FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

From tiny tender feet striving to ground themselves on earth to feet lurking to leave behind footprints –unerased and uneroded by time, life is all about turning back and cherishing those pristine moments and if you are a toastmaster, undoubtedly you will have millions of those moments flash before you as you read this line! My once in a lifetime moment is happening as I pen down the Editor’s thoughts ! I am highly obliged to thank all those who had faith in me and gave me a freehand in churning out the newsletter, those who had conviction in my utter demanding ideas and helped translate my ideas into this newsletter-How I wish ‘Thank you’ was more than a word !. “RHAPSODY” in the newsletter’s context means to“Write or Speak with extravagant enthusiasm.”With the lovely pieces of articles and poems not restricted to the terrains of CCC, these contributions are sure to revitalize the readers’ minds and here come our writers to etch out a place in your hearts forever…..

-TM AKSHAYA MAHALINGAM

INDEX

TOPICS

PAGE NO.

FROM THE PRESIDENT DIVISION GOVERNOR’S NOTE AREA GOVERNOR’S NOTE PHANTOM TROLLS MENTORING MATTERS HORN OK PLEASE PARADISE MY TRYST WITH CCC DISCOVERING MYSELF WITH LOVE ,TO CCC THE YA…..OK—SO WHAT ? ATTITUDE THE BUTTERFLY TALE FOLLOW YOUR HEART

3 4 5 6 8 10 12 13 14 15 16 17 19

PRESIDENT’S WORDS OF WISDOM

DIVYA.S PRESIDENT,CCC

The British wouldn’t have, even in the wildest of their dreams, imagined that they would lose foothold over a colony by battling with a man having non-violence as his weapon. No scientist of NASA would’ve believed, if he/she was told that a girl in a some village of India dreaming about airplanes, would become and fly with them a decade later as an astronaut. Nobody would’ve ever imagined Barack Obama would be the President of the United States someday. Twice, in a row. The world has witnessed a good number of such inspiring stories, all very different from each other. However there is one thread that binds them together, viz. the ideology,”Dream big and you will see it alive someday.”

The executive committee and members of Chennai Communicators Club is a group that

believes in dreaming big. As one of the many outcomes, of their dreaming big, is the newsletter that you are reading now. These small things, may seem very small, looking at stories of people like Mahatma Gandhi and KalpanaChawla. But it is important to remember that attitude and initiative, makes ordinary, the extra-ordinary.

This newsletter is a testimony to the fact that a new bunch of people, are learning

leadership by practice. The attitude and approach developed in this leadership game will certainly give the leaders a momentum to scale greater heights and also inspire another bunch of members to experiment with leadership. The chain-reaction has already caught on. Congratulations to Team Rhapsody, my executive committee, the budding writers and poets, members of CCC for another milestone achievement.

Together, let us dream and together, we shall grow

MESSAGE

S.N.VENKATESH DIVISION GOVERNOR

It was around July 2012, I heard of a Club that was in the forming somewhere in Velachery. It was around this time, I was seeking to shift from earlier Corporate Club that I was a member and in which I could not continue. The fact that the meeting venue of this formative Club was about 14 kms from my place of living did not deter me to look at this Club for a possible shift. My first visit to the Club sealed the decision, I was sucked in. The number of attendees in this meeting were about 17 of which at least 10 were from various other Clubs from the city. Fast Forward, 6 months from then, the Club has strength of about 30 + members of its own, is regularly patronized by seasoned/enthusiastic Toastmasters from around the city. The Club has a forceful presence on Facebook and has its own website too. It has a bunch of young members who have been extremely energetic, have represented at the Division Level Contest, have participated in Division and District events and engagements have, shown high degree of commitment. I am proud to belong to this enthusiastic and energetic Club steered by an executive committee of young, innovative and raw talent that is unfolding into various competitive contests and leadership roles.

Way to go CCCians, congratulations for the Newsletter to eke out another window for showcasing the Club in the Toastmaster fraternity in Chennai and beyond.

WISHING ALL A VERY HAPPY 2013, MAY YOU GET ALL THAT YOU WISH

CHENNAI COMMUNICATORS CLUB

“Where Vision meets Reality”

TM Rajesh Natarajan Area Governor I am delighted to write this piece for Chennai Communicators Club. Any remarkable initiative requires a Vision. Vision in simple terms is to look through the future inspite of all uncertainties.Making this vision happen is reality. The Journey of translating this vision into reality is actually a painful process. A process that requires lot of energy, lot of sacrifices, lot of perseverance, most importantly, ability to withstand failure. I take this opportunity to congratulate the founding leaders, members and mentors who have gone through this painful process many times to see the club for what it is today. In very short time, this club has churned out lot of communicators and leaders to the District. We have seen champion evaluators, humourous speakers, initiative leaders and volunteers in division and district activities. Now the stage is set for next trajectory of growth and I’m sure CCC will be President’s Distinguished Club by the end of this year. I’m sure this club operating out of Sunshine will Shine forever!!!!!

“ PHANTOM : TROLLS ” -GOMATHI SHANKAR.K

This story is set in a

college. Like any other and many other colleges, there was always a building or two under construction and some that are long-forgotten in this college too. One such forgotten building is the old library- a poor little piece of architecture which is a pale shadow of the new library and in comparison they both look like Laurel and Hardy for their size. But this small building hosts a terrific story hidden in its bricks – the Hitchcock kind!

Many years ago, there

studied a girl in this college named Sophia who apparently died mysteriously in her hostel one night. It turns out that she was a deep book lover. According to the rumor mill, Sophia’s soul never really got her return ticket confirmed from this world and roams around the library, reading books all the time. The neglected old library played perfect host to the Sophia story.

People claimed to hear

the sound of a girl’s anklet in DTS effects at nights near the library. Some said that they heard a girl laughing out loud in the midnights.

Some even reported to have watched the ghost float

along the library’s corridors like a passing lightning or like a comet or a shooting star- basically stuff that can be so easily gone before you can show it to the person standing next to you.

One thing fed to the other and people slowly stopped going near that secluded building forever. Maybe they were afraid of the ghost. Maybe they did not want to meet a stupid ghost which did not even follow the basic manners to maintain silence inside the library. But I am a firm non-believer of this story. I am somehow certain that this whole Sophia story is only a rumor.

There was another person in the college thinking exactly like me – John- a bright and cheerful student. John always hangs around with his bunch of friends.

John was the only one on my side and the others in his gang seemed to believe in the Sophia story.

Fate stuck big one day

when John and his friends were chatting about Sophia. John’s friend threw a challenge at him to spend one night alone in the library to prove his bravery. John accepted the challenge fuelled by his ego. I was casually watching these proceedings from a distance and I became excited about the challenge too.

I too decided to spend

the night in the library with John to find out the truth. But I also made sure that even John would not know that I am following him. John and I are only acquaintances and I did not want to spoil his party that night.

The much awaited night

came. Sodium lamps were switched on and the whole campus became lit in yellow light, a convenient color for scary stories.

It was a particularly cold

night, offering good reason to shiver. Though he accepted the challenge bravely, like the last drop of petrol in the bikes of bachelors during month-ends, he had a hint of fear at the depth of his heart. I was waiting at the library even before John came. Half an hour later, John entered, rubbing his palms to keep himself warm. The library was full of many old books in old wooden shelves. The stench of old books, naphthalene balls and insect droppings filled the place. There were spider webs on all corners and one or two tungsten filament lamps lighting up the place reluctantly. John seemed to be carrying himself well.

He was singing aloud to

himself. He even took a book from the shelves and flipped its pages. The dust made him sneeze a few times. Age had made the papers very fragile in that book and they tore apart as soon as he flipped them.

Loneliness and the cold

winds gradually made him uneasy. He started to sweat

profusely. His lips dried up very soon. When he tried to wet them with his tongue, he could taste the salt of his own sweat on his lips.

John was not that brave as I thought to be. He gave in to the fears slowly and started to shiver. Terror made him see symptoms of Sophia in the most trivial happenings too. He even switched off the creaking fan because its noise disturbed him badly. Later on, he realized that silence disturbed him even worse and switched it back on. Throughout all this, I was very firm on my stand that the Sophia story was only a myth.

The night passed

agonizingly slow. Somehow, I stayed awake the whole night and the next morning, the whole college came to know the truth behind the Sophia story.

As birds chirped from their trees the next morning, people noticed John lying unconscious with scratch wounds and nail marks on his face and some blood around him. Panic set in immediately. Everybody believed it to be Sophia’s attack. John was completely shaken.

But only I knew the real truth. Only I knew that a curious cat fell on John from a book shelf behind and John panicked and the cat left its nail marks on his face in its own panic. Even John did not realize what was happening in his fear and he became unconscious. Curiosity did not kill the cat that night. It only killed poor John’s bravery.

But who will believe

me,if I told what happened? They were too deep into the story to believe it to be mere rumor now. You might be curious as to how I remained a firm non-believer throughout the story. It is only natural.

Well... if the story is true,

I would have been the first person to know it. After all, I am roaming around this place for the past 350 years!

Table Topics Master – How can you help your club grow?

-DTM SARO VELRAJAN "Every member who

comes to the toastmasters meetings should get an opportunity to speak" - if this is the mantra of your club, I'm very confident that your club will be successful. Toastmasters is a 'learn by doing' program where a member learns by performing a role in the club. There are three types of members in any toastmasters club:

- Members who

proactively signup for meeting roles in advance

- Members who take

roles only when it is THRUST upon them

- Members who enjoy

coming to the meetings, but do not sign-up for any roles

Topics Master plays a

crucial role in engaging and giving opportunity to members who are not playing any role in the meeting. However, some Table Topics Masters do not realize the importance of giving opportunity to EVERY MEMBER of the club TO SPEAK. Such Table Topics Masters, do one of the following:

- Call the 'favorite' or

'popular' toastmasters in the club (for ex., Club President, Club Mentor etc.,)

- Call the members who

are already playing a role in the meeting

- Call the member(s) of a

different toastmasters club, who is visiting your club as a guest

- Call guests

This affects the success

of the club in the long run. For example, a member who spends 30 minutes to an hour to commute to attend the club meeting may not get an opportunity to speak in the meeting. When new members do not get an opportunity to speak for 2 or 3 weeks in a row, they may lose interest/motivation to come to the meeting.

Either the club officers

should motivate such members to take a role every week or the Table Topics Master should give an opportunity for such members to participate in Table Topics segment.

Table Topics Master

should give preference to the club members who do not have a role to play in the meeting, before involving others.

Here are some tips for Table Topics Masters to be effective in their role:

1) Table Topics Master

should come to the meeting at least 15 minutes in advance. This will give an opportunity for the Table Topics Master to identify 'who are all playing roles' and 'who are all NOT playing roles' in the club meeting.

Most of the times, the role

players list changes in the last minute.

Table Topics Master should consult with Toastmaster of the Day and General Evaluator to make sure that he/she has the updated list of role players.

2) Table Topics Master

should have a list of identified speech topics - at least 15 different topics.

Preferably, a new

toastmaster should get those topics reviewed by a mentor or a senior toastmaster in the club. This will help to ensure that the topics(s) provide scope for the participants to speak for at least 2 minutes.

3) Before calling a guest

to participate in Table Topics, the Table Topics Master should check with the guest whether he/she would be interested to participate in the Table Topics Segment. Not every guest would be

excited to deliver an unprepared / impromptu speech in front of strangers.

4) Table Topics Master

should call members in the following order (My personal recommendation!).

If you follow this order,

even if you had to cut short the Table Topics segment due to lack of time, you would've covered all of your non-role players:-

- Members who are non-

role players - Members who are

minor role players (Timer, AH Counter, Grammarian, Ballot Counter etc.,)

- Guests (if they are

interested) - Members of other

toastmasters club(s), who have visited your club

5) Table Topics Master

should keep his/her introductions very short. I've seen Table Topics Master who speak for 5 minutes before getting into the Table Topics segment. This denies opportunity for at least 2 Table Topics speakers. A few Table Topics masters talk for about a 1 minute after every table topics speech. This is also not recommended.

6) The purpose of Table Topics segment is to encourage members to think on their feet and speak. If Table Topics master selects topics that are "too tough" or topics that are "too abstract" or topics that lack "clarity", members will find it difficult to speak. For example,

- "Assume that you are

caught by a Traffic Police while speeding and you have to escape without paying fines to him"

If you give this topic to a new member, he/she would not have any clue about how to speak and what to speak.

- A topic like "Craziness is

the welcome mat at the doors of creativity" is too difficult for somebody to handle.

- A topic like "What do

you think about economy?!" is too abstract

7) Customize the topic

to the person. For example, you can give a relatively easier topic to a new toastmaster or a guest who participates in the Table Topics segment.

Hope this article helps

you to do your Table Topics Master Role better. Let us give opportunity for everyone to speak, learn and grow!

HORN OK-PLEASE -TM SREEKANTH.K

Imagine that as you step out after this meeting and mundanely walk outside, a gleaming red Ferrari pulls up in front of the gate. For several seconds your heart stops beating and you almost don’t believe your eyes. And then the driver hands you the keys saying you can keep it for a whole year, provided you return it back in pristine order. While of course enjoying this gift to the fullest....If you are anything like me, chances are that at end of the year most people will not be able to identify the car. You would probably see a dusty, noisy and rather dented vehicle that barely manages to propel itself forward.

I am very passionate about driving and have

been a vehicle service engineer for some time now. During this stint I have noticed that the way in which we take care of our vehicles determines both the quality and duration of its life. And since I like to dabble in philosophy, I noticed that this is true about our lives as well. Based on the lessons that I have learnt, I have three key points that will help you in maintaining and improving the quality of life- for both your dream car and for yourself.

First, is the way we drive. Do you ease you vehicle into gear and drive smoothly or do you stamp the accelerator only to brake hard at every obstacle and swear at everyone else on the road in anger?..... To get the best out of your car, it is vital that you drive it in the intended manner. Next time when you step into the vehicle, try it. Ease the vehicle into gear and smoothly accelerate shifting gears at the optimum engine rpm. You will notice that is takes a lot less effort and your car becomes a lot more responsive. You will actually enjoy driving at this pace.... this is true of life itself.

When we do things in a calm and relaxed

pace, we are actually more productive and enjoy performing it. However, if we accelerate and brake like we do in traffic, we are often sapped of our energy and are stressed before we even begin our tasks. Staying calm is a winner’s attitude and will get you to where you want to go in the best condition.

Second, is the importance of regular

maintenance. Take a peek under the hood and you would be surprised by your own negligence. Recently, I was ranting about my jeeps pickup to a mechanic. He opened the bonnet and fished out a completely choked filter.

All I could do was sheepishly grin. He then

proceeded to change all the oils and filters. And he cleaned, waxed and polished it before handing it back to me. I was stunned by the touch, feel and sound of the vehicle.

This brings me to my second point. When

we take due care of ourselves routinely- medically, financially or in every other possible sense, the outcome is remarkably different. 30 minutes exercise a day could be the difference between playing cricket with your grandkids and being bedridden at 70.

Third, is our ability to be resourceful and

think outside the box.(or what we call jugaad) Once, I was attending to a truck that had

broken down on a highway about 40 kms from the nearest dealership. When I reached the vehicle, I realized that the ECU, a critical component of the vehicle was malfunctioning. I called my boss only to learn that we did not have a spare unit in the whole of MP, and shipment would take 2 days. The truck belonged to a national key customer and was carrying a cargo of Maruti cars which were already late for deliveries. We were sitting in the middle of highway desperately looking for answers when I noticed another truck of the same model pass us.

The solution then struck me and we chased and stopped it. After a lot of convincing, we took its Electronic Control Unit or ECU, went back to our downed truck. We used the ECU to reset the ignition and resolve the problem. We then went back to the return the ECU to its owner. By thinking on our feet, not only did we earn a grateful word of thanks from the customer but also more importantly, it brought us the satisfaction of surmounting odds and completing a job. This also brings me to our theme of the day. Never give up.

PARADISE

- TM SRIHARI

I had a dream about a place so green, where no one was left to preen. It was a place that was the stuff of dreams, the good ones, not the one with all the screams. It was a place filled with bliss all around, no matter how many times someone may look around. Where everything was all so vivid, that no one there could ever be livid. Where love was more than just a word, which could be explained even by a bird. A place where the past was left to be, The future was left to see, And the only thing on everyone's mind, Was to make the present, one of a kind, Where everyone treasured the richness and spirit of life, As they went along with their day to day life, A place where everyman was left to be, Where they truly ought to be, Where everyone lived in a nation, Of their own creation,

Where everyone's opinion was respected,

And everyone was equally suspected, A place without any discrimination, On the basis of one's proud nation, A place which was full of love, Enough to outshine a thousand doves, A place where everyone lived a life worth living, Amidst all the chaos and killing. It was then that I realized, that everything I had visualized was not a place of dreams, but it was a place for dreams. The place that every heart desires, once the heart finally expires. It was the place for the soul to be, and the place that held the key, to the soul’s only vice,

a place they call, paradise.

My Tryst with CCC

-PRADEEP VARMAN

The only person you should try to be better than , is the person you were yesterday. I started realizing this after starting my journey with

Toastmasters.It was the 13th meeting when I walked in in to CCC meeting as a Guest. The take away from every meetings were seamless from then. The learning and yearnings are enormous I should say. Well,

someone said, Leaders leave a trail of leaders behind them. CCC is a true epitome for that fact. I am proud to be a CCCian.

THE “CCC” TEAM

DISCOVERING MYSELF -TM MOHAN RAJ

Hello this is Mohan raj. I hold a bachelors degree in computer science. Currently, I am

pursuing MCA (1st year). I worked at Amazon.com for a year.

When I was working in the corporate sector, l realized that IT sector won’t suit me till the very end.

So , I planned to pursue my passion but “what is my passion?”, I raised a question to myself.

My passion was to “Become a professional dancer!” But unfortunately, I underwent a major

operation on my chest ,and the doctor said that i shouldn’t be dancing atleast for a while !

Unknowingly , I started loving photography , photo editing something

creative towards to “ film direction” but I don’t know which is platform to enhance my skills.

Then one day I came to Chennai Communicators Club because

my friend forced me. That day, the folks @ CCC were saying

some stories in English. And they were using word president, General

evaluator, Table Topics master. I really could not understand what

they were talking about, but I was impressed because they were saying stories

in English! For a director it is very important that to narrate stories in

English to the lead actor. I realized that this is the platform I had been looking for to

enhance my skills.After a month I became member in Chennai Communicators Club.

Sep 9th, I became VP-PR of my club though I dint know much about it.Still,

wonder how ! It is also about doing creative work. To impress people and

express our creative thoughts and give them a valid reason to come to our club -CCC .

This is what I had been looking for!

The turning point of my life is when I joined Toastmasters in Chennai Communicator Club .

I am very proud to be a member of ‘Toastmasters’.

WITH LOVE , TO CCC

-TM ESHWAR RAJU

It was one fine day in the month of March ; I was hosting TCS – Orators chartering ceremony. Our DTM Saro was the division Governor at that time and he was the special guest for the meeting. Once, the meeting was over, I enquired him about community clubs which could help me to finish my CCs in fast track mode. He gave me two mail ids of two different clubs. One is Medleys and another one is CCC. As I got reply from CCC first, I landed up in CCC to do my CC four. This is how my journey with CCC begun.

From the very first day I entered the club, I was bestowed with responsibilities which were quite challenging. Hurdles in front of me where very high as the club was only six weeks old. But I took up the challenge as I got a unique opportunity to test my leadership and marketing skills. I tried to experiment all my ideas and CCC became an excellent platform for it. It is indeed a great privilege to work closely with DTM Saro and I learnt a lot in this CCC journey. Thanks for President Divya and all the others who supported my initiatives.

When I look back, I have learnt a lot in terms of leadership, Communication, Marketing and most importantly, I have earned a lot of new friends. Also, I was able to help people who were really in need of the help of the movement.

I strongly urge CCCians to strive hard to take the club to next level not only in terms of educational awards alone, but also to help the people who are really in need of the movement. Bring people who are poor in communication, they will become better speakers after presenting few projects. Bring people who are introvert, they will socialize and become extrovert. Bring people, who are lagging in self confidence, they will brim with self confidence after taking leadership roles. Most importantly, your little step in bringing them to CCC will change their lives in long run.

Because I strongly believe Toastmasters is following the principle “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime”. So, “Be the change” in their lives.

So, why are you waiting?? Grab the leadership opportunities and learn a lot by facing difficulties as I did.

Come to CCC ,

Communicate well and

Conquer the world!!!

The “ Ya.. ok.. so what ? ” attitude

-TM BHARATH.N.KUMAR WORDSMITHS TMS

Aditi was a research scientist in one of India’s top MNCs. She owed all her success to her maths teacher, Rajan. All through her education, he had been a great inspiration and a mentor to her.

Today, after 5 years, she was returning to India; she had by now become a very renowned scientist in California and that pride was of great happiness to her. She had one important meeting in her mind – her teacher, who now was running in his 80s. After two days, she visited her teacher’s home. She had bought all kinds of gadgets and items that could help her teacher and his wife. They felt very happy in her presence. Aditi recollected many life lessons that she had learned from Mr. Rajan.

As they were talking, Aditi heard a creek in the other room. As she sneaked to see what it was,She saw a man in his 50s. He looked very normal, wearing a dhoti, and a vest. He was trying to fix an old iron book-rack. Rajan noticed her and replied “Venkat has been trying to clean-up and fix things from the morning”. Just then Venkat crossed Aditi and gave a smile, to which Aditi gave an awkward look. All of a sudden, Aditi’s mood changed; her so called pride overwhelmed her”Ya.so what..big deal”.

She started thinking, “I am a genius, well educated girl, a renowned scientist, but he is just some other normal person who is struggling to fix a screw. Why the hell should I even bother to look at him? He is no way of my status”. This thought, turned the way her face looked.

She pretended not even to bother what Venkat was doing. She was enjoying her own Pride.Lesser did she notice that, her teacher was noticing all this and deciphered everything that he wanted. That time, Venkat got a call on his mobile and he started speaking in Russian.Aditi did not know how. As if not reading her mind,

Rajan just gestured in a casual tone, “Oh Aditi, I did not tell that Venkat is my son.”..she was still holding on to her pride; he continued.. “and..he is the Vice President of an MNC that is worth 56 billion dollars. He was the topper in his CA exams,Just thought you would like to know”. She stood up on hearing the name of the company. In the meantime, Venkat closed his call, folded his dhoti and continued fixing the rack….no pride, no boasting on his face. Just a smile back again.

Rajan understood that Aditi was slapped on her face, harder than the real slap. He said to her, “Aditi, I have shared with you many lessons that I knew all through your education, but there is one important lesson you would like to learn for life! Humility. No matter where ever you go or what pinnacles you reach, learn to be Humble and throw out your ego.

Pride is a disease that will pull you all the way down, from any heights.From then on, she transformed into a different person…..

The Butterfly’s Tale TM RAGHAVAN SRIDHAR –LOGICA TMS

Ever felt like giving up?? Read on.. I had returned home after that blissful evening with friends at the beach. It is always special when you spend time with your friends and more so when it is on the Friendship day. I had taken my camera along and had caught the carefree and happy smiles of my friends and had them frozen for life. Thanks to technology. It had been a near perfect evening and I was in a state of real calm, ease and happiness. Everything seemed just a little sweeter. The drive back home in my bike was so much more enjoyable. Nostalgia took over me completely and when I reached the parking lot of my home it seemed life was just perfect.

I was about to park my bike when I

found a little butterfly, shriveled and lifeless lying wasted on the floor. After parking the bike I bent down to remove the insect from where it was so as to give it a better resting place. I reached for its wings and lifted it up and to my horror found that one of its wings was being eaten by ants. When I lifted the fly, that torn wing broke free and detached itself from the insect’s body and immediately the butterfly flapped its 3 remaining wings and tried to wriggle out of my fingers. I was momentarily shocked, I had presumed the insect to be dead but it was alive and god knows how much pain it was in. Shock and surprise flooded me in equal measure. It was shocking to know the butterfly’s beautiful wings were being eaten by ants and surprising to know the fly had survived the attack and was still alive.

I put the insect upon my bike’s seat and

realized the opportunity to take a wonderful snap of the beauty. Seldom do you get close up shots of a really beautiful butterfly and so I readied for a macro shot. But the plight of the helpless insect broke my heart. I did click a picture but it seemed so cruel to me to be using the insect’s condition to my advantage.

Not wanting to continue clicking, I

abandoned the endeavor and picked the fly again, this time gently and carried it over to a small enclosure outside my parking lot where there are a few plants. The fly flapped its feeble wings and shook its tiny legs to tell me it was alive. I went to the enclosure and looked at the pretty insect once again. I felt sad for it. A crippled, 3 winged butterfly could not live for long. I felt sorry. I knew it was hopeless for the insect and breathed deep and dropped the fly into the plants, thinking it would fall down and lie there till its life dried out. All I had was pity for the insect.

But the moment I dropped the butterfly

it flapped its 3 wings and in a move that

made me ashamed of my own self, it flew and gripped a stem and stayed there. I had given the insect only pity and sympathy but not the credit for bearing the pain and staying alive. When I dropped the fly it did not give up. It flapped its wings, it must have hurt, it must have seemed beyond its powers but the insect did not give up. It chose to stay alive. It showed a spurt of energy and grabbed to the stem and winked at me.

In a single gesture the butterfly had

mocked at me. That moment stayed with me. It gave me so many thoughts and made me feel low of myself for having imagined only the worst. It did seem the butter fly was better dead than living a cripple’s life. But the insect would have none of it. It wanted to live; nothing else crossed its mind even for a fleeting second. Maybe it was worried about death when it was trapped on the floor, maybe it would have given up had I not intervened without my knowledge and saved it; but the fact was that it did not brood over what was lost. Personally I couldn’t let go of the moment and the desire to capture this gladiator insect through my cam took over. Till date I believe this picture is the best of my clicks, not just because of its clarity, but also because of the emotions involved in it.

When I look at this picture now and

reflect back on that particular evening. Questions and emotions flood me. What could have made that insect fight back? All it had for life are the 4 small wings; one can only imagine what it would feel like to have lost one. Yet, it never crossed the insect’s mind to give up. It never occurred to it to just let go, to fall down and accept defeat.

Humans with their superior sense think and choose and tend to give up. But the insect knows no such choice.

It does not know the give-up option and it fights. Many of us fume in desperation for such trivia like a fracture, a common flu, hunger, an escalation at work and more. But such a major impairment like a lost wing did not deter the insect from loving life and wanting to live on. Its priorities were unclouded and clear. I do not really have to put in words what most humans would tend to have done if they suffered the insect’s plight….

That evening gave me truly mixed emotions. I started out as a selfish photographer but ended up a good friend who had helped an insect in despair without my conscious knowledge.

This little butterfly offers a valuable lesson for all those wishing to learn from it. What we learn from this episode is up to us. It is personal to me and I am sure it will be to all. But in essence the fact is that this incident has loads in it for us to get inspired. It is true what they say;

“The biggest moments in life may come from the smallest entities” I knew of it… But now, I truly believe in it!!!!!

Follow Your Heart TM CHANDRAKALA-CSC TMS

The sky was dark. Not a single star was visible to the naked eye. There was a small ship kind of an object that started moving towards Kavita. It started getting closer and closer. Just when she thought it would land on earth, it started moving upwards. Kavita started running behind it. She ran behind it for couple of minutes before it completely disappeared, and then she woke up from the dream. Since childhood, every single night that dream haunted Kavita until she acknowledged that it was the manifestation of her deep down desire to fly. As a child, whenever she heard the sound of the aircraft, She would come running out of the house and jump with joy looking at the aircraft. During her 5th standard school trip to Hyderabad, she had spent all the money in her piggybank to buy a remote controlled chopper. One day while watching a program on TV, she saw a female character who had a deep passion for flying and pursues her passion to become a pilot. The image of the character dressed in the crisp Indian Air Force uniform, walking confidently towards the aircraft combined with her interest to fly made her decide that this is what she will do as career. During High school days, She came across National Cadet corp. and asked her parents if she could join. As she was from a conservative family her parents thought that school was meant only for studies, they didn’t see any point in her joining NCC. After a lot of persuasion, her mom agreed that she could join NCC.

Kavita’s love for flying took a major turning point when the cadets were given an opportunity to fly radio-controlled gliders and Kavita was selected as one among them. She worked hard and got selected to be a part of the Republic day parade in Delhi. Kavita was chosen as the cadet who would fly the radio-controlled glider and present a bouquet to the then Prime Minister of India Dr Manmohan Singh. She received a medal from Dr Manmohan Singh as the best Air cadet for that year. I met Kavita during one of the Indian Air force recruitment drives, where both of us were selected among 250 girls to take part in the final round of selections to be held in Mysore. We became good friends during those six days. After days of rigorous physical and cognitive tests, the results were finally announced. It was a disheartening moment for both of us since our names were not there in the final list.

Life moved on. During the campus recruitment drive, Kavitha got selected by Infosys and her training began in Mysore as part of Infosys training program. After completing training of six months, she was posted in Infy-Bangalore. But the Urge to become a pilot made her decide to quit the IT job. She again took part in the Air force selection drive and this time she made it. She was the only girl to be selected all over India to be the flying Officer. Last when I spoke to her, she said she just completed her training in HPT-32 trainer aircraft and was about to start the training in Transport Aircrafts and chopper.

When I sit back and think of the decision Kavita made to quit IT and try again for Indian Air force, I began to wonder. Knowing the kind of intelligence and strength she has, She could have made it very big even in IT industry and some day she may have even become the CEO of Infosys. Then what prompted her to quit her high salaried and comfortable IT job to pursue a challenging career in Indian Air force? It was the urge to become what she had dreamt all her life, which she finally fulfilled. We sometimes go through a phase where we end up being numb about the path that we want to take. Is it because we have multiple options in hand? Is it because our comforts have made us lazy? Or is it that we do not have the courage to face our loved ones with our decisions. Your time on this planet is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart.

Follow your heart … and if she wants to fly…then let her!

Chennai

Communicator

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