This post is dedicated to my grandmother who passed away 2 days ago
Ever so often I get this compliment.. “I always see you
smiling”. I never thought about it much. Now that I think about it, I realize that
it is not something I do consciously. It is totally involuntary, just like my
breathing. And I think it comes from my attitude towards life, ever optimistic,
always positive. And where did I get this attitude from? I give that credit to
my wonderful family. And I want to thank God for sending me into this wonderful
family and giving me this great life. I don’t remember anyone from my family
explicitly telling me to have an optimistic outlook. But each member through
example, through the way they have lived their lives, has left a lasting
impact. That’s what has shaped me.
I would particularly like to mention my grandparents. Never ever
have I seen them grumpy or complaining or fretting about things. My wonderful
grandma who passed away this Sunday, was a tough old woman, a survivor. She
fought off cancer and a small heart attack a few years back. She was 84, but
had so much zest for life. Although in the past few years she couldn’t travel
much, she loved to meet people and loved to have people come over to our place. Without doubt she has been one of the strong links that has kept us close to our extended family of multitude of cousins. I know she had been in pain and discomfort many times during her illnesses. But
I never heard her complain too much. When I had an accident, my grandma was in the same hospital where I was, recovering after her cancer surgery. I was supposed to meet her that
evening, but instead she came to my room to meet me and cheer me up. She said
that she had a great life with great people around her and thanked God for it.
With such positivity in the family, it is natural for me to
turn out the way I have as a person. Just like my family, I have some really
wonderful friends always around me. It is comforting to know that they will
always be there through good times and bad. God has been kind to me and there
is no reason to complain about anything. So the least I can do to pay him back
is to make sure people around me stay happy. I cannot change things in their
lives but in tough times, if I can give them a few moments of happiness, some
fits of laughter or just a simple soothing smile, I am sure I will make a
positive difference.
While I was walking today along the river, I thought of a
life mantra for myself… “Share your joys and others’ sorrows”. Now I am not a
superhuman, so God forbid, there could be times when I would burden my close
ones with my sorrows. But if I can help it, a smile is all that you would see J
