The Robbers Cave Experiment 51 of 25

 

The Robbers Cave experiment was a 1954 study by Muzafer Sherif that demonstrated how intergroup conflict develops and how it can be resolved. Muzafer Sherif that demonstrated how intergroup conflict develops and how it can be resolved.

Researchers at a summer camp for boys created two groups (the Rattlers and Eagles) who first bonded, then became hostile when competing for limited prizes.

Conflict escalated from verbal taunts to physical fights.

Researchers then introduced superordinate goals, requiring cooperation to solve problems like fixing a water tank, which fostered friendships and reduced hostility.

You can watch this video to learn more about the Robbers Cave experiment:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9W0Txe-bhFE

Methodology

The experiment involved three stages:

In-group formation:

22 boys were divided into two groups and given time to bond through cooperative activities like hiking and swimming, forming distinct identities and norms.

Friction phase:

The groups competed in games such as baseball and football for valuable prizes, leading to intense rivalry, hostility, and negative stereotypes.

Conflict resolution:

Researchers created situations requiring the groups to work together on common goals, like pulling a stuck truck out of the mud or fixing a water supply.

Findings

Conflict:

Competition for scarce resources (like medals and trophies) quickly leads to increased hostility and prejudiced behavior between groups.

Resolution:

Working towards a common, mutually beneficial goal (superordinate goal) is more effective than mere contact or communication in reducing intergroup conflict and fostering cooperation.

You can watch this video to learn more about the conflict resolution in the Robbers Cave experiment:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9DyGsuvIPo

Significance

The Robbers Cave experiment is a key demonstration of Realistic Conflict Theory, which posits that intergroup conflict arises from competing for limited resources.

The study's findings have been applied to various real-world conflicts, including racial prejudice and business competition, to develop strategies for reducing prejudice and improving relationships.

This video explains the realistic conflict theory:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnCGfA2o2hs

Em and the big Hoom & Mother Mary Comes to me

While they don’t belong to the same genre or have the same primary focus, to a reader they may feel “kin” in terms of emotional weight.

On the surface, Mother Mary Comes to Me (Arundhati Roy’s upcoming memoir) and Em and the Big Hoom (Jerry Pinto) seem quite different in genre and style — but there are some overlapping themes and emotional resonances. 

Mother Mary Comes to Me is a memoir, Roy’s first, in which she reflects on her complex relationship with her mother, Mary Roy. 

It covers her life from childhood (in Kerala) through adulthood, tracing how her mother shaped her identity, her writing, and her worldview. 

The tone is intimate, reflective, emotionally raw, and sometimes surprising in humor or candor. 

It’s about motherhood, memory, loss, love, and what it means to carry someone else’s legacy. 

Em and the Big Hoom is a novel (fiction) by Jerry Pinto, though it draws heavily from autobiographical material (his mother’s mental illness) 

The story is narrated by a son (unnamed) about his mother “Em,” who suffers from bipolar disorder (mania, depression, suicidal episodes), and about the father “The Big Hoom” who tries to hold the family together. 

It deals with how mental illness affects relationships, family dynamics, memory, identity, guilt, understanding, and love. 

The structure is non-linear, with shifts in time, blending recollections, letters, flashbacks, and interior reflections. 

Both books have:

Mother-child relationships under strain

Both works center on complicated, emotionally intense relationships between a mother and her children (or the child narrator).

In Roy’s memoir, the tension, love, conflict, and legacy of her mother is central. In Pinto’s novel, the narrator wrestles with his mother’s unpredictable moods, the impact on his family, and his own feelings toward her.

Emotional complexity & ambiguous love

Neither story is a simple, idealizing portrait of a mother. Each deals with contradictions: love and resentment, admiration and pain, dependence and escape.

The mother figures in both are not just one-dimensional; they provoke discomfort, reflection, empathy, and conflict.

Memory, narration, and perspective

Both works are deeply introspective. They rely on memory, selective recollection, and shifts in how the past is viewed in light of the present.

The narrators (Roy herself in her memoir; the son in Em and the Big Hoom) attempt to reconstruct, understand, and come to terms with their mother’s life and their relationships.

Cultural / Indian setting & identity

Both are rooted in Indian (or Indian-subcontinent) lives. Roy’s is set in Kerala, later in her wanderings; Pinto’s is in Bombay with a Goan-Catholic family. 

They reflect social, familial, religious, and cultural expectations, even if not overtly political in the same way.

Key differences & limits to similarity

Genre: memoir vs novel

Mother Mary Comes to Me is non-fiction, a personal essay / life story. It is anchored in Roy’s real life.

Em and the Big Hoom is a fictionalized narrative, though with autobiographical echoes. The author shapes and rearranges memory for literary effect.

Focus on mental illness

Em and the Big Hoom is very much about mental illness — the mother’s bipolar disorder and the family’s experience of it. That is a central structural and thematic engine of the novel. 

In Roy’s memoir, the struggle is less about mental illness per se (at least based on the present descriptions) and more about personality, authority, conflict, influence, and the emotional weight of motherhood and legacy. There is no indication that Mary Roy was mentally ill in the same dramatic way as “Em.” (At least, that is not part of public summaries so far.)

Scope and ambition

Roy’s memoir spans her entire life arc, her intellectual development, her writing career, and multiple places and times.

Em and the Big Hoom is more circumscribed in terms of family life, episodic events, and interior struggle.

Narrative structure

Pinto’s work embraces fragmentation, shifts in time, voices (letters, diaries, flashbacks) — the disorder of life as mirrored in narrative structure. 

Roy’s memoir, from what is known, seems more linear (though memoirs often allow digressions), with a more controlled revisiting and reflection of events. The narrative is intended to make sense of her life and her mother’s impact.

Tone & purpose

Roy’s memoir seems to have dual purpose: to mourn, to examine, to reckon with inheritance (emotional, intellectual, political) — both personal and public.

Pinto’s novel aims to portray a lived, chaotic, and sometimes harrowing reality of mental illness, but also to humanize it, to explore how love and despair interweave in a family’s life.

How “similar” they are in emotional impact / reader experience

 You might approach both expecting:

Intense emotional texture and complexity

Uncomfortable questions (What do I owe? What do I endure? What do I forgive?)

Deep character study of a parent who is difficult, multifaceted, powerful, flawed

A struggle for understanding, acceptance, and reconciliation

So, they are not very similar in structure or subject matter in many respects, but the emotional territory (motherhood, memory, identity, conflict) overlaps significantly.

Mother Mary Comes to Me is more expansive and philosophical — a daughter’s reflection on a formidable mother and what she represents.

Em and the Big Hoom is more intimate and psychological — a son’s aching effort to love and understand his mentally ill mother.

Both are deeply human books about love, memory, and the complexity of parent–child bonds, but they differ in scope and emotional register: Roy’s is elegiac and intellectual; Pinto’s is raw and deeply personal.

Balanced Reading Path (Recommended)

If you plan to read both, try this order:

Start with Em and the Big Hoom → Feel the human core: love, pain, madness, endurance.

Then read Mother Mary Comes to Me → Reflect on the legacy and meaning of motherhood, seen through memory and art.

That way, you move from heart to mind, from emotion to reflection, and see how both books, in their own ways, heal the reader by showing how love survives even the hardest truths.

Mothers, Memory, and Madness: Reading Arundhati Roy and Jerry Pinto Together

Some books enter your heart quietly, like a memory rediscovered; others open it with a cry. Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy and Em and the Big Hoom by Jerry Pinto belong to this rare category. They are very different in form — one is a memoir, the other a novel — yet both circle around the same fragile constellation of love, loss, and the mystery of mothers. Read together, they reveal how remembering a mother is not just a personal act but a moral, even creative, reckoning with life itself.

In Mother Mary Comes to Me, Arundhati Roy turns her gaze inward after a lifetime of writing about nations, injustices, and revolutions. Here, her subject is the private revolution that shaped her: her mother, Mary Roy. A formidable woman — teacher, activist, and reformer — Mary was equal parts flame and fortress. Through luminous, precise prose, Arundhati revisits the battles of her childhood in Kerala, her mother’s uncompromising ideals, and the uneasy love that bound them. The book is a reckoning: a daughter asking how much of her mother’s courage she inherited, and how much of her pain. The result is intimate but unsentimental, a portrait of a woman who was both refuge and challenge, tenderness and storm.

Jerry Pinto’s Em and the Big Hoom inhabits a different space: a cramped Bombay apartment, a family held together by humour and endurance. Here, the mother “Em” is charismatic, eloquent, and mentally ill. Her manic wit fills the pages with life even as her depression threatens to undo it. The son who narrates the story moves between love and fear, fascination and helplessness, trying to decode his mother’s mind and survive its tides. Pinto’s prose is deceptively simple — conversational, almost playful — yet within it burns a rare compassion. Em and the Big Hoom is not a story about illness alone; it is a study of what love means when understanding is impossible.

When placed side by side, the two books seem to speak across a shared silence. Both mothers are unforgettable, both larger than life. Yet Roy and Pinto approach them differently. Roy writes as a daughter shaped by her mother’s defiance; Pinto as a son wounded by his mother’s fragility. Roy’s Mary is fiercely rational, a moral force in a patriarchal world. Pinto’s Em is governed by irrationality, by the unpredictable logic of the mind. But both women resist being reduced to symbols. They are fully human — contradictory, magnificent, and maddening.

The deeper connection between the two books lies in how they treat memory. Neither writer simply records the past; each reconstructs it through love and loss. Memory, for them, is not static recollection but an act of care — a way of keeping the dead alive, of forgiving what cannot be changed. Roy’s prose feels like a long, trembling elegy; Pinto’s like a conversation carried on after death. Both reveal how storytelling itself becomes a form of healing.

Their emotional registers, too, complement each other. Em and the Big Hoom moves with the rhythm of breath — short, immediate, tender — while Mother Mary Comes to Me unfolds like music, measured and meditative. Reading Pinto first is to experience the raw pulse of love under pressure; reading Roy afterward is to see that pulse translated into reflection and philosophy. Together they form a kind of emotional duet: one book cries out, the other answers softly.

Ultimately, what unites them is not subject but spirit. Both refuse sentimentality; both honour complexity. They remind us that every child, sooner or later, must return to the mother — not just to remember her, but to understand themselves. Whether through madness or memory, these writers find in that return a strange kind of grace. And in their pages, we are reminded that love, however difficult, is always the beginning of wisdom.

Mother Mary comes To Me ~ Arundathi Roy 50 of 25

 

"Mother Mary comes To Me", finally.  Not alone, but with tote bag and book mark.

Unstoppable. Engrossing. Introspective. "As a child I loved her irrationally, helplessly, fearfully, completely, as children do. As an adult I tried to love her coolly, rationally, and from a safe distance. I often failed. Sometimes Miserable."

Arundhati Roy’s writing weaves together the intimate and the political and has a capacity to eviscerate while holding space for beauty, humor and tenderness.

Thank God, I got it on a Saturday and it's September.

I can hold two truths about the book. The book is riveting—truly unputdownable. And yet I’m uneasy about turning a mother’s shortcomings ( a very difficult person) into a public story. The author came across as loving and not spiteful; but I wish the story had shown far more protection—call it 99% slack—for the mother who helped shape her. The writing is one sided.

Others may feel differently; this is simply my view. It felt like Arundhati’s autobiography than her mother’s memoir. But she has every right to pen it with the memories she grew up with. She is the writer, she chose the subject. The author wishes about her not being a daughter but a student to Mrs Roy. It felt like the book explored tones of narcissism. I honestly felt like giving her a hug after reading the book.

Em and The big Hoom ~ Jerry Pinto 49 of 25

 

Mother and  Memory first book that come to our mind is  Em and the Big Hoom, by Jerry Pinto from Mahim and Mumbai.

Mad maane mother. Mad is an everyday, ordinary word. It is compact. It fits into songs. As the old Hindi film song has it, M-A-D, mad maane paagal. It can become a phrase - "Maddaw-what?" which began life as "Are you mad or what?". It can be everything you choose it to be: a mad whirl, a mad idea, a mad March day, a mad heiress, a mad mad mad mad world, a mad passion, a mad dog. But it is different when you have a mad mother. Then the world wakes up from time to time and blinks at you, eyes of fire.

Imelda Mendes is called “Em” by her two children, the unnamed narrator and his elder sister Susan. Their father Augustine – affectionate, dependable but taciturn – is “the Big Hoom”, and they all live together in a one-BHK flat in Mahim. Imelda has always been an energetic woman, but at some point after her children were born “someone turned on a tap” and a crippling depression set in - she has a few good days, but on the many bad ones even the trenches dug by the municipal corporation outside the house might seem like part of a threatening conspiracy. (“We never knew when the weather would change dramatically with Em.”) The family rallies around her and each other; the narrator describes their lives with a heartbreaking mix of tenderness and humour.

Read carefully and you might agree that it isn’t just about a “special” mother, it is about parents in a more general sense – parents as the looking glasses that we sometimes recoil from because in their aging faces and increasingly erratic behaviour we see our future selves – as well as a reminder that “normalcy” and “madness” are not airtight categories. Anyone who has ever experienced the fading of a parent should feel a shudder of recognition when the narrator mulls living in a world that “continues to be idyllic and inviting for you but your mother is being sucked into the centre of the earth [...]The imperium of the world’s timetable will allow you to break step and fall out for a while, but it will abandon you too if you linger too long”.

And this is also, in a strange but illuminating way, a book about writers and writing. Much of our understanding of Em’s state of mind comes from her journal entries, reproduced throughout the narrative, and letters such as the meandering one in which she acknowledges the seriousness of her relationship with Augustine (and her realisation that she was no longer just an “I” but part of a “we”). We are told that she was a seemingly effortless writer – one who might have made a career out of it in another lifetime – but also that compulsive writing may be a manifestation of her condition. “She was free associating, gliding through language.”

“Memoir” was not printed on its jacket flap.

There's a similar book - "If You Don't Know Me by Now" - by another journalist, Sathnam Sanghera. In this, it is Sanghera's father who is schizophrenic and the rest of the family puts up with him. Sanghera has presented it as a memoir.

Set in Bombay during the last decades of the twentieth century, Em and The Big Hoom tells the compelling story of the Mendeses mother, father, daughter and son. Between Em, the beedi - smoking, hyperactive mother, driven frequently to hospital by her mania and failed suicide attempts, and The Big Hoom, the rock-solid, dependable father, trying to hold things together as best he can, they are an extraordinary family.

An interesting observation about BOTM. It was selected after a tough competition with Mother Mary Comes to Me. There seems to be many parallels between both books.

Both books are about disturbed mothers and their effects on children.

Both books are semi autobiographical.

While Mother Mary has a beedi on its cover, Em has a habit of  smoking beedis.

But the husband's are very different and so is the effect on children. 

Interesting both mothers had a son and a daughter.

"Love is never enough. Madness is enough. It is complete, sufficient unto itself. You can only stand outside it, as a woman might stand outside a prison in which her lover is locked up."

Drawing on life with his own mother who suffered from a severe form of manic depression, one that resisted the treatments available, Jerry Pinto offers a bittersweet love story that is also an introspective coming of age story and a searing portrait of the way mental illness can create a vortex around which a family can be tossed and turned—a cyclone that pushes away the outside world and makes “normal”  life an impossible dream. At the heart of the tale is a small Roman Catholic Goan family tucked into the mosaic of late twentieth century Bombay, India’s largest city. The unnamed narrator and his sister Susan share a tiny one bedroom apartment in with their parents Imelda and Augustine Mendes , fondly referred to as Em and the Big Hoom. Although at one time their prospects might have promised a more generous standard of living, all changed as Em’s illness progressed. Swinging widely between deep suicidal depressions and expansive, unpredictable and emotionally abusive mania punctuated by rare episodes of normal, she dominates both the cramped living space and their reality. In the midst of the storm, their stoic father is a fount of calm reserve, their rock, the hint of stability to which the children cling.

Pinto’s narrator is an uncertain, emotionally sensitive character, charged with not only recounting the surreal experience of managing life, adolescence and early adulthood with his difficult and unusual and wildly eccentric mother, but with re-imagining a time before mental illness claimed her moods and mind, before the electrical currents started racing uncontrolled—“flashing and sizzling”—through her brain. Relying on Em’s own, occasionally lucid recollections, and scraps of the diaries and letters she compulsively wrote but rarely mailed, he tries to piece together a picture of her life as a young woman, forced to go to work in her teens to support her family rather than going to college as she hoped, then pushed into becoming a stenographer. She meets her future husband while they are both working in the same office; their courtship is prolonged and simple.

His father’s past our protagonist approaches more cautiously. The Big Hoom is his hero and, if he is seeking the ordinary behind his irrational mother, he does not want to risk learning that his father’s calm exterior is a façade. A father and son trip to Goa provides the backdrop for an exposition of the Big Hoom’s remarkable resolve and determination, tracing his inadvertent arrival in Bombay where, without his family’s knowledge, he stayed on and began working until he could he could afford to go to school and earn an engineering degree. He was the first of his village to make good in the outside world. But for his son he very much remains an enigma, and as a result, so do many of the social norms that are distorted by his erratic upbringing:

At that point I realized what it meant to be a man in India. It meant knowing what one could do and what one could only get done. It meant being able to hold on to two patterns simultaneously. One was methodical, hierarchical, regulated and the outcomes depended on fate, chance, kings and desperate men. The other was intuitive, illicit and guaranteed. The trick was to know when to shift between patterns, to peel the file off the table and give it to a peon, to speak easily of one’s cousin the minister or the archbishop. I did not think I could ever know what these shifts entailed, and that meant, in essence, that I was never going to grow up.

Back at home, Em remains an unpredictable force of nature. As her children get older, eventually moving on to post-secondary educations and careers, they remain essential to her immediate circle of care. With their father, and occasionally their grandmother, they take turns balancing each other off through her ups and downs. It’s a physically and emotionally draining routine:

We never knew when the weather would change dramatically with Em. You’re vulnerable to those you love and they acknowledge this by being gentle with you, but with Em you could never be sure whether she was going to handle you as if you were glass or take your innermost self into a headlock. Sometimes it seemed part of her mental problem. Sometimes it seemed part of her personality.

She could be erratic, intense, loud and obscene, often embarrassing her children. Responding with a disapproving, “Em!” would only further her efforts to shock. However, as difficult as the manic episodes were to endure, especially for the narrator who seems to take it all so personally, the other bipolar extreme was even worse:

I don’t know how to describe her depression except to say that it seemed like it was engrossing her. No, even that sounds like she had some choice in the matter. It was another reality from which she had no escape. It took up every inch of her. She had no time for love or hate, fatigue or hunger. She slept ravenously but it was a drugged sleep, probably dreamless sleep, sleep that gives back nothing.

Add frequent suicide attempts, hospitalizations, and an inability to leave her home unattended, the Mendes family are caught in an endless nightmare.

But for all that, this is a beautiful, warm and affectionate tale, told with generosity and gentle humour. Em’s mind-spinning divergent monologues capture the off-the-rail ramblings of mania with remarkable room filling intensity, but a very human, vulnerable portrait of the woman behind the illness is preserved. However, the real magic of Em and the Big Hoom lies in the narrative voice. Pinto captures the son’s self-conscious guilt—the awareness that his mother’s illness forces him to think and talk about himself and then feel badly about it. He wants to tell his mother’s story, but of course it can’t be extricated from his own. She stirs conflicted sentiments. Bitterness. Anxiety. An impossible love. The illness is endlessly exhausting on those around her, yet the narrator worries that he might share the same genetic tendency to mood disorder, lives in fear that his sister will marry and move out and that the Big Hoom will die leaving him to care for Em alone. Mentally he tries to prepare for this and  wonders if he will ever have the confidence and maturity that stage of life will demand of him. It is this complicated tangle of emotion that carries this novel right through to its poignant, unexpected end.

Talk the Talk ~ Angelo M. D'Amico (48 of 2025)

 

This book is a practical guide for network marketers, packed with communication strategies and motivational insights. It’s designed to help readers improve their presentation skills, handle objections confidently, and build successful relationships in the world of direct selling and multi-level marketing (MLM).

 Core Themes & Structure

The book is divided into several parts, each focusing on a key aspect of network marketing:

Part One: Power Phrases & Mindset

1. How to ask effective questions: "May I ask you a question?"
2. Dream building and positive attitude. Why you do something is more important than what you do or how you do it.
3. Principles of success, persistence, and commitment
4. Building lifelong relationships and leadership skills . Let Money work for you.

Have fun! Success is a journey,  not a destination!

Affirmation

1. I will accomplish my dreams of tomorrow by acting today.
2. I will make a life long commitment of learning,  growing and changing. 
3. I will make things happen,  instead of waiting for things to happen. 
4. I consider it a privilege,  not a sacrifice,  to be able to work to accomplish my dreams.
5. I will ask questions not to doubt the system, but to find out how I can better make it work for me.
6. I will act with courage and boldness in all my endeavors. 
7. Without exception,  I will do unto others, as I would have them do unto me.
8. If I must doubt something,  I will doubt my limits.
9. I will lead my group into positiveness and prosperity. 
10. Each morning when I look in the mirror,  I'll be able to honestly say to myself,  "I'm a better person today than I was yesterday."
11. I will eventually realize my biggest dreams by working daily on my littlest goals.
12. I will become an active, eager learner by listening to tapes & CDs, reading books, attending meetings & seminars and associating upline at every opportunity. 
13. I will live each moment of each day with passion,  conviction and courage. 
14. I trust in my actions. I will do what needs to be done on a daily basis trusting that money will follow.
15. I believe in myself,  in my opportunity and in The Education System.

Part Two: Contacting

Using the FORM method (Family, Occupation, Recreation, Money) to initiate conversations.

Be a Business Builder,  a product mover.

Setting appointments and making meaningful connections

16. I will read, study and practice what I will say to Prospects so that I can present the opportunity with confidence and posture. 

Part Three: Inviting

Creating prospect lists

Conducting one-on-one meetings

17. I will become successful by following the advice of my active upline, for he or she has done what I seek to do.

Part Four: Qualifying Prospects

Identifying serious candidates before presenting your business plan.

18. This is my business,  I'm treating it like a million dollar business and I'll run it on my terms , not my prospects terms!

Part Five: Handling Objections

Techniques to calm concerns and respond to 15 common objections

19 Every day I will incorporate something new, I have learned from a tape or book into my business. 

Part Six: Follow-Up

Ensuring consistent engagement and follow-through

20. I will follow up and follow through on every prospect who has listened to a tape, read a book of seen a pĺan. 

Part Seven: Building Success

Goal setting, personal growth, and financial freedom

My people are destroyed from a lack of knowledge.  

The book emphasises

21  that great networkers aren’t born—they’re made through practice and dedication. It’s a motivational toolkit for anyone looking to grow their influence and success in the network marketing space.

* Money is not the most important thing in the world. Love is. Fortunately I love Money. 

Width builds profitability. Depth builds security.  So do both simultaneously. 

There are three kinds of people. People who make things happen,  people who watch things happen and people who are wondering 'what's happening'?

Leadership is lonely,  but it pays very well.

You gotta believe in something or you'll fall for anything.  

Faith is the opposite of fear. Fear not doubt is the opposite of faith. 

SIBKIS : See it big, keep it simple. 

Questions are the Answers ~ Allan Pease (47 of 2025)

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Peanut ~ Charles M. Schulz

 

Seventy five years ago, on October 2, 1950, Charles M. Schulz introduced the world to a small boy with a round head and a beagle with a wild imagination. In over half a century of reading , Charlie Brown and Snoopy are the two characters I have identified with the most.Peanuts quickly became more than just a comic strip, it was a cultural phenomenon. With characters like Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus, and Peppermint Patty, Schulz captured the humour, heartbreak and quiet wisdom of everyday life, making Peanuts a much loved presence in newspapers, books, television specials and hearts around the world.

Over the decades Peanuts has transcended generations with its blend of sharp wit and emotional depth. Whether through Snoopy’s Red Baron and Joe Cool  flights of fancy, Lucy’s psychiatric advice booth, or Charlie Brown’s eternal optimism in the face of failure, the strip has delivered a commentary on the human condition through the eyes of children. 

As we celebrate the 75th anniversary of Peanuts, we honor not just a comic strip, but a legacy. Schulz’s work continues to inspire new audiences and creators, reminding us that even when we are down, there is something worth laughing about and thinking about. Here's to Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the entire gang: thank you for 75 years of laughter, lessons, and love.👆👆👆

Who Stole the American Dream? by Burke Hedges (46 of 2025)

 

Who Stole the American Dream? by Burke Hedges

This 1992 book—often subtitled The Book Your Boss Doesn’t Want You to Read—is a motivational and educational guide that critiques traditional career paths and promotes network marketing as a viable alternative to achieve financial freedom.

Book covers:

The American Dream is not dead—but it’s been hijacked. Hedges argues that corporate downsizing, job insecurity, and rising costs have made traditional paths to success unreliable. 

Network marketing offers a new path. The book positions network marketing as a legitimate and empowering business model, contrasting it with exploitative pyramid schemes. 

Financial freedom is central. True success means having control over your time, income, and lifestyle—not just climbing a corporate ladder. 

Chapter Breakdown:

The book is structured into five phases, each building on the idea that the American Dream has shifted—and that individuals must adapt to reclaim it:

Introduction

Opens with a metaphorical story about loss and powerlessness, setting the tone for the book’s central question: What happened to the American Dream? 

Phase One: The American Dream

Explores the myth of the traditional dream—college, job, retirement—and questions whether it still holds true.

Phase Two: Who Stole the Dream and Why

Introduces the concept of pyramid schemes and explains the difference between illegal scams and legal network structures.

Highlights how corporate America and systemic changes have eroded job security. 

Phase Three: Why Traditional Paths Don’t Work

Discusses the failure rates of small businesses and the instability of corporate jobs.

Introduces the concept of a “paradigm shift” as a necessary mindset change.

It asks us to whisper the word 'Distribution'. 

Phase Four: The Truth About Network Marketing

Defines network marketing and explains how it works.

Offers ethical guidelines and distinguishes it from exploitative models.

Phase Five: Network Marketing and You

Encourages readers to evaluate their current path and consider network marketing as a tool for personal and financial empowerment.

Includes real-life success stories and motivational insights. 

Notable Quotes from Burke Hedges

“Did you know that 90% of all small businesses fail in the first year?” — A stark reminder of the risks in traditional entrepreneurship. 

“In any other business, the business ends up owning you. Not in Network Marketing.” — Emphasising freedom and ownership. 

Cash Flow Quadrant ~ Robert Kiyosaki (45 of 2025)

 

Cashflow Quadrant is the sequel to Rich Dad Poor Dad, and it expands on the idea of achieving financial freedom by understanding how people earn money. Kiyosaki introduces a model called the Cashflow Quadrant, which categorises income earners into four types:

E – Employee: Works for someone else and earns a salary.

S – Self-employed: Works for themselves and earns by selling their services.

B – Business owner: Owns a system or business that generates income.

I – Investor: Invests money to earn passive income.

The cashflow quadrant means E/S/B/I, in which E means employee, S represents the self-employed or small business owner, B means business owner, and I means investor. So whichever quadrant our income comes from, we are part of that quadrant.

Different quadrants, different values ​​-

Each quadrant has a different value of its own. For example, the core value of the E quadrant is “security.” You will always hear people in this quadrant say – “I need a right and secure job,” “how much do we get for overtime,” and “how much do we get paid for vacations.”

The core value of the S quadrant is “freedom.” These people want freedom, and they want to do what they like. Most of the people in this quadrant are small business owners etc.

People of the S quadrant wish to be the best in their field. If the people of this quadrant stop working, their income also stops.

The people of the B quadrant look for people who are the best in their field and can work in their team. When it comes to money, the people of the B quadrant keep earning even if they leave their businesses.

And finally, the logs of the I quadrant are financially free. Money works for them, they don’t work for money. So the people of these four quadrants are different, they have different mindsets, and their values ​​are also different.

Network marketing businesses fall into the “B” quadrant. This business is for those who want to be a part of the B quadrant. Due to the unlimited income potential, it is placed in the B quadrant while the income of the E or S quadrant is limited.

If your business becomes very big, you can move from the “B” quadrant to the “I” quadrant.

The book’s central message is that financial freedom is best achieved by moving from the E and S quadrants to the B and I quadrants, where income is generated through systems and investments rather than direct labour.

Kiyosaki argues that traditional education prepares people to be employees, not entrepreneurs or investors. He encourages readers to seek financial education, take calculated risks, and build or invest in assets that generate passive income.

Chapter Breakdown:

Here’s a high-level overview of the chapters and their key themes:

Part 1: The Cashflow Quadrant

Chapter 1: Why Don’t You Get a Job?

Introduces the quadrant and Kiyosaki’s personal journey from homelessness to financial freedom. Emphasises the importance of choosing freedom over job security.

Chapter 2–6: Understanding the Quadrants

Explores each quadrant in detail, including the mindset and financial behaviours typical of each. Discusses how people can transition from E/S to B/I.

This covers the three type of business system namely:

1. Traditional corporations

2. Franchises

3. Network Marketing

Your goal is to own a system and have people work that system for you. System is a bridge to freedom. 

 There are five different level of investors namely:

Level 1: Buys depreciating assets (e.g., consumer goods); lacks financial literacy.

Level 2: Savers who avoid risk and prefer low-return vehicles like savings accounts.

Level 3: “Too busy” to learn about investing; may delegate decisions without understanding.

Level 4: Do-it-yourself investors who actively learn and manage their investments.

Level 5: Business owners who invest in the I quadrant, leveraging systems and people

Part 2: Bringing the Quadrant to Life/Bringing out the best in you:

It tells us to be the bank and not the banker. 

Chapter 6–9: Real-Life Examples

Shares stories of individuals who moved across quadrants and the challenges they faced. Highlights the importance of mentors and support systems.

Seek advise from right kind of people, depending on where you want to be. There are different kind of advisors for different type of people - Rich, Poor and Middleclass. 

Part 3: Becoming Who You Are

It starts with telling us to take baby steps. Use power of compounding, have long term plan, break it down and work towards it and believe in delayed gratificaiton. 

Chapter 11–18: Mindset and Transformation - Provides 7 steps to finding your financial fast track. 

Focuses on the psychological and emotional aspects of financial change. Encourages readers to overcome fear, develop financial intelligence, and take action.

1. It's time to mind your own business
2. We have to take control of our Cash flows
3. Know the difference between risk and risky
4. Decide what kind of  investor you want to be - One who seek problem, one who seek answers or one who seek an expert? Be all three. 
5. Seek Mentors
6. Make disappointment your strength
7. The power of faith

The book reinforces the idea that financial freedom is a journey that requires education, courage, and persistence. Begin building pipeline of cashflow to support you and your family. 

Copy Cat Marketing ~Burke Hedges (44 of 2025)

 

Copycat Marketing 101 is a short, motivational book that explores how imitation—when applied wisely—can be a powerful strategy for achieving financial freedom. The central idea is that we all copy behaviours from childhood, but few people learn to copy the habits and systems of wealthy individuals. The book encourages readers to “copycat” successful models, especially in the realm of network marketing.

Key Concepts & Chapters

1. We Live in a World of Copycats

We naturally imitate others—from how we speak to how we behave. The book argues that this instinct can be harnessed to replicate success, not just habits.

2. What Is “True” Wealth?

Wealth isn’t just money—it’s freedom from debt, stress, and the constraints of traditional employment.

3. Linear Growth: Trading Time for Money

Most people earn income by exchanging time for money, which limits their potential. This is referred to as the “time-for-money trap.”

4. Leverage Growth: Working Smarter, Not Harder

The book introduces the concept of leverage—using systems, people, or tools to multiply your efforts and income.

5. Exponential Growth: Formula for Building a Fortune

By leveraging systems like network marketing, individuals can achieve exponential growth rather than incremental gains.

6. Synergism: Marriages Made in Heaven

Combining complementary strengths—such as people and systems—can create powerful outcomes.

7. Network Marketing: The Ultimate Copycat System

Network marketing is presented as the ideal model for copycat success. It allows individuals to follow a proven path, replicate successful behaviours, and build wealth without reinventing the wheel.

“If you want to be rich, copy rich people—not poor ones.”

The book’s moral is simple yet profound: success leaves clues. By observing and emulating the strategies of successful individuals, especially in scalable systems like network marketing, anyone can improve their financial situation.

A potpourri of sorts, this book tries to be many things at once - self-help, business, finance, and finally and mainly, network marketing. The author emphasizes on network marketing as one of the trusted ways to become rich quick and on one's own terms. As if we haven't heard it all from those impassioned distributors trying to enroll us into their pyramid selling. In fact, a simple Google search will tell you that there have been people who have become millionaires through this mode, but this is not for everyone and not for everywhere.

Filled with anecdotes, jokes and a few inspirational quotes, this book is really for those people who are frantically searching for ways and means to become rich quick. And, if you take away those quotes, anecdotes and jokes, the rest of the book could be presented neatly in two A4-sized sheets.

Generations: Law Governing Life

 They once asked Sheikh Rashid, the founder of Dubai, how he saw the future of his country. His reply was as striking as it was timeless:

“My grandfather rode a camel. My father did too. I drive a Mercedes. My son drives a Land Rover. My grandson will also drive a Land Rover… but my great-grandson will probably ride a camel again.”

When asked why, he explained:

“There are eternal laws that govern life. Hard times create strong people. Strong people create good times. Good times create weak people. And weak people create hard times.

Many won’t understand, but prosperity doesn’t produce fighters. It produces parasites.”

Exploring Detective Fiction ~ CBC

 

Our Meet-up #87 that would focus on Detective Fiction, happened on 28th September, from 11 am to 1 pm, at Green Garden Cafe, near the Water Metro station, Marine Drive. It's a small waterfront cafe situated inside the Cochin Boat Club jetty, on the Marine Drive walkway. The menu is affordable  and the place also has a quintessential Cochin vibe.

You need to walk like Sherlock Holmes , not sit  like Hercule Porot !Since parking is quite a walk away to reach the venue.

But no matter, the hunt is on 🥰

Interesting to know the first specimen of the genre in England is The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins.

Writers popularizing the genre—Sherlock Holmes and Father Brow, American detective stories of the same period, especially those written by Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett, and explains the radical ways in which they deviated from the British novels, four formidable women writers of English detective novels: Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Margery Allingham, and Ngaio Marsh. 

Through its structure, a detective story also takes its readers on a path of discovery and engages them in the storytelling.

We covered more than 50 books, by various authors, region and time. Interesting to know the first specimen of the genre in England is The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins.

Writers popularizing the genre—Sherlock Holmes and Father Brow, American detective stories of the same period, especially those written by Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett, and explains the radical ways in which they deviated from the British novels, four formidable women writers of English detective novels: Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Margery Allingham, and Ngaio Marsh. 

Arthur Hailey, Agata Christy, Enid Blyton, Edgar Wallace Joseph Wambaugh, Anita Nair,  Ravi Subrmaniam, 3 Peters, 3 Helens and many more authors were discussed while few among the many books were Decagon House Murder Series, Blood Hount, The Honjin Murders by Kosuki Kindaichi, The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo Series, The Guest List..on and on..

Favorite of many included TinTin, Batman, historians and ofcourse no detective is complete without secretary and support characters like Della Strret, Dr. Watson, Miss Marple, Enola Holmes and many Inspector series.

Georgette Heyer's " Death in the Stocks"

The book Philip Sir mentioned.  And then he writes:

[28/09, 19:29] +91 88930 10130: Reminds the movie Anand Sribala.The film opens with the quote, “It is through intellect that we prove, but through intuition that we discover,” ( by Kerala police🙂) setting the thematic tone for what follows. The story begins with distraught parents reporting their missing daughter, Merin, at north police station in Kochi, only to be met with indifference.

The parents are sent from one station to another before the case is finally taken up. Their ordeal worsens when Merin’s body is discovered in the backwaters near Kochi Wharf, and the police conclude the death was a suicide following a lovers’ quarrel.The fact that suicide was" seen" on Gosree bridge ( visible to us today) but body found near Wellington issland waa the twist🙂 and murder finally proved!!... We were at the scene of action!!

[28/09, 19:32] PHILIP ABRAHAM CBC: I spoke about how impressed I was on reading Fifty Famous Detectives of Fiction, an anthology edited by Freeman Wills Crofts, at a tender age. I made a passing reference to Cortez and his men seeing the Pacific for the first time.

The reference was to a line from John Keats' sonnet On First Looking Into Chapman's Homer.

The poet compares his awe on reading the translation of Homer to   Hernán Cortés and his men gazing upon the Pacific Ocean from a mountaintop for the very first time. The phrase highlights the awe and profound surprise felt by the men upon seeing this new, vast expanse of water, which was a significant discovery by explorers in the early 16th century.  

"Then felt I like some watcher of the skies

    When a new planet swims into his ken;

Or like stout Cortez when with eagle eyes

    He stared at the Pacific—and all his men

Look'd at each other with a wild surmise—

    Silent, upon a peak in Darien."

[28/09, 19:35] PHILIP ABRAHAM CBC: I realize i am being pretentious when I compare my feelings to theirs, but what the hell !

We too can use literary and poetic licence to embellish  😁

Interesting quote was mentioned presumably in one of Edger Wallace book "I am a detective, you look more like a mental defective". Most of the detectives have weird nature, dressing sense or character. Some stories we end up sympathizing the villain and pray that he should not be caught. 

Though Detective was the favorite genre of many, what was the real highlight was the ambience and location. 

Learnt a new word:

I also discovered another compelling reason why printed books may be better than ebooks 🙃 - If unsatisfied you can just throw away/bang a book but not an electronic device. 

I am always wonder struck that there are still so many people who read so much. In one's immediate circle.

Business School ~ Robert Kiyosaki (43 of 2025)

 

"The richest people in the world build Networks. Everyone else is trained to look for work"

The book Business School is a deep dive into the world of network marketing, which Robert Kiyosaki presents not merely as a way to earn money, but as a platform for personal development, financial education, and entrepreneurial growth.

He begins by saying network marketing business is not for everyone.  By reading the book you will know if it is for you.

Thomas Edition did not invent light bulb, he only perfected it. What they teach in school is not always right and complete. He was a business person and telegraph operator. 

"The richest people in the world build Networks,  Everyone else is trained to look for work."

Telegraph network, radio network,  TV network,  satellite network,  Amazon, Google 

Having a system and building a network makes people rich. There are many ways to become rich, but ultra-rich people create networks.

Birds of a feather come together, which means humans live with people like themselves. It can also be understood that rich people create network with rich people, and poor people network with other and more poor people.

So if you want to become rich, you have to  networking to help you become more affluent. But it is a challenging task to build your own business and convince people to have the power to do your network.

According to Robert Kiyosaki – If we want to be financially free, we should have three types of education which are – academic, professional, and financial.

Academic education teaches us to read, write and do maths; business education teaches us to work for money, and financial education teaches us how money works.

If our financial education is poor, we will work for rich people. How money works for us If it is not learned, we will have to work for money.

Building your business is the best way to become rich. Once the company is strong, or the cash flow is there, investing in other assets can be considered.

Other ways to get rich

A person can become rich by marrying another person for money.

A person can become wealthy by fraud.

You can become rich by being greedy.

People dream of becoming rich even by doing cheap things.

A person can become wealthy even by working hard.

One can become rich by being intelligent, talented, brilliant, or attractive.

Only by luck sometimes can one become rich.

One can also become rich by building a business.

Building a network marketing business is one of the newest ways to become rich.

This is a new and revolutionary way to become rich. This is a setup that gives the possibility to share wealth with anyone.

Network marketing businesses can also be called personal franchises or invisible extensive business networks. This new form of business is like a revolution because it allows sharing a property only for a few selected people for the first time in history.

There are many controversies regarding this business, and many people want to earn money quickly by fraud in this type of business.

But if you try to understand this business properly by taking a step, it is a socially responsible system of sharing wealth. This is not a good business for greedy people.

This is the only business where you can become rich, by helping others become rich.

Robert Kiyosaki says I support this business because some companies work with great compassion. If you stick with the business, the company stays with you. And some network marketing companies give the possibility of equal opportunity business.

Life-changing business education

Robert says there is no doubt about the massive earning potential of a network marketing business, but I recommend something other than such a business just for the money. Robert says the biggest reason for recommending this business is its “system of education.”

From the company’s compensation and products, it should be seen how much a company is interested in learning or training you. Skill makes us rich and not theory.

That’s why Robert named this book Business School for those who like to help people because network marketing business, real-life business school works for those who want to learn fundamental world skills to become an entrepreneur.

Cash Flow Quadrant

The renowned name in the franchise world is McDonald’s. Some people even called it illegal initially, but today McDonald’s franchise is in the big country to very remote places. The franchise is a business network comprised of multiple owners working together. In 1970, another type of network marketing business started gaining momentum.

Today this business is known as a network marketing business. This business has also been criticized a lot, but the speed from this industry, franchise, and traditional businesses are increasing continuously.

Many people need to see the rapid growth of this industry because, in most cases, it is an invisible business that does not have large sign boards like McDonald’s and Starbucks. It is hidden because it is virtual, so this business is mainly criticized by those not doing business.

In this business, we have to make people like ourselves, and our economic value will double as soon as they become like us. That’s why the success here in working hard comes not arithmetically but exponentially.

Many people found it sensible to start this business because it does not require lakhs and crores of money to do old-style business, nor does it need lakhs to buy a famous franchise. Instead, doing this business with excellent training at a meager cost is a much better idea.

To do this business, you need to open your mind because this business is increasing all over the world. The future of this industry is perfect because this industry gives you a chance to control your life and take your financial future into your hands.

Even if the old-thinking people refuse to see the growth of this industry, but still this industry will continue to grow with time.

Developing your most important business skill.

The ability to sell anything is the number one skill of any business. Selling ability is the most critical skill of B quadrant business. If you can’t sell, then forget about becoming a business owner.

We are all born with the talent to sell. In childhood, when we wanted something, we started crying; it was part of selling. In childhood, when we want something, we go to the father, then to the mother, and if we do not get that thing, we speak to the grandparents. As we grow up, this anything-seeking attitude gets lost somewhere.

Why is it important to have sales potential? How is this an essential skill in the B quadrant?

The answer is – the more we sell, the more we can buy. If you want to buy something, you have to deal with something first. That’s why selling is the number one skill.

When you apply for a job, you sell your professional skills; when you go home, every item in your house, whether it is frozen, a bed, sofa, television, and anything else, someone has sold to you.

Politicians are the biggest salesmen; the best teachers are the best salespeople. People are poor, unsuccessful, and lonely because they have failed to sell somewhere.

Whenever there is fear in us, our confidence and doubts get stronger—learning to sell means defeating your inner fear. The unique thing about network marketing business is that it gives you a chance to face your fears, deal with them, overcome them and bring out the winner inside you.

Only those people who are afraid of rejection do not want to sell. But in history, the most successful people in the world were rejected the most. So we should follow a formula in our life: Rejection and Correcton = Education and Acceleration. Education starts with rejection because we get a chance to do things better or differently next time.

Ability to sell is the most important business skill. Skill take you to places not theory. Network marketing is not for all, this book will help you know if it is for you.

We are not afraid to sell, we are afraid of rejections. Rejection = Success.

Fear of rejection,  low self esteem and lack of confidence will ruin your life.

 Success in network marketing business is teaching others to sell.

Not working for the money

People choose to work for money and not wealth. Wealth should never be counted with money but always measured in time. For example, if there is a savings of Rs 1000 and our day’s expenditure is Rs 100, then our assets are ten days. If the cost is Rs 50, then the wealth is 20 days.

Health or wealth is always according to time. Money comes in two ways: one is property, and the other is labor. To be rich, you must work for the money that comes from wealth.

But if you want to work hard for your whole life, then work only for cash, as most people do. Rich Dad says our financial statement is like our school report card, which tells our financial IQ.

People in the “B” and “I” quadrants work on building and growing their assets, not money.

Living your dreams

A lot of people don’t have dreams because dreams need money. The great value of network marketing companies is that they insist on fulfilling the dream.

Our friends or family sometimes innocently or sometimes intentionally kill our dreams. Those who have given up on their goals mainly kill the dreams of others. Rich Dad believes that it is not necessary to become rich or buy a big house, but the person we become in purchasing a significant home is significant.

Marriage and business

In Network Marketing BUS Business INESS, many couples build a business together. This business is perfect for those couples who want to do business together for some reason. These reasons are:

This business can be started together part-time.

You can work according to your schedule.

It helps industry families together.

In this industry, Most of the successful people are couples.

These businesses provide education for couples to grow and learn together.

Family business

Some of the primary benefits of network marketing business are –

It can be started at a low cost.

It does not require any formal education or degree.

These industries are equally open to all, regardless of age, gender, and race.

Companies are already providing established and successful systems that you can use to build your business.

Some companies provide excellent training and education so that you can become successful.

In this, your mentors are successful people from the industry ready to assist you in your journey.

By starting this business part-time, you can BUILD with your job.

It gives you a lot of tax benefits as a business owner, which you cannot get as an employee.

The most significant value of this industry is – it brings you closer to your family. There are many successful families in this business. Some of the qualities of the families involved in this business are –

They are all family focused

They understand the value of spending time with family

Children understand the benefits of their industry as well as their parents

They do more family vacations and business trips

Children learn passive income and financial education at an early age

Children choose to be part of the business of their own free will

In Most parents, one parent builds a full-time business, and the other with his job

The nature of this industry is to promote family togetherness and unity

The most significant gift of network marketing business is that we can build a business, not for our family, with them. The more successfully we spend with family, the more time and freedom we will have.

So, that was all in this book. Hope you would have learned the pearls of wisdom to implement in your life.

Business School Book Review

While reading Business School, I constantly reflected on my financial journey and reassessed my approach to money. Kiyosaki’s unique perspective challenged my preconceived notions and sparked a desire for lifelong learning and self-improvement in finance.

If I were to offer any critique, it would be that the book occasionally veers into repetition, reiterating certain points multiple times. However, this repetition also reinforces the core messages, which may benefit some readers who prefer reinforcement.

In conclusion, Business School is an eye-opening and motivational book encouraging readers to think differently about money, business, and wealth creation. Robert T. Kiyosaki’s insights and practical advice make this book a valuable resource for anyone seeking to break free from the traditional path and embark on an entrepreneurial journey. I highly recommend it to aspiring entrepreneurs and individuals looking to enhance their financial intelligence.

Core Themes and Values

The book outlines 10 core values of network marketing that go beyond financial gain:

True Equal Opportunity – Anyone can succeed regardless of background.

Life-Changing Business Education – Real-world skills like sales, leadership, and self-management.

Supportive Community – Friends and mentors who uplift rather than discourage.

Power of Networks – Wealth creation through systems and connections.

Leadership Development – Building influence and guiding others.

Not Working for Money – Focus on passive income and asset creation.

Living Your Dream – Aligning business with personal purpose.

Overcoming Rejection – Learning resilience through sales and outreach.

Changing Quadrants – Moving from employee to business owner/investor (Cashflow Quadrant model).

Education Over Commissions – Prioritising learning over short-term earnings. 

In Appendix he also talks about #Marriage and Business, #The Family Business  #How you can use the same Tax loop the rich use

Why Kiyosaki Advocates Network Marketing?

Although Robert Kiyosaki did not build his wealth through network marketing, he strongly recommends it as a low-barrier entry point for aspiring entrepreneurs. He believes it teaches:

Emotional intelligence through rejection and correction.

Financial literacy via practical exposure to income statements, balance sheets, and asset acquisition.

System thinking, especially the importance of duplicating successful behaviours (Metcalf’s Law).

Leadership and teaching, which are key to scaling a network marketing business. 

Not a Traditional Business School

Kiyosaki critiques conventional education for preparing people to be employees rather than entrepreneurs. He argues that Business School fills this gap by offering:

Hands-on entrepreneurial training

Mindset shifts from scarcity to abundance

Real-world application of business principles.

"Network marketing gives millions of people  throughout the world the opportunity to take control of their lives and their financial future."

The Moonstone: A Romance ~ Wilkie Collins (42 of 2025)

 

The Moonstone: A Romance by Wilkie Collins is an 1868 British epistolary novel. It is an early example of the modern detective novel, and established many of the ground rules of the modern genre. Its publication was started on 4 January 1868 and was completed on 8 August 1868. The story was serialised in Charles Dickens's magazine All the Year Round. Collins adapted The Moonstone for the stage in 1877.

Colonel Herncastle, an unpleasant former soldier, brings the Moonstone back with him from India where he acquired it by theft and murder during the Siege of Seringapatam. Angry at his family, who shun him, he leaves it in his will as a birthday gift to his niece Rachel, thus exposing her to attack by the stone's hereditary guardians, who will stop at nothing to retrieve it.

Rachel wears the stone to her birthday party, but that night it disappears from her room. Suspicion falls on three Indian jugglers who have been near the house; on Rosanna Spearman, a maidservant who begins to act oddly and who then drowns herself in a local quicksand; and on Rachel herself, who also behaves suspiciously and is suddenly furious with Franklin Blake, with whom she has previously appeared to be enamoured, when he directs attempts to find it. Despite the efforts of Sergeant Cuff, a renowned Scotland Yard detective, the house party ends with the mystery unsolved, and the protagonists disperse.

During the ensuing year there are hints that the diamond was removed from the house and may be in a London bank vault, having been pledged as surety to a moneylender. The Indian jugglers are still nearby, watching and waiting. Rachel's grief and isolation increase, especially after her mother dies, and she first accepts and then rejects a marriage proposal from her cousin Godfrey Ablewhite, a philanthropist who was also present at the birthday dinner and whose father owns the bank near Rachel's old family home. Finally Franklin Blake returns from travelling abroad and determines to solve the mystery. He first discovers that Rosanna Spearman's behaviour was due to her having fallen in love with him. She found evidence (a paint smear on his nightclothes) that convinced her that he was the thief and concealed it to save him, confusing the trail of evidence and throwing suspicion on herself. In despair at her inability to make him acknowledge her despite all she had done for him, she killed herself, leaving behind the smeared gown and a letter he did not receive at the time because of his hasty departure abroad.

Now believing that Rachel suspects him of the theft on Rosanna's evidence, Franklin engineers a meeting and asks her. To his astonishment she tells him she actually saw him steal the diamond and has been protecting his reputation at the cost of her own even though she believes him to be a thief and a hypocrite. With hope of redeeming himself he returns to Yorkshire to the scene of the crime and is befriended by Mr. Ezra Jennings, the assistant of Dr. Candy, the doctor. They join to continue the investigations and learn that Franklin was secretly given laudanum during the night of the party (by Mr. Candy, who wanted to exact vengeance on Franklin for criticising medicine); it appears that this, in addition to his anxiety about Rachel and the diamond and other nervous irritations, caused him to take the diamond in a narcotic trance, to move it to a safe place. A re-enactment of the evening's events confirms this, but how the stone ended up in a London bank remains a mystery solved only a year after the birthday party when the stone is redeemed.

Franklin and his allies trace the claimant to a seedy waterside inn, only to discover that the Indians have got there first: the claimant is dead and the stone is gone. Under the dead man's disguise is none other than Godfrey Ablewhite, who is found to have embezzled the contents of a trust fund in his care and to have been facing exposure soon after the birthday party. The mystery of what Blake did while in his drugged state is solved: he encountered Ablewhite in the passageway outside Rachel's room and gave the Moonstone to him to be put back in his father's bank, from which it had been withdrawn on the morning of the party to be given to Rachel. Seeing his salvation, Ablewhite pocketed the stone instead, and pledged it as surety for a loan to save himself temporarily from insolvency. When he was murdered, he was on his way to Amsterdam to have the stone cut; it would then have been sold to replenish the plundered trust fund before the beneficiary inherited. The mystery is solved, Rachel and Franklin marry, and in an epilogue from Mr. Murthwaite, a noted adventurer, the reader learns of the restoration of the Moonstone to the place where it should be, in the forehead of the statue of the god in India.

The book was adapted into movie in 1996.

J.P.Alexander

 https://www.deccanherald.com/sports/cricket/imran-khan-taunts-only-way-pakistan-can-beat-india-is-if-pcb-chairman-army-chief-bat-as-openers-3739256

Pakistan is now virtually under military rule, as it has been for most of its existence. In fact, it was aptly called "an Army with a country" with the military and their extended families having an exaggerated sense of entitlement.... and running everything in the country as crony capitalists.

Today,  POTUS Trump wheels and deals with Field Marshal Munir Khan, not with Shehbaz Sharif, who became  PM after the rigged election of 2024.

Yes, while Imran Khan unarguably the most popular man in the country, rots in jail on trumped up charges including " violating Islamic marriage laws."!

Despite this, in 2024, the Independants backed by his banned PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-e- Insaaf) party, won more seats than any party contesting the elections!

In 1997, while attending a Quality Management programme sponsored by Japan's Ministry of Industry,  I stayed for a month in the same hostel in Osaka with participants from Srilanka, Bangladesh (the GM of Md Yunus' Grameen Bank), Iran, Nepal and ... 3 (Punjabi) Pakistanis.

While all 25 of us got along pretty well, especially on industry visits across Japan, these 3 Punjabis from elite Pakistani families, interacted best with our own 2 Indian Punjabis .. sharing language, culture, physique and even late night jaunts which the rest of us were disinclined to undertake.  Indeed our 2 Punjabis gelled better with the 3 Punjabi Pakistanis than with fellow Indians from Tamilnadu, Kerala, Maharashtra, Andhra, or Bengal.

The happenings over the past 3 years in Pakistan, were similar to what transpired in Bangladesh, Srilanka, Myanmar and ...now

 NEPAL.  Protests were  as much about Nepotism as they were about Corruption, and both were engineered by the Army and its generals .. Ayub Khan, Yahya, Khan, Zia, Musharaf, Muneer...leading to the humungous Rich-Poor Picketty gap in Pakistan.

We admired Imran for his cricketing abilities ranking him as one of the Quartet of Great Allrounders, all of whom specialized in the art of fast bowling.

Sir Richard Hadlee, Lord Ian Botham, our own Kapil Dev (who lifred the World Cup in 1983) and Imran Khan who led Pakistan to victory in 1992, and also completed the amazing Test double of 3000 runs and 300 wickets.

A Niazi Pathan whose mother belonged to the Burki tribe, Imran was connected to many Pakistani Biggies. An Oxford Blue in cricket, his cricketing  talent was matched by his good looks, sophistication, charm, social graces and ..... a hedonistic lifestyle as a bachelor in the 1980s. 

Susanna Constantine, painter Emma Sergeant, actress Goldie Hawn, TV anchor Kristine Backer, our Zeenat Aman, Anna White ( by whom he had a daughter),... many even visited Pakistan but finally refused to settle in that benighted and bigoted land with him. Yes, whatever Imran was or wasn't, he was an ardent patriot who saw Pakistan as his only real home.

Finally, in 1995, Jemima, daughter of tycoon Sir James Goldsmith gave up her Jewish faith to marry the dashing Pathan and even to settle down in Pakistan, where they had 2 sons.

Along with his admirable Patriotism, Imran also became more Religious, his faith soon bordering on Fundamentalism.

His long Crusade against his country's corrupt and nepotic  rulers, therefore  strikes a special note with the "faithful" masses as also with the jobless and disempowered Youth of Pakistan, who are smarting from their frustration at the rigged election of 2024.

Imran's jibe at the rulers and the PCB which they prop up has expectedly gone viral.

Yes, the best way to pull down a government is to mock it and make it an object of public ridicule. Especially when it is  Cricket icon Imran Khan, using cricketing metaphor to expose their transgressions .... after 2 massive back-to -back cricket defeats to traditional subcontinental rival India!

J P Alexander 

More about Sir

I feel genuinely humbled to be honored  as a Tennis legend by Regional Sports Centre, Ernakulam, arguably the finest integrated  Sports hub in the country, though Lotus Club ( founded by Lady Bristow ), Cochin Club in Fort Cochin and Rama Varma Club (founded in the 19th century) are of older vintage.

It was a typical.Kerala style function with presentation of shawl and Silver Medal by Chairperson & District Collector G Priyanka IAS. Honorary Secretary SAS Nawaz, IRS (with mike) is also seen, along with Committee members.

I consider this award more as a recognition of the longevity of my tennis career spanning over 70 years, than of any particular distinction on my part. 

In her address, Ms Priyanka strongly endorsed a career today exclusively in Sports, for those who are blessed  with talent, who should be given adequate training and support to succeed.

Back in our days, it was quite different. You could be  a University topper, simultaneously in Academics, Sports, Debating or whatever.

Yes, it is certainly much tougher for Gen Z to multi skill,  multitask and achieve success in multiple fields today.

Tennis has helped me in multiple ways, not the least to be a fairly healthy and active 82 year old. 

And wherever I went, I was welcome to play tennis, ... people sometimes lending me their kit, thoughI I generally carried the bare essentials with me.

Being fairly good at Tennis opened up many doors throughout my life. 

In 1960, I was one of the seven Bombay University students to receive the prestigious Sir Dorab Tata scholarship.  At the interview in Bombay House, iconic directors  JRD Tata, JD Choksi,  Nani Palkiwalla, and Mrs Vesugar evinced great interest in my extra curricular activities ... especially Elocution and Tennis.

Apart from many opportunities to play against tennis greats....

both father Ramanathan and son Ramesh Krishnan; Sankar Krishnan Premjit Lal; Davis Cuppers SP Misra, J Royappa,  Shashi Menon, AJ Udaykumar etc, I was also privileged to play at TTC a couple of times with cine star Gemini Ganesan who was a  friend of V Rammohan;

 Played also with15 year old Aamir Khan who was then at Bombay Scottish;

And with Naseerudin Shah, who played at RSC for a week in 2017 as the guest of Rahul Thomas.

And of course, with  cine star Kartika ( Sunanda Nair) daughter of my friend  Capt Nair, who was a top lady player in the 1980s.

The tennis courts of Raj Bhavan, Trivandrum were especially inviting when my friends (now Commander Rtd) Jose Manjooran and ( DGP retd) Upendra Varma IPS,  were young ADCs to Governor NN Wanchoo, ICS. Commander Jose will be remembered for the tennis extravaganza he organised in the Naval Base in 1991.. ..with Vijay & Anand Amritraj, young Leander Paes and BAT coaches David O'Meara and T Chandrasekar all being flown to the Base, in the Brittania plane by Chairman,  Biscuit Baron Rajan Pillai. ... to play on specially prepared grass courts. What a wonderful treat it was for us tennis aficianados!

Where would Indian tennis have been, sans the BAT scheme envisaged by Vijay and funded by avid tennis lover Rajan Pillai? (His dad, Janardanan Pillai, and Mom, religiously played an hour of tennis at Trivandrum Tennis Club every morning in the 1970s and 80s and his younger brother Rajmohan, is still an active player).

My school,  St Xavier's, Bombay which I joined in the 2nd standard encouraged sports and extra curricular activities. When I was in my final year, 11th std,  we won the Harris Shield for senior cricket , captained by brilliant all-rounder Vinay Choudhary, ( who is alas, no more), while tiny Sunil Gavaskar led the juniors to victory in the Giles Shield. I regularly played tennis ball cricket but was never considered good at the real sport.

I began tennis in 1955 in Mackichan Hall, Chowpathy, where my father Dr J Alexander was Warden. We played on a tarmac surface, but I also had access to the 2 slick cowdung courts at Wilson College Gymkhana, on Marine Drive, next to PJ Hindu Gymkhana.

My father was a pretty decent player and some of his colleagues  .. Dr Donald Kennedy, Dr Taylor, Profs Lysle, Fraser, Armstrong, and Misses Richie, Hewitt and Allen used to join in on Saturday afternoons. But the regulars were the hostelites from all across India and East Africa, Nigeria and even West Indies. There were many residents from Gujarat.  Bombay's then Chief Minister (later PM) Morarji Desai who was a Wilson alumnus and Mackichan resident hailed from Bulsar ( Valsad).

Moving to First Year Science in Wilson College, I was both First scholar and tennis champion in 1961-62.

The Intercollegiate tournament was played in Wilson College Gymkhana, and  the top men players then were Homi Dhalla, Gopal Gupta, Daljit Wallia, Rastogi, Karambaya .. but Wilson had a national ranked lady player in Kusumakumari Narayanan. Partnering her, we bagged the University Mixed doubles title. Shabnam Sahani ( daughter of Balraj Sahani) and Indira Iyengar (daughter of RBI Governor HVR Iyengar) and other lady opponents were pretty glamorous but lacked the firepower of Kusum's thunderous  forehand. Twenty years later, I partnered her elder brother N Gopinath ( Registrar, Kerala High Court) to take the Ernakulam District doubles title.

For my civil engineering, I decided  to study in College of Engineering ( Poona), hoping to emulate the  academic performance of Sir M Visvesvaiya whose name is up on the board for 1st rank in 1884. I missed this target by a whisker, but was considered good enough for COEP to take me as a lecturer.

The Poona of the  1960s was idyllic and COEP not only had a vibrant gymkhana but also a Boat Club on the Mula river with over 100 boats.

And History was all around us. The 8th century Pataleswar cave temple of the Rashtrakutas and Shanwarwada Palace of the Peshwas were both just a stone's throw away.

With Mustaq Kazi and Thatte, we played not only intercollegiate tennis against Fergusson, SP and Wadia Colleges, but also the Poona league where we ran into 11 year old Shashi Menon and his father, who gave us a run for our money before losing to us.

Yes, all my victories against top players was when they were either pretty old , or too young! 

Davis Cupper Udaykumar was 60, and G Palani was pretty close to that. 

S Manian, who had beaten me soundly in TOTC, Sri Chitra and GV Raja tournaments was past 60 and in poor health when I had the distinction (?) of defeating him in RSC Veterans finals,  years later.

And the fraternal duo of Parthiban-Elangovan were 14 and 13 when Varghese Jacob and I defeated  them. Colonel Kishore (who is probably the best today in RSC), and his partner Boban, were  juniors when they lost to us. 

But sweet victory it was, nevertheless.

The highpoint of my tennis was in 1975 when I participated in a round Robin to get a place on the Kerala team to play the Interstate at Hyderabad. 

Hitherto, only players from Trivandrum had played for Kerala. But Chief Justice Govindan Nair, the President of KTA, wanted other talents to vie for a place in the State team. Although, I was having major responsibilities as Purchase Manager of FACT's Cochin Project, top management in Sports-oriented FACT, were keen that I should represent the State.

KTA Secretary Prof Gopalraman, made suitable arrangements and 4 of us made the cut out of a dozen who participated (including Tarakanath Menon, K Vijayan, and Ramesh Kailas). Prof Gopalraman's son G Padmanabhan, later played tennis for Kerala University and also had a splendid career in RBI, from where he retired as Executive Director.

Chief Tennis coach of NIS, Patiala, S Krishnaswamy, came specially to coach the team for a week, while V Krishnan also gave his inputs.

In Hyderabad, we stayed at Fateh Maidan stadium and played on cowdung courts which reminded me nostaligically of my  Bombay days.

The tournament was onducted Davis Cup style and the four of us were all full of enthusiasm. But we were up against classy players, including Davis Cuppers,  ... Sankar Krishnan, J Royappa, BM Balasubraniam, SP Misra, SS Misra, SN Misra, Priyadarshi, K Raghuram. .. with predictable results.

But it was certainly a landmark in my tennis career and the 4 of us had a wonderful time together, despite the multiple losses.

 FACT, the PSU which I joined in 1966, had  strong cultural and Sports orientation under a liberal CMD,  MKK Nayar IAS.

Efforts to.promote Sports were largely directed through FACT Sports Association, of which I became President in 1987. But tennis was nowhere near top of the list, though teams were sent annually to participate in Inter PSU tournaments in Bombay, Bangalore, Madras, Delhi etc.  I regularly captained the side which consisted mostly of senior managers ..with player-doctor the late Dr Somasundaram invariably accompanying us.

Although there were courts in FSA, Udyogmandal Club, TCC and Indal, I played most of my tennis in Ernakulam at  Rama Varma and Lotus Clubs and later, Trivandrum Tennis Club, where the standards were pretty high.

In Ernakulam, we had regular Inter club matches and also an annual District Tournament which I won 9 times, with notable victories in the finals over Roy Edward, Collector S Krishnakumar (with whom I won the doubles),  Dr TP Poulose, Ajit Lal (brother of Premjit Lal), Billy Maliekal .. and a few losses too.

In 1984, I won the Central Kerala Hardcourt Tennis, a trophy which Ramesh Krishnan had won 5 years before and which was mothballed after K Sankar won in 1989, defeating me in the finals.

Another big tennis moment for me was when Ernakulam won the Inter District sponsored by MRF, at Kadayiripu Kolencherry for the rirst time in 1984 powered by  2 singles wins by M R Ramesh who was  posted temporarily to Ernakulam by SBT.

Later, playing veterans tournaments at Mundakayam and Trichur,  I had intense rivalries (largely successful) with Billy Maliekal, Dr PA Thomas, Engineer (!) Rashid, Dr Varghese Paul, K J Peter, Dr PI George etc.

The times are long past  when international players came and played here .. perhaps the last time was when Davis Cuppers Enrico Piperno and Vasudevan played the Lotus Trophy finals ...a match which I umpired. Spectator interest has declined.Why would you go and watch local players when you can see Alcaraz vs Sinner sitting in the comfort of your drawing room?

And top players today will not come for the peanuts that local clubs can pay. Fifty years back a Davis Cupper would come and play for practically nothing and generous patrons like R Madhavan Nayar or Lal of Chandrika Soaps would volunteer to foot the Rs 1 lakh blll. I remember Nirupama Mankad, late Ashok's wife playing here for just air fare and boarding-lodging . And she was multiple times National champ, .. starting her tennis at PJ Hindu Gymkhana.She now lives in the US with son Harsh, Davis Cupper and BAT product.

A lot has changed about the game. Today's powerful racquets and equipment have changed the game. The game is faster and players need to be super fit. 5'10" used to the normal height of champs like Borg and Vijay's 6'2"was unusual.Today 's guys are super agile despite their height . 

Coaching styles too have changed. What K Sankar teaches is nothing like what his did S Krishnaswamy taught us.

But the Fundas remain unchanged.

" Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose." as  the 3 French Musketeers would have told us.

J P Alexander

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