Life's like that: Real life anecdotes : Thread # 2 - Page 9

This story is all about how to behave with others as Life Is like an Echo. A little girl got angry with her mother and shouted at her, never talk to you, you are very bad “I hate you, I hate you.” Because of fear of scold, she ran out of her house. She went up to the hill and shouted, “I hate you, I hate you,” and echo came back, “I hate you, I hate you.” This was the first time in her life she had heard an echo. She got frightened, went to her mother for protection and said there was a ghost in the valley who shouted “I hate you, I hate you.” The mother understood and she asked her to go back there with her and shout again, “I love you, I love you.” The little girl went to the hill and shouted, “I love you, I love you,” and the echo came back.

Moral :-

That day taught the little girl a great lesson that our life is like an echo: We get back what we give.

Benjamin Franklin said, “When you are good to others, you are best to yourself.”

At The End Of The Day Each Is His / Her Own Way With The Challenges Which Might Be Big Or Small To Him / Her ; To Others It Might Be Insignificant

We All Do Have Challenges

Life Goes On And On And On . . . . No Matter What . . . . There's Always A Silver Lining

This story features 56-year-old Manoj, who worked in administration for a private Tata AIA Life Insurance firm in Noida, India for 14 years. Laid off during a corporate restructuring, he was forced to take up work as a delivery rider on the gig-economy app Porter to survive.

The Viral Encounter

The heartbreaking reality of his situation came to light during a routine Rs 40 delivery. Social entrepreneur Kiran Verma booked a package delivery in Noida and requested the rider to come to his first-floor apartment. Though the rider climbed the stairs with difficulty, he completed the delivery with a smile and a remark: "Aaj kaam hi nahi tha, wait kar raha tha kaam ke liye" (There was no work today, I was just waiting for a delivery).

A Lifetime of Dedication

Touched by the exchange, Verma called Manoj back for a conversation and learned about his corporate past. After 14 years of loyal service to a private life insurance company, he was let go during a wave of mass job cuts in 2023. Due to his age and health constraints, Manoj could not secure another white-collar job, leading him into the demanding gig economy to make ends meet.

A Bitter Analogy

Manoj shared a poignant Hindi proverb with Verma to describe his feelings of disposability:

"Beta jab sabzi banate hai toh curry leaf sabse pehle daalte hai, par jab sabzi khate hai toh sabse pehle curry nikalte hai."

(Son, when we cook vegetables, we add curry leaves first, but when we eat, we take the curry leaves out first.)

The Internet's Reaction

Verma shared Manoj’s story in a viral post on LinkedIn that sparked widespread debate. Thousands of professionals, recruiters, and startup founders—including an official response from Porter—reacted to the post, using the incident to discuss the harsh realities of ageism, corporate loyalty, and the challenges experienced professionals face in gig-based work.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/trending/56yearold-noida-man-laid-off-after-14-years-now-works-as-delivery-rider-internet-calls-his-story-powerful-101783504240213.html

Postoast

A touching story from Bhopal is winning hearts across the country. After losing their son to cancer, a family chose compassion over convention by arranging the second marriage of their widowed daughter-in-law and performing her *kanyadaan* as her own parents would.

The woman's father-in-law, Dinesh Vairagi, said the family had accepted her as their daughter after their son's death and wanted her to have a fresh start instead of spending her life in grief. During the wedding ceremony, he personally performed the traditional rituals and encouraged society to support widow remarriage whenever possible.

The bride's father expressed deep gratitude, saying he never imagined his daughter's in-laws would stand by her in such a difficult time, arrange her remarriage, and treat her like their own daughter.

The family's decision has been widely praised as a powerful example of love, dignity, and progressive thinking, inspiring many to rethink how widowed women should be supported in society.