MiddlePen

allef-vinicius_unsplash As life events happen around us, Nature seems to be busy churning numbers. It’s almost like one giant data science machine that’s working on the predictability of situations - dropping hints for course correction. Consider these examples from the new age world: 1.   80% of wealth in the world is owned by 20% people (and vice versa) 2.   90% of Warren Buffet's wealth is from just ten most paying investments 3.   In a business, roughly 20% of the customers bring in 80% of the revenue 4.   I n sales, typically 80% of  the deals are closed by  20% of the sales staff 5.   Financial gurus suggest 20% allocation of income towards financial goals, and the remaining 80% for everything else 6.   80% of the total healthcare expenditure happens in the last 20% of a person’s life 7.   80% of road traffic accidents happen due to 20% of the most common reasons 8.   80% employees reach late to the office due to 20% of the most common reasons

Standing at a bus shelter recently, I was witness to an interaction which had me thinking deep. An able bodied young man in frayed clothes, requested Rs. 50 from his acquaintance to take care of a necessity. The latter, after a sermon and some mockery, handed him the loan. Swallowing disrespect, the young man moved away. Sermons on hard work are easier given, I thought. A Scenario Let’s call this poor young man Moh. His shabby appearance suggested that he came from a cramped, smelly, and heavily shared accommodation. He must be looking for a decent job. My mind tried to piece together reasons for the young man’s poverty, in an extreme way.  "Moh must have come from an unsound home with an abusive/alcoholic father, an illiterate mother who probably didn’t understand his emotional changes as a growing teenager and an insensitive community around him. The child might have gone to a school that had inadequate infrastructure and teachers; or worst, a teacher who must have hu

kelly-sikkema-BcErkVtF0as-unsplash Oh, listen to the falling rain Pitter pater, pitter pater Oh, oh, oh, listen to the falling rain Pitter pater, pitter pater   A lilting melody by The Cascades  celebrates the beauty of a wondrous  phenomenon called rain! This golden oldie hums in my mind as the monsoon arrives in the month of July every year. On the stage plays a giant rhythmic orchestra pittering and patering in synchronized chorus, announcing relief. The parched earth gets liberated from the tyranny of a long hot summer. Sitting in my verandah,  sipping a steaming cup of fine Assam  tea, it was a pleasure to watch the rain drops fall unceasingly  on the tree leaves, the flower pots, the window sill, the garden furniture, the porch, the thirsty earth and all others that were deprived of hydration since many days. The accumulated rain water meandered in tiny rivulets in the kitchen garden making puddles. The earth reciprocated in gratitude by emitting merry little b