A powerful lesson of life

#KhudKoKarBuland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzbo5YpJDvQ&feature=youtu.be

The video connects beautifully. I am sure to each one of us it will strike a different chord of the heart and meaningful impact on the mind.

To me it brought back memories of a powerful lesson of my life.

I have lived my growing days under the shadow and guidance of two elderly people, one my maternal grandfather and other my paternal grandfather (now no more). The two special men have always amused me in their own ways and unique demeanor. My Nanaji, a self-made man has always been a man of less words and simple living. He is understanding, humorous, controlled and a visionary person. On the other hand, my Dadu came from a rich lineage, believed in enjoying life as it came. He was a man of the moment and believed in extravagance. I always wondered how distinct two people could be.  I bet it must have been one auspicious moment when the two had agreed to get my parents married.

I have some fond memories from the summer holidays because these two men would do the best to keep me pampered. 15 days I stayed at each of their places. My Nani would always tell me how he would start the preparations a month in hand and get all my favorite things in the house. The mangoes would be ordered to be plucked, the sugarcanes would come and even the roasted groundnuts. I guess my Mum who inspires us all as a meticulous planner gets it all from him. There is so much to take from the little conversations that I have with my Nanaji even today when he discusses about my goals of life, definition of success, savings, future planning etc.

He says… ‘Life wouldn’t be called so if it did not have the surprise elements’

Believe me I have seen him as the most calm and composed man even in the toughest of times. Whenever I have shared my insecurities with him, he has always told me… ‘Don’t Panic, Keep yourself prepared, Be fearless’

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My Dadu was a happy, loving, genuine, kind, compassionate man who acted when needed. I always thought he lived a good and strong life until I saw a weak side of him. One winter vacations it was surprising to find out that he had taken to bed for more than a month after being afflicted with viral fever. Ofcourse, we were all worried but since my uncles lived with him we knew he was being taken care well and we returned to the city never to see him again. Of that time I remember the hushed conversations when my father had told my mother that the family business had collapsed,  Dadu had lost all the money and in the name of savings he had hardly done anything. All this and more had added to his woes. The fearless man who lived a lavish life all his years couldn’t bear it. The dreams of my younger uncles were shattered.

My grandfather taught me a big lesson- Life has many of those calendered days when the bumps arrive unexpected and take us for a jerky ride. The bad days always remind me of my grandfather, who woke up every day and told us to be happy. I often think why he didn’t plan or foresee things? Why he did not prepare himself for the worst when he always looked towards the best.

I quite liked the video from Birla Sun Life Insurance because it inspires us to be positive in life and take everything in our stride as it strikes. Truly, our children are our dreams and for them we live our life. But any day life can take a turn but we should be ready with a plan and willpower to stand strong. There are two ways of overcoming the stumbling blocks on the path of life, one where we can plan, secure and save for our future and second by postponing them and

The quote complements the video aptly…

 “You can’t predict the future, but you can plan for it”
― Saji Ijiyemi