IF I WERE A STUDENT IN MUMBAI

Bless the Lord, O my soul:
and all that is within me,
Bless His holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits.
- King David in Psalm 103:1-2 (The Bible)

Oh Eagle, don’t be despondent
Due to the swift and rough breeze,
For it only blows in this manner
To make you fly faster and higher.
- Igbal Quoted by Gulshan Esther (THE TORN VEIL)

INTRODUCTION:

If I were a student studying in Mumbai I will accept some core ground realities:
One, that my stay here is temporary.

Two, that only with God’s blessings I will be successful in my goal and the dreams I aspire for.

Three, that I must make the best use of my stay.
Four, that I must learn to be more expressively thankful to God and parents for this rare privilege.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR LIVING:

1. Job 8:7 “ Though your beginning was small, yet your latter end would greatly increase ( read abundantly ) “ will be my guiding verse. My own humble background and upbringing would help me in being modest in my relationship with God and with others. This unique quality must also help me to be more objective and focused with my life goals. And perhaps, increase the will to succeed in life.

2. I will strive to excel in whatever thing I am involved in. I must excel in the dreams I pursue. King Solomon was right when he said: “ Do you see a man who excels in his work ? He will stand before Kings. He will not stand before unknown men.” ( Proverbs 22:29 )

3. As life is beautiful I will maintain a close relationship with God. A living and personal relationship it shall be. Truly my God is the source of all blessings. I believe Moses who led the Israelites during their troubled times when he said: “You shall remember the Lord your God for it is He who gives you power to get wealth.” (Deuteronomy 8:18)

4. I must always be in touch with my roots. For the honour of my family and my own self-respect I must strive to be respectable and presentable. This will come only if I am self-disciplined physically, spiritually and morally.

5. Towards developing a more caring personality I must strive to improve my personal qualities such as self-confidence, physical health, organizing and planning abilities, dependability, cost consciousness, intelligence, interpersonal skills, subject knowledge and double up my own interest in self-development. “Education can train, but not create intelligence.” ( Edward Mcchesney )

6. I can make the maximum use of my stay in Mumbai by cultivating friendships that will be useful in the years to come, broaden my outlook and attitude, be accommodative and discard all hangovers of a small town mentality, compete with general mainstream fellow students in studies, talents and all those extra-curricular activities and learn to use Library facilities more and more.

CONCLUSION:

Above all I must remain thankful to God for what I am now. I must raise the bar of expectation on myself, increase the hope and confidence in my own God-given abilities and use them judiciously knowing full well that God cares and is with me.

If others could flourish as vibrant personalities and as students in Mumbai so will I. And why not ?

(This message was delivered on August 28th, 1999 at St Columbus Hall, Annual Freshers Meet, Mumbai.)

~ Dr. Ginlianlal Buhril

Source: www.zogam.com