Gerald D'Cunha

  “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; God has no poor children.” Dwight L. Moody     T he book that we brought out, this summer, was about Values… It was titled – ‘Some Things in Life Don’t Move’. Our little ones, young ones and even many adults had written beautiful articles on one or two values they cherished the most in their lives. What fascinated me the most was, that many young kids wrote about ‘Kindness’… Who says, young kids are ‘heartless'? You must read their articles to imagine the size of their hearts!   But, when it comes to ‘kindness’, the question comes – “Kindness towards whom/what?”   So, if young kids like Vaidehi or Laksh are moved by the sight of urchins along the streets, Manasi and Vridhi are just moved by the strays – be it dogs or cats, who have no shelter, food or loved ones… Someone like Mrs. Shyla, a widow and a housewife, who is the mother of two working girls, is extremely drawn towards physically and mentally challenged ch...

  “Try to keep your soul young and quivering right up to old age.” George Sand   O n 3 rd of this July, my Mom completed 88 years. She had five sons. Harry, her third son, passed away a couple of years ago. She remembered the birthdays of all her sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren, and most of our relatives. She even remembered the wedding and death anniversaries of most of her near and dear ones… But, after her fall, two years ago, Mom has been confined to her bed and wheelchair. Her memory is gone, and she cannot recognize anyone… We four, her surviving sons, decided to meet and celebrate her 88 th birthday this time. Her life had been, always, church-centric: Jesus Christ, Mother Mary, Patron saints… Holy Mass, Holy Sacrament, hymns, confessions, priests, Bishops, and the Pope… at home, the daily rosary and angelus… She lived by the Lord’s Prayer – ‘Our Father… Give us our daily bread…” So, it was befitting to organize a beautiful Mass at home on Mom’s 88...

  “True miracle is not walking on water or walking in air, but simply walking on this earth.” Thich Nhat Hanh   E verything I have learnt in life has not been taught to me by my school and college teachers, parents or grandparents, or by my spiritual teachers. Yes, I have learnt a great deal from them. But, the most valuable lessons, which I have learnt in my life, often, I have learnt by being quiet… watching the sky and the sea, the grass and the grasshopper, the just-born and the just-dead… I have learnt many, many lessons from strangers and, even, from my oppressors… Like these simple things, which I have consciously embraced to practice in my life… To address people – including the parents of my students - as ‘Sir’ and ‘Madam’; regardless of their age, education or position… To rise when I greet people in person… I feel, I should follow this more and more often… Just rise… To add that personal touch in my every conversation – be it on SMS, WhatsApp, FB, em...

“ There are tests, but there are also  small mercies .  Life tossed us up into the air, scattered us, and we all somehow found our way back. And we will do it again. And again. And again. ” — Alexandra Bracken T he moment I focus on what is missing in my life – what I don’t have – I slip into a complaining mode. On the other hand, the moment I focus on what I still have, I slip into a grateful mode. These are the two poles of my well-being globe… When I complain, I feel unhappy… and when I am grateful, I feel happy… Surprisingly, often, the awareness of what I still have and should be grateful for comes right in the midst of my unhappy state… My fuming and ranting lead me nowhere… I see myself in more and more turmoil as I keep grumbling more and more. So, I am amazed, often, to see how the awareness of what I still have in my life and need to be thankful for… yes, I am amazed to see how this awareness springs right as I cruise through the ...

W hat is happening outside happens for all of us… Yes, so many things happen outside there – good ones and bad ones, happy ones and sad ones… some gruesome, some glorious… some tear our hearts some make us soar high with hope and peace… Outside is volatile place… all people are not trustworthy, and, at the same time, all people are not mean either… Everybody is selfish, thankless and greedy? No, never, ever. All events are tragic and hopeless? No, never, ever. There is nothing to cheer about, smile about, laugh about hope about, rejoice over… deeply thankful for… celebrate over? At least, we do not live here in Nazi Concentration Camps, you see. When I watched the 1997 movie, ‘Life is Beautiful’, which is a story about a Jewish family – a young husband and wife along with their little son – caught in Hitler’s Concentration Camp, it had a profound effect on me. Those were extreme situations in life… And, ours? Now? Right when we wake up in the morning, our cell-phon...

Pic.: Khushboo Gulrajani Y ears ago, when I had decided to do something about my poor English, one of the things I did – and found it very useful – was telling a nice story in two tenses… Past and Present. Over the years, I have helped hundreds of people who were earnest to improve their English with the same method… Yes, write a nice story down in both the tenses… and tell it to someone. Whenever frustration drives me crazy and to the edge, I think of these little rabbits, frogs and toads and tell myself: ‘Let me go back and live.’ HOW RABBITS LEARN TO DEAL WITH THEIR FRUSTRATION PAST: O nce,   all the rabbits in a jungle got fed-up with life. Fed-up of being hounded by everyone around – right from a dog to a wolf. “What kind of life is this… if living means only to become a lunch or a supper for someone stronger than we are?” they began to grumble. So, the frustrated rabbits called for an emergency meeting to discuss the...

Pic.: Anima D'Cunha O n Sunday, we had the certification programme of our 2016-batch of P.D. students. During this programme, we had released our latest book – ‘What Makes Me Confident’. The book contained the impromptu speeches made by our students, both little-ones and young-ones. I had referred them as ‘Saplings’ and ‘Young Trees’ respectively. The book also contained articles from some successful individuals, who I had referred as ‘Mature Trees’. A copy of the new book was given to all present. Towards the end of the programme, 11-year-old Sumeet came to me and said, “Sir, my speech is not there in the book.” Sumeet had been a very restless – high-energy kind – kid all along. I had repeatedly asked students to hand over both the hard copies and the soft copies of their write-ups; I had taken utmost care while putting together the book. So, when the boy pointed to me the lapse, I not only got a lot surprised, but I, also, felt a little bad for this boy… Some...