A LETTER TO A BROTHER FROM A SISTER

Dear Brother,

I know life is being hard at the moment. There are a number of a things that might be bothering you…All I want to say is that have faith, all this will end too…There are certain things that I ve learnt from life…I wish to share them with you…not like a sermon but rather like an afternoon chat…

Life is strangely familiar and familiarly strange…It’s full of compromises and choices…You don’t get to choose your family or the surroundings in which you were born and grew up…You don’t get to choose your siblings and parents…but you do get to choose your friends…you do get to choose your attitude…you do get to choose the path on which to walk for the rest of life…and most important you do get to choose your attitude towards all that happens with you. Things happen once when they physically take place in reality and over and over again when we think about them in our minds…So it’s best to choose a healthy positive attitude towards all that happens…to find that one good thing even in worst scenarios and focus on that…so that when your mind replays the sequence of events in life, you have a good feeling… that you have learnt from the situations…there is something good in even bad situations no matter how bleak they may seem to be…there is something to be learnt in all the struggles that life gives to us…more often than not, it takes courage to be able to see and sustain that good…it is not possible for the weak hearted…Whenever you feel that life is being very, very unfair to you, remind yourself that someone has already faced that particular situation and come out of it victorious…that someone may be from some other country, some other time, a total stranger…or maybe someone you know, someone close, may be your own friend, your own sibling, your own family…the main point is that you are most probably not alone in facing the blues of life…and in fact, if life ever poses such a unique situation before you which nobody else has ever encountered, what more joy than conquering it for the first time in human history?

There may be times when nobody might believe in you…including your friends, your siblings and your parents…there may be times when the world might challenge your capabilities in a harsh way…the crucial thing which will take you to victory is belief in yourself…no matter what happens, never cease to believe in yourself…Keep the fire of spirit ‘I CAN’ alive in your heart no matter what…because in the end, we all are what we think of ourselves to be….

Amongst the many people in your life, there might be a few who care for you…but fail to understand you…they may not understand your deep emotions, your true grain…learn to live with these people and care for them too…And then, there may be people who understand you…but don’t really love you or care for you…Learn to identify such people and learn from them as much as you can…another important thing, don’t house too many bad feelings for anyone…Life is really too short to waste in hatred…If something disturbs you deeply, instead of letting it turn into despise and hatred, turn that into a fire, a passion to change that…Life is colorless without passion…so have a deep rooted passion…

There will be times when your own friends might turn into foes…so place your trust in people with due care…talk to many, but speak only to a few…and avoid discussing your personal matters with people outside your immediate family and your close group of trusted people…

There are all kinds of people in the world…and each of them can teach you something...Don’t miss the chance to learn from them…Don’t necessarily make them your friends…because not all people deserve your friendship… last of all those who give out negative energy...Stay away from negative influences…but every living being deserves humanity from you…You owe a responsibility to this world of ours…Go out and do some good…Then you can be truly proud of yourself…

Surround yourself with good, happy and motivated people…Surround yourself with great music, great books and great friends…Let your room be filled with books and soft music…Understand that nature is the best soother…and Time the ultimate healer…Give time time…Life is not all bad…in fact for most part its beautiful…and smile is the best ornament that can adorn man…

There are various treasures waiting to be found…there a million pebbles of knowledge on the shore of wisdom…Go ahead and explore them… Believe in life but most importantly, believe in yourself…

And remember this one thing…consider me more as your friend than your elder sister…I believe you have all the abilities to live a very fruitful and enjoyable life...

I have jotted above certain things that have helped me…see if you can use them too…

Take care, my brother…