Be a squirrel…

I am sure every person who has heard of Ramayan the famous Indian epic, must have heard of a little squirrel who helped the army of Sugreev build the bridge in her own little way.

For the benefit of those who haven’t: When the great army of Sugreev was building a bridge to cross the Indian Ocean into Lanka to attack the demon king Ravan, they lifted great boulders, huge stones, Hanuman wrote “Ram” on each of them and then immersed them into the waters. Due to Ram’s name these boulders floated instead of drowning, but it was becoming difficult to get them to stick to each other instead of drifting away. A tiny squirrel noticed their plight and came to the rescue. She brought grains of sand, as many as she could carry on her back and put them on the bridge cementing, sealing the gaps and making each boulder stick to the other. In recognition for her efforts, Ram patted her back lovingly. Even today you can see three dark lines on her back that his fingers made when then ruffled her fur.

Our society today has several of these “squirrels” waiting for Ram to pat their back. Seemingly insignificant everyday people, with no big name or great fame, who are helping in several little ways that go a great length to make a difference in other people’s lives.

Take for example, Mrs. Chahar, a school principal who started a practice of her own early in her career. Each year she would help 5 children financially – sponsor their school uniforms and books and help them study. Over the last couple decades several people have reaped benefits of her generousness. Each of these students who were helped by Mrs. Chahar through their school years, have completed college and further education. One is an officer in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).

Another example is my own mom-in-law. Each summer she’ll fill earthen pots with water and leave it outside for the thirsty animals. Birds, cats and dogs drink from these cool pots. Agreed, she can’t change the world with her little efforts. But if you could tell that to the thirsty animals who get respite from parching heat, I am sure they wouldn’t care less about the difference it made to global warming so long as they were saved from death.

If you have a will to make a difference, you can do so no matter what your own circumstances are. You need not necessarily be affiliated with famous NGO’s or be a highly paid movie actor to bring your own little pile of sand, your own little contribution to make this country, this world a better place for everyone.

Think about it. If you know anyone who is also doing such good deeds, do send us their information. We’ll be happy to get in touch and spread the word. The least we can do to motivate others