Be yourself

Be yourself without hurting others (including yourself).

Approach every drop of life with your uniqueness.

Enjoy every moment that passes you by.

This is the gist of an email I received. There is a short story in it. I want to share it with you on my way.

An elderly man from a village in the southern corner of Tamil Nadu comes to visit his son who lives in Chennai. His son is a successful businessman, living with his wife and son.

The elder (father) does not know any language other than village Tamil. He never cared for that. If he comes to Chennai, he will stay with his son and family for a few days. Never interested in going anywhere outside or looking around town.

But this time his son took him to a five-star restaurant with the intention of making him 'happy'. The elder dressed in his village style and departed wearing a dhoti and a towel.

After dining at the restaurant, he picked up some of the roasted peanuts that were placed on the table there and packed them using his towel.

He loves roasted peanuts. Leaving the restaurant, the adult stumbled on the carpet on the way to his car and scattered the peanuts on the porch.

All the servants there looked at him and laughed mockingly. Our guess would be that the son would have thought, "This old man should never be brought to such a big place again." But what happened was different.

The trembled son suddenly lifted his father. Then he picked up the peanuts one by one that was scattered on the ground and tied them back to the towel and gave them to his father.

Dad loved that restaurant so much, for the peanuts. The two then went to the car and decided to come back with the family next week.

A few days later, father and son chatted with the family of a friend who came home one day and described this story with a laugh.

After laughing, the friend asked, "Dude! Aren't you ashamed then?"

He said, "Friend, this is my father. He is like that. He speaks the village Tamil that he knows. He wears his favorite clothes. He just bought and ate his favorite peanuts for money. This is his habit, his natural disposition. I have nothing to be ashamed of.

No one has the right to prevent my father from doing what he wants. "

The friend repeated, "Well, what would the people who worked there have thought?" 

"They need money. That's money for food, money for 'tips' for waiters. That's all. My father and his happiness are important to me. Not what others think," he (son) replied sarcastically.

Everyone agreed with that. The place was lively as his wife chatted to start that there was still a lot to be proud of thinking of her father-in-law.

This is not just a story about the glory of a father-son relationship. Look at the emotions of the characters in it, not just the story. The role of the father does not change his speech, diet, and dress habits at this age.

The character of the son says, "His father is his will. There is no benefit to me or him in forcing him to change and there is no harm to anyone because he is like that, and not only that he is my father. I respect his feelings." What guys! Do we think so? Of course not.

'My wife does not speak English, she has no knowledge of the world, so I will not take her anywhere.'

'My husband is just a clerk. Do you have the mentality (mental illness) that he does not know how to behave with big (rich) men, so I do not go out with him ',' My parents do not know how to walk politely in public, so do not introduce them to my friends'?. Please change it as soon as possible. Otherwise, it will destroy your community.

Did your spouse, parents, or grandparents worry that he or she did not speak English? Did your husband underestimate himself as just a clerk? Why do you only care about the 'criticism' of others?

Do not suppress the feelings of your relationship for someone. Let them be themselves. Accept it as it is. Only then can a village relative of yours go to a five-star restaurant.

Be yourself without hurting others (including yourself). Approach every drop of life with your uniqueness. Enjoy every moment that passes you by