Gerald D'Cunha

  “If you want to turn a vision in to reality, you have to give hundred percent and never stop believing in your dreams.” Arnold Schwarzenegger   E very time I see a beautiful building or a villa, a bridge, tunnel or a flyover… Every time I listen to a mesmerizing song, a piece of music, watch a gripping movie or a stage show… Every time I read a beautiful book   – be it prose or poetry, fiction, nonfiction, self-help whatever… Why all these… Every time I see a beautiful dress, a piece of jewelry, footwear… Every time I relish an amazing dish or enjoy a   beautiful ambience… a lawn, a resort, a hospital, a school, a temple or a church …  Yes, when I behold anything and everything, that is created by humans there outside, I stand there spellbound, marveling on the ‘process’ of creating them… Someone, like you and me – made of flesh, bones and blood – yes, someone there must’ve conceived it first in his/her mind, believed in it… toiled hard and long to a...

“Sometimes, even to live is an act of courage.” Lucius Annaeus Seneca   I seriously think, that the most valuable gift you and I can give to ourselves – is to be kind to ourselves! And, I, also, think, that you and I have never seriously paused to reflect on what ‘being kind to oneself’ means… For each one of us, there are two kinds of pressures to deal with. The first kind of pressure is the one which others put on us: to perform better, and even better… to excel, shine, beat, stand out, earn more, become ‘number one’, crack this and crack that… become famous, rich and everything that ‘shows, glows, shines’… Yes, this kind of pressure is from outside. Teachers, parents, coaches, team leaders, bosses – we all know what such pressure is… how it can work as a double-edged sword… make it or break it. We justify, saying, “How can anyone excel unless and until put under such pressure?” The point taken, Sir. “Diamonds are cut under pressure” … Yes, ‘Diamonds’. But, diamon...

  “Count your many blessings, Name them one by one; And it will surprise you What the Lord has done.” From the song/hymn ‘Count Your Blessings’   I think, one of the greatest blessings in life is to be able to ‘stay relevant’ as you age. By this, I mean, to be able to keep ‘contributing’… keep ‘giving’. There is something of value in all of us, which God has placed in all of us. Now, that ‘something’ can be one or two talents, skills or strengths of ours. Most of us think, that, while our talents are God-given, our skills and strengths are our own. But, the more we reflect on this, the more we realize, that even to own some of our skills and strengths, we need God’s grace. When we acknowledge this truth, we feel confident and peaceful. I completed 63 yesterday. A thought dominates my mind and heart: “Have I been able to stay relevant, by being able to keep contributing and giving through my God-given gifts?” When my mind and heart say ‘Yes’, I feel the surge...

  “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” Popular English proverb   N obody, in his senses, will ask God for tough times in life. The prayer to God will, always, be: ‘God, keep us away from tough times.” Even the Son of God went down on His knees and prayed, “My Father, if it’s possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me.” But, then, He, being an evolved human, concluded His heart-wrenching prayer at Gethsemane: “But, thy will be done, not mine.” In Life, tough times come to test us - to make us stronger, wiser and kinder human beings… That’s my steadfast belief. While everyone’s life has tough times, some of us have tougher times than the rest. I, mercifully, have belonged to the ‘rest’, so far! Thank you, God; thank you for the mercy! T he family of Shilpa*, my eleventh standard student, has been going through very tough times, of late. She, along with her parents and younger sister (7 th std.) had tested Covid-positive. Only her 3-year-o...

"It’s not the mountain we conquer, it’s ourselves.” Edmund Hillary O n May 27, this year, my cousin Oscar and his wife Mavis completed twenty-five years of their marriage. They had plans to celebrate the event in a grand way. But, due to lockdown, they had to forego all the band-baaja . A couple of days before the big day, Danika, their college-going daughter, sent to me a friend-request on FB. As soon as I accepted it, I saw this message in the inbox: “Hello Gerry Uncle, my dad and mom will be completing twenty-five years of their marriage on 27th  May. I and Dane (her brother) will be compiling a video of our parents' close friends and relatives sharing their fondest memories about dad and mom. Can you, too, share yours? We want to give them a surprise… Please keep it as a secret.” Well, Oscar is my dad’s younger sister’s son. I had a lot to say about this fine gentleman and his gracious wife. So, I decided to do it through the way best known to me –...

“Angels are all around us, all the time, in the very air we breathe.” ~Eileen Elias Freeman I  have just returned after attending the funeral of my friend Gurpreet’s dad. The first thought that came to my mind, when I heard about the death, early in the morning, today, was: “Thank you Lord, for remembering him.” Now, it may not sound good to thank Lord for the death of our near and dear ones in our families. But, death is a long sleep we all are going to enter, sooner or later… May his soul rest in eternal peace! Gurpreet’s dad had to endure a lot of suffering due to his failed kidneys. He was a strong man, very hard-working and responsible. He has left leaving the family in good place. But, in his pain and suffering, despite the family’s unflagging support and care, he had to endure it all by himself… When I stood there, a while ago, drenched in the sobs of family members on the one side, and the...

“Never hate your enemies… It affects your judgment.”  ―  Mario Puzo ,  The Godfather W hen I was a little boy in my village, Cassius Clay – who later became the famous Muhammad Ali – ruled the boxing world. “I am the Greatest”. Yes, this was how he loved to thump his champion-chest. He was my dad’s favorite… My dad, you know, was a young-and-dashing man, too, at that time! Some fifteen years later, when I migrated to Mumbai, I was a young-and-dashing man, now. My dad wasn’t… Ali was a spent force, by now… Moreover, the years of head and chest punches – and the ranting and swearing - had taken a big time toll on him. He suffered from Parkinson’s  and found it difficult to speak clearly… he walked like a little baby… and, certainly, he no longer spoke like a World Heavy-weight champ of the boxing ring… We never heard him say – ‘I am the Greatest’ In fact, what we began to hear from Muhammad Ali was this: “Ali is not the ...