Disclaimer
Please take a look at the bottom of this page for the author's disclaimer and note of caution.
Food for homeless, food for thought for you!
Many of us, including me, go quickly for the delete button when we receive a forward like this.
Unless, of course, it comes from someone you know to be a reliable source. (For this purpose, I define "reliable" as someone who is not only known to you but is also known to be sceptical and preferably slightly cynical.) In that case, you're prompted to read the forward.
I read it, was touched.
And it brought a satisfied smile, at the very thought that there are still some folks out there who have values that one can cherish, at least when one observes their existence even if one can't emulate fully - for a variety of reasons.
Some website reference and other contact info that a friend managed to locate:
Note - I've not checked it personally. Plan to do so some time soon. But my source is credible. Also, I don't know whether the CNN voting period is already over or not.
Do read on.
-----Original Message-----
From:
Sent: Thursday, October 21, 2010 10:44 AM
To:
Subject: VOTE for Good Humanbeing - (He brings hot meals to India's homeless) - Help him to feed more homeless
Dear All,
If you had not heard of Narayanan Krishnan , as I had not, it is a collective failure. This is one of the most incredible stories of personal commitment.
Narayanan Krishnan, all of 29 years old now, does what he was professionally trained to do as a chef. Feed people. Only Krishnan does not do this in the swanky confines of a 5-star hotel. Every day, he wakes up at 4 am, cooks a simple hot meal and then, along with his team, loads it in a van and travels about 200 km feeding the homeless in Madurai, Tamil Nadu.
Krishnan feeds, often with his hands, almost 400 destitute people every day. And for those who need it, he provides a free haircut too.
Watch the story of this hero here ;
According to CNN, eight years ago, this award-winning chef with a five-star hotel chain was all set to go to Switzerland for a high-profile posting. On a visit to a Madurai temple, he came across a homeless, old man eating his own human waste. That stark sight changed Krishnan's life.
Much to the dismay of his parents, CNN says, Krishnan abandoned his career plans and decided to spend his life and his professional training in looking after those who could not care for themselves. He has provided more than 1.2 million hot meals through his nonprofit organization Akshaya Trust, and now hopes to extend this to shelter for the homeless too.
Krishnan is the only Indian in a list of 10 heroes that CNN has picked worldwide to honour . One of them will be chosen CNN Hero of the Year, selected by the public through an online poll. If many Indians get together to vote for this inspiring man, he can win by a long mile.
If Krishnan wins he will get $100,000 in addition to the $25,000 that he gets for being shortlisted for the Top 10. Akshaya Trust needs all the monetary support it can get to build on Krishnan's dream. Let's help him get there.
Vote for Krishnan here. <http://heroes.cnn.com/vote.aspx> The poll continues through November 18 at 6 a.m. ET. ( http://heroes.cnn.com/vote.aspx <http://heroes.cnn.com/vote.aspx> )
Regards,
N
Live-in Relationships - Entitled to Maintenance????
The Supreme Court has, in a recent judgement, mentioned something to the effect that if a "Live-in Relationship" has been "on" for extended periods of time, the woman "live-in partner" in the relationship who "feels ditched" can file a suit for maintenance, and actually be entitled for the same.
All I can say, hoping that my comments here do not fall under the category of "Contempt of Court", is that I'm surprised.
If a person wants all the benefits of any kind of contract, he/she ought to accept the responsibilities of such a contract. Whether the contract is a legal contract or a social contract. Accordingly, you can't have a situation where an individual can want (and apparently hope to get) all the benefits of marriage, without accepting the responsibilities of a marriage. This dichotomy is just not on!
The other aspect is that the judgement apparently talks about "the woman" getting maintenance and not about "the person" getting maintenance. This is certainly a case of discrimination on grounds of a person's gender.
To say the least the whole thought process appears to be the view of a "bleeding heart". To say the least, I'm surprised.
Regards,
N
Swaraj Paul Suspended
Just saw a news item about Lord Swaraj Paul being suspended for a few months from the House of Lords. For submitting inflated bills.
I'm saddened for obvious reasons:
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His Indian origin will, certainly, invite comments, potentially casting aspersions on his country of origin. Whether right or wrong.
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He's obviously rich (by most commonly accepted standards). Has been rich for at least a couple of decades. I distinctly remember my student days when he was trying to "take over" one of the established corporates (If I'm not mistaken, he was trying to acquire Escorts). Despite being as rich as he apparently must be, he finds himself accused of having inflated bills!!! Like a small little clerk trying to make both ends meet by getting a few hundred bucks on the side. We ought to be condemning even the attitude of such a clerk. Imagine what our reactions will be for such a "Name" like Lord Swaraj Paul.
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Lord Swaraj Paul! By God, he was Knighted. By the very Queen. And now, this! At the very least, he must IMMEDIATELY resign from the House of Lords, surrender all his Titles, Awards, etc.
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Either admitting guilt, and apologising to the two nations - UK & India - and to the people of the two nations OR
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Denying guilt, and resigning to enable investigation, surrendering titles as a mark of protest, and filing a suit claiming damages.
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If such a thing happens in Banana republics, it is comprehensible. If it happens to Politician X or Y in India, we could possibly understand it. However, if it were to happen to certain politicians who have built a reputation, like, for instance, our own PM Manmohan Singh, we'll certainly be saddened. Likewise, Lord Swaraj Paul has been almost a role model for millions of middle class Indians. Whether he knows it or not. Whether he likes it or not. Whether he wants it or not. As cricket fans would say, this is just not cricket.
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For Heaven's sake, if a person of his stature wants to commit a crime, at the very least,
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He should have ensured that he didn't get caught - Just not on! Or,
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He should have got caught for a much bigger crime involving millions (or, better still, Billions) of pounds. Not for submitting inflated bills!!! Leave that to petty, criminally minded low level municipality / panchayat type politicians.
Lord Paul, Shame on you! Irrrespective of whether you are guilty or not.
I'll be most glad to take back these words if, as suggested elsewhere above, you resign from the House, surrender all titles as a mark of protest, file suits claiming damages, win huge sums of money by way of damages, and donate all those damages for a charitable cause of your choice in a public function.
Regards,
N
A friend reminded me about my life-long philosophy of life:
Maximise the time spent living & minimise the time spent earning your livelihood.
To the best of my knowledge, I've been living according to the above dictum. Unfortunately, I can't say the same about many other human beings whom I know.
This picture says it all:
Please try and start living. Now. Here. Right away!
Regards,
N
