My Inspiration

Written by Shreya Mehra
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

My maternal grandfather, Bhushan Lal Vohra, is the pillar of support in my life whom I am glad to have. Since my childhood he’s been a big inspiration to the person I am today. He is a former IPS officer who was as accepting and loving as a friend can get. Even with the huge generation gap that existed between him and I, he surely attempted to bridge the distance.

These actions and virtues of his inspired me into becoming a dynamic and loving person.

He has always taught me to trust my instinct as it is seldom wrong. He has always taught me to hold a progressive rather than modern outlook towards the world which has helped me develop and grow as I stay close to my roots.

He is almost like the problem solver of my life, as he is as approachable as an adult can get and that is another quality I tried to pick up from him. As a child I used to admire his work ethic and openness to change and somewhere down the line, as I appreciated and felt blessed with his presence he ended up leaving a strong mark over my way of life.

The one thing that my nanu taught me and always preaches is the ability of a human being to be kind to others. He always told me that before you judge the other person, put yourself in his shoes and then decide what should be done. He gives the best advice in the world and his advice is always extremely valuable.

A few incidents define who he is to me. One incident took place when I around 10 years old. My grandfather was given the job to seal office floors and homes in Delhi. He did his job by sealing all the illegal offices and homes in and around the so called ‘posh’ areas of South Delhi. People got so agitated that there was stone pelting outside our house early in the morning. I really don’t remember exactly what my grandfather told them but it stopped as soon as he confronted all of these people.

My grandfather teaches me the power if being a leader. He teaches me the power of communication with anyone and everyone. He till date takes public speaking workshops for youngsters like me. He is also a guide for the interviews of aspiring civil servants. He never stops working. I’m extremely proud to have him as my inspiration and have him be my grandfather.

Kalpana Ma'am

Written by Ananya Pande
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

There often comes a time when you sit reminiscing and realise that the foundation of the person you are and often the values and belief you hold is created by that one significant being in your life. 

This being, for me, was Mrs. Kalpana Chaudhary. Someone I found at the age of 14. She was the instructional mentor at the school I had newly joined. A rebellious teenager who had lost interest in CCA and academics because of continuous transfers of her parents and she pulled me out of that ditch.

Kalpana Ma’am to me was hearth, balance and humility. 

She held an aura strong enough to cast a charm on the people around her, this was also owing to a certain level of calmness with which she swerved through life, almost gliding through decisions and situations even if they had been racking her brain for days. 

There was a certain level of optimism and resilience in her demeanor as she carried herself with grace, bestowed upon her with time, experience and knowledge itself. Even though she was a Gujarati, there were barely any languages and literature in the same that she remained u acquainted of. Maybe that is what made her skilled in understanding people, emotions and thoughts in a way as unique as hers, it was as if she knew the life another had been going through.

She made my foundation as a humble, ambitious and empathetic human being and the one one who could own up and implement bounce back ability in all problems and situations.

My Grandfather

Written by Sakshi Goyal
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

I belong to a typical marwadi family with conservative thinking and restricted background. My grandfather has always been strict with his values, ideas and actions. He is 84 years old. He has 6 children, 5 daughters and 1 son.

My grandfather has always been a person of his words. At his 70s he was the most energetic, high spirited person I have known. It saddens me when I see a completely different person now. Now when he is there and lies on bed all day and seeing him that way pinches me every single day. He is someone who has never lost hope. He has always pushed himself to his limits, he always believed in doing his work on his own, but now when he has to ask someone to drink water also, it brings tears in my eyes to see him this way. It's painful to see that just an injury can change so much in a person's life that he is so helpless now and all he wishes is to not suffer this way.

He has always been a classic example of idolism. I try to draw inspiration from him in every little or big thing. His most unique quality is his humorous nature and always full of surprises. Self-made and independent ship is something he always aced and I shall aspire a bit of the same.

Care, concern and respect are his attributes and irrespective of belonging to the old era he still accommodates high level of courtesy for women in the household. And from the kind of family environment I come from, I have never seen a father-in-law respect honor and understand his daughters-in-law than any other family member. His concern for the people around him and away is something everyone in the family talks about.

He is truly an inspiration for me for the people he is and I just hope that I can be the same, as it will be a tribute for him from my side.

Inspiration

Written by Mayank Singh Samant
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

In today modern world, each and every individual is looking at some sort of motivation to improve in life. To actually see someone as a role model helps to uplift our status of mind and the best part is to actually see someone getting some sort of inspiration from you.

One person that inspires me was my grandfather, his cool and calm ways to actually handle a tough situation were truly the best.

Back then all I used to do is listen to him a lot, his words were composing and always gave a sensible feeling, and his ways to deal with life situation were truly commendable.  I still remember his stories about wars he had fought and how his regiment were most decorated regiment at that time in India. I used to love sleeping beside him whenever we visited their home. 

He was truly the best inspiration I have to motivate and pursue success when the winds are against me.

Charanjeet Kakar

Written by Tushaar Sikka
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

If I were to look back and say who was that one person who influenced my life greatly and I greatly adored him, it would be my Maternal Grandfather, Mr. Charanjeet Kakar. Settled as a canteen owner at a railway station he has always believed that work is the virtue of man and he needs to respect it even as age makes a person wither away with time.

His qualities of diligence often inspired me as a child when I would see him returning him late at night, but with a constant smile filled with warmth for the ones back home. 

It always implied 2 things

1. That being the hard worker that he was he never complained. Never complained about working, about working late or otherwise. He knew that success and peaks were a byproduct of hard work and was a strict believer in the quote that “Hard work beats talent if talent doesn’t work hard.”

The second thing one could learn and observe was balance. The balance he maintained as he shuffled between his work and personal life, handling both of them elegantly. It’s rare that people who are burdened with stress cope with it jolly and confident. But he was one of those men. 

One anecdote which would help me create the image of the person in context would be when the Canteen he owns suffered heavy losses and barely running, he made the mentality of the employee and fate of the canteen take a U turn with his hopeful yet realistic approach towards life and I will always credit him of giving me the same

My Inspiration

Written by Shreyans Gupta
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University


A lot of times in life you tend to face difficult situations, you tend to find yourself in the middle of nowhere where you need someone to give you that support, that motivation and the push to achieve success in life. For me such a person will definitely be a human's idol in life. This role has always been played by my maternal grandmother. She is around 65 years of age and she has never let it happen that she's not been around when I need her. I remember I was 6 years old she told me this one thing and I haven't been able to erase it from my memory. She said, "It doesn't matter how many people walk beside you in life, just don't bother and keep your head high, you'll be able to ace every single activity in life!" This has always given me the strength to face all challenges in life. 
My grandmother is a genuine and kind woman who has given all her life to her family. She belongs to an orthodox Punjabi family. She worked for a renowned multinational for around 30 years of her life. Several times she has faced varied kinds of problems in her life but she never let her confidence drop down. She faced every challenge gracefully. There was a time when I used to be extremely passionate about acting and becoming successful in the industry, and my parents didn't support me for it ever. But my grandmother was the only one assuring me everyday that I was talented enough to do something big. 
She is my teacher, my mentor, my friend and the most helpful guide. Even at this age, she is very active and hard working. At times, we are surprised at her agility. She manages the house, takes care of me and my brother and always supports my mother and father in their business. I feel she is like the head or the pivotal part of our family. Because of her great leadership qualities, she handles this responsibility very well and keeps us bonded as one unit. My grandmother is one of the very few people who have a will stronger than anything else and a personality completely unique. It is because of her that I've been lucky to have such good values and such great teachings which I'll carry throughout my life. She is my idol and my inspiration. 

Fathers: The Unsung Heroes

Written by Rishab Kabra
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

I believe in a son’s life Fathers are the unsung heroes. Its is generally the case where the boys bond more with their mothers than with their fathers but that doesn’t mean that the fathers don’t love them enough. They do and sometimes even more than mothers but generally don’t express. It is really amazing how they tolerate everything be the support for everyone all while dealing with their own problems without even uttering a word.

My father Mr. Pramod Kumar Kabra is one of the most simple, sweet,honest and determined people I have ever met. He has faced many obstacles in the 55 years of his life but has always stood back up with the resolve to keep moving on. He was unable to pursue his dream of becoming a doctor due to financial issues in his family at those times but never really gave up on life. He started a business, a field he was completely new to and excelled at it in no time due to hard work. He has faced betrayal by his family on multiple occasions but has always accepted it with humility and continues to help everyone despite what they made him go through. If this is not the quality of saint, then I don’t know what is.

He doesn’t express it but he cares about  his family more than anything or anyone in the world. He has his own way of showing how much he loves me and my mother. For Example, if sometimes I fall sick or need something done, he would never ask me directly as to what I want or am I okay but will
check up on me through my mother. It is not easy to send your only child away from home after spending your entire life with them, but parents do that for the child even if that means killing their own feelings. My mother doesn’t mind telling me anything that she feels. If she is angry with or something is bothering her, she will be upfront about it and say it to my face, but my father would rather keep it to himself so that it doesn’t bother me or trouble me and deals with it on his own. He never hesitates to help anyone in need. He will go out of his way to help someone just to see that smile on their face.
My father’s life just inspires me to do more and be more. It is a proof that words like honesty, humility and kindness are not vague in meaning. I love my father from the bottom of my heart and if I am able to be just one percent of the man that he is I would have achieved something in life. To all the Fathers in the world, The Unsung Heroes.   

Maa

Written by Charu Pandey
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University


My mother,Anita Pandey, a woman of 58, who has lived the simplest yet the most eventful years of life. She is working as a teacher in a well-established school in a small town named Darjeeling. She has been working as a teacher for last 35 years. Her passion for teaching stems from the family she belongs to. Both her parents were highly educated and hence, the idea of education was extremely valued at her home.
 As a kid she was an extremely jovial child who loved to play various sports, especially hockey. Although her mother never approved of her playing, she attended a lot of matches and tournament. But her interest in sports never effected her academics in any way.She always aspired to join the police force, but lack of support from the family led to her dismay.
 Because she belonged to a very conservative family, she was asked to marry at the gullible age of 18 itself. Complying by what her parents wanted, she agreed for the wedlock to a man who was 8 years elder than her. The marriage turned out to be fruitful for a year where the couple had a baby girl. But the groom’s family turned hostile once she refused to comply to their constant demand for money from her, This led to an ugly divorce that stretched for 8 years. That part of her life was a phase of intense struggle and stress. 
She worked hard for a very long, where she completed her education while she took care of a growing girl who had questions about her father and everything else. She pulled things in life together every time she was thrown down by some kind of emotional blow. She found peace in teaching and their was no turning back.Today when I sit and talk to her, she repeats the same thing over and over again, she says, “You need to know that you need not to stop. Ever.” she says that she knew in heart that everything is going to get fine someday, she should just keep working hard.When we look back at those bad year, I see how my mother has grown from a common woman with dreams and hopes to this leader with ambition, who I look up to. And this inspiration that is not just fused to me, I see hundreds of students who love and respect my mother and love her so much, I know she is happy.

Speak Up

Written by Surpreet Singh Dhingra
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

My grand mother belongs to a typical punjabi family rooted in Pakistan Punjab. She is a very calm and understand. He is capable of holding the joint family together. She has in total 7 children and she managed their upbringing very well. As most of the grandmothers she gives immense love to her grandchildren.

 My grand mother inspires me in many ways and one incident with her that inspired me is unforgettable. My grand mother is a person who can never tolerate anything bad or unethical being done by anyone . Once I heard voices of a women shouting from my neighborhood. Shouts were of a women when her husband was beating her after consuming alcohol. The reason for beating her up was that he did not like the dinner made by her. The man started abusing his wife and her family. This women being very weak couldn’t utter a word in front of her husband and quietly got beating from him. Usually this happens in our society because women are not well educated to feed themselves and their children are completely depend on their husbands for living. This is the reason even that women couldn’t protect herself and kept silent. Suddenly I heard my grand mother’s voice in between and I came in shock. I rushed to the balcony and saw that my grandmother went to the neighbors house to stop this inhuman activity. The shouted at the man badly and even threatened him about calling the police if he attempted any kind of violence again ever. It was surprising for me because there were many men around but no one came forward to save that women. After all my grandmother stood with her and even that cruel man did not utter a word in front of my grandmother.

The next day, that women secretly came to my grandmother and thanked my grandmother for what she did for her. My grandmother told her to never stay quiet and suffer torture and also make her realized her importance in this world. My grandmother's few words made that women feel strong and gave her strength to live life independently. This might not be related to me in any case but still my grandmother Indirectly influenced me to never stay quiet when it’s the time to speak up. I learnt that we need to take initiative to bring about change in the society that we want to see.

My Amazing Grandmother

Written by Vidit Jain
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

Nirmala Manakchand Saand 

As her name suggests, my grandmother, Nirmala Saand is a person with a pure heart. Over the years as I was growing up, there are countless things that I have learned from her. Throughout her journey till today, she has seen many ups and downs. What I have realized from her journey is that life is not always good and you cannot change it according to your needs. But what is in your control is how you deal with things and the attitude you have. Living life can be much easier if you live it on your terms. It can give you stress but you can just smile and face the issues. One of her advices which I have always kept close to my heart is “Do good things, and good things will happen to you.” Now this is not something that hasn’t been said before but when it comes from her, it has a different meaning to me. She has seen life; she has had experiences. This is where she is coming from. When she says something like that, it is based upon some real instances, good or bad. I have applied her teaching and seen the result myself. It is not a short-term thing according to her. You have to continuously do good things and then, when the time comes, you will get the returns. Have purity in your heart, that is all you require. 

Having spent most of her life as a daughter-in-law, a wife and a mother, her life has been spent more time in the home than outside. Despite this, her knowledge of people and society is noteworthy. Even today, when there have been three more generations after hers, she is the person who takes most decisions. This is not because she is the oldest. Instead, this is due to her decision-making skills. She can read people. She knows how the society works and that is what each one of us are yet to learn in the family. 

One of the moments that had changed her life was the loss of her husband, my grandfather, on August 25th, 2016. When someone spends most of their lives with a person, you don’t just become habitual to that person. You get connected on a much deeper level. And such a loss can devastate a person, no matter who you are. My grandmother has always been an emotional person who has tears in her eyes every time I leave the city to study. One would assume that she would have been in a really emotional state when her husband passed away. That was not the case, however. She handled it with so much strength. It is commendable how a person so emotional can be so emotionally strong. I still find it amusing how she not only handled her loss but the loss that all of us faced too.  

For all of this, which are just a few of her experiences that I know of, and for her just being the pure soul that she is, I love my grandmother the most. Tension-free, calm, supportive and fun – that is how I would describe my grandmother. Her thoughts that I want to end with, which people should believe in within their hearts, is “Do good things, and good things will happen to you.”  

Life: A Rollercoaster Ride

Written by Aditi Jayakumar
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

As Robert Frost once said, “two roads diverged in a yellow wood and I..I took the one less travelled by and that has made all the difference”, the essence of life is very well captured within these lines and the uncertainty of it is well defined. At each stage in Life, we gain different perspectives about the same things as well as continuously learn and gain more information which forms one’s personality and outlook towards life. Experiences for each individual is different and even though our personalities separate us, we’re all connected and are similar because at the end of the day, we’re all just flesh and bone. On having had a conversation with my Father, Mr. Jayakumar, his outlook on Life seems to be constant as it was five years ago, when he first spoke to me about how I must take life on as an ocean of challenges as I was just graduating from school. His advice to me still reverberates in my ears as if it happened yesterday. On having struck a conversation about the same on his birthday this March, he spoke to me about how much of a rollercoaster ride it has been for him. For the first time, my father treated me as an adult and had a mature conversation about what he felt life was about and what it revolved around. At 59, he still believes in the idea of experiencing what comes his way, and experiencing it to the fullest. This man has always prioritised his field of work and the dedication he has for it cannot go unnoticed. He’s always made sure that I knew the importance of time and how to manage it well enough to get through everything that is needed in the set order of priority. He’s made sure that living by ethics and being respectful to each and every being you come across are the central factors of Life that an individual should live by and has done so by proving it to his family and being a role model to his kids. He talks about life as an experience and lives by the belief of it being a gift and therefore, the right to take someone’s life or your own isn’t a choice. 

When asked about the philosophies he follows, he laughed and said, “Isn’t life a philosophy in itself?” and went on to explain how each experience that an individual faces teaches them things; bad and good. It moulds one into a new person with a new outlook about things and whether to take it in a positive or negative light is completely dependent on the person. He further explained how he’s shunned the existence of his being when his work didn’t go well and the reasons behind why it affected him the way it did. He narrated a story about the time when he hit the lowest point in life, when it all seemed utopian and was a blur and nothing made sense. He’d decided to end it all but chose not to because of the people around and his obliged responsibility to them. On introspection, he understood the underlying reason as to why he felt that way. The answer was his passion for work. Passion is a very peculiar thing, he said. “Sometimes, being too passionate about something can lead you to involving yourself too much with it and if it does not turn out the way you imagined it to, it hurts. And it hurts so bad that you feel confused and lost, like a lost soul at sea with no motive but to figure out and find that one beam of light that will guide you home, back into your comfort zone.” 

That’s the thing about life, it is very uncertain yet enjoyable. Enjoyable only if you surround yourself with the right people who’d make living worthwhile and if you do, never let go because the adrenaline rush will never stop if you let things run their due course. I’d like to conclude this essay by mentioning how much this man inspires me to do better and be a better person everyday and more importantly, reminds me to live and not just merely exist. 

Changing World

Written by Kashish Malhotra
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

My grandmother is one of the strongest people I know. She is 71 years old and her name is Santosh Malhotra and has seen a lot of ups and downs in her life. Though, she herself is very religious, she doesn’t impose this thing on me or my brother. After talking to her, I got to know that the turning point in her life was when she got married and also, when she gave birth to her 1^st child (my bhua). Taking up the responsibility of a family at an age of 17 with a totally new environment is certainly not easy but irrespective of this fact, she has very well managed to give us a lot of learnings and keep the family together.

According to her, the world has totally changed, and the youth is much more energetic and capable than before. She believes that if a person has the right upbringing and good values, he can never go wrong in life. She encourages hard work and believes in being respectful, not only to your elders, but everyone around you.

Three values that she follows and believe that can make a person successful:

• 1.      Being Respectful
• 2.      Being Committed
• 3.      Being Honest

Roller Coaster Ride

Written by Ishita Joshi
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

 I interviewed my cousin sister’s grandmother Kalyani Devi Bhagat. She is a 72 year old woman who has lived a meaningful life.The conversation i had with her was very informative and insightful. It gave me whole new perspective on life and its meaning.

                When asked about what the purpose of life according to her is, she said that the motive or purpose should be to be happy and keep others around you happy. One should always be there for one’s family and friends and help them get through life by creating happiness for them. She believes that one should always have faith in oneself and in god , if that is there then everything will eventually fall in place and things will be peaceful. Her life has been no less than a rollercoaster ride and her key learning has been that life is a mixture of both good and bad things. Even when things are going downhill, one should not lose hope and no matter how hard things are, life goes on. We should never give up or get disheartened because things are not working fine for us. Every cloud has a silver lining and bad days will make way for good days. We should learn to make the best out of each day and learn something out of each experience.The one advise that she wants to give to the youth of today is that they should value relationships more and not be slaves in the hands of technology. It’s the relationships that build which help you in the long run and not your mobile phone. All of us should be there for people in need. The one incident that changed her life and the way she looked at things was when her son died. After his death his daughters stopped talking to him and she realised that sometimes people are selfish and do not care about your feelings. She realised how important it is for family to be there for each other in difficult times and it was a shock to her  when her grandchildren cut her off after her son passed away. She realised that sometimes people are not what we expect them to be or want them to be. Certain things are not in your control and we should just let them be the way they are.

                  According to her relationships should be more meaningful and giving. We should put others first in relationships and not give up so easily, just work on making things better.

Waiting for a New Day

Written by Bhavya Merani
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

It's not very frequent that I get time to meet my grandma but when I do, I make sure I make most of it because she is an ocean of experiences. Our conversations are always revolving around some or the other explorations in life where I am the one questioning her “did you do this” or “did you do that” in your young days. And let me tell you, she is just like those granny’s who have the habit of forgetting things, speaking repetitively, scolding for even the smallest of mistakes and most importantly, having advice for be it any matter. Well, this is what brings me closer to her.

Life is not a cake walk for anyone. More the ups and downs, more the memories we make and I feel this is what makes our entire journey worthwhile. My granny also has an interesting and inspiring story of her own. When India was facing the partition with Pakistan, we all know what chaos took place in the country. many families lost their homes and their dear ones. My granny was one of them. She lost her parents in the war. While people were selfishly choosing their land to live, she was planning to escape from a small province called “Sindh.” She shared with me how she felt at that time when people were boarding trains to India leaving most of their wealth behind. At the age of 27, she along with brother fled from that village and came to Delhi. My granny always asks me ‘how I am doing at my studies.’ She says that education was the only power that helped her in surviving and building a new living in Delhi. In those days the government of India was providing means of earning and living to all those who fled from Pakistan. My granny and her brother got one small house to live in and a small shop to make a living. While her brother started running the shop, she took a job in the government office. I remember my family went to dominos once and my granny shared a shocking insight with me and my cousins. She said that the money you paid for this one pizza is what she used to get as her monthly salary. Coming out of extreme poverty was very difficult for them. But they both worked hard and in a span of three years, collected a good amount of money for each other’s marriage. Life became stable after marriage. Happiness again found a way into my grandmas’ life. Yet, it’s not like you will always have an obstacle free journey. After ten years of marriage, my grandpa was diagnosed with cancer and he died when my father was in 8^th grade. This horrific incident brought silence in her life. She lost hope and felt helpless as to how she will feed her three children and fund their education. she taught me that no matter how difficult the game is, never quit. There are lot more things that destiny has planned for you. If you quit, you will regret later for the good times which were yet to come. So just keep fighting through thick and thin. If I am able to recollect it correctly, once she gave me an amazing example which got registered permanently in some corner of my mind. She said “assume that night represents all the hardships and day brings happiness, then just put this into picture and notice that after every night, day comes and after every day ends, night begins” whenever I feel low or I am sad about something, I think about this and wait for a new day to come. This is what keeps me going.

Once my grandma scolded me for not being able to speak in my mother tongue which is Sindhi. I was like ‘dadi, I don’t like the accent and it feels like someone is having an argument with another.’ I got a long lecture for that. But on a serious note, I thought of learning sindhi from her, written and spoken both. There are so many lessons I have learned from her and every lesson is like a solution to my daily life problems.  

TRING….TRING…

Written by Pavani Khanna
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

Life is a lot of things but there is no black and white in life. We have children and at first they crave for our attention and when they grow up we crave for theirs. Money has its own value. But attention is why we do most of the things no matter what we do we do it for attention . you may call it by multiple names; you may call it recognition, validation, popularity , fame it is all the same when you grow up in the earlier days there were very less phones and means of communication. In other words there were less ways of ignoring the elderly.

Now we have to make multiple calls just to hear how busy everyone is. Sometimes I wish I was busy I had something important to do ,something important to achieve something so great that I could ignore people but I think that time for me is over . maybe I was going through it but never realized . maybe I was doing this to others but hardly do we realise when we hurt others but when its about us its always a bigger deal.

How many times a day I just wait for a call from my grandchildren and decide what I would tell them when they do finally pick up my call. With every ring my gut makes me want to believe that there is something more important than me in their life.

But when they actually do pick up I don’t know what I should say so that they are interest in continuing the conversation . Just somehow that they like me and want to be there for me. I have so much time to think that now I understand why they consider an old person a wise person as we just have so much time to think of what could have happened ,how we could be better.

Sometimes I wish I could turn back time and never have to wait for a phone call from the people I love. With age we just become children all over again paranoid about nothing, craving attention, helpless lesser and lesser of our body parts work ,we cant talk very well ,we aren’t always well versed with our surroundings.

But why to complain it’s the circle of life you end where you start . Life is extremely fast for me to catch up with and there is no time for anyone to stand stare and feel. That is what life is and certain things will never change so is time an illusion created by man to fool himself .

Memory Lane Learning

Written by Nithyasree J
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

As I waited for the call to connect, trying to get my thoughts in order and formulating a meaningful narrative for the questions I was to ask, never once did I think of how out of-the-blue the ensuing conversation would be for my 70 year-old interviewee. She was, as it turns out, more than eager to share her life’s learnings.

“God has given us life,” said she, the very first thing on her mind when asked about her learnings. She believes that we have to be creative, manage our issues, and keep ourselves happy throughout life so as to not disappoint the great power that gifts us it. In the same vein, it is essential to keep society happy, and follow necessary morals in everything that we do.

When further questioned, she responded with the clandestine statement that life and learning go side-by-side. We learn every day. The nature of what we learn depends on our circumstances, company, and society; all playing a significant role. After all, kids in their formative years are like sponges to the culture and traditions around them. She went on to say that good company teaches good manners, views, and ideas, and makes one happy and content.

There is no denying the huge age gap between her generation and my own; neither of us were negligent of the same. She believes that millennials and Gen Z ought to understand the deeper meaning behind actions and words, rather than treating them superficially. The modern generations are even blessed with technology and resources that theirs could never have dreamed of! It is only prudent to use said resources to develop the “deeper understanding” in question, and add to our knowledge. “Practicality does not mean ignoring responsibilities,” is what she had to say about kids my age. She finds my generation “not that bad,” and encourages us to adjust with whomever we want to. The comprehension of the fact that society behaves how it does in situations is because of some reason will make great strides in bringing balance to life.

At this point, it was becoming more and more evident to me how varied her life had been, and where her truths and ideals lay. According to her, for women, life changes four times, and different learnings should be derived from each phase. The first begins from birth until one comes of age, where their parents take care of them throughout and nurture them into an individual. The second is marriage, and subsequently either adjusting to the new family, or molding them to you. Personally, I believe that there is a healthy middle ground for the same. The third phase comes with becoming a parent, where everything centers on one’s child. The experience is transformative; after all, carrying life around for nine months makes one attached to it like no other prior, and results in never-before-felt emotions. Whenever one’s kid does something growing up, one tends to be happy, annoyed, or anything in between, but one always overthinks. With every success and every stumble, the parent is prone to analyze the situation an absurd amount, but which ultimately leads to healthy growth of both them and their kid. If one does not learn, life simply keeps trudging along, largely unchanged and, in all honesty, remains painfully dull. And finally, the last stage is old age where, after living a long and hopefully fulfilling life, the one’s children provide support and care.

Being extremely satisfied with our discussion thus far, I decided to wrap up with a final, deceptively weighty question – What was one thing that she dearly wished for me and others my age to take to heart?  As with the other things, she was quick to deliver. She said that she had lived her life in her own way, and had been through a lot. So, when kids live in their own way, there really is no harm to that. Parents can adjust. They shouldn’t enforce their own ideas on to the young adults, and in essence, live and let live.  Those that have managed to adapt and adjust are more happy and comfortable than others, who prefer to stay alone. The latter might feel that they indeed are satiated, but that illusion crashes down around them when need arises due to sickness and ailing health. We are social animals, after all.

“Learning is very important in all stages and, if you keep learning, life will be happy.” She firmly believes that the direction we want our own journeys to take depends solely upon whether or not we are willing to learn at every possible avenue and opportunity. She closed by mentioning her grandson and daughter-in-law, which had brought about unforeseen, yet happy, changes to her own life, when she did not expect it.

As it stood, the interview was over. Where she had been through a journey of self-discovery, mine had only just begun. The heavy emphasis on learning and adjusting is one that stuck out to me, and, though I was on-board with the former since the beginning, the latter is something I still have conflicted feelings about. To me, it still feels right to not be absolutely submissive to every undesirable change about oneself, and always yearn for a greater state of being. Of course, adjusting does become a necessity, and is in most cases the right thing to do, but that should not make it the default path to tread down. I may be wrong here, but, who’s to say that this is not one of my own life’s learnings, one that I hold true forever? All will be made clear in a few years’ time. After all, wisdom does come with age.

47 Rupees

Written by Ashutosh Deb
Leadership Open Elective taught by Jibrael Jos
Nov 2018 at Christ University

The amount of Rs 47 was really close to my paternal grandfather’s heart as it was his first salary. My Dadu (grandfather), Shree Kanak Ranjan Deb, was born on 12^th January, 1929 in Sylhet District, Bangladesh. He had two siblings and was the youngest amongst the three. His father was a zamindaar back in Sylhet and owned a good amount of agricultural land. In 1948, when my Dadu was 19 years old his father suddenly passed away due to a heart attack, this left my Dadu and his family members in a shock. At this point of time my Dadu had shifted to India and was working as an apprentice in a Tea garden in Assam.

                       He came to India in 1946, and worked as an apprentice in a Tea garden in Assam. He worked there for some years and in 1951 he got recruited as a soldier in the Indian Army in Agartala. He was then sent to Bangalore for training and was later posted in Leh-Ladakh. He was a part of some major wars which the Indian Army fought. They were as follows:-

1962- Sino-Indian War

1965- Indo-Pakistani War

1972- Indo-Pakistani War.

         In the meanwhile, he got married to my grandmother in 1961 and was posted in Deolali, Maharashtra. They had three children, my two aunts and my dad, my dad being the youngest. They had to move from places to places as my Dadu had transfers. In 1979 he took a voluntary retirement as an honorary Captain in the Indian Army, and later joined another project in Ranchi, Jharkhand, which was an initiative by the Indian govt.  to provide employment to the ex-servicemen of the Indian Army. He worked there till 1991 and then shifted to Siliguri, West Bengal with his whole family. He got settled there and opened the first Xerox shop of that locality and continued that business for some time.

      He always used to tell me stories about how his army life was and his first salary being just Rs 47. He left his smoking habits for his children as he loved them immensely, and he never touched a cigarette again. He wanted all his children to be highly educated and made them complete their Masters. He also loved his mother a lot and took care of her till her last breath. He really enjoyed quarrelling with my grandma. My grandparents were married for 57 years together. They faced all their hardships together and always stayed on each other’s side.

               My Dadu was someone who supported me always and gave me his blessings whenever I met him in person or was on phone. His grandchildren’s achievements were his pride. He passed away on 13^th February, 2019 after being bed ridden in a hospital for some days. He was 90 years old and his sudden demise left everyone in shock in the family. I met him for the last time in December,2018 while my winter vacations were going on and we went for a family picnic at that time. For me it’s still difficult to believe that I won’t get to meet him again but somewhere in my mind I know that he’s always got my back and will take pride in whatever I achieve in my life.