The Law of Wasted Effort.

Do you know that lions only succeed in a quarter of their hunting attempts? Which means they fail in 75% of their attempts and succeed in only 25% of them.

Despite this small percentage shared by most predators, they don't despair in their pursuit and hunting attempts.

The main reason for this is not because of hunger as some might think but it is the understanding of the "Law of Wasted Efforts" that have been instinctively built into animals, a law in which nature is governed.

Half of the eggs of fishes are eaten.......half of the baby bears die before puberty.......most of the world's rains fall in oceans.......and most of the seeds of trees are eaten by birds.

Scientists have found that animals, trees and other forces of nature are more receptive to the law of "wasted efforts".

Only humans think that the lack of success in a few attempts is failure......but the truth is that : we only fail when we "stop trying".

Success is not to have a life free of pitfalls and falls.......but success is to walk over your mistakes and go beyond every stage where your efforts were wasted looking forward to the next stage.

If there is a word that summarizes this world, it will simply be : continue all over again.

Source. What'sApp.

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In jest.

A woman walks into a butchery shop just before closing time and asks, "Do you still have chicken?"

The butcher opens his deep freezer, takes out his only chicken left and puts it on the weighing scale. It weighs 1.5 kg.

The woman looks at the chicken and at the scale and asked, "Do you have one that's a bit bigger than this one?"

The butcher puts his only chicken back into the freezer and then, takes it out again.

But this time when he puts it on the scale, he carefully keeps his thumb on the scale pan.

And the scale now shows 2 kg.

"That's wonderful", said the woman.

"I'll take both of them, please!"

In a situation like this, you realize at once that your integrity and reputation are firmly on the line.

Your wisdom becomes foolishness and your cunningness becomes stupidity.

Until now the butcher has his head inside the big deep freezer, looking for the first chicken.

Remember :

* Always tell the truth and you'll be free! * A good name is better than riches * Live to express yourself and not to impress others.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a half past 9. Two KSEB line men came by, asked me to shut down the inverter as they were going to work on the overhead line. Why was the requirement to shut down the inverter asked for, I'd my doubts on, but maintained my silence and went along with it. The electricity was restored at about 1800 hrs. And there were a few power interruptions in the course of the evening - subsequent to it - making me wonder as to what work they had carried out during the entire day?

Attended a webinar on "Eco Eureka Principles for Eco Digital Skills and Green Benchmarking" by Dr S Nagarathinam, Head of the Department of Communication and Linguistics, Madurai Kamaraj University from 1700 - 1800 hrs. It was an interesting presentation. 

 

Etiquette to right parenting.

For all parents!

Thirukkural was written by Thiruvalluvar (A Tamil poet/writer) more than 5,000 years ago. It's one of the ancient sciences on Human Behaviour which has not changed despite Modern Education and Technology!

               SOME GOLDEN THOUGHTS OF THIRUKKURAL

  1. If your children lie to you often, it is because you over-react too harshly to their inappropriate        behaviour.

  2. If your children are not taught to confide in you about their mistakes, you've lost them.

  3. If your children had poor self-esteem, it is because you advise them more than you encourage them.

  4. If your children do not stand up for themselves, it is because from a young age you have                    disciplined them regularly in public.

  5. If your children take things that do not belong to them, it is because when you buy them things, you   don't let them choose what they want.

  6. If your children are cowardly, it is because you help them too quickly.

  7. If your children do not respect other people's feelings, it is because instead of speaking, you order  and command them.

  8. If your children are too quick to anger, it is because you give too much attention to misbehaviour      and you give little attention to good behaviour.

  9. If your children are excessively jealous, it is because you congratulate them only when they              successfully complete something and not when they improve at something even if they don't                  successfully complete it.

10. If your children intentionally disturb you, it is because you are not physically affectionate enough.

11. If your children are openly defiant, it is because you openly threaten to do something but don't        follow through. 

12. If your child is secretive, it is because they are sure that you would blow things out of proportion.

13. If your children answer back at you, it is because they watch you do it to others and think it's            normal behaviour.

14. If your children don't listen to you but listen to others, it is because you are too quick to jump to        conclusions.

15. If your children rebel, it is because they know you care more about what others think than what is    right. 

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a half past 9. 

There's a cat that is trying to be friendly with us. We give him food and do not disturb him if he's lying around outside the house, even if that position comes in our way. We've named him Kittu. Must be about a year old and is grey in colour with black stripes.

 

Do learn from the defence forces.

It is very true. Your religion is the religion of the troops you command, your unit and your regiment. You die for your country in the ultimate reckoning. The truth, however, is that you die for your regiment which, sometimes, has members from many religions and castes, though it may be named after one group or region to instill a sense of belonging.

Also as an officer, one has to compulsorily learn the language of the troops! Could be Tamil, Punjabi, Gurkhali, Assamese, Bengali or whatever! You go to pray at all places of worship that your troops pray and celebrate all festivals. That is why the Indian Army has always beaten the Pakistanis. 

It is not that their troops are inferior, it's the Officer Class. The ratio of officer to soldier dying in battle is much higher in the case of the Indian Army as compared to the Pakistani Army in all the wars fought so far. Reason, Indian officers lead from the front and the troops are willing to follow their officer and give their life. That has been the tradition.

To give an example of this relationship : in the 1965 War, a Major George (Malayalee) of the Gurkha Regiment was captured by the Pakistanis and his mutilated body was found stuck to a tree, by his troops. The Gurkhas went with their khukris drawn (the curved dagger used in close combat and part of the Gurkha culture) and returned with numerous pairs of ears and magazines of the Pakistani soldiers responsible for this heinous and cowardly act.

Once the khukri is drawn out of its sheath, it has to see blood. If nothing else, they snick their finger to let the blood touch the blade and then they put it back. The Gurkhas are very loyal and fearsome fighters.

This is applicable to all the Indian Army Regiments. India has the highest battlefield in the world, Siachen Glacier, 18 to 22,000 ft high and all the possible terrains in the world! The American troops come to train with the Indian troops to learn High Altitude warfare and Jungle warfare.

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In the villages, every Shaheed's (Martyr) home is a War Memorial and the parents are proud that their son died for the country!

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a half past 9. Earlier the 'aarathi' of the house was carried out as is the usual practice on all Wednesdays.

Attended the webinar, "Generation of Green Economy through People's Participation" by Shri TKA Nair, IAS, Former Principal Secretary Secretary to the PM. It was interesting.

Today, too, there was an unscheduled power interruption for the entire day from 0930 - 1830 hrs. Have to speak to the local KSEB head and stress upon the fact that he cannot do this without prior intimation and sufficient warning to the consumers. It's utter nonsense!

PS.

Adieu Vani's Achhamma.

Vani's achhamma, all of 97 years, passed into the mist of time around a half past 3 in the wee hours of the morning due to old age complications. I remember her lively nature, chirpy with plenty of interesting conversation, outgoing nature and so full of love. Today is 'Dwaadasi', an auspicious occasion and therefore, because her death happened on this day, it's believed that her soul has gone to heaven! 

May her noble soul rest in peace. With tears and prayers.  

I want to remember your face!

In a telephone interview, the radio announcer asked his guest, a millionaire, "What made you happiest in life?" 

The millionaire said :

I have gone through four stages of happiness in life and finally, I understood the meaning of true happiness. The first stage was to accumulate wealth and means. But at this stage I did not get the happiness I wanted.

Then came the second stage of collecting valuables and items. But I realised that the effect of this thing is also temporary and the lustre of valuable things does not last long.

Then came the third stage of getting big projects. Like buying a football team, buying a tourist resort, etc. But even here I did not get the happiness I had imagined.

The fourth time a friend of mine asked me to buy a wheelchair for some disabled children. I immediately bought a wheelchair but the friend insisted that I go with him and hand over the wheelchairs to the children. I got ready and went with it.

There I gave these chairs to these children with my own hands. I saw the strange glow of happiness on the faces of these children. I saw them all sitting on chairs, moving around and having fun. It was as if they had arrived at a picnic spot. 

But I felt real joy when I started to leave and one of the kids grabbed my leg. I gently tried to free my legs but the child stared at my face and held my legs tightly.

I bent down and asked the child, "Do you need anything else?"

The answer that this child gave me not only made me happy but also changed my life completely. This child said, "I want to remember your face so that when I meet you in heaven, I will be able to recognise you and thank you once again".

Tailpiece.

Got up a trifle after 6, the chores and was ready by a half past 9. 

One of the girl students of the Mercy Institute of Technology, nearby, had contradicted Covid-19 and is in hospital. A few of the students who had interacted with her, along with the teachers, are the ones who've been quarantined in the house next door. Was given this information by the owner of the house this morning.

It was a rainy day, all through! Because of the rain, the Kudumbasree workers could not be deployed around the Raj Nivas, to cut and remove the wild grass and weeds. And the Met department has predicted heavy rain, along with lightning and thunder, from today till the 16th.

 

The God of Spinoza.

When Einstein gave lectures at US universities, the recurring question that students asked him most was : Do you believe in God? And he always answered : I believe in the God of Spinoza.

Baruch de Spinoza was a Dutch philosopher considered one of the great rationalists of 17th century philosophy, along with Descartes.

(Spinoza) : God would say :

Stop praying. What I want you to do is go out into the world and enjoy your life. I want you to sing, have fun and enjoy everything I've made for you.

Stop going into those dark, cold temples that you that you built yourself and saying they are my house. My house is in the mountains, in the woods, rivers, lakes, beaches. That's where I live and there I express my love for you.

Stop blaming me for your miserable life; I never told you there was anything wrong with you or that you were a sinner or that your sexuality was a bad thing. Sex is a gift I have given you and with which you can express your love, your ecstasy, your joy. So don't blame me for everything they made you believe.

Stop reading alleged sacred scriptures that have nothing to do with me. If you can't read me in a sunrise, in a landscape, in the look of your friends, in your son's eyes.......you will find me in no book! Stop asking me "Will you tell me how to do my job?" Stop being so scared of me. I do not judge you or criticise you, nor get angry, or criticise you, nor get angry, or bothered. I am pure love.

Stop asking for forgiveness, there's nothing to forgive. If I made you.....I filled you with passions, limitations, pleasures, needs, inconsistencies.......free will. How can I blame you if you respond to something I put in you? How can I punish you for being the way you are if I'm the one who made you? Do you think I could create a place to burn all my children who behave badly for the rest of eternity? what kind of god would do that?

Respect your peers and don't do what you don't want for yourself. All I ask is that you pay attention in your life, that alertness is your guide.

My beloved, this life is not a test, not a step on the way, not a rehearsal, nor a prelude to paradise. This life is the only thing here and now and it is all you need.

I have set you absolutely free, no prizes or punishments, no sins or virtues, no one carries a marker, no one keeps a record. You are absolutely free to create in your life. Heaven or hell.

I can't tell you if there's anything after this life but I can give you a tip. Live as if there is not. As if this is your only chance to enjoy, to love, to exist.

So, if there's nothing after, then you will have enjoyed the opportunity I gave you. And if there is, rest assured that I won't ask if you behaved right or wrong, I'll ask. Did you like it? Did you have fun? What did you enjoy the most? What did you learn?....

Stop believing in me; believing is assuming, guessing, imagining. I don't want you to believe in me, I want you to believe in you. I want you to feel me in you when you kiss your beloved, when you tuck in your little girl, when you caress your dog, when you bathe in the sea.

Stop praising me, what kind of egomaniac God do you think I am?

I'm bored being praised. I'm tired of being thanked. Feeling grateful? Prove it by taking care of yourself, your health, your relationships, the world. Express your joy! That's the way to praise me.

Stop complicating things and repeating as a parakeet what you've been taught about me.

What do you need more miracles for? So many explanations?

The only thing for sure is that you are here, that you are alive, that this world is full of wonders.

- Spinoza.

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The guy does it again!

Farooq Abdullah has now exceeded all limits when he said that with China's help he'd like to restore Art 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. It's seditious and anti-national; the clown Rahul Gandhi has supported the statement without understanding the consequences - or does he think that he can get away with such acts? Why don't these chaps face the repercussions of the law? How do they get immunity from legal action against them?

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Took part in a webinar from 1200-1300 hrs on "Agri-Eco Innovations for Entrepreneurship" by Prof VK Damodaran, Founder Director and Former Vice Chairman Energy Management Centre, Kerala. A nice and interesting lecture.

A quarantine has been set up at the technical institute behind our house. Was damn furious about the police, the panchayat and the Variath people - whose house this is - for not having taken me and the others in the neighbourhood into confidence before the execution! 

PS.

My uncle, the late Santhan kochachhan's nephew and Kocha chechi's eldest son, Babu, passed away due to Covid. He was 57. RIP Babu, my tears and prayers. May your near and dear ones have the strength to tide over these stressful times.  

   

Word of the day.

Meliorism

noun : mee-lee-uh-riz-um

Definition : is the belief that the world tends to improve and that humans can aid its betterment.

Examples.

"Meliorism is that comfortable midway point between pessimism and optimism, wherein its possessor conceives of her actions as capable of bringing about a better future".

"An old truism holds that the pessimist sees the glass as half-empty while the optimist sees it as half-full. But active and engaged people don't bother to measure the contents of their cups. They savour what they've got, drink it down, then go looking for a refill. One name for this approach is meliorism. Meliorists want to make things better - to ameliorate them".

Did you know?

In 1877, British novelist George Eliot believed she had coined meliorist when she wrote, "I don't know that I ever heard anybody use the word 'meliorist' except myself". Her contemporaries credited her with coining both meliorist and meliorism and one of her letters contains an early documented use of meliorism; however, there is evidence that meliorist had been around decades before she started using it. Whoever coined it did so by drawing on the Latin melior, meaning "better". It is likely that the English coinages were also influenced by another melior descendant, meliorate, a synonym of ameliorate (to make better or more tolerable) that was introduced to English in the 1500s.

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Goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes. Because for those who love with their heart and soul there is no such thing as separation.

- Rumi.

Tailpiece. 

Got up a trifle late around a half past 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Suma was given a day off , by Lekha, as her leg was giving her problems. Video called my sisters and had a fairly long chat.

Participated in a webinar from 1200-1330 hrs on "Farmer Producers Organisations & NABARD" by Shri RK Srivastava, CGM, NABARD, J&K. It was interesting and gave me quite a few inputs to dovetail it with the children's schooling to develop interest in agriculture!

Plenty of bananas from the huge bunch that we got from one of the banana trees of our backyard. Distributed it in the neighbourhood too, as has been our custom. 

Insults for enjoyment!

Insults when coated with humour and wit make for a great combination - here are a few :-

  1. She has a supreme court figure ---- no appeal.

  2. He is a real big gun --- of small caliber and immense bore.

  3. She dresses to kill --- and cooks the same way.

  4. He was a premature baby --- he was born before his parents were married.

  5. He was born in the United States --- terrible things happen in other countries too.

  6. His obesity --- is surplus gone to waist. 

  7. He left his job because of illness and fatigue --- his boss was sick and tired of him.

  8. His credit is so bad --- he cannot even borrow trouble.

  9. He kept learning more and more about less and less until now --- he knows everything about nothing.

10. What he lacks in intelligence --- he makes up in stupidity.

11. He may talk like a fool and act like a fool but don't get the wrong idea about him --- he is a fool.

12. It is not that he does not have presence of mind --- his trouble is absence of thought.

13. Her photographs do he injustice --- they look like her.

14. He is as phoney --- as a dentist's smile.

15. He started out in life as an unwanted child --- now he is wanted in 10 states.

16. She has --- a keen sense of rumour.

17. He is jack of all trades --- and out of work in all of them.

18. They are in Iron and Steel Industry --- she irons the clothes and he steals.

19. She thought she was getting a model husband --- too bad he is not a working model.

20. He is so boring --- he cannot even entertain a doubt.

21. He gave a very moving performance --- everyone moved towards the exit door.

Tailpiece.

Got up a trifle after 6, the chores and was ready by a half past 9. The power interruption was sudden and without any warning which began at 0940 hrs and ended by 1630 hrs; the electricity board guys will never improve.

Participated in the first webinar from 1100 - 1230 hrs on "Green Economy and Green Jobs" by Mr B Shadrach, Advisor Skills, Commonwealth of Learning (Manpower Cadre). It was interesting. The second was the 'Aazhchakkoottam' from 1600 - 1700 hrs on "Cancer patients and Covid-19" by Dr A Sajid, Clinical Superintendent, Regional Cancer Centre, Thiruvananthapuram.

Couldn't participate fully in the second webinar because my cellphone had very less charge!

The Chevy was delivered by 1700 hrs after the completion of its servicing.