There is a thin line between Ordinary and Extraordinary.?

There is a thin line between Ordinary and Extraordinary.

The word extra makes ordinary extraordinary. An extra mile, an extra effort and an extra thought makes ordinary extra ordinary.

We all Balance our professional life and family life,

is it or is it not? I feel it is definitely reasonably balanced.

There is one more dimension which we tend to miss that is service to humanity.

My friend Raghavan a Chartered Accountant could balance the three dimensions of life; Professional life, family life and service to humanity.

We all have moved from a smaller place to a bigger place in our search. Raghavan did the reverse he moved from Mumbai to a remote village in 1992 in pursuit of his and his wife’s dream of starting a free school for underprivileged villagers.

The courage to Conquer was within him and he had the support of family and friends. But at the age of 32 to take such a bold step was unbelievable.

He first rented a house in the village, and then got a5 acre land for the school. He bought a small land for himself to build a house.

It is beyond imagination that a person who had tasted all the luxuries of Mumbai life could stay in a small house with only a 10w bulb. His mission had begun.

Shikshayatan was born with their daughter as the first student. They toiled day and night to make it grow from one student to 156 students.

17 years have passed and I had the opportunity visit them last month in the village. The children are having a great time at the school. Their daughter today is 21 and is co authoring a book with a Canadian author

First time, I thought to myself, that in spite of being a CA, if you drop your black coat you can even teach a child in KG or even teach a physics experiment to a grade 8 student

Did he stop with this achievement? No is the answer. His horizon became bigger as he started assisting the nearby villages.

Natural calamities are devastating. The tsunami of 2004 is an example.

For the remote village in Nagapattinam , Raghavan and his school made a difference. He took a decision to render his service immediately and called a school meeting of the teachers and decided to give immediate help. He along with few volunteers arrived on the scene. They had to clear the village of the damages caused by Tsunami and Raghavan did not hesitate to give his shoulders to do the same.

WE donate for such causes in cash as well as kind. However there is a feeling of suspicion about whether it reaches the deserved candidate.

Here a chartered Accountant makes a difference. Raghavan made a trust for the villagers and all donations were put under the same with panchayat participating in the trust and ensured all the donations were channelized and accounted.

All the villagers were fishermen. The motorboat was the only means for fishing and the tsunami had destroyed the motors. The trust bought motors for the villagers so that their breadwinner is fit to sail.

Utensils were washed away. People gave donations of what they had and not what the villagers wanted. Steel vessels were given but the villagers used aluminum vessels.

Raghavan bridged the gap by ensuring the villagers got what they were using day to day. Unlike other NGOs who left the place after finishing the work Raghavan was different as he stayed on nurturing the village. He has even put a computer centre for the school and is paying regular visit.

I had the opportunity of going to the village and hearing the story from the villagers and also going into the high seas with the fishermen in their boat.

I told Raghavan if a professional staying in a village can take care of the three dimensions of life,, then even we who live in cities can contribute a part of our energy ,our wealth or knowledge for the third dimension and make a big change in the society.

WE ARE BESTOWED WITH LOT OF EXCELLENT QUALITIES TO CROSS THE BRIDGE FROM ORDINARY TO EXTRAORDINARY.