THE LATE-BLOOMERS




None of us know what we are best at… Until we discover!

And, how are we supposed to discover it?

I was talking to the mother of one of my students, last night. The son had grown up with his Chartered-Accountant parents… and, had opted for Commerce with the hope of becoming a Chartered Accountant himself.

Parents knew what it took to become a CA… Not just the love for the subjects, but it took immense amount of work discipline… One had to possess self-motivation… single-minded approach… and, very importantly,   loads of excitement.

Well, as our young man went about his Commerce field, it was evident that his heart desired something else… and not CA. But, it was hard to pin point what it was …

So, the ‘status quo’ was maintained… “Let the young man try.” When the CPT results were out, the dice stopped, mysteriously, at 100! The passing score!

So, it was decided that the young man should pursue his Inter-CA studies…

It took hardly a year or so for the young man to stand up and declare: “CA is not my cup of tea… MBA is!”

Last night, the young-man’s mother told me that he is ‘serious’ now… and, hoped, that he would do it well.

“Ma’am, he would,” I assured her.

Did I just try to please her by saying what I did: “Ma’am, he would”?

I had also said this: “Ma’am, sometimes, it is best to discover what is ‘best’ for us, by discovering what is ‘not best’ for us!”


Yes, sometimes, it is worth burning not only our money, time and energy, but also our hearts – go through some hellish time in our ‘wilderness’ – before we arrive at our ‘Promised Land’!

Moses did it long ago… Amitabh Bachchan did it in recent times… The young-man has just done it!

As long as the heart is able to find it, fair enough…









“Some flowers, always, bloom late,” 

my own teacher loved to remind us, 

“But, my dear young friends, when they do, 

they give the best fragrance!”




“Ma’am, I am one of those flowers that have bloomed late,” I told my student’s mom, last night, “Don’t worry, your son, too, will be one!”


GERALD D’CUNHA

Pics.: Abhishek Iyer


Comments

Anonymous said…
this is very intresting....i have eperienced this in my life with my children...my sone decided in std 8 that he would pursue. ommerce and that MBA was his goal....and my daughter took up science after 10th and finally is now pursuing BMM.a..she is in her final year and still unsure of what to do frther...as a mother i can understand the predicment of ur student and i also find solace in the fact that she may be a late blomer and will definetly find her place in the world...like i have read a story where an ancient sage tells his shisyas that even a dry leaf which is floating in water isof use to the tiny insect which is safe travellingon it to cross the lake without drowning........vasundhara
December 2, 2012 at 2:19 PM
Gerald D'Cunha said…
Thanks Vasundhara... Yes, it is our common experience. The 'dry lesf' example is just beautiful. love... GERRY
December 2, 2012 at 5:13 PM
Navin Shenoy said…
This post will be very helpful for a lot many parents who are burdened by the same issue. A big thankyou.
- Navin
December 2, 2012 at 5:15 PM
Anonymous said…
True and Well written sir :) Thank you for this encouragement, Love - Abhishek
December 2, 2012 at 7:13 PM
Sheena Manohar said…
Helped me relax. Thanks. Sheena
December 2, 2012 at 7:58 PM
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