8 Lies of Mother

“This story begins when I was a child: I was born poor. Often we hadn’t enough to eat. Whenever we had some food, Mother often gave me her portion of rice”.

While she was transferring her rice into my bowl, she would say “Eat this rice, son! I’m not hungry.” This was Mother’s First Lie. As I grew, Mother gave up her spare time to fish in a river near our house; she hoped that from the fish she caught, she could give me a little bit more nutritious food for my growth. Once she had caught just two fish, she would make a fish soup.

While I was eating the soup, my mother would sit beside me and eat what was still left on the bone of the fish I had eaten; my heart was touched when I saw it. Once I gave the other fish to her on my chopstick but she immediately refused it and said, “Eat this fish, son! I don’t really like fish.” This was Mother’s Second Lie.

Then, in order to fund my education, Mother went to a Match Factory to bring home some used matchboxes, which she filled with fresh matchsticks. This helped her get some money to cover our needs. One wintry night I awoke to find Mother filling the matchboxes by candlelight. So I said, “Mother, go to sleep; it’s late: you can continue working tomorrow morning.” Mother smiled and said “Go to sleep, son! I’m not tired.” This was Mother’s Third Lie.

When I had to sit my Final Examination, Mother accompanied me. After dawn, Mother waited for me for hours in the heat of the sun. When the bell rang, I ran to meet her. Mother embraced me and poured me a glass of tea that she had prepared in a thermos. The tea was not as strong as my Mother’s love, Seeing Mother covered with perspiration; I at once gave her my glass and asked her to drink too. Mother said“Drink, son! I’m not thirsty!” This was Mother’s Fourth Lie.

After Father’s death, Mother had to play the role of a single parent. She held on to her former job; she had to fund our needs alone. Our family’s life was more complicated. We suffered from starvation. Seeing our family’s condition worsening, my kind Uncle who lived near my house came to help us solve our problems big and small. Our other neighbors saw that we were poverty stricken so they often advised my mother to marry again. But Mother refused to remarry saying “I don’t need love.” This was Mother’s Fifth Lie.

After I had finished my studies and gotten a job, it was time for my old Mother to retire but she carried on going to the market every morning just to sell a few vegetables. I kept sending her money but she was steadfast and even sent the money back to me. She said, “I have enough money.” That was Mother’s Sixth Lie.

I continued my part-time studies for my Master’s Degree. Funded by the American Corporation for which I worked, I succeeded in my studies. With a big jump in my salary, I decided to bring Mother to enjoy life in America but Mother didn’t want to bother her son; she said to me “I’m not used to high living.” That was Mother’s Seventh Lie.

In her dotage, Mother was attacked by cancer and had to be hospitalized. Now living far across the ocean, I went home to visit Mother who was bedridden after an operation. Mother tried to smile but I was heartbroken because she was so thin and feeble but Mother said, “Don’t cry, son! I’m not in pain.”

That was Mother’s Eighth Lie. Telling me this, her eighth lie, she died.

YES, MY MOTHER WAS AN ANGEL!

“M” is for the Million things she gave me,

“O” means Only that she’s growing old,

“T” is for the Tears she shed to save me,

“H” is for her Heart of gold,

“E” is for her Eyes with love-light shining in them,

“R” means Right, and right she’ll always be.

Put them together, they spell out “MOTHER”; a word that means the world to me.

Love Your Parents

After 12 years of marriage, my wife wanted me to invite another woman to dinner and a movie.

She told me: “I love you, but I know that the other woman loves you and would like to spend time with you.”

The Other Woman , which my wife asked to pay attention to, was my mother. She was a widow for over 19 years. But since my job and three children demanded all my strength from me, I could only visit her occasionally.

That evening I called her to invite her to dinner and a movie.

- What happened ? Are you okay? – she asked me at once. My mother’s first reaction was usually like this whenever she the phone rang late at night she reckoned it was bad news.

- I thought it would be nice to spend some time with you: – I answered. She thought for a moment, then said: ‘I really want this.”

On Friday after work I went for it and i was a little nervous. As my car pulled up outside her house, I saw her standing at the door and noticed that she seemed a little too excited.

She stood in the doorway of the house, threw her coat over her shoulders. Her hair was curled in ringlets, and she was in the dress she had bought to celebrate the recent anniversary of my wedding.

- I told my friends that my son will take me to the restaurant today evening, and they were deeply impressed.

– she said , sitting in the car.

We went to a restaurant. Though it was not luxurious, but it was very nice and cozy. My mother took my arm and walked as if she was my first lady.

When we sat down at a table, I had to read her the menu. My mother’s eyes are now able to distinguish only large fonts. As i finished reading half of it, I looked up and saw that my mother was sitting, staring at me, and a nostalgic smile lay on her lips.

- In the past, when you were little, I read the whole menu for you – she said.

- So, it is time to pay a favor – I replied.

During dinner, we had a very good conversation. It was nothing special. We simply shared the latest events in our lives. But we got so busy that we were late for the film.

When I left her home, she said: ‘Once again, I’ll go with you to the restaurant. Only this time, I invite you. ” I agreed.

- How was your evening? – My wife asked when I got home.

- Very good. Much better than I imagined – I replied.

A few days later my mother died of a massive heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I had no chance to do something for her. A few days later I received an envelope with a payment receipt from the restaurant where we had dinner with my mother.

The receipt had an attached note: “I paid the bill for our second dinner in advance. However, I’m not sure I could have dinner with you. But nevertheless, I paid for two people. For you and your wife. I have no words to explain to you what that dinner to which you invited me, meant to me: My son, I love you.

Take care of your parents! They are the only ones who truly rejoice in your successes and experience for your failures. Be with them more often than possible, because the day when they will not be by your side might come completely unexpected …

Shri Shri Ravishankar

Shri Shri Ravishankars Brief Interview with Rediff.com (Only some part is produced herewith)

A nation's most powerful weapon is the will of the common man.
It is this will, says Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, buttressed by action, that will draw an agenda for a better India.


If you were asked to draw up an agenda for a New India, what would your agenda be?

Justice for farmers.
An easy working atmosphere for industrialists.
Creating a more tolerant and cooperative society among all religious leaders.
Clean politics; people with character and humility should be in politics.
If there were three ills in India that you would prioritise and tackle, what would they be?

What are the three things you would ask people to fight against and change?
The first is corruption.
The second is communalism.
The third is to get over your lethargy and be inspired for a brighter future.
 
Have Indians in urban areas become more selfish?

That's correct, in some ways.
I think alcohol is also a big problem. It is one of the biggest culprits for many of the malaises in both rural and urban areas.
It is a matter of concern that drugs and alcohol are available so freely.

What about the way in which we view women in Indian society today... the violence against women, the acts of rape -- does that come down from our scriptures?

Absolutely not!
Women have been given such a great position in our scriptures. In fact, more than the father, more than men, women have a bigger stature.
But the unfortunate incident... (the Delhi gang-rape) I would say it is not a very unique thing that has never happened before.
In our society, many, many, many such crimes against women are happening in rural and urban areas.
It's just that they are not reported as it happened with the recent incident.
We have a long way to go in instilling moral and spiritual values in society and ethics in business.

 

Do You Hate Someone?

A VERY NICE STORY WITH A GOOD MORAL. PLEASE GO THROUGH

A kindergarten teacher has decided to let her class play a game.The teacher told each child in the class to bring along a plastic bag containing a few potatoes.Each potato will be given a name of a person that the child hates,So the number of potatoes that a child will put in his/her plastic bag will depend on the number of people he/she hates.So when the day came, every child brought some potatoes with the name of the people he/she hated. Some had 2 potatoes; some 3 while some up to 5 potatoes. The teacher then told the children to carry with them the potatoes in the plastic bag wherever they go (even to the toilet) for 1 week.Days after days passed by, and the children started to complain due to the unpleasant smell let out by the rotten potatoes. Besides, those having 5 potatoes also had to carry heavier bags. After 1 week, the children were relieved because the game had finally ended....The teacher asked: "How did you feel while carrying the potatoes with you for 1 week?". The children let out their frustrations and started complaining of the trouble that they had to go through having to carry the heavy and smelly potatoes wherever they go.Then the teacher told them the hidden meaning behind the game. The teacher said: "This is exactly the situation when you carry your hatred for somebody inside your heart. The stench of hatred will contaminate your heart and you will carry it with you wherever you go. If you cannot tolerate the smell of rotten potatoes for just 1 week, can you imagine what is it like to have the stench of hatred in your heart for your lifetime???"Moral of the story: Throw away any hatred for anyone from your heart so that you will not carry sins for a lifetime. Forgiving others is the best attitude to take!True love is not loving a perfect person but loving an imperfect person perfectly!!

$5 Story

- MUM: 'If you must know, I make $20 an hour.'

- SON: 'Oh,' the little boy replied, with his head down.

- SON: "Mummy, may I please borrow $5?"

- The mother was furious, 'If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I don't work hard everyday for such childish frivolities. '

- The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door..

- The woman sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?

- After about an hour or so, the woman had calmed down, and started to think:

- Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $5 and he really didn't ask for money very often.The woman went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door.

- 'Are you asleep, son?' She asked.

- 'No Mummy, I'm awake,' replied the boy.

- 'I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier' said the woman. 'It's been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here's the $5 you asked for.'

- The little boy sat straight up, smiling. 'Oh, thank you Mummy!' he yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills.

- The woman saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again.

- The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his mother.

- 'Why do you want more money if you already have some?' the mother grumbled.

- 'Because I didn't have enough, but now I do,' the little boy replied.

- 'Mummy, I have $20 now. Can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow.

I would like to have dinner with you.'

- The mother was crushed. She put her arms around her little son, and she begged for his Forgiveness.

- It's just a short reminder to all

Of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those

Who really matter to us, those close to our hearts. Do remember to share that $20 worth of your time with someone you love.

If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of hours. But the family friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.

Effective Ways to Lower your Cholesterol Levels

The lifestyle of today is such that people always have too many balls in the air and are competing with time. However, that is no excuse to eat junk food on the go all the time. It leads to obesity and high cholesterol levels which are harmful for health. Even though awareness regarding this has been generated, the number of people suffering from high cholesterol has continues to increase steadily over the years. High cholesterol can easily be managed by following a few basic rules. Read on, before it’s too late. 

1) Diet: The types of food you eat and they way they’re prepared can have an immense effect on the cholesterol levels in your body. Certain food themselves contain cholesterol which are known as dietary cholesterol. Some examples of such foods are kidneys, eggs and prawns. However, the as compared to saturated fats, cholesterol found in such food has much less effect on the level of cholesterol in your blood. It is essential to cut down on saturated fats in order to reduce your cholesterol levels.

i. Fats and Cholesterol : Saturated and unsaturated are the two main types of fat. Consuming foods that are high in saturated fat can raise cholesterol levels in the blood. Foods high in saturated fat include ghee, cheese, cream, cakes, biscuits, fatty cuts of meat and foods containing coconut or palm oil. Unsaturated fat can actually help in reducing cholesterol levels. Foods high in unsaturated fats include oily fish, nuts, seeds and vegetable oils and spreads. As nuts are high in calories, only a handful is enough per serving. Include nuts such as almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts etcetera. Fish contains omega-3 fatty acids which are very good for the heart. Finally, reduce the total amount of fat in your diet by avoiding fried and roasted foods. Steam, boil or grill your food. If you must use oil, use olive oil.

ii. Fiber and cholesterol: The two different types of fiber are soluble fiber and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber can be digested by your body whereas insoluble fiber cannot. Foods containing soluble fiber include oats, beans, peas, lentils, chickpeas and of course, fruits and vegetables. Bananas are an excellent source of fiber. Soluble fiber can reduce the absorption of cholesterol into your bloodstream.

iii. Another important point to be considered is the size of the portion being consumed. Try to eat 5 balanced meals, containing small portions, a day. Reducing your intake of caffeine can also help in lowering your cholesterol levels.

2) Exercise: Studies have shown that exercising even 3 times a week can reduce your cholesterol levels. The best form of exercise is to go for long walks. It doesn’t require anything and can be done anytime, even in between your work. If you are looking more vigorous activities then you can try cycling, running, dancing and go to the gym. The most important thing is to enjoy what you do.

3) Drink Water: Try to drink at least 8 glasses of water per day as drinking more water keeps the body fitter as it reduces fats. Our kidneys also do not function properly if adequate amount of water is not supplied. Moreover, it also eliminates water retention properly. It makes the endocrine gland function properly which helps in balancing our body’s electrolytes, minerals such as sodium, chloride and potassium, which regulate body temperature and control blood pressure. Finally, it helps in the transportation of water-soluble vitamins and nutrients such as protein, minerals and vitamins across the body.

4) Quit Smoking: Smoking not only increases the LDL (low density lipoproteins, the bad cholesterol, while decreasing HDL (high density lipoproteins), the good cholesterol levels. This damages the arteries. The nicotine in cigarettes can also lead to heart palpitations. Smoking also makes the blood stickier by raising fibrinogen levels and platelet counts. Carbon monoxide from cigarette smoke also raises blood cholesterol levels. Research has found that giving up smoking leads to the rising of the HDL levels and depleting of the LDL levels. Within 24 hours of quitting, risk of a heart attack subsides. Due to all the above, it is proven that it makes sense to quit smoking.

How to Tell When Someone is Lying

Watching body language in addition to what is spoken might just save you from being a victim of fraud, or it could help you figure out when somebody’s being genuine. The police do this during an interrogation.

You have to learn the little facial and body expressions that can help you distinguish a lie from the truth. Here are some steps and tips to do so.

1. Learn to recognize deflections. Usually when people are lying, they will tell stories that are true but are deliberately aimed at not answering the question you asked. If a person responds to the question “Did you ever hit your wife?” with an answer such as “I love my wife, why would I do that?”, the suspect is technically telling a truth, but they are avoiding answering your original question, which usually means they’re lying.
2. Mind exaggerated details. See if they are telling you too much, like “My mom is living in France, isn’t it nice there? Don’t you like the Eiffel tower? It’s so clean there.” Too many details may tip you off to their desperation to get you to believe them.
3. We have illustrators, and manipulators. Illustrators are a sign of telling the truth, this is when you are using your hand gestures to talk. moving your hands while you are talking is a sign of telling the truth. We also have manipulators. These, are the opposite of illustrators. An example of a manipulator can be playing with your wrist-watch, your jewelry, pulling on your ear lobe, etc. People who behave this way tend to be hiding something. The last, commonly unknown sign of hiding something is reptile tissue, most people have a reptile tissue in their nose, and it itches when you’re hiding something. But, before you assume that the person is hiding something, please establish a base line.
4. Base Line: A base line is what someone acts like when they are not lying. You have to get a base line before you proceed with anything. Imagine you have a itch on your nose ever since you got out of bed. And someone thinks you are hiding something because you scratch your nose when answering a question…oops. What the person should have done is establish a baseline. To establish a baseline, you need to see the person when they aren’t lying. Try asking what their name is, and what they do for a living.
5. Look out for micro-expressions. Micro-expressions are split second facial expressions that flash on a person’s face for a less than a 25th of a second and reveal the person’s true emotion underneath their facade. Some people may be naturally sensitive to them, but almost anybody can easily train to be able to detect microexpressions. Put focus to the upper and lower eyelids, the corner of the eyes, the mouth and the muscles surrounding the mouth, the eyebrows and forehead.
6. Shaking hands… When you meet the person who you think is deceiving you, shake their hand. Take note of the temperature. When you are sure they are lying to you, pretend to be leaving and quickly grab their hand for a “Good-Bye” Handshake. If the temperature is colder, they are fearful.
7. Notice the person’s eye movements. Contrary to popular belief, a liar does not always avoid eye contact. Humans naturally break eye contact and look at non-moving objects to help them focus and remember. Liars may deliberately make eye contact to seem more sincere. You can usually tell if a person is remembering something or making something up based on their eye’s movements. When someone is remembering details, their eyes move to the right (your right). When someone is making something up, their eyes move to the left. It’s usually reversed for lefties. (although not always true.)
8. Be aware of their emotional responses
   • Timing and duration tends to be off when someone is lying. If you ask someone a question and they respond directly after the question, there is a chance that the person is lying. This can be because they have rehearsed the answer, or they’re already thinking about the answer just to get it over with and move forward. A delayed answer can be a sign of lying. To tell the truth takes 2 parts of your brain at most, however to lie takes 6 parts of your brain. If the person has a long story then you can ask them to tell it backwards. Liars have trouble telling stories backwards, because in their mind they have rehearsed it forwards, but not backwards. And, as with smiling, facial expressions of a poor liar will be limited to the mouth area.
   • Pay close attention to the person’s reaction to your questions. A liar will often feel uncomfortable and turn their head or body away, or even subconsciously put an object between the two of you. Also, while an innocent person would go on the offensive (usually responding with anger, which will usually be revealed in a microexpression directly after you say you don’t believe them), a guilty person will often go immediately on the defensive (usually by saying something to reassure their facts, such as deflections).
9. Listen for a subtle delay in responses to questions. An honest answer comes quickly from memory. Lies require a quick mental review of what they have told others to avoid inconsistency and to make up new details as needed. However, when people look up to remember things, it does not necessarily mean that they are lying.
10. Be conscious of their usage of words. Verbal expression can give many clues as to whether a person is lying, such as:
    • Using/repeating your own exact words when answering a question
    • Not using contractions
    • Avoiding direct statements or answers (deflections)
    • Speaking excessively in an effort to convince
    • Speaking in a monotonous tone
    • Speaking in muddled sentences
    • Vocal pitch rising
    • Using classic qualifiers such as “I’m only going to say this once…”
    • Using humor and sarcasm to avoid the subject
    • Using Deflections (beating around the bush, not answering the question.)
11. Allow silence to enter the conversation.
    • If they’re lying, they will become uncomfortable if you stare at them for a while with a look of disbelief. If they’re telling the truth, they will usually become angry or just frustrated (lips pressed together, brows down, upper eyelid tensed and pulled down to glare).
12. Change the subject quickly. While an innocent person would be confused by the sudden shift in the conversation and may try to return to the previous subject, a liar will be relieved and welcome the change. You may see the person become more relaxed and less defensive.
13. Watch his or her throat. A person may constantly be either trying to lubricate their throat when he/she lies by swallowing or clearing their throat to relieve the tension built up. A person’s voice can also be a good lie indicator; they may suddenly start talking faster or slower than normal, or their tension may result in a higher-pitched speaking tone. See baseline info
14. Check the facts. If you have the means, check the validity of what the liar is saying. A skilled liar might give some reason why you shouldn’t talk to the person who could confirm or deny a story. Perhaps the liar will infer that the person is particularly favourable towards the liar, or that the person would have little time for you. These are probably lies themselves, so might be worthwhile overcoming your reluctance and to check with the person you’ve been warned against.
15. Judge the character. Most people tell the truth most of the time, and will cherish their reputation. Liars will ‘sail close to the wind’ – they’ll artificially bolster their reputation so that they seem more credible or desirable than they actually are.
    • If you overhear a version of an anecdote that seems wrong, listen to those alarm bells – it might be a liar.
    • If someone takes the time out to ingratiate themselves with you out of the blue, it’s very flattering, but you have to ask, why are they doing that?
    • If John rubbishes or smears people more than normal, John is possibly putting in the groundwork so the audience are more receptive to John, and less receptive to the people who John has lied to – they’re discredited before they can say ‘John is a liar’.

Note -

• Some people are extremely experienced or even professional liars. He or she has told their made up story so many times that they are actually believable, getting all their days, dates and times down perfectly! Sometimes, you may need to simply accept that you can’t catch every lie all the time.
• If you do catch a lie, don’t reveal it to the liar; they will just adjust their story. Once you know one thing that is not true, you can use it to find more of the net of lies, and other nets of lies. Then decide which points you reveal and to whom.