PUTTING A SPRING BACK IN OUR STEPS

 



“Past three weeks have put a spring back in my step.”

Captain Tom Moore

 

I was invited to conduct an online session on ‘Self-confidence and Communication Skills’ for students of first-year Architecture at a premier institute. The session was held this morning.

I, always, tell the young ones my own story: how I went about developing my own self-confidence and communication skills. It is easy to tell my own story – because, it’s true to me. The events were real… My killing inferiority-complex – what we today call as ‘social anxiety’ – was a real thing to me when I was these students’ age… I suffered from a crushing feeling of worthlessness, which showed up on my body and mind both… Despite my ‘good-boy’ image, I endlessly felt undeserving and worthless… It had affected my academic performance… I wasn’t clear about what I had to pursue in life… My dream box was empty… Enthusiasm and motivation, which are, always, linked to our dreams, obviously, had forsaken me. And, the worst part was this: I did not know what was going on inside me… I thought I was alone in this… And, it was a very lonely world to live in!

So, like these young aspirants are now walking into their first year of Architecture college, when I, too, walked into the first year of degree college (Commerce), I did not know, that my transformation – from being worthless to being worthwhile – was about to begin. As I have narrated a hundred times before, it was here in my F.Y.B.Com classroom – literally hiding myself in a crowd of over hundred boys – I was watching, awe-struck, my own teacher – Prof. B.S. Raman – and nudging myself to dream of becoming like him – a fine teacher and a writer.

What I, also, did not know was, that the ‘The Law of Attraction’ was set in motion… ‘What you deeply like, you attract’. This one factor – the burning desire to become like my teacher – was the most potent seed I was sowing in my heart to become a self-confident individual… Yes, to replace worthlessness with worthwhileness. This major factor, also, pumped in me the courage,  determination, patience, perseverance and means to overcome two of my crippling handicaps: my poor English (My medium was vernacular) and my terrible stage fear. It was the proverbial battle of two foxes inside me… ‘I can’ and ‘I can’t’. Eventually, the fox who I fed the most – my burning dream – triumphed.…

That’s how it is for everyone… for you, me, these aspiring architects and all.

Today, I told these things, among many other things, to our young ones. I, also, showed to them, at the end of the session, this video:




Months ago, when my friend, Reshma, who lives in London, shared with me the story of Captain Tom Moore, it was the initial period of the Pandemic… There was fear everywhere… The sky looked dark and the future looked uncertain. And this gentleman, nearing his hundredth birthday – who  had outlived the darkest times during the WWII - was now set on a simple mission: of taking 100 rounds around his garden and raise 1,000 pounds for his country’s National Health Service (NHS). Hold your breath: He ended up raising around 33 (39?) - million pounds… He ended up living up to 100 years… And, he – like a true hero - succumbed to the deadly virus, just three days ago!



(Greeting cards on Captain Sir Tom Moore's 100th Birthday)

I wanted my young ones to go home with these questions: Was it not self-confidence? And, was it not stemming from one’s sense of purpose? Was it not being positive, proactive and worthwhile?




And this question: What stops us from putting ‘a spring back in our steps’?

 

GERALD D’CUNHA

 

Pic’s.: BBC News

 

Videos: 1. DeccaRecorsMusic 2. BBC News

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