We had asked our readers if they had any words of wisdom or some lessons in life that they had always wanted to pass on to their children but never found the right time or opportunity to do so, on the lines of Jawaharlal Nehru and Barack Obama.
In the first letter in the series, reader Nitish Rai Gupta told his daughter Tisha to always follow the right path by adhering to the four bonds of life.
Here, Deepa Chandrasekar tells her daughter Smruti that being a good person is more important than being rich or successful.
To my pretty darling daughter,
My little angel, you have not only given meaning and purpose to my life but have helped me experience true joy and happiness in every minute I spend with you. In this letter straight from my heart, I want to share with you some of the things I have learned in life through my experiences. Here is my two cents worth
Sweetie pie, nobody in this world is a perfect human being. All of us have one flaw or the other and so it is not right to expect anybody to be perfect. Harmony lies in realising each other's misgivings and accepting people for what they are. Trying to pick on your close one's shortcomings will only distance them from you. And before pointing to somebody else's fault, if we look into the mirror once, we'll know we are no better ourselves.
The most important achievement in this commercial, competitive world is for one to be recognised as a good human being with the right virtues. We are slowly seeing all the noble qualities vanishing as people believe it is okay to go to any extremes to achieve what they want.
But let me tell you such achievements really mean nothing, in fact you are actually a loser finally. Dad and mom might be only slightly disappointed if you don't get that coveted college seat or land that high paying job, but we would be heart-broken if our daughter is not a good human being -- even if you are the country's president then.
Being compassionate, generous to those around you and even to strangers will give you total satisfaction and joy. Helping those in need will brighten your day. So always be willing to give anything that is more than you need. Helping a needy kid pay tuition fees or buy a good meal shall also go a long way.
One word of caution though. Don't be naïve, because the world around is full of deceivers. Never allow somebody to take advantage of you or your generosity.
Remember that the only thing worse than stabbing somebody in the chest is badmouthing them behind their back. It is the act of skunks. Similarly, betraying somebody's trust is equivalent to committing murder.
Decisions taken when one is too happy, extremely sad or high on anger have proven to be invariably wrong. Emotions mar our thinking ability and will make our decisions biased. So it is better to return to the normal state of mind before deciding on anything, however trivial. Suppressing emotions is also not good for the mind and body.
Follow your dreams and always have big, pragmatic dreams. God has given us this one beautiful life and it is in our hands to make the most of it. Living life to your fullest and to your liking is not being selfish; it is being prudent as long as it doesn't hurt another individual. When you sit one day -- writing a similar letter to your grandchildren -- you should be able to say that you have no regrets in your life.
Smruti, while all that I've written so far are a few things that I have learned and I believe will mean something to you as well, I also want to tell you that there are few a thoughts I have about you.
I want you to not always succeed but face a few failures too. Don't be alarmed at what I am wishing, but believe you me, failures will make you a stronger person and prepare you to face anything in life. However, I'll pray that these failures are ones that are bearable by you.
I want you to know that you will always be that tiny cute daughter to me, who I think will always need my helping hand. So when you grow older and I still think you need me and offer some advice, don't scoff at me. Also, when you bring home your boyfriend, don't expect me to welcome him with open arms. My possessiveness about you and the fear of losing you to somebody who loves you more than me will prevent me from doing that, though my heart will always want you to be happy. Remember I told you nobody is perfect, mama has her flaws too.
I want you to be independent in life. It's true that dad and I will always be there for you, but nothing in this world is permanent, so you must learn to be by yourself.
And last but not the least; I want you to save this letter. If for nothing else, you can show it to my grandchildren and share a laugh!
Like Nehru and Obama, would you like to write to your children? Send us the letter, to citizen.reporter@rediffmail.co, and we will publish it in our pages!
