By Jeetendra Karsan
CEO, Safari Kid India
Puberty is tough, both for boys and girls. I remember, during my teenage years, my friends succumbed to drinking, smoking and in few cases, drugs too. I was in a different dilemma, resulting in depression and my family doctor called it an exaggerated ‘mental episode’ and treated me as any other troubled and confused teenager. He suggested I read some good books, so along with medication to calm me down, he asked my parents to buy me a copy of The Bhagvad Gita. Although, I never managed to read it, I do remember the first book I ever read, Illusions by Richard Bach gifted to me by another ‘troubled’ teenager and a friend. It opened a Pandora’s Box with so many questions, about the journey of a vagabond pilot, who meets his Guru and learns about life. I made it a point to gift this book to people I love and continue to do it until today.
Books made me feel as if I had acquired some superpowers. Slowly my confusion started to erode and vanish. The more I read, the more I was sure about myself. I loved reading philosophy and my favourite authors, Richard Bach and J Krishnamurty. They made me understand the world better and helped me grow into a more friendly and confident person.
In the book, the character Donald Shimoda gives a book to Richard, called The Messiahs Handbook. Whenever Richard is troubled about anything, he would open this book to a random page and find lines to address his predicament. I tried to do this with the books in my library. Whenever I was in a quandary, I was drawn to a particular book and found the precise solution to my troubles.
Reading opened up a new world to me and I started reading everything that interested me. Books on life, history, fiction, thrillers and business management, taught me something that would have taken me several lifetimes to learn otherwise.
I learnt from books that even if things aren’t looking up in the present, in the end everything falls in place and it works out well. Just as Steve Jobs once said, “You can't connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.” I am thankful for the tough puberty that I went through, and the series of events that followed.
My only regret is that I started reading when I was 17. I wish I had started earlier. I read to my kids and tell them stories. I see them getting inspired by stories of bravery and courtesy. If I have to teach them anything it is easier if it comes in the form of a story.
Feedback: jk@safarikidindia.com
