Dear Readers,
Continuing Education, featured in FC #81, resonated with many readers. They were unanimous in their view that CE is a lifelong feature and the day we stop learning, we find ourselves improving our ignorance score.
Ajit Rangnekar was the Dean of the Indian School of Business from January 2009 to 31 December 2015. He has this sage wisdom to share:
Continuing education must have a very different perspective now. It is logical to give the basic education and then supplement it with lifelong learning as required, predominantly online. At the rate at which things are evolving, and new knowledge emerging, staying up to date is mandatory now, so continuing education is now a requirement, not an option.
A P Thomas has shared this nugget:
“Anyone who stops learning is old and anyone who keeps learning stays young.” - Henry Ford.
This has been accomplished by 95-year-old Karthyayini Amma from Alleppey, Kerala. Under the Kerala Literacy Mission, Karthyayani Amma has successfully completed the 4th Standard equivalent course. Her achievement caught the attention of Industrialist Anand Mahindra who tweeted, “Now if this is true she is my role model. My brains will stay alive if I stay hungry to learn as she.”
Manivannan says:
Can’t agree more. Learning Python and Machine Learning at the age of 56 has opened up a new career post my retirement... and I’m having fun with it every day.
Rajesh Bagga says:
After a long corporate career I discovered my passion for wild photography. I had to learn all about it, the complex cameras, the processing software, etc. I am now travelling to wildlife destinations across continents.
Tarun Kunzru summarises it well:
Learning keeps the mind, body and intellect alert and conscious of things happening around us. We have to remain students our entire life.
🦠 Covidential
As you read on, you will realise why I coined this word, which is meant to be exactly the opposite of ‘providential’.
Guys, on the 18th of Jan, just after I had finished narrating my readers’ feedback on FC #81, both my wife and I tested positive for COVID and my body subdued my mind, though mind over body is usually the right order of things.
I suspect I contacted COVID, which is now masquerading as Omicron, at a very small family gathering. We all observed social distancing, yet it happened. One of the relatives may have been an asymptomatic carrier. If you are familiar with corporate jargon, this was a case of ‘arm's length related party transmission’.
When we decided to get tested, a well-meaning friend said, “Be positive, you will be negative”.
Do I call the well-meaning fellow a moron for making that oxymoronic statement? When I called him up and said I had tested positive he said “Be positive this too shall pass”.
We both tested positive and experienced what positive really means. In Zen Gardens, the neighbourhood that we live in, besides urging us to be positive and take care of ourselves the community has reached out to us. Every day, people are taking turns and we are being provided with three meals a day. We are so very grateful to each one of them.
Prior to COVID, quarantine was considered a regulatory measure to isolate infected animals or other species, and it extended to people coming from places where there was some contagious disease. Post-COVID it was extended to homes where one of the residents tested positive. Somewhere along the line, isolation replaced quarantine as if it was a consolation.
So, my wife and I are grateful for all the attention we are getting. The Coronavirus has encouraged me to become spiritual. For example, I have learnt to separate the virus from Corona beer, which makes it much more enjoyable. But you cannot have it chilled if you have the chills. The other alternative is to imagine your house to be a mansion and overcome the feeling of isolation with a snifter of hot water and a dash of Mansion House brandy. Just what the doctor did not order.
On the 19th and 20th of January, my condition was like what Russians say: “Vodka is fine but the meat is rotten”. Yes, my spirit was willing but the flesh was weak. I wanted to get off the bed and continue writing this post, but figuring out what to write was like fuzzy logic.
On the 21st I had to conduct the virtual Lawyers Round Table (LRT). I yanked myself off the bed and looked in the mirror and it said:
Your face looks ashen
Make it look shaven
You will be rid of the stubble
And feel some energy bubble
The LRT featuring the inspirational speaker R. Gopalakrishnan went off very well. My thanks to dear friend Sundharesan for helping me with the Q&A session.
Fatigue set in after LRT and I could not think of what to write and so 21st passed by. Today is the 22nd and I’m now sitting in front of the computer staring at the screen. It's a Dell but doesn’t ring a bell, leaving me clueless. Omicron has given me a headache and I clutch my head muttering, “oh my crown”.
Since my mood is rather ‘punnish’ it is covidential that I can think of a few puns, jokes and limericks about the virus and make this post laughable.
First, a poem that I composed (though I am not composed):
How difficult it is, don’t ask
To breathe through the mask,
Better to live with the task
Than to end up in a cask
Another one, a limerick (I am still not composed)
There was a man called David
Who had never heard of Covid
But when it came knocking
(without him knowing)
With anger, he went livid.
A few more funnies I’d like to share:
When over the weekend, John Travolta developed a temperature, the doctor said, “It is not Covid, just Saturday Night Fever”.
The Barista in Starbucks was wearing a thick mask to serve as a coughy filter.
What’s the difference between COVID-19 and Romeo and Juliet? One’s the coronavirus and the other is a Verona crisis.
Finally, I must thank my wife for putting up with my moans and groans and taking good care of me. Most men (which includes me) think that their wives nag when in fact, when sick, they behave like kids, and their wives have to constantly remind them to take the meds.
Here’s one more limerick I composed, which I urge all ladies to read with compassion for a man who has lost it.
There was a man from Kochi
Who was fascinated by Gucci
His wife was a caring nag
From the grey market, he bought her a bag
She took one look and said “Thoo! Chi!”
I am relieved that I have managed to complete this post, though it may look like compost. I am going to hit the sack before you find something to hit me with. Cheers! Take care.
Laughter is the best medicine Putani. Thank you for those nice words.
Hats off to your wit & will power!