LIFE IS A GARDEN

Elizabeth Lawrence once said:
“There is a garden in every childhood, an enchanted place where colors are brighter, the air softer, and the morning more fragrant than ever again.”

Ladies and Gentlemen, my childhood too was like a garden, and like in every garden, I too had flowers, four flowers that stood really tall above others.

The first flower in my garden of life has been my sister Sherin

As far as I can remember,She has been a person who always watched my back. When the first time I joined my parents in Saudi Arabia at the age of 7 , I could not differentiate between blue or green , not to mention sound an alphabet from the odd English Language.
After a week of being with my parents and siblings, I understood it was not my grandmother who gave birth to me, but it was my mother who brought me into this world and I did have a person called dad as bonus. My early recollections of my sister was her teaching me the rhyme “Oh! My Darling Clementine” , I immediately hummed along , much to my amazement learned my first Nursery Rhyme.
My sister was very protective about me, even though I was the eldest among my siblings.
We went to school together , my sister clutching my hand while crossing the road, replacing Spiderman’s and Batman’s with Barney and friends and monitoring my table manners. In school, thanks to my English I maintained a mutual understanding with everyone, they hated me and I hated them. This led me into a lot of fights.
One day, my sister saw me cry in school after a boy bullied me, and she in a fit of rage pushed him in front of the whole school and gave him a knock which he’d never forget for the rest of his life. Wow and I thought “How Strong”. I was not as huge as I am now , and now that I’m , and she’s far away , I really don’t pick fights with anyone.
As the years progressed, she molded my personality, spoke up and stood up for me, defended me when I got into trouble with my parents, and even now continues to do so. The only complaint that she has about me is that I don’t love and care for her enough. She usually says that when I take her shopping!!

The second flower in my garden of life has been my parents.

For the past 25 years, my parents are in Saudi Arabia. My dad James Thomas is a technical supervisor in an oil company and my mom Valsa is a staff nurse.
I can recall my parents talking to us, about how difficult it is to bring up a family with 3 children in a foreign land. It was indeed a land of opportunities but of heavy suffering and hardships. As they continue to still work there, we see them probably once a year. Initially life for my parents had been a struggle, but with a little grace and luck they brought us up.
The one thing I have learned and admired about my parents is the virtue called perseverance. As my parents explained this, it is very difficult for me to understand as perseverance can only be perfected through experience.
Though we lived on a very small budget, my parents provided us with the best of things. I remember vividly the day I got my first red bicycle-lovely and sharp it stood .I was one of the first boys to have a cycle among my peers.
The second gift I recall was when we got our first computer in 9th std. A computer was unheard of in a middle class family. But my parents in spite of their limited income provided myself and my sisters all that we wanted.
These actions of my parents, to show us love even in adversities have been a great inspiration and a wonderful role model to follow.

The third flower ladies and gentlemen in the garden of my life has been Saudi Arabia.

All that I am today is because of the tons of bittersweet experiences that the wonderful country has offered.
From a frail boy of age 7, who didn’t know how to say “Thank you” in English, am standing here in the midst of an auspicious gathering delivering my Ice breaker!!!
Saudi Arabia taught me to have passions for life. During my stay there , I had a tremendous passion for learning new things and my teachers often complained that I was over inquisitive.
Among the many passions developed, one was an outdoor game - Basket Ball, a game to this day I love, and have led many school level matches to sheer victory. Since I had to come down to Bangalore to pursue my MBA , I have less time for sports.
Another passion was in a world surrounded by books. By the time I was in 8th STD, I had read almost all classical works like Dickens, Dumas, Twain’s, Elliots, and Enid Blyton. As got to my 10th STD, I had finished all the Sidney Sheldon’s; Nicolas Sparks and Julie Garwood’s and now I do harvest that incredible passion.
I always wanted to speak. I learned and experienced the power that communication had from my early days – My first proposal to a girl , it went out swell .
And as I look into the spectacle of my future, I see myself as a wonderful speaker and a presenter.

Ladies and Gentlemen the fourth flower blooming in my garden is TOASTMASTERS.

The first time I heard the word “TOASTMASTER” was when a wonderful, elegant, calm, fearless speaker from this club came to Kristu Jayanti College where I study. It’s none other than Mr John Bosco. I was able to notice a difference in his speech compared to other speakers and wondered what it was. I asked my friend what was so different, and one of them said – TOASTMASTERS. I got acquainted with Mr Bosco, and joined toastmasters the next week.
My journey however has been rough and on the rocks. I have been in toastmasters for the last 6 months, and until now, never had the courage to stand on this lectern and speak. I was so terrified that I was thinking of quitting toastmasters.
However today I am glad I did not make that decision. And I tell all of you who are perplexed and tossed in this material rat race and think of quitting toastmasters – DON’T .
Those who travel through thick clay are hindered and dirtied in their journey, but let me remind you, victory follows perdition.
I’ve decided to persevere in this journey, even though the road is paved with thick clay. And I humbly ask all my fellow toastmasters to help me and encourage me in my long and tough journey ahead.
I know there will be many more flowers in my life. I count my blessings each day - one by one at all the flowers that bloomed in my garden and God who is my eternal Gardener.
These flowers are for all of you, and especially this flower is for Mr Bosco, who helped me take my first Baby step.

Finally ladies and Gentlemen ,let me tell you life has been one incredible journey.....................