WHO IS PACKING YOUR PARACHUTE?

We many a times take many things for granted or think that we deserve what we enjoy in life. We tend to think, “we pay; so we get”. In fact, the more affluent we become, we tend to be helpless and hence should be thankful to the people who help us survive. Think the routine of a day: we start the day with coffee or tea – if no one plucked the coffee seed, dried and powdered it or if we go a little further to the past; if none planted the coffee and nurtured it – it is the same case with tea also (for this simple thing itself so many are involved!); from where would we have got the coffee or tea? If there is a servant in our house (we hire a servant just because we cannot do the house-hold works ourselves!), who is to be thankful to whom? Is it not we to the servant?

Air Commodore Vishal was a Jet Pilot. In a combat mission his fighter plane was destroyed by a missile. He however ejected himself and parachuted safely. He won acclaims and appreciations from many.

After five years one day he was sitting with his wife in a restaurant. A man from another table came to him and said "You're Captain Vishal! You flew jet fighters. You were shot down!"

"How in the world did you know that?" asked Vishal.

"I packed your parachute," the man smiled and replied.

Vishal gasped in surprise and gratitude and thought if parachute hadn't worked, I wouldn’t be here today. Vishal couldn't sleep that night, thinking about that man. He wondered how many times I might have seen him and not even said 'Good morning, how are you?' or anything because, he was a fighter pilot and that person was just a Constable."

So friends, who is packing your parachute?

Everyone has someone who provides what they need to make it through the day. 

We need many kinds of parachutes when our plane is shot down – we need the physical parachute, the mental parachute, the emotional parachute, and the spiritual parachute. 
We call on all these supports before reaching safety.  Sometimes in the daily challenges that life gives us, we miss what is really important.

We may fail to say hello, please, or thank you, congratulate someone on something wonderful that has happened to them, give a compliment, or just do something nice for no reason.

As you go through this week, this month, this year, recognize the people who pack your parachute!

WHAT IS MATURITY?

We qualify a person as mature when s/he behaves as a ‘grown up’. It is not the age that makes a person mature, but his/her behavior. When an old person behaves childishly, we call him/her immature. So also, when a boy or girl behaves as an adult, we call him/her mature.  A detailed definition of maturity was posted by a friend in the Face Book and I share it here for those who have not come across this. This is, as stated in the Post, a definition provided by the Buddhist Lamas:

1. Maturity is when you stop trying to change others but focus on changing yourself instead.

2. Maturity is when you accept people as they are.

3. Maturity is when you understand everyone is right in their own perspective.

4. Maturity is when you learn to “let go".

5. Maturity is when you are able to drop “expectations" from a relationship and give for the sake of giving.

6. Maturity is when you understand whatever you do, you do for your own peace.

7. Maturity is when you stop proving to the world how intelligent you are.

8. Maturity is when you do not seek approval from others.

9. Maturity is when you stop comparing yourself with others.

10. Maturity is when you are at peace with yourself.

11. Maturity is when you are able to differentiate between “need" and "want" and are able to let go of your wants.

12. Maturity is when you stop attaching happiness to material things.

Wishing all my friends a mature, happy and peaceful life

THE MIRACLE OF 57 CENTS BECOMING $250,000

A little girl stood near a small church from which she had been turned away because it was "too crowded." "I can't go to Sunday School," she sobbed to the pastor as he walked by.  Seeing her shabby, unkempt appearance, the pastor guessed the reason and, taking her by the hand, took her inside and found a place for her in the Sunday school class. The child was so happy that they found room for her, and she went to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus.

Some two years later, this child lay dead in one of the poor tenement buildings. Her parents called for the kindhearted pastor who had befriended their daughter to handle the final arrangements. As her poor little body was being moved, a crumpled red purse was found which seemed to have been rummaged from some trash dump.  Inside was found 57 cents and a note, scribbled in childish handwriting, which read: "This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School." For two years she had saved for this offering of love.

When the pastor tearfully read that note, he knew instantly what he would do. Carrying this note and the cracked, red pocketbook to the pulpit, he told the story of her unselfish love and devotion. He challenged his deacons to get busy and raise enough money for the larger building. But the story does not end there...

A newspaper learned of the story and published it. It was read by a wealthy realtor who offered them a parcel of land worth many thousands. When told that the church could not pay so much, he offered to sell it to the little church for 57 cents. Church members made large donations. Checks came from far and wide. Within five years the little girl's gift had increased to $250,000.00--a huge sum for that time (near the turn of the century). Her unselfish love had paid large dividends.

When you are in the city of Philadelphia, look up Temple Baptist Church, with a seating capacity of 3,300. And be sure to visit Temple University, where thousands of students are educated.

Have a look, too, at the Good Samaritan Hospital and at a Sunday school building which houses hundreds of beautiful children, built so that no child in the area will ever need to be left outside during Sunday school time.

In one of the rooms of this building may be seen the picture of the sweet face of the little girl whose 57 cents, so sacrificially saved, made such remarkable history. Alongside of it is a portrait of her kind pastor, Dr. Russell H. Conwell, author of the book, "Acres of Diamonds". 

STORY OF NARESH – TRULY INSPIRING

A story is shared to put a spark of enthusiasm in my readers:

“God has always been planning things for me!”  Naga Naresh Karutura has just passed out of IIT Madras in Computer Science and has joined Google in Bangalore.  You may ask, what's so special about this 21-year-old when there are hundreds of students passing out from various IITs and joining big companies like Google? 

Naresh is special.  His parents are illiterate. He has no legs and moves around in his powered wheel chair.  Ever smiling, optimistic and full of spirit; that is Naresh. He says, "God has always been planning things for me. That is why I feel I am lucky."  

Read why Naresh feels he is lucky:

 

Childhood in a village: I spent the first seven years of my life in Teeparru, a small village in Andhra Pradesh, on the banks of the river Godavari. My father Prasad was a lorry driver and my mother Kumari, a house wife. Though they were illiterate, my parents instilled in me and my elder sister (Sirisha) the importance of studying.  Looking back, one thing that surprises me now is the way my father taught me when I was in the 1st and 2nd standards. My father would ask me questions from the text book, and I would answer them. At that time, I didn't know he could not read or write but to make me happy, he helped me in my studies!  Another memory that doesn't go away is the floods in the village and how I was carried on top of a buffalo by my uncle. I also remember plucking fruits from a tree that was full of thorns. 

I used to be very naughty, running around and playing all the time with my friends.. I used to get a lot of scolding for disturbing the elders who slept in the afternoon. The moment they started scolding, I would run away to the fields! 

I also remember finishing my school work fast in class and sleeping on the teacher's lap! 

 

On the January 11, 1993 when we had the sankranti holidays, my mother took my sister and me to a nearby village for a family function. From there we were to go with our grandmother to our native place. But my grandmother did not come there. As there were no buses that day, my mother took a lift in my father's friend's lorry. As there were many people in the lorry, he made me sit next to him, close to the door. 

It was my fault; I fiddled with the door latch and it opened wide throwing me out. As I fell, my legs got cut by the iron rods protruding from the lorry. Nothing happened to me except scratches on my legs.  The accident had happened just in front of a big private hospital but they refused to treat me saying it was an accident case. Then a police constable who was passing by took us to a government hospital. 

First I underwent an operation as my small intestine got twisted. The doctors also bandaged my legs. I was there for a week. When the doctors found that gangrene had developed and it had reached up to my knees, they asked my father to take me to a district hospital. There, the doctors scolded my parents a lot for neglecting the wounds and allowing the gangrene to develop. But what could my ignorant parents do?  

In no time, both my legs were amputated up to the hips.  I remember waking up and asking my mother, where are my legs? I also remember that my mother cried when I asked the question. I was in the hospital for three months.  Life without legs!

I don't think my life changed dramatically after I lost both my legs. Because all at home were doting on me, I was enjoying all the attention rather than pitying myself. I was happy that I got a lot of fruits and biscuits.  'I never wallowed in self-pity'. The day I reached my village, my house was flooded with curious people; all of them wanted to know how a boy without legs looked. But I was not bothered; I was happy to see so many of them coming to see me, especially my friends! 

All my friends saw to it that I was part of all the games they played; they carried me everywhere. 

God's hand: I believe in God. I believe in destiny. I feel he plans everything for you. If not for the accident, we would not have moved from the village to Tanuku, a town. There I joined a missionary school, and my father built a house next to the school. Till the tenth standard, I studied in that school. 

If I had continued in Teeparu, I may not have studied after the 10th. I may have started working as a farmer or someone like that after my studies. I am sure God had other plans for me. 

My sister, my friend:  When the school was about to reopen, my parents moved from Teeparu to Tanuku, a town, and admitted both of us in a Missionary school. They decided to put my sister also in the same class though she is two years older. They thought she could take care of me if both of us were in the same class. My sister never complained.  She would be there for everything. Many of my friends used to tell me, you are so lucky to have such a loving sister. There are many who do not care for their siblings.  She carried me in the school for a few years and after a while, my friends took over the task. When I got the tricycle, my sister used to push me around in the school.  My life, I would say, was normal, as everyone treated me like a normal kid. I never wallowed in self-pity. I was a happy boy and competed with others to be on top and the others also looked at me as a competitor. 

Inspiration: I was inspired by two people when in school; my Maths teacher Pramod Lal who encouraged me to participate in various local talent tests, and a brilliant boy called Chowdhary, who was my senior.  When I came to know that he had joined Gowtham Junior College to prepare for IIT-JEE, it became my dream too. I was school first in 10th scoring 542/600.  Because I topped in the state exams, Gowtham Junior College waived the fee for me. Pramod Sir's recommendation also helped. The fee was around Rs 50,000 per year, which my parents could never afford. 

 

Living in a residential school was a big change for me because till then my life centred around home and school and I had my parents and sister to take care of all my needs. It was the first time that I was interacting with society. It took one year for me to adjust to the new life. There, my inspiration was a boy called K K S Bhaskar who was in the top 10 in IIT-JEE exams. He used to come to our school to encourage us. Though my parents didn't know anything about Gowtham Junior School or IIT, they always saw to it that I was encouraged in whatever I wanted to do. If the results were good, they would praise me to the skies and if bad, they would try to see something good in that. They did not want me to feel bad.  They are such wonderful supportive parents. 

Life at IIT- Madras: Though my overall rank in the IIT-JEE was not that great (992), I was 4th in the physically handicapped category. So, I joined IIT, Madras to study Computer Science.  Here, my role model was Karthik who was also my senior in school. I looked up to him during my years at IIT- Madras.  He had asked for attached bathrooms for those with special needs before I came here itself. So, when I came here, the room had attached bath. He used to help me and guide me a lot when I was here.  I evolved as a person in these four years, both academically and personally. It has been a great experience studying here. The people I was interacting with were so brilliant that I felt privileged to sit along with them in the class. Just by speaking to my lab mates, I gained a lot. 'There are more good people in society than bad ones'

   

Words are inadequate to express my gratitude to Prof Pandurangan and all my lab mates; all were simply great. I was sent to Boston along with four others for our internship by Prof Pandurangan. It was a great experience.  

I did not want to pursue PhD as I wanted my parents to take rest now.  Morgan Stanley selected me first but I preferred Google because I wanted to work in pure computer science, algorithms and game theory. 

I am lucky: Do you know why?  I get help from total strangers without me asking for it. Once after my second year at IIT, I with some of my friends was travelling in a train for a conference. We met a kind gentleman called Sundar in the train, and he has been taking care of my hostel fees from then on.  I have to mention about Jaipur foot. I had Jaipur foot when I was in 3rd standard. After two years, I stopped using them. As I had almost no stems on my legs, it was very tough to tie them to the body. I found walking with Jaipur foot very, very slow. Sitting also was a problem. I found my tricycle faster because I am one guy who wants to do things faster. 

One great thing about the hospital is, they don't think their role ends by just fixing the Jaipur foot; they arrange for livelihood for all. They asked me what help I needed from them. I told them at that time, if I got into an IIT, I needed financial help from them. So, from the day I joined IIT, Madras, my fees were taken care of by them. So, my education at the IIT was never a burden on my parents and they could take care of my sister's Nursing studies. 

Surprise awaited me at IIT: After my first year, when I went home, two things happened here at the Institute without my knowledge.  I got a letter from my department that they had arranged a lift and ramps at the department for me. It also said that if I came a bit early and checked whether it met with my requirements, it would be good.  Second surprise was, the Dean, Prof.  Idichandy and the Students General Secretary, Prasad had located a place that sold powered wheel chairs. The cost was Rs 55,000. What they did was, they did not buy the wheel chair; they gave me the money so that the wheel chair belonged to me and not the institute. My life changed after that. I felt free and independent.  That's why I say I am lucky. God has planned things for me and takes care of me at every step. 

The world is full of good people! I also feel if you are motivated and show some initiative, people around you will always help you. I also feel there are more good people in society than bad ones. I want all those who read this to feel that if  Naresh can achieve something in life, you can too.

A GENERATION WITH A SENSE OF DIRECTION

In a previous post titled “Where is the Human Race Going?” I spoke about the trend of spoilt nature among the youths of today.  In that I have mentioned that I shall write about the youths who are responsible and sensible, who show concern and are considerate to others.  I shall write about the other side of the coin in this post. If they are properly motivated and directed, we can do wonders through them. I remember our teachers telling us that we all have talents and energy; if they are not used for creative purpose, we tend to use it for destructive purpose.  Channelizing them for creative use is the remedy for vicious use of them.

To prove it, I can give numerous examples, but I wish to limit it to the activities of the youths of the Kottarakkara-Punalur Diocese of the Mar Thoma Church under the guidance of Rt. Rev. Dr. Euyakim Mar Coorilos, the Diocesan bishop. The youths of the Diocese initiated a project named “Snehamrudam” (meaning: life-sustaining potion of love) as a gift to the bishop to honor him during the silver jubilee of his consecration.  It was inaugurated on 20^th April 2014 and for the last 524 days, the youths of the diocese supply breakfast to 250 patients of the District Hospital, Kottarakkara and to 25 people who sleep in the pavement. 15 to 25 youths of the diocese gather together at 5 a.m. (considering the travel time, they must be getting up at 4 a.m. or even before) to pack the food and supply it to the above points. They do it voluntarily; without any kind of remuneration. We must also bear in mind that it is not a one day event; but an ongoing project! The project needs Rs. 7500 for a day’s food. When I talked to the co-coordinator of the project Rev. Jossey E. George, he said that more than a benevolent activity, a new culture has emerged from this and all who are involved does this with excitement and they look forward to involve with the project.

Another project that has emerged initiated by the youths of the diocese is the “Clean City, Green City” in which about 90 youths gather together to clean the Kottarakkara town area. They have become aware of the polluted environment they are in and they try to do their share in the remedy of it. I recall the saying in Malayalam “annan kinjum thannalaayathu” (the squirrel doing as it can). [To those who are not aware of the legend behind this saying:  When Seetha, the wife of Rama was taken to Lanka by Ravana, Rama wanted to rescue her.  He started building a way across the sea.  A squirrel seeing the activity dipped himself in the sea and moved to the land to be covered by sand.  This activity was going on while Rama saw this.  He asked the squirrel about it and the tiny creature said, “I am doing my share in helping Rama, the King, in building the road to Lanka.” Then Rama took the squirrel in his hand affectionately, ran his fingers over it and said “annan kunjum thannalayathu”.  The legend says that the three lines on the South Indian species of rabbits is the finger mark of the king Rama.

          If the energy and potential are properly channelized, our youths can do wonders.  The problem,  I assume, is not with the youths, but with the older generation who are not willing to encourage them to get involved in the day-to-day affairs even of their homes, leave alone that of the community. They are ‘trained’ to be selfish and ‘oriented’ to look for ways of making money. They are not taught to share and show concern. When they cannot ‘succeed’ as the parents want them to be, they look for ways of revenging their parents by destroying themselves. The destructive activities that we see around are mainly the wrong channeling of the potential and energy.

Catch them young, teach them young and orient them young; the outcome shall be incredible!