Gerald D'Cunha

  “I have always imagined, that Paradise will be a kind of library.” Jorge Luis Borges     O n last Sunday, my friend (once, my dear student) Shankar and his wife Swetha had invited some of us to their house located in a plush society. They have two beautiful, talented daughters – Anvesha, 13 and Avyakta, 9. I had carried two books – a novel for Anvesha, another book of   Japanese Folktales for little Avyakta. While the novel was a new one, the book of Japanese Folktales was an old one which I had at home for quite some time. Did I hesitate before gifting this book to the little girl? Not at all... It’s what the book contained inside, and not how new or how nicely it’s packaged – yes, I firmly believed in this. The little girl, I am sure, will appreciate the amazing folktales from the land of Japan... and, once she is done with it, I am sure, she will pass on the book to another deserving kid... Books are meant to be circulated... While we were at...

  “Plant the seed of desire in your mind and it forms a nucleus with power to attract to itself  everything needed for its fulfilment .” Robert Collier   S ome years ago, when I was chatting with a friend of mine, I found myself corrected by her. “We shouldn’t call them ‘maid servants’, they are our life-supports.” I had, casually, referred the lady who came to do sweeping and mopping at our place as our ‘maid servant’, even though I hadn’t meant to demean her in any way. But, when my friend tried to correct me, I really paused to see the depth of that term she had just toyed – ‘Life-support’. For last few months, we have a new ‘life-support’ at our residence. This woman – probably in her early forties – is so full of enthusiasm, so full of ‘Go-the-extra-mile attitude’, that, both my wife and I like her when she is around… She seems a part of our household. My wife and I both were unanimous about giving her the Diwali bonus, irrespective of the usual haggling ...

  “The habit of reading is the only enjoyment in which there is no alloy. It lasts when all other pleasures fade.” Anthony Trollope   M any parents keep making this request to me: “Sir, please tell my son/daughter to read.” I smile. There are two reasons behind that smile… One: I did not cultivate the reading habit till I was in twelfth standard. Two: Most of the parents, who want me to tell their children to read, don’t read. So, is there a ‘right time’ to cultivate this reading habit in life? Is it something that can be ‘taught’ to someone, particularly little children? I am not a child psychologist; hence, I do not know whether or not reading habit can be ‘taught’. But, this much I know: each one has a personal reason as to why he or she reads books. Between the parents, one may swear by the books; the other may simply stay off them. Or, both may be fond of reading; but, not their children. Or, parents may not have touched books in their lives; but, their ch...

  “Reality is a projection of your thoughts or the things you habitually think about.” Stephen Richards W hen I first came across Napoleon Hill’s famous book - ‘Think and Grow Rich’, I was 20 or 21. I was new in Bombay city (now Mumbai) and I was jobless. But, I was dreaming and more dreaming. The book was spotted by me on the footpaths of Churchgate area… It was an overused old-book. But, to me, it was brand new… Its message was brand new. And, the least did I know, that the book was set to cause a revolution in my life! “Thoughts are things!” This is the very first chapter of ‘Think and Grow Rich’. It conveys, right at the outset, that whatever we manifest in our lives, we manifest first in our thoughts, then outside. In other words, if I desire to see a better state of life, I have to see it in my mind first… I have to desire it, will it and work towards it. It does not just happen… It is made to happen by me, in cooperation with the Universe and friendly-forces around m...

  “There is one thing stronger than all the armies in the world; that is an idea whose time has come.” Victor Hugo   T he one thing, that has brought mankind, from the stone age to this age of Artificial Intelligence, is the elixir called ‘Ideas’. Just look back at last two decades or so… Imagine the lightning speed with which our lives have changed in relation to information technology and social media! Nothing seems to come out in this world with a fairly-long shelf life… Everything becomes obsolete, outdated… so fast. And the reason? That powerful little-spark in man’s mind – that elixir of every change – called ‘Ideas’! So, as I said, if man has evolved from the stone age to this age of AI, it’s only because of the swiftly-popping ideas. Life would have been stagnant and stale had it not been for the burst of ideas in human mind!   “T houghts are things!” When I first read this expression in Napoleon Hill’s book ‘Think and Grow Rich’, I sat back and grasped this wisdo...

  “Seize every opportunity along the way;   for, how sad it would be if the road you chose became the road not taken.” Robert Breault   T he book that inspired me the most –   I have told this countless number of times – was ‘Think and Grow Rich’ by Napoleon Hill. I found a used copy of this book on the footpath near Churchgate area when I had just come to Bombay (now Mumbai) and was jobless. But, I was dreaming… I earnestly wanted to know how people succeeded. I hadn’t read any motivational books before I read ‘Think and Grow Rich’, nor I had attended any motivational Workshops, leave alone watching today’s YouTube videos! So, when, on the cover of this book, I read ‘Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve’… Yes, it came to me as the Manna from heaven… I wanted to hear it… I wanted to reinforce in me, that what I dreamt in my heart, I could achieve… and there was a way to do it! After more than eight decades since ‘Think and Grow Rich’...

"Building alibis, with which to explain away failure, is a national pastime. The habit is as old as human race, and fatal to success.” Napoleon Hill in ‘Think and Grow Rich’ I had first come across the term ‘Alibi’ in Napoleon Hill’s famous book, ‘Think and Grow Rich’. This was the book I was reading during my days of struggle in Bombay. I was new in this city, and I was jobless and hungry. But, the hunger in my heart was of a different kind – I wanted to know how people realized their dreams, how they achieved success. And, which book, other than ‘Think and Grow Rich’, could answer my quest? Towards the end of the book, Napoleon Hill had included a very powerful chapter called ‘Fifty-seven famous Alibis… by Old Man IF’… What a priceless lesson that was! I must have read that book, ‘Think and Grow Rich’, countless times during my ‘days in the wilderness’. I could sense how it infused in me the power and I would find myself all set for the flight. ...

"S ize does matter!". This was how the Hollywood movie, 'Godzilla' (1998) was promoted...  Little children - that we all are - are eternally wooed by size! The bigger the better... Be it a man or be it a creature... be it a birthday party or be it Olympics or 'Howdy, Modi'. We are all little children; and, as I said, we all like, eternally, anything that is big... huge... colossal! My son was a little boy of age 5, when I had taken him for the late-night show of 'Godzilla', in one of the local cinemas. All that I now remember about the monstrous creature was the mayhem it had created on the streets of New York City and the famous tagline used by the makers to sell the movie  - 'Size does matter'! Well, how do we all grow big like the Godzillas? This question has set all of us on our respective ambitious journeys... And, have we become the Godzillas? Does size really matter? Ambition is a powerful force...

“The sun doesn't just hang on one family's tree.” -        Anchee Min O ne thing I learnt, quite early in life, was to be crystal clear on what I wanted to be, as far as my vocation was concerned. I wanted to be a good teacher and I wanted to be a good writer… Because, the very thought of it made me feel happy and confident… I could see myself literally on my wings… I loved the idea of empowering young boys and girls… and, I had decided to do only that, come what may! Being definite about one’s chief aim in life was the foundation lesson in Napoleon Hill’s ‘Think and Grow Rich’, the book that made the greatest impact on my life when I needed it the most. It was close to four decades ago. I was young and I was new to this city… I was dreaming constantly, and I was reading ‘Think and Grow Rich’, over and over again. I was staying with my uncle, who was a simple man. I did not want to put more burden on his family. So, after a...