All on the table at one throw of the dice

HAVE you ever gone through life without risking it all with just one impulsive act?
If you haven't, then you must certainly be a rare human being.

Many of us, yours truly included, have experienced this wild moment of abandonment. It goes without saying that it was an insane moment but you didn't really care because the exhilaration was irresistible.

People risk it all sometimes over the silliest thing. They think they can gamble away everything they have earned on an impulse. This kind of human reaction takes place quite often at casinos.

That's why you have so many paupers and hobos walking and stalking the street. If you ask at this juncture, what's life without a little risk? You are both right and wrong.

If you have nothing else to lose, that's another story but if you have five dependents at home, waiting for you to come home safely and sit at the dinner table, then your impulsive act of foolishness has also jeopardised the livelihood of those five people you hold so dear.

Yes, there's a time for everything but not everything can be done at anytime. I guess many of us are guilty at one time or another for taking matters into our own hands.

We will invincible at times. We feel we can really do it. I am at two minds to tell that guy who wants to throw caution to the wind "yes, go for it!" At the same time, in my mind, I want to shout "but then, just in case, be careful, too."

When all else fails. That means you are not sure if success is guaranteed, then follow the rule of the thumb: Trust your gut instinct.

I have very often told friends, colleagues and family members. The human mind and heart have all the answers they need, if your faith is unshakeable, so will be the outcome.

This is what has been labelled over the ages: Do your best, and leave the rest to God.

Life is meant to be enjoyed. If you look back on your life 50 years from now, you would have wished, you could return back to the time when you "foolishly" risk it all on one throw of the dice.

There are times when there's no time to think. You don't have two weeks to think over it. You don't even have two minutes to ponder over the issue. The time to do it is NOW.

That's the time to LET GO and LET GOD.

It's never too late to be an author!

OKAY, I have reached a stage in my life when I am beginning to feel an iresistible urge to leave some kind of literary contribution behind. You know what I mean. Every normal human being who has a tolerable reservoir of words in his head, thinks he can come up with a best seller.

I admit, that did cross my mind a few million times. But there can only be one J.K. Rowling, or one Agatha Christie.

Of course, there is plenty of room left for aspiring novelists. There are almost as many publishing companies on the lookout for potential Nobel Prize winner for literature as there are budding authors in existence.

The only catch is what you should write about, how long it will be and whether anybody even care to read it when it is finished.

The mental commitment is the first and easiest hurdle. The rest is a bit difficult. To start something like writing a fictional piece or a non-fiction work requires discipline.

That means writing, say maybe 10 pages a day, everyday until it is finished. For example, you will need to give facts and some credible evidence that you are not talking nonsense.

It is not hard to find some palatable facts in the library to be interwoven into your tale.

If you are writing fiction, all you need is a fertile imagination and an ability to talk till the cows come home, that it, if you have any cows at all.

Anybody can spin a tale but the trick is to make people listen to you. In this case, read what you have to say.

Personally, I have always entertained the idea of writing a lava-hot novel that will be turned into a Hollywood movie immediately. Therefore, I can enjoy instant fame, success and financial security for the rest of my natural life.

The problem is millions of writers are also on the same bandwagon, and there can only be one or two winners.

When I read about those writers who eventually make it big, I shudder to think of myself walking down the same path. It is a very long, and dusty road. Most of the time, it is a miserable existence.

For example, J.K. Rowling was practically surviving on hamburgers before the billions came her way.

And she's one of the very, very few lucky ones. Many more are still struggling in anonymity for ages.

Many uncountable ones have also given up and retired in utter frustration over their lack of literary success. That, my dear friends, is the whole painful truth.

Does that deter you from coming up with the last great novel. No way, man, you are wont to shout at the top of your lungs.

If writing is in your blood and you won't die an easy death unless you produce at least five books before you call it quits in this life, then go ahead.

Writing, as I was told by a true writer once, is to go on and on, even though you see nothing but misery ahead of you. It's a bit like walking in the Sahara desert. For as far as the eyes can see, there is nothing by heat, sand and sightless wind but you still plod on.

You are ever determined to continue even if it kills you. Then maybe, just maybe, you may make it.

Ultimately, it is the excruciating pain that is part and parcel of your arduous journey that makes you a better writer than all the others who will drop out. Dead men have got nothing to say, you catch my drift?

I have this gut feeling that my inchoate great novel is just around the corner of my mind. Watch out world! Here comes that supernova that burns so bright it will burn holes in the walls of the world's greatest libraries.

After that, I will retire gracefully and go fishing!

The world is full of accidental heroes

Some years ago, I saw a movie called Accidental Hero starring Dustin Hoffman. He was a bit of a buffoon in the film but at heart he was a good man.
That story led me to believe that there are many such people in our midst. They are our fathers, our mothers and relatives with whom we grew up with.
You really don't need to save another person from a burning building to be labelled a hero. You can lend a person a couple of bucks so that he could have a decent meal on a particular day, and you will be seen as a hero by that hungry person.

You can help a blind man to walk a busy street, and in his "eyes" you are also a hero. Most of us think to be a hero we have to perform extraordinary deeds. Not necessarily.

Heroes are those who silently extend a helping hand to the stranger who needs a service that is urgent for that moment.

Many a time, we have lent a neighbour a shovel, a cup of suger or even a copy of the newspaper. These are simple deeds carried out under very ordinary circumstances.

Think about it. You are bored out of your skull and you forgot to buy the daily. You call out to your next door neighbour. He happily lends you his copy. And you can in touch with what is happening around you.

That simple act of kindness or consideration goes a long way. I call these people who extend a helping hand without any forethought as accidental heroes.

The world is full of accidental heroes. Because these people are almost never rewarded, they do not get the compliments that they so richly deserved. Good people often do good deeds without the knowledge of others.

The reason is because they are good people and they think nothing of what they have done. It is the most natural thing for them. Helping a friend, a neighbour or a stranger is as easy as breathing in and breathing out.

We all can learn to be accidental heroes. It will help our earthly existence be more pleasant. Besides, we also learn to be decent human beings if we are not too absorbed in ourselves.

Your time is NOW

When I was 15, I looked forward to my 21st birthday. When I reached the highpoint in my life six years later, I set my sights on 24.
That, I thought, would be the age when I would be working and spending money that I had worked for. No more borrowing money from displeased parents or from other siblings who were equally broke as I was.
It was no fun growing up at times because the teen years came with a lot of limitations. You could just go anywhere you wanted because there were parents to contend with.
On top of that, there are places you can't go to. Worse still, those beautiful women you are eyeing are all older than you, and they don't like "kids".
Now, I am at an age, I can do almost anything legal and lawful I want to. On hindsight, I miss those days.
I know, I know, I am just being fickle and immature. With age comes wisdom. I wish I had the answers I have now, 25 years ago. The answer then as it is now, is to really enjoy the moment.
In other words, it is NOW. Not yesterday, not tomorrow but NOW, at this very moment. Our entire life consists of a hundred million nows. Now is the time to call your parents and tell them how much you love them.
They may think you are being weird but it's a nice kind of weirdness. They will get used to the new you.
Now is the time to eat that cholesterol-laden ice cream. Look, two scoops of ice cream won't kill you. Forget what those dietitians and doctors tell you. They don't know any better themselves.
Have you come across a whole roomful of 100-year-old doctors? Not recently? Or, ever. Now means happy for the moment. A moment in time, well lived lasts forever.
This may sound a little cryptic but truth prevails.
Hundreds of millions of ordinary people live lives of quiet desperation because they don't know any better. Not any more. I have told you so. The route is clear and wide.
Take a walk down that road to enlightenment. Don't wait till you have finally "made it" financially to start enjoying life. You can live it up even with empty pockets.
Do you need a million bucks to enjoy the splendour of the rising sun? Do you need Donald Trump's billions to relish the beauty of a stunning woman? Do you need anything to be kind?
Most of the best things in life are free. There have been songs written about this aspect of life. The Bible talks about it. Wise men have walked the earth for millennia, preaching about joys and happiness, all cost free.
And yet, we look back to yesterday for pleasantness, and look forward to tomorrow for brighter days.
Many of us out of a sense of misplaced urgency forgets about the Now and Today. This is the moment we are living in, breathing in, changing in. Every second that has passed is history. Every minute that is coming is future.
Both dimensions of occurrences cannot be replaced. The future can only be altered if the present is affected. That is simple logic.
So when you are in the zone, the present is your best bet.
Do it now, as someone once said. Do it here!
When someone tells you that your time has come, it means you can perform your best now; take your best shot now, give it your all now; live it up right now and NOW should become your only credo.
The world spins on the spindle that is labelled NOW. There's no tomorrow. The past is but a memory. Now is your ammo. Lock, load and shoot. There's no other time.
If you want further elaboration on NOW, look up the book The Power of NOW.

The world needs a hero!

A hero, as a wise man once said, not necessarily be an individual. The hero could be a company, a nation, a group or a charity organisation.

But we all know that this world of ours desperately needs a hero. We had Nelson Mandela at a time when the world's conscience needed to be shaken over the veiled threads of apartheid that gripped not only one country but also shrouded parts of countries around the planet.

Newspapers and TV networks constantly broadcast the looming threats of conflicts in parts of the world. Presently, danger signals abound in Zimbabwe. The fighting in Sri Lanka has been going on for decades that people around the world are numbed by the bodies that strewn the streets after every suicide bombing.

We have sporadic instances of violence in Europe. Those breakaway republics of the former USSR are still trying to get back on their feet. Cuba is coming to terms with her aging leader, Fidel Castro.

North Korea has renounced its nuclear option. Iran is steadfast in her own nuclear policy.

We continue to hear the war drums. They are sometimes loud. At times, muffled but nevertheless, the sounds of those beating drums are there.

The soul of the world aches for solace. The conscience of the globe begs to be reminded of its more lofty ideals. Basically, what we all need is a genuine hero.

And who is the hero? He could be you, doing ordinary chores in an extraordinary way. The path must be infused with an ambience of love because it is only through love that all the keys to world peace and harmony are given.

Let our work begin right now.