The Nails in the Fence

                  I am sharing with you all another story i read online today. This one is very special as it appeared right when i needed to be reminded of. The story as below.

                         There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.

                         Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence.

                        He said, 'You've done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there and a verbal wound is just as bad as a physical one.'  

- Author Unknown

              Throughout my life so far, i have managed to be the most angriest one around in my circle. However, life has taught me some worthwhile lessons. Today is my wife's birthday. Of course, she wouldn't expect gifts and neither would i forget to give her one. And today i asked her what she would want me to correct in myself. She asked me to control my anger. I argued if a person who does not get angry at all is either rated as a coward or ends up being bullied often. But she was quite clear in saying that there is a difference between being angry at everything and controlling anger. This story came right through and nailed the lesson. After all a man who keeps his calm and embraces his anger gets to take control over himself and the situation.

       Its funny that i recalled this dialogue from the movie Avengers where Bruce Banner says.. That is my secret. I am always angry :) 

Cheers for a better tomorrow. Dedicated to my sweet wife for making me a better man with every passing day..!   

            

Words of Wisdom

 I am sharing this version of the original story I heard from one of my School teacher in childhood. This is very inspirational and I remember it till date. Read and get inspired.

Once there was a king who ruled a large kingdom. His kingdom cherished and all went well. One fine day, his kingdom was attacked by a cruel army. The king lost his army and his palace. He had to flee away and rode his horse uphill until he reached the edge of the cliff. He then decided to commit suicide by jumping down from the cliff as he had lost all his faith along with all that he had. There was an old man sitting under a tree there who was observing everything. When he understood that the king is about to commit suicide, he walked up to him and uttered 3 words in the king's ear. The king got enlightened immediately and changed his decision. He sat down calmly and meditated for a while and planned something. 

For the next 6 months, the king gathered his army again. Provided that he knew his kingdom and people very well, he was able to strategically wage a war against the enemies and defeated them. The king was very happy that he got his kingdom back. The king hence declared a huge festive party with a grand feast. There were dancers and musicians entertaining people all around. The king was extremely happy now when he noticed the same old man he met at the edge of the cliff 6 months ago, slowly walking up to him. The Old man uttered those same 3 words to the king again and he understood the meaning of life that very day. He became aware of an important life lesson that he shared with everyone from then on. He also managed to successfully befriend his enemies and won the hearts of all the people of his kingdom. 

Now you must be waiting to hear those 3 words. They are "Ithuvum Kadanthu Pogum". It’s in Tamil language. It translates to "This too shall pass". 

There are situations in life when we all go through a lot of distress. These words are to be remembered during the times of great distress and also during times of great joy. It is applicable in all emotional states of our life. I am sure that these words of wisdom will enlighten your life as well. Wishing you success and greatness in your life. Again.., this too shall pass..!

The Boiling Frog Syndrome

              Hello Everyone. Today I bring to you a very interesting story. Rather than a story, it is based on factual information and with a little thought, would reveal to you a very strong life lesson. Story below.
Frog is a cold blooded animal.
Put a frog in a vessel of water and start heating the water.
As the temperature of the water rises, the frog is able to adjust its body temperature accordingly.
The frog keeps on adjusting with increase in temperature...
Just when the water is about to reach boiling point, the frog is not able to adjust anymore...
At that point the frog decides to jump out...
The frog tries to jump but is unable to do so, because it has lost all its strength in adjusting with the rising water temperature...
Very soon the frog dies.
What killed the frog?
Many of us would say the boiling water...
But the truth is what killed the frog was its own inability to decide when it had to jump out.
We all need to adjust with people and situations, but we need to be sure when we need to adjust and when we need to confront/face.
There are times when we need to face the situation and take the appropriate action...
If we allow people to exploit us physically, mentally, emotionally or financially, they will continue to do so...
We have to decide when to jump.
Let us jump while we still have the strength.
Think on It !!

Be the Change..

This is something I had always wanted to write about. India just completed 68 years of independence. India might be the largest democracy. However its major fails are with the people. We meet them every day. The shopkeeper who sells beverages above MRP., The ever so urgent commuter who has no time to stop at a traffic signal., The Traffic inspector who takes bribe and refuses to charge you having found you guilty of not abiding by the traffic rules., The auto wala who refuses to go by the meter. The bus conductor who takes money from you and would not give you the travel ticket as you intend to get down in the next stop., The lazy car driver who would not use the indicator for turns., The police constable who gets a petty bribe of 10 Rs. every day from every shopkeeper at the market duly justified for the protection (dadagiri) they provide for any local issues., And the list goes on..,

                It’s very easy to say “everyone does it., what’s the big deal...” These small mistakes are the ones that brings India down and have other countries look down upon us. We all know it, but overlook it every other time. Everybody are ready to get into a debate as to how they are being fooled by others and how corrupt the system is. But none ready to accept their own mistakes or to change their ways. Today I happened to be at a bakery where I asked for a 2litre cool drink bottle. The printed MRP on the bottle being 78Rs. the shopkeeper demanded Rs. 80 justifying the additional sum of 2 rs. for the refrigeration charges. When asked why he does this, he laughs at me as though I am an alien and says that is how it is, take it or leave it. Every other store at my place does this. One shopkeeper told me to even go and complain to the police or the consumer court and it won’t affect him as he pays bribe to every one of them. Is this how a truly democratic country grows? In a country that has treasured its culture, lived on its morals and known for its honesty and ethics, aren’t we ruining it day on day? No wonder our economy is on its way down. Getting petty issues like these to the consumer forum or any other judicial authority again threatens us with the corruption involved there as well. A true plead for justice is always defeated by corruption in the system.

                People talk about bringing about a change, but always overlook the fact that change begins from one’s self. Take a while to think about it. Better late than never. There is no harm in waiting for the signal to turn green or to wear a seat belt or a helmet. The law is for everyone. I am sure that you are not losing on a huge fortune by waiting a couple of minutes at the signal. People who complain about public hygiene are the same ones who are found Spitting on the roads, littering public places and urinating under every other electric transformer or a telephone junction box. Not everyone have the time to complain about these things and follow up with the consumer court or any judicial authority over these common things. It is better to not buy from a shop that sells way above MRP than fighting him or raising it to the consumer court. Change is gradual and it is ‘certain’ if it begins from every individual. Let’s take a pledge to be the change we want to see in our dream of a better India. I have taken a pledge to not involve in any form of corruption, to follow the rules rather than trying to bend them. have you?

The Elephant Rope

I got to read this story on the internet on a random site. This is truly inspiring and motivational. I share the story here as i hope it would inspire someone else as well. 

As a man was passing the elephants, he suddenly stopped, confused by the fact that these huge creatures were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg. No chains, no cages. It was obvious that the elephants could, at anytime, break away from their bonds but for some reason, they did not.

He saw a trainer nearby and asked why these animals just stood there and made no attempt to get away. “Well,” trainer said, “when they are very young and much smaller we use the same size rope to tie them and, at that age, it’s enough to hold them. As they grow up, they are conditioned to believe they cannot break away. They believe the rope can still hold them, so they never try to break free.”

The man was amazed. These animals could at any time break free from their bonds but because they believed they couldn’t, they were stuck right where they were.

Like the elephants, how many of us go through life hanging onto a belief that we cannot do something, simply because we failed at it once before?

Failure is part of learning; we should never give up the struggle in life...

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Prayer - A Random Thought

                  I wonder what people pray when they join their hands together in front of the God's idol. Me being a firm non-believer of God, seem to wonder upon this fact like a kid wondering upon seeing a flying airplane for the first time. I have heard people say that they had prayed for the welfare of all the people in the world. This is insane. It is practically not possible. However there is a point which hit my head. 

                   A sincere prayer of a firm believer of God, has requests for the goodwill of all the people whom he really cares for, in his life. I think this also paves a way for us to have an emotional bondage with our loved ones. For example, in our fast paced world, we may not have the time to call our parents, close friends and relatives or even think of them. But if there is a sincere prayer that one does each day, a person is sure to remember all his loved ones and focus his attention on the problems that he or his loved ones have, and not get deviated by the other day to day happenings. This is what I think creates an emotional bondage although our parents or friends live far from us. May be it is the reason why prayer was invented by man...  Just a random thought..!

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Life after Resignation

It has been more than a month that I have left work at my previous organization. I have been at home and also attending some interviews once in a while. After being continuously working for the past five years, this break was a much needed relaxation to me. However, these times also are my toughest in the last 3-4 years both mentally and otherwise. I had been having mixed emotions on my resignation. At times this feeling of having resigned without any offers in hand eats my mind. It really feels foolish considering my commitments that I have each month. But the decision had to be made.

                That being said, there is also a lighter side of this feeling where my mind says that it was a good decision to make, as it paved way to many good things. I have learned to be optimistic, smile at my failures and even take time to enjoy the smallest things in life which I would have ignored otherwise, had I been working on a routine basis. My wife kept me in a positive state of mind and cheered for me whenever I was feeling low. My best friends helped me through these times morally and otherwise. I am so blessed to have such good friends and a caring, positive minded woman as my soul mate. Not many have such a privilege.

                Very few office friends kept in touch, attended a lot of interviews, managed to watch more movies. It was just like old times. I had installed Linux on my notebook and brushed up on my technical skills. Although I could not get to Chennai to meet my parents, I had timely conversations with mom and dad who kept my spirits high. It is not that I could not qualify for any job opportunities. I had managed to crack multiple interviews. However i am yet to receive the offers and seems it is going to take a while. Sometimes being strong is not about being insensitive to circumstances. It is all about how well we are able to hide our fears during testing times… Nonetheless, Life is a bitch..!

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