Croatia, clarity and careers

We were walking through the beautiful Vintgar gorge marveling at the clear, characteristic turquoise blue waters. We had been gazing at these clear blue waters for almost a week now, but we just couldn’t get over them.

Rahul: Look at the clarity of the water. (For the nine hundred and eighty fifth time)

Sailee: Hmm

Anubhav: Yeah, it definitely has more clarity than our career goals. 

The 'cloth' man

As I read about Anshu Gupta being awarded the Magsaysay award, a memory from a few years ago flashed clearly before me. This was in my sophomore year. I used to be a part of the Entrepreneurship Cell then, and we did an annual festival that we called 'E-summit' where we invited inspiring entrepreneurs to come and talk to the students at IIT Roorkee in the hope of inspiring some entrepreneurs of our own. Anshu Gupta was one of our invited speakers. He didn't really speak about entrepreneurship. Actually, he didn't speak about entrepreneurship at all.  However, his talk was without doubt one of the most inspiring talks I have ever heard. He spoke with real examples. He gave a chilling example of how in the Delhi winters, the people who work at cemeteries often sleep clutching dead bodies as it gives warmth. That story shook me then and thinking of it shakes me now. He spoke about the culture of giving and the importance of giving something that the beneficiaries actually need. He spoke about how people are always eager to give what 'they don't need' rather than giving what the less privileged might actually need. He spoke from his heart and he touched a cord. There was something he believed needed to change and he was passionate about it. What great spirit and what a great man. I feel privileged I had the opportunity to hear him. 

The honest woodcutter

“But the woodcutter was very very honest and refused to accept anything other than his own iron axe” continued Charu. She was in the middle of one of the most irritating activities of her day. She was trying to get little Aryan to have his lunch, who like most other 4 year olds hated eating and especially something as boring as dal and rice. He kept running away from Charu who was trying her usual trick of a story to distract him.  That day it was the woodcutter’s story. He listened on, as she regaled him with the tale of how the woodcutter’s axe fell in to the water, and then how a maiden came out of the lake to present him with a bronze axe, a sliver axe and a gold axe.

She went on with the story continuing to feed Aryan spoonfuls of rice at regular intervals “And the maiden asked him several times but he refused to accept anything else. Now the maiden was in fact the Goddess of the lake and was just testing the woodcutter trying to tempt him with gold and silver. But the woodcutter was an honest man who did not give in to his temptation. She was impressed with his honesty and rewarded him by letting him keep each of the bronze, silver and ”

Charu had to stop mid way to answer the phone. It was Priya, her younger sister. She had had an interview that day and Charu had been expecting her call. And from the tone of the greeting she heard, Charu knew this one hadn’t gone too well just like the three before this one and she also knew why. She would speak to Charu about this again she decided, but now she had to go. She had to finish feeding Aryan. “I’ll call you in a while, Priya” she said as she hung up but not before adding “I don’t know why you always have to tell them the exact reasons for leaving your last job. You don’t have to honest with everyone you know”

She couldn’t see Aryan around anymore. He must have wandered out. She walked into the drawing room calling out his name to find him fiddling with the television set. “So where were we? “She said getting back to feeding him and the story. “Yes, the goddess rewarded him by letting him keep each of the bronze, silver and gold axes”

“So, you see Aryan, honesty is always rewarded, and one must always be honest in life” she concluded satisfied, while Aryan who seemed engrossed had just finished eating the last spoonful of rice.

The tragedy in the world today is that we are often expected to abandon the very values we were once taught to embrace.