Gerald D'Cunha

  “Learn character from trees, values from roots,   and change from leaves.” Tasneern Harneed   W hen I was a kid in our native village, we had thick jungles around… lots of trees, ponds, hills and streams. As a young boy, I don’t remember harboring a dream of living in such a setting – in the woods surrounded by trees, ponds, hills and streams. Yes, like other young kids, I, too, yearned to go away to a big city like Bombay and live in this concrete jungle… To my grandparents, eating on banana or teakwood leaves, cooking food in earthen pots, and drinking with cups made of mud or coconut shells – yes, this was the normal way of life, a bare necessity. But, here in these big cities, eating on banana or teakwood leaves, cooking in earthen pots, or drinking with cups made of mud or   coconut shells – isn’t a bare necessity, anymore. But, if we do it consciously -   eat on banana or teakwood leaves, cook in earthen pots, or drink in cups made of mud or ...

  “Rocket ships are exciting; but, so are the roses on a birthday.” Leonard Nimoy   A s far as the space-programme is concerned, our country has come a long way… From the humble beginnings - when a tiny rocket was transported on a bicycle to the successful launch of Chandrayaan 3 a couple of days ago – yes, it has not been an easy journey at all for our space scientist. The thought and the sight of the rocket going to up makes all of us proud. Like millions of my fellow citizens, I, too, got goosebumps, watching Chandrayaan 3 going up, and listening to Vande Mataram, here on ground zero… Goosebumps! While most of us got goosebumps watching our self-made rocket going to the Moon, I wonder if you get similar goosebumps when we watch the birth of a new baby – be it of any creature here on earth – Similarly, I wonder if we get similar goosebumps, when surgeon open a human heart to mend it… or, for that matter, any part of human body… I wonder if we get similar goosebum...

  “Don’t be fooled by the calendar. There are only as many  days in the year as you make use of.” Charles Richards   I t’s has been raining heavily for two days, now. The skies are dark, the downpour is heavy and relentless. But, then, it is the rainy season… It is supposed to rain, the skies are supposed to be dark during this season. And, soon, this season will pass… the Winter will come, when, it is supposed to be cold. Finally, when the Summer comes, it is expected it to be hot, we expect ourselves to sweat more… The Nature goes about doing her job quietly, and faithfully. She sends seasons to us, each one with an expiry date… No season comes here to stay forever… One goes, another comes, another goes, yet another comes… That’s how Life, here on Earth, is designed to be. The key to happiness lies in making the most of each season when it presents itself before us. For example, it’s pouring heavily right now and I can see darkness outside my window even at 12...

  “The word ‘Listen’ contains same letters as the word ‘Silent’” Alfred Brendel   D id you know that? That, the word ‘Listen’ contained same letters as the word ‘Silent’? Well, I did not know that. But, I know, that only when we are silent, we are able to listen. Robert A. Heinlein dramatically describes this phenomenon when he says, “It was darn quiet; you could hear your hair grow!” Outside, the Nature is full of sound… Inside, the mind is full of sound! Life, by its very nature, is restless… Noisy. It’s only when we pause, be still… and listen to the life outside and inside, that harmony comes. It’s peace… It was Bob Dylan who said, “Sometimes, silence can be like thunder.” What an irony! Bob Dylan’s songs and lyrics are known to take away the sound from the thunders! The poet-singer knows how the thunder and silence come together to make life! Last evening, I was listening to his legendary song – ‘Blowing in the Wind’ – but covered by another amazing singer...

  “Extinction is the rule. Survival is the exception.” Carl Sagan   A while ago, I was talking to a friend of mine from Kerala. The topic of discussion was, how, through tough times, some survive, while some don’t. He gave me an example of what he had just witnessed around him. Apparently, one of his elderly aunts, who was fair and beautiful, suddenly seemed a lot anxious to notice some dark patches on her face. When she went to see her doctor, he prescribed some cream so to do away with those dark patches from her fair face. But, then, Covid struck her the very next day, and within the following two days, she was gone! Meanwhile, in the same household, a cat had given birth to four beautiful kittens. As soon as the babies were born, some dogs attacked the mother cat, and the babies were left orphaned, all of a sudden. There was fear of attacks from not only the dogs, but also from some male cats. The kittens, somehow, survived… “Now, they are young, hale and health,” s...

“Gratitude turns what we have into enough.” Anonymous I t’s 5 in the evening as I type these words… It’s dark outside, and it’s pouring in torrents! Somewhere in Assam, China and other places, rivers and lakes have swollen and fiercely swallowing up the villages and towns. And, somewhere the earthquakes have flattened out what Man had built… And, everywhere, there is this dreaded virus, already. Some live as one big family, all together, in this lockdown… and some live alone, all alone. But, apparently, loneliness has nothing to do with the number of people we live with. I am sure, many, many, many may agree with me when I say this: You can live with a dozen people at home, yet feel lost and lonely. On the other hand, you may live all alone in the house, yet feel loved and protected… “Thank God, you are living with your family,” I said this, today, to someone who was endlessly cribbing about something, “Just be thankful.” Thanklessness is man’s worst v...

“I choose to listen to the river for a while, thinking river thoughts, before joining the night and the stars.” Edward Abbey I f life is like a river, then, it will make its own way to flow. Won’t it? Flow it will, come what may! Till the other day, almost all of us lived in our own bubbles… We wanted everything grand and glittery. I said ‘everything’ – weddings and anniversaries, birthdays and funerals, baby showers, christenings, memorial days… the sports and musical events, movies and reality shows, the businesses, lifestyles… everything had to be bigger and grander… Yes, till the other day. And, now? Now, the size doesn’t matter… Five to twenty people max, even less, for laying to rest your dearest one. Maybe a few more would be enough to celebrate a wedding at home… Forget the parties on birthdays and anniversaries… You can simply cut a cake or raise a toast at home, and finish it! Till the other day, we all lived in our bubbles! Till th...

“N ature always wears the colours of the spirit.” Probably, you have just missed the meaning of what Ralph Waldo Emerson says here. So, let’s read it, once again, slowly and together: “Nature always wears the colours of the spirit.” To understand what ‘spirit’ is – call it ‘spirituality’ – all about, I think, we do not have to open the Holy Texts or listen to the discourses of Masters… Suffice it is to sit quietly in the midst of Nature – the robust trees and the fragile grass, the busy brooks and the serene lakes, the roaring waterfalls and the glorious rainbows… the antelopes and the butterflies… the flowers, the leaves and the exploding skies… the night, the stars, the sun and the moon. Yes, suffice it is if we sit alone and see Her glory, listen to Her songs, Her whispers… without judging… just let them be… let it rain, let it snow, let it heal… let it recreate. To me, this recreation inside my bosoms, amidst the recreation of Nature, is what sp...

T here is an old Arabian proverb. It goes like this: “Both, the fast and the slow, will meet each other on the (same) ferry boat.” I get the point… I miss the point! Obviously, when I see myself on a fast lane, it’s clear, that I have missed the point. And, when I see myself on the slow lane, yes, it’s clear, that I have got the point. Life has been like this, to me, all through my six decades… Run, only to realize, that, no matter how fast I run, in the end, I will have to meet my slow-counterparts on the same ferry boat… So, why run, at all? But, I run… Because, I live! Then, some wise soul comes along to show me the amazing beauty of bird-nests… How slow and steady, always, do it so amazingly… And, even if the big birds and big humans destroy their homes in a blink… They, will patiently build it again! M y wife and I have just returned from a two-day Tai Chi camp at Lonavala. As we stepped out of the Tai Chi hall,...