches is Thane. The bride, Olivia, looked beautiful in her wedding gown. My wife, having undergone two angioplasties lately, had opted to bless the young couple from home... Thus, I sat alone among several guests and witnessed the solemn event... You see, in today’s hi-tech and social media world, we get to see several guests busy clicking pictures of everything that unfolds, both at the nuptials as well as the reception venue. The work done by the official photographers and videographers may take days and weeks to reach us. But, the pictures and videos captured by these guests do reach wide and far instantly – mostly in family groups... I am bad in clicking pictures. I, also, have this bad habit of involving in what is going on at present... One such moment, at the nuptials, has a...

  “Most brilliance arises from ordinary people working together in extraordinary ways.” Roger von Oech   E arly this morning, I saw a message from the mother of this 15-year-old boy. He studies in one of the top schools in Mumbai (IGCSE). These kids have my subject (Accountancy) right from class 9. I have been teaching this boy along side another couple of kids from   different international schools – all online. And, let me tell you this: compared to my B.Com students, these school kids, who are now in class 10, are brilliant! Did I say ‘brilliant’? Yes, I did. But, brilliance, in my view, has nothing to do with one’s syllabus or school. It has a lot to do with one’s own outlook towards the task in hand. You see, every task in hand can be done in the best possible way... with all the brilliance one’s heart possesses... The mother who sent the message, early this morning, was asking me to take ‘solo’ classes for her boy just to focus on his MCQs. I smile...