She didn't give up

There are a couple of big celebrities/personalities I consider inspiring. For example Nelson Mandela. I like him for what he did and that I can never imagine I'd do - he forgave people (white) who put him prison for long 27 years when he came into power!

But mostly I get ispired from people in my real life.

A girl from my team, now ex-teammate:
We were working on same project. And we were supposed to learn how a spufi (SQL Using File Input) works and run it for some data preparation. We got knowledge transfer from one of the senior teammates. Luckily I managed to work with the spufi and somehow she did not get it. In all 6 phases of testing, she'd come to me and try to learn how that spufi works, I'd explain her and she'd go and try on her system and she'd tell me it's not happening. I'd then go to her system or from my system I'd do it for her. This went till last phase of testing in every phase without fail. I was patient throuout and morever it was my duty to make her understand that. At last I thought stupid girl she'll never get it.

And finally one friday our application went live. Same day later she came to me - "KK I can do this. It's working". She took me to her system and showed me that. And I was like - what's the use now when application is live already. It's useless now. Probably it might be usefull when we have any CR for the same application in future, that's it!

I started thinking about the entire time in project; about how she ate my head all the time; in fact I made an opinion that she is dumb. But there was an inspiring thing in this whole story - "She didn't give up!"

A different way to show love

After struggling through my engineering - having failed in few subjects and getting just pass marks in various other subjects, I finally got placed in an MNC. I was very excited. Excited for the thought that now I'd be PAID for the work I'd do, for the thought that I'd be paying tax and contributing to the growth of the country. You can not imagine how happy I was! It was something very exciting for a boy from a remote village, for a boy who never read Dhruv, Nagraj...comics until engineering, for a boy who never watched TV because there was electricity in the village and so there was no TV...

Well I booked tatkal ticket for home. I reached home in the evening after 41 hours of journey and my mother opened the door and I broke the big news to her. She just hugged me. There would never be a great joy for a mother than seeing her son standing on his own feet. I went inside and told my father the big news. He smiled casually and congratulated me and that's it - no hugging, no big hahaha you did it or I am proud of you or something more emotional. I was simply disapointed. I could not get angry on him for I always had great respect for him and the way he respected my every decision. But I did not get it.

I had food and went to sleep but could not sleep. The excitement of 'getting PAID for the work I'd do, for the thought that I'd be paying tax and contributing to the growth of the country' was gone.

For a couple of days I observed my father is behaving a little different. He never orders us for anything ever. He'd just put an statment like for instance he wants any of us to get vegetable from our farm he'd say - "If we could get some tomotoes from Gainda*" and not like "Pappu go get some tomatoes" or something like that. But since I have arrived home he's complaining and scolding me for everything I am doing. Like 'this is not time to read news paper', 'Communists are no good' if I am talking something good about communism, and things like that. And I started to think if I have done something really bad. I mean I just cracked interview of one of the best MNC in our country, is it bad? I was totally tensed- what has happened to father.

Next morning I was having breakfast and my mother was sitting there in case I needed another helping. I could not stop me with complaining about father's behavior in last couple of days; since I have arrived home. I never complained about my father even in my thought. But I could not resist complaining this time - "Mother, why father is behaving so differently?".
To this my mother started smiling - "He is very happy and very proud of you! That's why".

And then I started thinking about my childhood. I was very close to my father right since my childhood. I would always have dinner with him; in fact the dinner would be served for both of us in the same plates. He'd be sitting in a single position having food and I'd change my sitting position with every niwala and every interesting thing he'd say. We'd talk about various things over dinner.

I started thinking all the ocassions during my childhood when I had done something really good like - getting highest marks in school when I was in 8th standard, coming 2nd in a quiz where most of the participants were graduates or post graduates when I was in 9th grade, my article got published in news paper when I was in 9th grade, I topped the math quiz.

Every time the behavior of father was like this. But then I was kid and was very much involved with so many things and never noticed it.

And now I see the pattern. I discovered a different way to show love!

*Gainda is the name of the farm nearest to our house. Ye we have name for each of land peice that we have like - Baluapar, RamratanBhaiWala- for it was bought from Ram Ratan bhai by my grandfather

You're beautiful as you feel

Then people gonna treat you better

You're gonna find, yes you will

That you're beautiful, you're beautiful

You're beautiful as you feel!

[Few lines from a great soundtrack by Carole King. I was watching 'The man from earth']

What I forgot was I was his child

There were things that I never did in front of my father 'cause I thought it would be childish.

What I forgot was I was his child.

Cross the bridge and you'd know the story

The boy is scared of crossing the bridge. The renter is a little ahead on the bridge and writes something on paper puts it on the railings of bridge and walks further. The boy runs to paper and reads it; it says "If you cross the bridge I'll tell you my story". The boy crosses the bridge and ...
[Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close]

You want to know the story? Cross the bridge!

Life leaves marks to guide you...and if it doesn't...leave yours.

Life leaves marks to guide you...and if it doesn't...leave yours.

It's just a thought that came to my mind...I was watching "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close".