Gerald D'Cunha

T oday is one of my dear-old-student’s birthday. Her husband, too, was my student many years ago. Just a couple of days ago, she lost her father-in-law who was critically ill. I hadn’t sent my condolence to either of my students due to oversight and procrastination on my part. So, today, as I learnt about her birthday (through FB), I felt a bit guilty. Still, I managed to send this message in her inbox: “Hi Sneya*, first of all, my deepest condolences. Do convey my feelings to Virat*. Meanwhile, do accept my b'day wishes too. Life is always this way... joy and sorrow. Let's be grateful and graceful. Tcre.” L ast night, my wife and I had paid a visit to express our condolences to one of our friends who had lost her dad last week. He was 72 and had been suffering from multiple complications – including diabetes, blood pressure and kidney issues. But, till he passed away, her dad was full of zest and a doting dad for his two children and a husband for his wi...

I saw this FB message, this morning: “Good news: People are living longer. Bad news: You can’t pick up which ones!” Eashaan, a dear student of mine, had sent it to me. “O boy!” I clicked on the ‘Like’ without even a second thought, “How did you read my mind?” That means, I am not happy at all to watch ‘bad people’ now living longer… It is a ‘bad news’ to me…! Is that not so? Have I been asking in my mind, all in frustration and bitterness: “Why does God allow the ‘bad people’ – my tormentors – to live long? Yes, why don’t all the nasty, cruel, harmful and destructive people in my life – in this world – die early? I do not know if Eashaan is as ‘serious’ as I am… I hope, he is… For, all down the ages, the idea of ‘Good people’ and ‘Bad people’ had been a matter of our perception. The one who is ‘bad’ in my eyes is ‘good’ in his own… and, if there are a thousand people vouching for me, there are thousand doing the s...