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Discreet Silence
Ravi and I work in the same office ,are close to each other sharing even our personal matters.. His rich dad had died some years back. His old mother was living with him. Unfortunately Ravi's wife Anita had not taken kindly to the old woman. Coming from a rich family herself, she was a much pampered lady lacking in finer sensibilities with a harsh tongue. So long as the old man was alive, things were going on without coming to surface. There were no children to lighten the atmosphere. Things became gradually worse till it became intolerable. Ravi on return from office saw his mother crying almost daily but never had any word of complaint against Anita. Knowing the latter's abrasive nature, he knew what must have happened. His words of advice had little effect. Ravi being timid in nature, she was domineering. It was about three years ago he discussed the matter with me and we decided that for the peace of the old lady, it was best to admit her in a well to do senior citizen's home which had all the facilities. When he broached the subject to his mom, she did not mind the verbal torture but desired to be with him. Ravi persuaded her saying that he could not bear to see the indignities heaped on her and that she better go to the home and that he would be meeting her frequently.
Ravi went initially often but this tapered off to monthly visits partly due to pressure in office and mostly due to the taunts of Anita. The change had affected the old lady mentally. She became morose and aloof. Calls would come from the home asking him to come and meet his mom. He went sometimes taking time off during office hours but this also became less. But he ensured that his mom got all the physical comforts. There was a phone call one day informing that the old lady slipped and fell down in the bath room. She had broken her back and was unfit for any surgery due to advanced age. Some complications had set in with her kidneys failing. Her eye sight had also diminished abruptly. She became weak and emaciated in the course of a month. Nursing attendants at the home took care of her 24x7.She was all the time muttering "Ravi, Ravi
" I had gone one day with Ravi. It was a pathetic sight seeing the old lady cringe" Ravi, please take me home from this prison and let me be with you in my last days. Please do not refuse. I would myself plead with Anita" Ravi's eyes became misty with tears trickling down. He said" Mom, Do not worry. Let me talk to her. I will come tomorrow." He tried in vain knowing fully there was no chance of Anita relenting. He did not have the face to meet his mom. He did not go. The tricky wife compelled him to take her on a holiday to Darjeeling despite the ailing lady. When he was away a call came from the hospital informing that the lady's condition had turned serious. I informed Ravi and rushed to her side.
I held the lady's arm. Her eyes were closed. There was a deathly pallor about her. She was too weak even to open her eyes. She said"Ravi, I am glad you have come. I want to breathe my last holding your hand. I have caused a lot of anguish for you."
I was perplexed about what I should do. The nurse who knew me indicated that I should not reveal my identity. She signaled that she was in her last moments.
I replied "Mom, do not strain yourself. You will be ok.Just rest and I am here by your side"
Ravi, were you not allright? You said you will come the next day when we met last"
"Mom, I had to go out of India on tour suddenly. I could not refuse. I am here and will not leave you. Please sleep as I keep holding your hand"
"I know you are very affectionate to me. " She kept quiet thereafter and peace descended on her face. I did not stir from the chair and stayed on by her side. I must have fallen asleep in that position till I was woken up by the nurse telling "Sir, it is all over. She passed away a few minutes back. It is very nice of you to have provided the love and warmth she was yearning for.
Thanks a lot for your discreet silence."
Wiping the tears from my eyes, I moved towards the phone booth to inform Ravi.
Contributed by: Natarajan Gurumurthy (gnatarajan53 @ gmail.com)
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Effective Communication
Hu Jintao was named chief of the Communist Party in China.
SCENE: The Oval Office. George Bush and Condolezza Rice.
George: Condi! Nice to see you What''s happening?
Condi: Sir, I have the report about the new leader of China.
George: Great. Let's hear it.
Condi: Hu is the new leader of China.
George: That's what I want to know.
Condi: That's what I'm telling you.
George: That's what I''m asking you Who is the new leader of China?
Condi: Yes.
George: I mean the fellow's name.
Condi: Hu.
George: The guy in China.
Condi: Hu.
George: The new leader of China.
Condi: Hu
George: The Chinese?
Condi: Hu is leading China.
George: Now whaddya asking me for?
Condi: I'm telling you Hu is leading China.
George: Well,I'm asking you. Who is leading China?
Condi: That''s the man's name.
George: That's whose name?
Condi: Yes.
George: Will you or will you not tell me the name of the new leader of China?
Condi: Yes sir.
George: Yassir? You mean arafat is in China? I thought he was in the Middle East.
Condi: That's correct.
George: Then who is in China?
Condi: Yes, sir.
George: Yassir is in China?
Condi: No, sir.
George: Then who is?
Condi: Yes, sir.
George: Yassir?
Condi: No, sir.
George: Look, Condi. I need to know the name of the new leader of China. Get me the Secretary General of the U.N. on the phone. I bet he knows.
Condi: Kofi?
George: No, thanks.
Condi: You want Kofi?
George: No.
Condi: You don't want Kofi.
George: No. But now that you mention it, I could use a glass of milk. and then get me the U.N.
Condi: Yes, sir.
George: Not Yassir! The guy at the U.N.
Condi: Kofi?
George: No, milk! Will you please make the call?
Condi: Call who?
George: Who is the guy at the U.N .?
Condi: Hu is the guy in China.
George: Will you stay out of China?!
Condi: Yes, sir.
George: and stay out of the Middle East! Just get me the guy at the U.N!
Condi: Kofi?
George: all right! Light with sugar. Now get on the phone.
(Condi picks up the phone.)
Condi: Rice here.
George: Rice? Good idea. and a couple of egg rolls, too..
Contributed by: C D Sahu (cdsahu @ kknpp.com)
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Sam Walton's rules for success
Sam Walton, the legendary founder of Wal-Mart, had 10 rules for running a successful business. They are simple and straightforward, but guess what? I would bet the farm that a great many businesses don't follow themand they'd be better off if they did.
Read these (my comments follow) and see how they might fit into your business plan. Take note that even in this tough economy, Wal-Mart is prospering.
1. Commit to your business. Believe in it more than anyone does. Passion is at the top of the list of the skills you need to excel. When you have passion, you speak with conviction, act with authority and present with zeal. If you don't have an intense, burning desire for what you are doing, there's no way you'll be able to work the long, hard hours it takes to become successful.
2. Share profits with your employees. If you treat them as partners, they will treat you as a partner, and together you will perform beyond your wildest dreams. Employees are the life-blood of any good company. Many companies seem to have fancy incentive programs for the big wheels, but smart companies have bonuses and profit-sharing all the way down the line. It was recently announced that this year, each Wal-Mart employee will receive a "bonus" check for more than $900!
3. Motivate your partners. Money and ownership are not enough. Set high goals, encourage competition and then keep score. Competition makes you better and stronger. You should not only welcome stiff competition, you should actively seek it. You'll never realize your full potential unless you're challenged. Similarly, if you don't set goals to determine where you're going, how will you know when you get there? You must stay focused on your goals above all else. Truly dedicated individuals won't let anything interfere with attaining their goals.
4. Communicate everything you possibly can to your employees. The more they know, the more they will understand. Information is power, but it must be used to empower your workforce. You will be amazed how a few snippets of information can transform a business into a powerhouse.
5. Appreciate everything your associates do for the business. In addition to point #2, find ways to let your employees know that you value their contributions. Invite your customers to share their stories of great service and post them for all to see. Catch people doing a good job and let them know you notice. It keeps everyone motivated and does wonders for retention. Remember that your successes result from a group effort.
6. Celebrate your successes. Find some humor in your failures. Don't take yourself so seriously. Maintain a positive tone, even when things don't go as planned. Although a failure may not be funny at the time, there's always a lesson to be learned. Often, the lesson learned is humility.
7. Listen to everyone in your company, and figure out ways to get them talking. Many people think that communication means getting others to do what you want them to do. For them, good listening means, "I talk, you listen." These people have forgotten the basic truth about being a good listener: Listening is a two-way process. Yes, you need to be heard. You also need to hear the other person's ideas, questions and objections. If you talk at people instead of with them, they're not buying inthey're caving in.
8. Exceed your customers' expectations. There's one thing no business has enough of: customers. Take care of the customers you have and they'll take care of you by coming backand bringing their friends. On the flip side, disappoint customers, and they'll disappoint youand then disappear.
9. Control your expenses better than your competition. Wal-Mart tries to help its customers follow this rule. If you aren't already watching pennies, start now.
10. Swim upstream. If everyone else is doing it one way, there is a good chance you can find your niche by going in the opposite direction. Following the crowd leaves you with very little room to maneuver.
Mackay's Moral: If a business can survive and thrive in these times, they must be playing by some smart rules.
Contributed by: Bharathi Natraj (bharathig @ hpcl.co.in)
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A Little Burnt Toast
"When I was a little girl, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. And I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage, and extremely burned toast in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for his toast, smile at my mom, and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember Watching him smear butter and jelly on that toast and eat every bite! When I got Up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad For burning the toast. And I'll never forget what he said: 'Baby, I love burned toast.'
Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if He really liked his toast burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, 'Debbie,your Momma put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides-a little burnt toast never hurt anyone!' You know, life is full of imperfect things.....and imperfect people. I'm not the best housekeeper or cook.
What I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other's faults - and choosing to celebrate each other's differences - is the one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship again that may be a "close-friend relationship, husband-wife relationship or to that matter any relationship whatsoever" !!!!
And that's my prayer for you today. That you will learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of GOD. Because in the end, He's the only One who will be able to give you a relationship where burnt toast isn't a deal-breaker! We could extend this to any relationship in fact - as understanding is the base of any relationship, be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship!! "
"Don't put the key to your happiness in someone else's pocket but into your own"
Contributed by: Bharathi Natraj (bharathig @ hpcl.co.in)
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Natural Skin Care from your Kitchen
Most of the women spend a fortune on beauty. We try just about anything to make us more beautiful. But these beauty products are either expensive or not effective. When we are tired of all the over-the-counter beauty products that promises us an instant effect which by the way didn't happen most of the time, here are some of the easy, no-fuss solutions to some of the beauty problems that you may have: Hair & Scalp * Dandruff " Use tomato juice in your hair, it soothes dry, itchy scalp by removing the scales and replaces its pH balance. *Dry Hair Mayonnaise works well as a deep conditioning treatment mask. Mayonnaise has egg yolks that supply the hair with protein, vinegar that normalizes the pH balance of your hair, and vegetable oils that lubricate hair follicles. *Dull Hair Pure fruit juices bring back life and color into your hair. Pure lemon juice brings out the shine and enhances the highlights in all hair types. Cranberry juice brings out the highlights in dark brown hair. Eyes * Dark under eye circles / eye puffiness Apply ice cubes , cold water, tea, wet tea bags, milk or slices of either cucumber or potatoes over your eyes. Let it stay for about 10 minutes to allow the delicate tissues under your eyes to tighten and shrink to normal. * Tired eyes Saturate a huge piece of cotton with cold milk, place it over your eyes and relax for 15 minutes. Rinse afterwards. Or you can use an ice cube, composes of water and chamomile tea. To make this, fill an ice tray w/ water halfway then pour up chamomile tea to make up the other half. Freeze. Then just rub around your eyes when your eyes feel tired. Face & Skin * Wrinkles and lines Smooth wrinkles and lines on your forehead by applying cooking oil or olive oil on them. Oil contains fatty acids similar to the composition of the skin fat and therefore complements the skin. * Low surface blackheads exfoliate using cornmeal, oatmeal or sea salt. * Deep-seated blackheads Put on a facial mask that is made up of some mixture of 2 tbsp cornmeal, 2 tbsp sesame oil and 5 tbsp of plain yogurt . Apply this on your face for seven consecutive days. * Dry facial skin Make a cornmeal scrub by mixing two teaspoons of cornmeal with just enough honey to make a paste. Using your fingertips, apply the concoction on your face with circular motion. Rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water. This will lift up dead skin cells and give way to new, fresh, and rosy skin. * Flaky skin Just rub either avocado or lemon on affected areas and let it stay for 15 minutes. You can also use egg yolk for this purpose. Hey hey hey if you think you have no time for these things and you have some extra money for your improvements, there are a lot of products in the market which you can easily buy, but always remember there's no better way to do it other than to go natural. You may also like to read - |
Cut the tomato in half and rub on the skin. Leave on for fifteen minutes. Wash it off with water. This will reduce open pores and blackheads. This treatment is good particularly for oily skin. ███████████████████████████████████████ To tighten your pores: Use ice or cucumber juice Leave one or the other for 15 minutes Wash off your face. ███████████████████████████████████████ Do not be lazy and go for any of them, first try the Vitamin E, if your skin reacts to it then try Olive oil, or honey... the rest come after the failure of the previous remedy This is a list of remedy you can easily find and they are also natural. Contributed by: Bhagyalakshmi Sundaran (bsundaran @ yahoo.com) You may also like to read – |