learnings

During lunch today one of my colleagues remarked that she wished she could rewind time so that her ward ( who is a young grad) would be a child once again.  Obviously childhood is easier to handle.  One learns painfully to let go as the child grows out into a teen and adult. At that time she remarked how difficult it is to let go.  Indeed it is difficult, very difficult.  But have we wondered how wonderful it is when we let go and our love for each other grows stronger? Out of the toughness is born a brilliant relationship. What are we afraid of? That our child will stumble, will fall, will get hurt? Aren't we there to hold them then

Ustad Hotel I have seen this movie several times and it has never failed me. Each time I watch the movie I fall in love with it again and again.  This time it opened my eyes to my profession.  The grandfather in the movie does not teach anything directly to his grandson. He just puts him on the path. The grand son learns.  The grandfather is a role model himself. But he shows the grandson other role models. Highlights for educators from the film: 1. Be the role model you want to fashion your students. Children imitate what we do and not what we say.  2. Be selfless in sharing knowledge. 3. Be selfless in acknowledging stalwarts and colleagues who have expertise in their domain.  4. Make your student thinkers and not merely doers.  5. Question  your 'why' time to time. Each morning as I wake up my energy and mood is so high and positive as I set out for school. The very thought of entering the portals of my workplace and looki...

Infants are hugged. Toddlers are hugged. But what about teens?  Teens would not like it if you hug them in public. At home they may shrug you off. That does not mean you just stop hugging. There would be moments to give one. Make your hug just right. Don't make it too cloying nor too light. Just the right pressure. Hold the hug for a few moments. Feel the energy passing through. Above all hug when your teen least expects it. Most often we hug only when we are happy with them. What about moments when they have failed to come to our expectations? When they haven't performed to the benchmark that we have set? When they are going through a crush or infatuation? When they have taken a decision on their own? When they have decided to take a break from studies or work? They still remain our children don't they? Let your teen knob that he or she always has your support. Always. This is your main role

A 'different' girl, a 'different' mom, 'me' I am always amused when people Judge my capabilities as a mom, as a teacher, spouse.... And this happens often.  I am different. I have always challenged the fixed mindset and conventions. I am outspoken and have a mind of my own.  Hence I am looked at with amusement or cynicism. I am either derided or gossiped about. Adults don't know to handle me. Men thank their stars that their spouse is not like me.  Just the other day I was offered a role of a dysfunctional mom in a short film. Immediately someone commented that the role would suit me- not because I act well but because I am not the so called 'conventional' person.!!!!! How easy it is to be patronising.  How noble it is to accept individuals as they are.  Shake off the yoke people. 

The Infosys chairman from his vast experience has finally uttered the truth.  In fact it is this ego that is preventing us from going towards being a developed nation. Nobody likes to admit that they do Not. Know - be it a child or an adult. Hence the scientific temper is lost. Narayana Murthy in a wonderful article has written this: The biggest challenge for all of us, not just politicians or bureaucrats, is that we, Indians, have the highest ego per unit of achievement. I would humbly request, we be open-minded to those who have performed better than us," he said.  He spoke of having worked with so many governments and realised that somehow things don't move fast. It's partly due to the know-it-all attitude.  Murthy contrasted this attitude with his experience as an IT advisor to the Thai PM, more than a decade back. "They (Thai officials) would make a presentation and I would give suggestions. They would write those down. The next time I went there, they would sh...

I had come to know of the appointment of an acquaintance to an honorary prestigious post in a corporation. I was wistful. If only I had relatives in powerful positions .... Just then my inbox landed Seth Godin's blog of the day. By Jove it grounded me to reality. The blog :   The lottery winners (a secret of unhappiness)  You're going to have to fight for every single thing, forever and ever. It's really unlikely that they will pick you, anoint you or hand you the audience and support you seek. No one will ever realize just how extraordinary you are, how generous, charismatic, or caring.    That pretty much doesn't happen, except for just a handful of people who win some sort of cosmic lottery, who get 'discovered' at a drug store and made a movie star, who are on the fast track to CEO of the Fortune 500, who get the big label deal and the gold records, merely for being in the right place at the right time.   Those people, it turns out...

16 years , not one or two but 16 years!! Irom Sharmila, the Iron woman of Manipur fasted.She fasted for a cause. Amidst all the chaos, love blossomed in her life. Thank god for this love. Initially nobody thought that she would ever continue for such a long long time. Events and people, leaders and lesser mortals went by but she never gave up her fast. Just very occasionally she was mentioned in the media. Irom sacrificed her youth, her time and energy for a cause. Today she has ended her fast. Such a lovely moment. It is a momentous decision. What is amazing ans shocking is that there are some elements in Manipur who do not want her to end the fast. After all was it not easy to play up on her fasting? Was it not easy to whip up the martyr sentiments? How easy for others to say or demand that she continues the fast. Such a preposterous thought. Such a selfish motive. But then you may say politics indeed is a strange bedfellow!

Dear Lufthansa Airlines, Can you please take this ad off air? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrYhrZ3ppik It is the most irritating and stereotypical ad that I have seen in the last few days. I know it is an old one but I have begun to notice it off late whenever I switch on the TV!! It is grating on the ears and soul. It is ironically titled the Indian heart. Oh yes the Indian heart is stereotypical. How wonderfully an Indian Grandad teaches his son a life lesson on another culture and country - the Germans! Note the wry expression and the grimace. Ad the young mind laps it all. To his surprise he finds very friendly staff (sic) and even Indian food (sic sic). The justification is that we are very sentimental people - we never take the 'Indian' out of us where ever we go. So only when we get Indian food even on a German airline are we happy! And this reminds us of the eternal Indian traveller who wants to travel every nook and corner but expects that land to stock hi...

I am thankful for so many reasons. As I walked down the corridors of a school for the orphans, I was struck with gratitude. Gratitude for the life I have. So many of us do not realize the value of being born on the right side of the street. We have taken for granted our parents, home, school, friends, lifestyle etc. We do not know what actual struggle means- struggle to eat, dress, exist. Struggle to be cared for- the most luxurious yet the most simple to give and get. I hurt my hand as I walked through the garden and scraped off a teeny weeny bit of skin on two of my fingers. Ouch how it hurts even now. The wounds cringe when water hits them. Hence I have been trying to use just one hand while doing the daily chores. As I fretted and fumed, my mind flash backed on the school and its orphan students. I felt ashamed. So how do I help? How can I help? I want to help.. so many questions from many friends. It is indeed a beautiful feeling to reach out in some way to the underprivileged...

It was trepidation that I went to watch the movie. There were so many reviews and views. Neither did I want to be disappointed nor did I want my superstar to disappoint! Positives 1. There were moments to clap and whistle. 2. Did not raise Super Star to being Super human. 3. Depicted an ageing Don with a flashback. Loved Rajnikanth depicting his old self but with his inimitable style. 4. No item  song or dance. 5. No vulgarity. Women depicted in strong light. No dialogues to discriminate women or the usual gender stereotype. 6.  Few songs. 7.NO unnecessary comedy or additional comedy track. 8. Radhika Apte was very good and so was the guy who acted as Jeeva 9. Kudos to Pa.Ranjith to dare to make a Rajnikanth movie without the usual punch dialogues and action. 10. Kudos to Rajnikanth having trusted this director. 11. 2 words remain in your mind: Magizhchi and neruppa da 12. Rajnikanth reminded me of his olden days movies before he reached superstardom. Negative...

It is with pain that I read the news of  people who have lost jobs in Saudi Arabia. As such they do live in  sub human conditions. They slog to give a luxurious life for their immediate family members.  These family members build palatial houses and most of them hardly have proper jobs thanks to the communist thinking of the Kerala state which in turn has led to  nil industrialisation. Excepting for Tourism and IT sector nothing else has been allowed to flourish. On the social front it is a state where women having been taking care of households due to the absentee husbands but in public they are dominated by the patriarchal system. Though the Kerala woman is literate she is not educated. Adultery, suicide, alcoholism have begun dotting every village in Kerala Nearly every household is a dysfunctional one due to absentee husbands/fathers. The sad truth is once the workers return from Saudi they are treated by the same family as a pariah or outcast. His value is...