An 18 years old student was struggling to pay his school fees.
He was an orphan, and not knowing where to
turn for money, he came up with a bright idea. He
and a friend decided to host a musical concert on campus to raise money for
their education.
They
reached out to The Great Pianist Ignacy J. Paderewski. His manager demanded a
guaranteed fee of $2, 000 for the piano recital. A deal was struck and the boys
began to work to make the concert a success.
The
big day arrived. But unfortunately, they had not managed to sell enough
tickets. The total collection was only $1600. Disappointed, they went to
Paderewski and explained their plight. They gave him the entire $1600, plus a
cheque for the balance $400. They promised to honour the cheque at the soonest
possible.
“No,”
said Paderewski. “This is not acceptable.” He tore up the cheque, returned the
$1600 and told the two boys: “Here’s the $1600. Please deduct whatever expenses
you have incurred. Keep the money you need for your fees. And just give me
whatever is left”. The boys were surprised, and thanked him profusely.
It
was a small act of kindness. But it clearly marked out Paderewski as a GREAT
HUMAN BEING.
Why
should he help two people he did not even know? We all come across situations
like these in our lives. And most of us only think “If I help them, what would
happen to me?” The truly great people think, “If I don’t help them, what will
happen to them?” They don’t do it expecting something in return. They do it
because they feel it’s the right thing to do.
Paderewski
later went on to become the Prime Minister of Poland. He was a great leader,
but unfortunately when the World War began, Poland was ravaged. There were more
than 1.5 million people starving in his country, and no money to feed them.
Paderewski did not know where to turn for help. He reached out to the US Food
and Relief Administration for help.
The
head there was a man called Herbert Hoover — who later went on to become the US
President. Hoover agreed to help and quickly shipped tons of food grains to
feed the starving Polish people.
The
calamity devastating Poland was averted. Paderewski was relieved. He decided to
go across to meet Hoover and personally thank him. When Paderewski began to
thank Hoover for his noble gesture, Hoover quickly interjected and said, “You
shouldn’t be thanking me Mr. Prime Minister. You may not remember this, but
several years ago, you helped two young students go through college. I was one
of them.”
The
world is a wonderful place. What goes around comes around!
Stanford University 1892
Google Marks 272nd Birthday Of Abolitionist known as
Gustavus Vassa for most of his life, his autobiography helped in the creation
of the Slave Trade Act 1807 which ended the African trade for Britain and its
colonies.
Olaudah
Equiano, who was known as Gustavus Vassa for most of his life, was a prominent African
in London whose autobiography helped to end the slave trade in Britain.
Google
marks the 272nd birthday of Equiano, who was born in the Eboe province, in the
area that is now southern Nigeria, on October 16, 1745.
His
early life is unclear due to the absence of records, but he recounted how he
was kidnapped with his sister when he was 11.
He
was sold by local slave traders and shipped across the Atlantic to Barbados and
then Virginia.
In
Virginia, Equiano was sold to Michael Pascal, a lieutenant in the Royal Navy,
who renamed him 'Gustavus Vassa' after the 16th-century Swedish king.
Equiano
had already been renamed twice: he was called Michael while onboard the slave
ship that brought him to the Americas; and Jacob, by his first owner.
Equiano
travelled the oceans with Pascal for eight years, during which time he found
Christianity and was baptised as well as learning to read and write.
Pascal
then sold Equiano to a ship captain in London, who took him to Montserrat,
where he was sold to the prominent merchant Robert King.
King
set Equiano to work on his shipping routes and in his stores, working as a
deckhand, valet and barber whilst also earning money by trading on the side.
In
1765, when Equiano was about 20 years old, King promised that he could buy his
freedom for £40 (worth £6000 in the present day).
In
less than three years, he made enough money and was freed in 1967. Equiano then
spent much of the next 20 years travelling the world, including trips to Turkey
and the Arctic.
In
1786 in London, he became involved in the movement to abolish slavery. He was a
prominent member of the 'Sons of Africa', a group of 12 black men who
campaigned for abolition.
Equiano
was befriended and supported by abolitionists, many of whom encouraged him to
write and publish his life story.
In
1789 he published his autobiography, 'The Interesting Narrative of the Life of
Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, the African'.
Equiano's
personal account of slavery, his journey of advancement, and his experiences as
a black immigrant caused a sensation on publication.
The
book fuelled a growing anti-slavery movement in Britain, Europe, and the New
World.
His
account surprised many with the quality of its imagery, description, and
literary style. Some readers felt shame at learning of the suffering he had
endured.
The
autobiography, published in 1789, helped in the creation of the Slave Trade Act
1807 which ended the African trade for Britain and its colonies.
In
1792, Equiano married an Englishwoman, Susanna Cullen, and they had two
daughters.
Equiano
died on 31 March 1797.
Who Was Olaudah Equiano?
One day all the employees reached the office and they saw a big advice on the door on which it was written: “Yesterday the person who has been hindering your growth in this company passed away. We invite you to join the funeral in the room that has been prepared in the gym”.
In
the beginning, they all got sad for the death of one of their colleagues, but
after a while they started getting curious to know who was that man who
hindered the growth of his colleagues and the company itself.
The
excitement in the gym was such that security agents were ordered to control the
crowd within the room. The more people reached the coffin, the more the
excitement heated up. Everyone thought: “Who is this guy who was hindering my
progress? Well, at least he died!”
One
by one the thrilled employees got closer to the coffin, and when they looked
inside it they suddenly became speechless. They stood nearby the coffin,
shocked and in silence, as if someone had touched the deepest part of their
soul. There was a mirror inside the coffin: everyone who looked inside it could
see himself.
There
was also a sign next to the mirror that said: “There is only one person who is
capable to set limits to your growth: it is YOU.” You are the only person who
can revolutionize your life.
You
are the only person who can influence your happiness, your realization and your
success. You are the only person who can help yourself. Your life does not
change when your boss changes, when your friends change, when your partner
changes, when your company changes. Your life changes when you change, when you
go beyond your limiting beliefs, when you realize that you are the only one
responsible for your life. “The most important relationship you can have is the
one you have with yourself”.
Moral:
The world is like a mirror: It gives back to anyone the reflection of the
thoughts in which one has strongly believed. The world and your reality are
like mirrors lying in a coffin, which show to any individual the death of his
divine capability to imagine and create his happiness and his success. It’s the
way you face life that makes the difference.
Your Life Changes When Your Thoughts Change
There were once two rabbits, Wanda the Wise and
Frederick the Foolish, who were walking through a field. They were good friends
and enjoyed their strolls together.
On this walk, they came upon two carrots. One of the
carrots had large leaves sprouting out of the top and the other looked much
smaller from the surface. Frederick was excited and ran up to the carrot with
the larger leaves. “I’ll have this one,” he proudly exclaimed and proceeded to
extract it from the ground.
Frederick was surprised and asked how this could
possibly be.
Wanda looked at her friend and replied, “You can’t
always judge a carrot by its leaves.”
They kept on walking and came across another pair of
carrots, again with differing sized leaves.
This time Frederick allowed his friend the first
pick. Wanda hopped to each carrot, inspected and sniffed them carefully and, to
Frederick’s surprise, chose the carrot with the larger leaves.
As they each extracted their carrots from the
ground, Frederick was bemused to see that his carrot was smaller than Wanda’s.
“I thought that you said that small leaves meant it would be a larger carrot.”
He said. “No,” replied Wanda, “I said don’t judge a carrot by its leaves. It’s
also important to remember to think before you choose.”
Frederick nodded and they ate their carrots before
continuing their stroll.
For a third time, they found two carrots, again with
different sized leaves.
Frederick looked confused and didn’t know what to
do. Wanda indicated that he could choose which carrot to eat. The poor foolish
rabbit, pretended to inspect each carrot, but he didn’t really know what to do.
He knew that he wasn’t as smart as his friend and he looked to Wanda with a
confused expression on his face. Wanda smiled warmly and hopped over to the
carrots. She inspected them and pulled out one of the carrots. Frederick
shrugged his shoulders and went to the other one before he was interrupted by
his wise friend.
“No Frederick, this one’s your carrot,” she said.
“But you made the choice and I’m sure it’s the bigger one of the two. I don’t
know how you do it, but I guess you’re just smarter than me.”
“Frederick, there’s no point in having wisdom if
you’re not willing to share the benefits of it with others. You’re my friend
and I want you to have this carrot. A smart rabbit with a full stomach but no
friends isn’t really wise is she?”
“I guess you’re right,” said Frederick with a full
mouth, “As usual.”
In our search for wisdom, we must also search for a
way to assist those around us with what we’ve learned. The ancient Greek
philosopher Epicurus once said, “Of all the things which wisdom provides to
make life entirely happy, much the greatest is the possession of friendship.”
Be wise, share what you’ve learned with others and help make the world a better
place for those around you.
A Story on Wisdom
One day, you will lock your door but you will
not be the one that will open it.
One day, you will wash your best cloths but you
will not be able to wear it.
One day, your best food will be prepared and
you will be unable to eat it.
One day, you will eat and drink but will never
excrete.
One day, your curriculum vitae will get an
expired.
One day, the person that you seem to love most
will never dare move closer to you
One day, you will think of what you can never
accomplish.
One day, you will be regarded as “that thing”
One day, you will be isolated in a place called
“grave”
One day, that thing you love most will come
your way but you will not be able to give any attention to it.
One day, you will hold your breath and forget
to release it.
One day, you will become a defendant before God’s
Angels.
One day, housefly/termites will come your way
and you will not be able to chase them away.
One day, you will receive a call that can never
be declined.
One day, your name will be called but no one
will answer.
One day, the assets you cherished most will be
taken by another person.
One day, your deeds on earth will be presented
like a Video.
One day, a title will be added to your name as
LATE Mr. or Mrs A.
One day, the great allocator will locate you to
appropriate place.
One day, your beautiful skin will turn to its
original form which is SAND.
One day, your entire body will cease operation.
One day, you will be given infinite apartment,
either Heaven or Hell.
In
summary, take life easy and remember that life is just an episode, but it can
determine your eternity.
When you are about to do something, remember ONE
DAY!
Whatever
you are doing, remember ONE
DAY!
JUST ONE DAY!
One Day
A doctor quickly entered the hospital after being called in for an urgent
surgery. He changed his clothes and went directly to the surgery block. He saw
the boy’s father walking back and forth in the hall waiting for the doctor.
Once seeing the doctor, the dad yelled: “Why did you take all this time to come? Don’t you know that my son’s life is in danger? Don’t you have the sense of responsibility?”
The doctor smiled and said: “I am sorry, I wasn’t in the hospital and I came the fastest I could… now, I wish you’d calm down so that I can do my work.”
“Calm down?! What if your son was in this room right now, would you calm down? If your own son dies now what will you do?” said the father angrily.
The doctor smiled again and replied: “I will say what is said in the Holy Bible ‘From dust we came and to dust we return, blessed be the name of God.’ Doctors cannot prolong lives. Go and intercede for your son, we will do our best by God’s grace.”
“Giving advice when we’re not concerned is so easy” murmured the father.
The surgery took some hours after which the doctor went out happy, “Thank God! Your son is saved!”
And without waiting for the father’s reply he carried on his way running. “If you have any question, ask the nurse.”
“Why is he so arrogant? He couldn’t wait some minutes so that I ask about my son’s state?” commented the father when seeing the nurse minutes after the doctor left.
The nurse answered: “His son died yesterday in a road accident, he was in the burial when we called him for your son’s surgery.”
Moral- Stay calm in all situations so you can make decisions the best you can, be it in life or business… and thank you doctors for the excellence works you do.
Stay Calm in All Situations
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