---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Suryanarayana Ambadipudi <[email protected]> Date: Sat, Aug 30, 2025, 1:15 PM Subject: Re: Fwd - one good thing about today To: N Sekar <[email protected]> Cc: Narayanaswamy Sekar <[email protected]>, Rangarajan T.N.C. < [email protected]>, Chittanandam V. R. <[email protected]>, Mathangi K. Kumar <[email protected]>, Rama (Iyer 123 Group) < [email protected]>, Mani APS <[email protected]>
Beautiful narration 🙏 *A.SURYANARAYANA* *The less you speak,the more you are listened to* On Sat, 30 Aug 2025 at 12:57 PM, N Sekar <[email protected]> wrote: > I’m 71 now. These days, mornings are quiet—just me, a cup of tea, and the > park down the road. I sit on the same wooden bench every day, watching > joggers rush by, parents push strollers, kids chasing pigeons. Life keeps > moving, even when you feel like you’ve slowed down. > > One morning, I noticed a boy—maybe 16—sitting alone at the far end of the > bench. Shoulders slumped, hoodie pulled tight, staring at the ground like > the world had forgotten him. I know that look. I wore it once, years ago, > when life felt too heavy. > > I didn’t want to scare him off, so I asked softly, “What’s one good thing > about today?” > > He blinked, surprised. “What?” > > “Anything at all,” I said. “The sky, a song you heard, something small > that made today not all bad.” > > He thought for a moment. Then, quietly: “My sister saved me the last > cookie this morning. Said she wanted me to have it.” > > A tiny smile tugged at his face. Not much, but enough to crack the gray > around him. “That’s a good thing,” I said, nodding. He left soon after, but > when he glanced back, his eyes weren’t as heavy. > > The next day, he sat closer. And when a woman with grocery bags shuffled > past us, he piped up: “Ma’am, what’s one good thing about your day?” She > laughed, surprised. “Well, I found strawberries on sale.” The boy grinned. > > It became a thing. People passing by began stopping for a minute on my > bench. A man said, “The bus was on time!” A young girl said, “I made a new > friend at school.” A grandmother said, “My knees didn’t ache this morning.” > Simple, ordinary things—but the kind that remind you life still has > sweetness tucked in its corners. > > Soon, folks started calling it The Bench Question. Strangers came not just > to rest their feet, but to share their “one good thing.” Someone brought a > notebook, leaving it on the bench so people could write their answers. > Within weeks, the pages were filled: > 💌 “My daughter called after months.” > 💌 “The sunset looked like cotton candy.” > 💌 “I’m learning to smile again.” > > And here’s the truth I learned: happiness doesn’t come from fixing > everything. Sometimes it’s just about noticing the smallest good thing in > the middle of an ordinary day. > > The boy still visits. He doesn’t hunch anymore. He sits tall, asks every > passerby the question. Sometimes, he even brings cookies to share. > > Life isn’t always easy. But maybe the secret isn’t chasing big joys—it’s > learning to hold on to the little ones. One bench. One question. One good > thing at a time. > > *So, let me ask you now: What’s one good thing about your day?* 🌿 > > Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer > <https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.yahoo.mobile.client.android.mail&listing=search_organize_conquer> > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CABC81Ze9R_Urg04m0EpA0PbvvAB2hPD9GKSAiJJLaZkz91DW7Q%40mail.gmail.com.
