My elder one participated in an elocution competition in school, and the topic given to them was "My favourite Indian". He is a voracious reader like me and writes pretty well (did I tell you he writes a blog?) He is fiercely independent and does not like me helping with writing for him. Well, this is the exact version of the speech he wrote. It left me amazed and speechless and I just had to share it here. (the pictures are my addition....) So read on...
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When I think about Indians who have inspired me, a lot of
names pop up. From great freedom fighters like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal
Nehru, and great sports persons like Sachin Tendulkar and Vishwanathan Anand, to
great minds like, Narayan Murthy to Abdul Kalam. Each one of them have inspired
me in their own special way.
But there is one person closer home who has been my biggest
inspiration ever. She is my grandmother- my mom’s mother. She is the Indian I
like the most. Yes, you heard it right! My grandma is my most favorite Indian.
I have never seen anyone quite like her. She stands for everything a true
Indian should be, Secular, Democratic and Courageous. Amongst her many
qualities are her joy in giving, caring for everyone irrespective of who they
are and treating everyone with utmost respect. While most people just go to
school, she is educated in the true sense. Let me tell you why I admire her so
much. I have learnt many valuable lessons from her.
Most people follow one religion or faith. But, have you EVER
heard of anyone following all faiths. Yes, you heard it right. That’s my
grandma for you. She is a born Hindu, but she also reads the Namaz and visits
the Dargah, the Church and the Gurudwara with equal faith and devotion. She is as comfortable when offering a chaddar
at a dargah or lighting a candle at the church as she is when offering puja to
the shivling. She says that all religions are the same, all God is one and all scriptures
teach only one thing and that is to love your fellow human being. Reading and
knowing about other cultures helps us to understand and respect everybody. She
is truly the most secular Indian I have ever seen.
Once while travelling by a cycle rickshaw in the hot summer
heat in Nagpur, we took a break to have a fruit juice. She promptly ordered one
tall glass of juice for the rickshaw puller too. How many people can actually
think that the rickshaw puller is human too?
When we visited her, I didn’t even realise that the aunty
who was helping her clean the house was actually the maid. She never treated
her like a maid. She believes in offering to people in need and makes no
differentiation between people based on their financial condition.
I have never seen her behave like a dictator with anyone.
She always listens to everyone’s opinion however small or elderly they may be. She
never forces her opinion on anybody and we have the full freedom to do what we
want to do. She firmly believes that children should not be hit by the elders.
I can proudly say that no one ever hits or threatens us at home and that has
made me confident and helped me believe in my abilities. I can also openly
discuss anything with her and my parents.
She has immense knowledge of all subjects, especially of
geography, history and maths. It is very interesting to talk to her on any
subject as she is always up to date in her knowledge of current affairs. She
encourages the reading habit in me and she is herself very well read.
She always encourages me to be honest and truthful, whatever
the consequences may be. She says that being noble and being a good human being
is more important than being rich, famous or successful. She also motivates me
to work hard and put my best effort in whatever I do.
She is my most favorite Indian. Thank you.
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After his speech, the headmistress was quite moved and she wanted to meet his grandma.Well, Mom lives in another city so he promised to bring her to school when she comes here.
That is kind of impression we make on our little ones, and they observe everything we do and learn from it.
The latest news and the icing on the cake is that this speech won my son the first prize!!
