Meena Mangalathil:

                 We are in an age where we give the children a free hand in selecting their professions, the courses they need to study, the future they plan to select and   the parents just had to open the wallet and pay, nothing more. That was what I was thinking until today, when I met a girl who was studying for the entrance of Civil Services Preliminaries.             I was real awed, because I had spoken and worked with lots of IAS officers and the like but not a fledgling, aspiring civil servant. So I asked her, what made her decide to select this job? She said, "Actually, I didn't  have any idea about my future profession, what I should opt for." So after her degree, she went for a retreat and they guided them to opt for the civil services according to the Intelligent Quotient test conducted. And then too, she didn’t know, what she was involv...

            Its the language of no words, only thoughts, feelings, work in this strata. The first time I heard Silence was when I was in school. But in real life, we don’t have that word in our vocabulary, in short, we have lost the silence. If ever it happens, it is because of natural calamity.             But have we ever thought, about silence? Today, while I was going to church, there was a big noise, the noise of the flight of the pigeons. There is a place near our church, where they feed pigeons and when a car passed by, it took flight together. It was so much noise, that I wondered, how come, it produced so much noise? To have the feeling of noise, it might have been silent before. This place is Delhi, its one of the busiest place and the time was when the vehicles have not yet reached the road in full swing, the shops had not yet opened, children had not yet started to ...

            Be frank, that is a word we hear when, we are asked a question, even if it is to a kid or to a friend or to a colleague. But how much frankness should you be when we have to be frank and how much the listener would expect us to be frank? That has to be looked into.             I had an uncle, who always used to say, “Look, don’t feel bad, eh, I’m always frank.” First time, I didn’t feel anything but years later, I saw him in his house, his state was terrible. The house was dirty, as it had not been painted for sometime and there was nobody to look after him and above all, he was alone and sat either in front of the verandah or in front of the television.             So it was my usual ritual, that when I go nearby his place, I’ll just give a courtesy call, speak for sometime and leave, usually that speech would ...

            Just wait a moment! This is a frequent dialogue, we hear this at different stages of life and we do literally wait. This waiting business is not entitled only for the poor but also the rich, not only the young but also the old. Even the just born babies have to wait. Do you know why? Because we feel we have no choice or sometimes, it might be we all are optimistic. Then the next step is we do sit or stand waiting, thinking all sorts of nonsense or sometimes just wait there and watch the passers by. But why wait? Aren’t there any options other than wait? For me, I feel that wait time can be utilized as the time when we can mould ideas, plans and above all a time to take resolutions. When I wait, I have always thought that it was not by choice we have got to wait, but it is part of the master plan written for us. We all know, in this age, we are short of time, a quality time, where we could spend it with our family, friend...

          It takes only a moment of decision to turn the tables for man. The first time I had the awareness of it was when I grew real big and mature. One of my friend’s sons had come to meet her and they talked and joked to all of us and she was very proud of them, and I really felt that, she didn’t underestimate their value. They were very good kids, aged 17 and 20. The eldest one was presented with a motor bike on his birthday and they had come in that to see her in her work place. They were planning to go for a vacation from their college, so they had come to do some shopping. The day started thus for all of us,   babbling with words, shuttling all opinions of the advantages and disadvantages of tourist destinations, etc. They went and we were left behind with a smile on our face.   After 30 mts, a phone call, the two kids were met with an accident, one died on the spot and the other in a critical condition in the ICU. It was so sho...

       My mother-in-law was a person of only basic education, just passed away recently at the age of 90. When I became her daughter-in-law, I came to know her more intimately. She was a person, who was very down-to-earth, not aware of the vices and corruption of the society, very straight forward and above all loving to me.        She didn’t know to walk properly when she went to church or to visit her kids after their marriage and so somebody accompanied her and always, she was scolded for not looking and walking. For me, I am lazy at walking, so I didn’t have the opportunity to walk with her. She didn’t go for shopping, everything is bought for her. As she was not allowed to go or no money was given to her for safe keeping. She doesn’t have many needs. The one and only worst experience I have had with her was, one fine evening, while I was in the kitchen, she started scolding me, even now I don’t know, why she did it. Bec...

          The answer might be different for different people. But mostly its for survival, isn’t it? But I would like to add something to it. My parents had their own respective jobs and they planned and executed their money but I have felt that they were different when they go for work and when they arrive another different person totally.           Work is a necessity, it’s a part of our daily existence. It should be the extension of your person. Just like the hand is part of your body or the leg or the eye, your work should be the extension of you with which you are comfortable. I have seen lots of people who are so excited to go to work and who do not earn a lot with it. But their happiness is what makes them successful. They are invincible in their own field of work. And in the end they are the masters of their trade and ultimately they become successful, financially too.    ...