My Do Right Stories

Many Do Right Stories waiting to be told...

Stories that have their weight in Gold!

Tata Capital & BlogAdda's Do Right initiative

Is sure to make us learn, grow & relive. 

For me this was a childhood self-discovery trip,

Like gathering nectar from the pool to sip! 
Sharing some true stories with Honesty,
Respect, Kindness, Compassion, Integrity...!

When I was a kid, I had been invited to a Birthday Party. When my Mom went to pick me up, my friend’s mother told her, “Your kid is so well-behaved! She did not jump on the bed or on the Sofa like the others! Rather, she asked everyone to stop jumping by saying, “Ganda hojayega, Aunty ko jyada kaam padega” (It’ll get dirty and Aunty has to do extra work) Back at home, my Mom had hugged me & told me how proud she was of me. I had actually thought in the other person's shoes and had deeply felt and shared how tough it would be for her. That's Compassion- when we walk ahead of our selfish interests and think of other's needs or problems. Jumping on the bed would give us a high, but would make Aunty sigh! My Mom always cited this proudly to everyone. Now when I think of this, I give the credit to my parents for my upbringing. 

When I was in school, I was thrilled when my first story was published in Tinkle magazine. I earned a princely sum of Rs 80 for that! It was great to start 'earning' thanks to Uncle Pai, who had started accepting most of my stories, after sending me a series of rejection letters, rather 'motivation' letters with stories about the King and the Spider! 'Never Quit' has always been my mantra. My Papa opened a bank account for me where he deposited  all my earnings that arrived by cheques and Money Orders! Thereafter, I won Rs 500 when my film-review of the film 'Mohra' was published in Filmfare magazine. Everyone demanded a treat from me as I was a rich lady! Then, on a serious note, they asked me how I was going to spend all the money I had earned. I informed that I planned to donate it to the organization, CRY- Child Relief and You. Listening to this, my Mom had tears in her eyes... When I asked her, she said that Kindness always has such a touching effect. That was yet another reason for her to feel proud of me! To fulfill my wish, my Papa dispatched a cheque to CRY by contributing an extra amount on his behalf so as to make the total amount substantive; also he loves round figures! 

One afternoon, when I was in Std-IV, my Uncle (Mamaji-my Mom's younger brother)  visited our home. We had just had our lunch a short while ago and my Mom had gone for her afternoon siesta. Neither I nor my Uncle wished to disturb her sleep. It was lunch-time and I sensed that my Uncle must be hungry. Then, I actually went to the kitchen and did something that I had never done before...I served food! As I had never done it previously in my life, it was an adventure for me! My Mom had prepared extra quantity that I neatly served on a plate for him. Boy! Was he impressed! He had finished eating, when Mom entered the scene and learnt about the 'great task' I had accomplished! I had demonstrated my Respect for both of them. Even today my Uncle proudly cites this incident as an example to all!

My Honesty has earned me many titles & certificates from friends in School! They used to call me ‘Raja Harischandra’ & ‘Yudhisthir’ ! On the last day of School, our English Ma'am, one of our strictest teachers, asked a question to the Class- “What change would you like to see in me?” We all knew what change we wanted in her, but no one really dared to express. Just when I was planning to actually share my views as she was so keen to know, she actually called out my name to do so- “Anita, You tell me!” I said, “Ma’am, we would like you to smile a lot more everyday!” The whole class cheered and we got to see Ma’am’s smile for the first time ever! Just imagine Ma’am picking only me out of the whole class…She was a great teacher to have identified her students' character traits! I reflect on this incident with great pride that my reputation has always reeked of honesty! I have always earned everyone's trust for the right judgement and honest opinions.That is a precious treasure...

When I was in Std-V, I was selected for an inter-school sports event. I was to represent my school in the 100 metres and 200 metres running race. There were 3 groups as per the Class we studied in- GroupA- Classes 1-IV, GroupB- Classes V-VIII & GroupC- Classes IX-X. I was eligible for GroupB. However, seeing the tough competition with the higher Class girls of other participating schools in the same group as me, one of my teachers suggested that I fake my Class and write Class-IV instead of Class-V...and compete in GroupA. That would give me a better chance to win the races. I felt very uneasy with the idea and did not oblige at that stage. I had my Integrity at stake even at that age! I filled up my correct details and did the right thing. I ran the races in my right category. No, I did not win... Our School had missed certificates. The same teacher asked me why I hadn't listened to her....Isn't everything fair in love and war? As I always was tall and ran very fast, I could have easily won in GroupA. But, there are some races that we feel we have won even after losing them! I still give myself a pat for this! For me, I am always the winner of every race as even my name Anita means 'grace'!

"Be Proud of who you are,
Respect who you have been &
Be grateful for who you are yet to become.
This journey is yours to learn from & grow through."
- @EvergreenQuotes on Twitter

"My mission in life is not to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, compassion, humour, and some style."
-M.Angelou

I am sharing my Do RIght Stories at BlogAdda.com in association with Tata Capital.

 

Your views are most welcome!