One always dreams of living in a luxury. Winning lottery would make that dream come true. But, the question is, would I really want to live a life of luxury? Since I am quite content with the way our family lives, coming into a lot of money all of a sudden will certainly pose a stressful problem. The best thing would be to give away most of it. Then again, when actually faced with it, will I be able to bring myself to do it? Considering that my family is comfortably settled, the best thing to do with a windfall like winning a lottery would be to carefully spread the money around. I would want to use the money to educate kids who are smart but are unable to find the wherewithal to get the kind of education they long for. That will be a way of passing it forward, I think. Education may not necessarily make one wise, but I am sure it will help people understand the true value of life.

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Usually, birthdays are made much of in all families. The celebrations reflect the financial clout of the parents. In our family, birthdays are quiet events. It is our tradition to rejoice in the life that God had given us by sharing our good fortune with those less privileged than we were. This meant that we would give gifts to those who serve in our household and others whom fee feel will be happy to have some goodies. We do have birthday parties, but the guests are invited to give gifts not to the birthday person, but to those with whom we wish to share our joy. We visit an orphanage or an old people’s home, and give them not only a treat but our time too. Out guests like it and we make great friends. We experience the truth in the saying that it is better to give than to receive.

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Honeymoons was just right for newly weds who never got to know each other too well before they got married. But now, the couple who get married know each other only too well! I come from an orthodox family, in a country where honeymoon is not a planned event. Still parents make sure that the newly weds have a special time of their own. When I got married my parents arranged for us, the newly weds, to visit relatives who lived too far away to be present for the wedding. Such a trip provided time for us to spend on our own. Our ‘honeymoon’ was to go to the place where I was born and spend a few days with relatives who were too old to come for the wedding! This might not sound very exciting, but believe me, it was very nice to do things on our own and at the same time make our old relatives happy. We enjoyed ourselves, and received the blessings of the elders too.

Achievement is something that is difficult to define, in my opinion. For a baby, the first step is a great achievement. And I have done that, haven’t I? In my native language, it is said that it would be better not to be born at all, if one cannot live a life that is praiseworthy. What is meant here, as far as I am concerned, is that one should lead a life that is blameless. Is not such a life worth all the praise one can give? How many of us can honestly say that they live a blameless life? Anyway, in my own life, though it is not a blameless one, there have had small mile stones, which one might perhaps call as achievements. What I treasure most is the goodwill that I seem to have earned from all and sundry, during my three years as an administrator in a large educational institution. That I am fondly remembered, even after I have left the place years ago, is for me a great achievement.