Count your Blessings

“Everything that Counts cannot be counted;

Everything that can be counted does not Count” 

                                                                                                   --- An old saying

 

Past Experiences are a Treasure for the Future. Whenever I think of the words “ Count your Blessings”, I can not help but recall the precious moments of a session I conducted way back in the year 2000  for a group of IIT aspirants on Goal Setting and Time Management. 

Blessed are those who know that they are blessed. I was talking of the various external limiting factors, which some consider insurmountable and their habit of taking shelter in those factors, for all their inactions and failures. I was facilitating the group to focus on the things, which are often taken for granted, since they have been blessed with those things, without any effort. I was also emphasizing on the way some perceive the most precious things of life as a matter of fact and do not try either to reciprocate in a similar manner or do not have the ability to leverage them to the benefit of themselves or the environment.  

As an example, I had quoted the love and affection of parents, near and dear ones and the never-ending efforts of the teachers and the well-wishers for the growth of their wards and students. I went further in saying that, in that very group, there may be some, whose parents may not able to afford the coaching for IIT or higher studies, but are still doing so, with a hope that their children may live up to their expectations and are blessed with a better life than they themselves have been leading. 

Self Realization, the best Teacher. The session continued for some more time, when suddenly I saw a boy sobbing uncontrollably. I walked up to him, put a hand on his shoulder and asked for the reason of his crying. Instead of stopping, he got up from his seat and cried out aloud. After some time he started talking and what he said can be applied to many amongst us. In his own words, “I hail from a small village and have no father. My mother walks for a few miles, changes buses and comes to the city to visit me every week. I am very impatient to her queries about my studies and health and want to see her off  as soon as my demands are met. I could not understand before, but, can do so now, see the pain and anguish in her eyes, as a result of my disregard for her love and affection”. He promised to himself that he would be grateful for the blessings he is receiving and to reciprocate in a similar manner in future. 

That made my Day since I was able to touch one boy’s life and his future. The moment had left an indelible mark on me as well. 

Blessings of the Organization we work for and the Society we Live should also be regarded as a blessing. The society one lives-in and the organization one works for are the result of the dedication and hard work  of many people. They had a vision not only for themselves or for their generation but also for the posterities to come. In so doing, they have ensured a sense of purpose, achievement and livelihood for all the lives they touch.  

It may be appreciated that one’s success both at work and the society, is not always purely due to one’s own intelligence or diligence. There are many blessings bestowed by the organization one works for and the society one lives-in, which silently contribute to the above success. Both the organization and the society provide an environment and a platform for expression of one’s strengths, perform, gain confidence and grow from strength to strength. 

Counting Blessings is not an End in itself. The people around us, friends, siblings, parents, colleagues and superiors are our anchors, on whose strength we steady our course and embark upon bigger voyages. How much indebted we are to our anchors is difficult to measure and the best one can do is to acknowledge it and return the good gestures by ourselves being anchors to many others.

 

 The act of acknowledging and Counting Blessings would find a definite fulfillment, if we, as individuals are able to further enhance these blessings, so that our future generations get a bigger platform to perform and lead a happy and purposeful life.