Faith and hardwork are the keys to success

by Manasa A
(Bangalore,Karnataka,India)

I happened to see some old pictures of my cousins and me and relived those moments captured in the pictures. During my 6th semester holidays, I went to Guntur accompanied by my other cousin. My aunt lived there with her family. This was the first time I was travelling this far without my mom and was pretty apprehensive about the whole trip. My aunt had two sons, Alok and Amrit. Both were elder to me. They had last visited Bangalore when I was in high school and I didn’t know if I could get along well with them. My uncle and aunt had lived in Bangalore and my uncle owned a Jewellery store. Due to various reasons, they incurred a huge loss and one night had to leave Bangalore. I was just a toddler during the time this happened.

At the railway station my cousins had come to pick us up. Both of them were delighted to see us. Alok was the elder one and looked very matured and responsible. Amrit was the joyful guy. He had a very good sense of humour. We stayed with them for a week. Every morning, we would wake up, get ready and go around seeing the places nearby on the two mopeds they had. We would watch movies on CD player. We had a lot of fun. I used to find the food very spicy and they would often laugh at me at the way I eat. I survived on curd rice and biscuits for the whole week.

My uncle owned a saris business and my cousins used to assist him in the business. All three of them would go in different directions selling saris to nearby villages. Amrit was doing his B.Com in Ambedkar University through correspondence. He had taken coaching classes for the same. He was very social and fun loving guy. He was very famous in the locality and had lots of friends.

One fine evening we were having snacks and both the guys began narrating the hardships faced by them during their struggling years. After they left Bangalore they lived in Vizag for a few years. My uncle had started a business again. Everything was going on fine but when Amrit was in his 10th standard, they again incurred a huge loss. The whole family had to relocate leaving all their belongings in that place. Fortunately,for my aunt, both the sons were very intelligent and were doing very well academically. This had come as a hard blow especially to the younger one. He had sulked down. He would hardly speak to anyone. Smile had left his face. People at home had found it very difficult to handle him. Alok used to be with him most of the time and for every small and big things he used to rebuke at his brother.

In the new place, all three men were working in different shops as salesmen. They lived in a small house. They didn’t even have a chair to offer for their guests. They were totally in a bad state. I had tears in my eyes while listening to their story. When I was in high school, I used to demand for my luxuries. I used to be angry on my parents for not buying me an ice cream or for not buying me a cycle. But,here I found out that my cousins not having enough even to eat. Fending for day to day basic necessities was a big challenge to them. They were deprived of having basic education. I thanked my stars for what I had. Until we don’t have something, we never know the value of them. Then slowly one by one left the salesman job and started having their own business. This time the finances of the business were dealt by Alok, and not my uncle.

Over the years, Amrit came to normal terms in life. All four learnt meditation. Tried to find peace in what they had. Amrit had now changed to a fun loving guy from a depressed young chap. The scenario had changed. Even if Alok would get angry for something, Amrit would console and ask him to keep his calm. I just couldn’t believe, this calm Amrit was once a rebel.

After being with Amrith for a week, I wished to get a husband who is as calm as him. Fortunately, I got a husband who is like Amrith. He is very calm and I am the culprit in my marriage alliance. I left Guntur with a heavy heart, surprised that I didn’t want to go back to Bangalore. Such was the affection shown by my aunt and her people. Initially I didn’t want to go to Guntur and now I didn’t want to leave Guntur.

After my return, we were in touch initially via letters. Those were the days of letters and not Whatsapp or emails. Then I got busy with my engineering exams, campus recruitments jobs and so on. One fine day I had heard the news that, Amrit had topped his university. He was the gold medalist. I was so happy for him. After around 2 years, I got to know that Amrith had cleared his CA in the first attempt with 26th rank. He had secured a job with Voltas. Later Alok also completed his degree in CA and was working in one of the firms in Hyderabad. The latest news is that both are working in Abudhabi. Both are married and leading very happy lives and able to send their kids to international schools.

From the story of my cousins, I understood that hard work and faith in your abilities will help reach great heights. Whatever situations you are put into, do not lose focus. Always work towards fulfillment of your goals. Due to Alok’s fate, he is not an IIT Engineer, but he is well settled and more importantly he is happy. He didn’t give up his hope on studies. He didn’t curse his fate or his family. First he carved the fate of his younger brother and this younger brother helped his elder one to fulfill his dreams as well. It is very easy to blame others for our present situation, but it is extremely difficult to look out for the light in the darkness. There is always a Silver Lining and we need to look out for it. My cousins made it and am very proud of them.


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