This week, we explore a person and how s/he impacts our personality and perspective on life. It could be a pet, since we have strong emotional bonds with these lovely souls.

MY TAKE

I close my eyes and see the morning sky, resplendent in shades of yellow and orange. These are the colors of sunrise, colors of hope. Gradually, the sky darkens as grey clouds gather. I see splashes of red in between, like blood spattered on the sky. It is not yet sunset, but the sky is dark. The clouds have blocked sunlight from finding its way to the planets.

I think of my childhood where I was taught to take pride in the honesty and integrity of my parents. grandparents and teachers. Being good meant taking a stand for ethics, and facing all difficulties with equanimity. Difficulties? Here lies the catch. It was ingrained that this path will not be easy, and treading it will need a higher than average strength. Also, that success lies in mustering that strength, irrespective of the returns.

The corporate world was a different scenario. Integrity, for me, was defined by Ayn Rand – integrity in thought, speech and action. I was perhaps looking for an impossible ideal and never found that. Diplomacy and tact are the keywords for success in the workplace, and THAT WAS NOT INTEGRITY, at least in my head.

The people I have chosen are public figures, whom I have never met.

1. One is a former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, who stood by his beliefs on the right course of action for the country’s economy. In the process, he clashed with political power, and ultimately quit. He did not seek a second term, and moved back to a teaching assignment in a foreign university.

2. Another is a former bureaucrat, who made a sterling entry into state level politics with a promise to eradicate corruption. Two years later, he has been maligned, ridiculed and rendered ineffective by the system. A network of vested interests ensured that he was not allowed to function. I am not sure if this much-maligned person lost his intent in the thick of battle, or was victimized by external forces. But either way, the battle has been lost. Popular perception wants to see success, and he was unable to demonstrate even a small measure of that.

MESSAGE CONVEYED

Ethics does not stand a chance to succeed, unless one aims low. I can choose to be happy in a mediocre life, where I retain my values, but do not see huge wealth or fame. Success is how one defines it, and hence, I have refrained from using that term.

CHOICE MADE

I choose to help people in understanding themselves, know the impact of the choices they make, and prepare them to face the future with ease. At times, I feel like the outmoded lighthouse between the deafening fury of the ocean, which has lost relevance with the introduction of new technology. At times, I feel fortunate to be able to help the miniscule few who need me.

Read other explorations at

Reena’s Exploration Challenge #Week 12