An Inspiring letter from Stephen Fry about finding yourself

Stephen Fry, the extremely talented actor and writer, knows depression first-hand. He received a letter from a fan — a teenage girl who asked him how he got over his troubles and managed to find peace in his soul. He answered this letter, telling the girl how to find her inner light when it seems that the dark times will never end.

Dear Crystal,

I’m so sorry to hear that life is getting you down at the moment. Goodness knows, it can be so tough when nothing seems to fit and little seems to be fulfilling. I’m not sure there’s any specific advice that I can give to you that will help all too much. Although they mean well, it’s sometimes quite annoying to be reminded how much people love you when you don’t love yourself that much.

I’ve found that it’s of some help to think of one’s moods and feelings about the world as being similar to weather.

Here are some obvious things about the weather:

• It’s real.

• You can’t change it by wishing it away.

• If it’s dark and rainy it really is dark and rainy and you can’t alter it.

• It might be dark and rainy for two weeks in a row.

• It will be sunny one day.

• It isn’t under one’s control as to when the sun comes out, but come out it will.

• One day.

BUT

It really is the same with one’s moods, I think. The wrong approach is to believe that they are illusions. They are real. Depression, anxiety, listlessness — these are as real as the weather — AND EQUALLY NOT UNDER ONE’S CONTROL. Not one’s fault.

BUT

They will pass: they really will.

In the same way that one has to accept the weather, one has to accept how they feel about life sometimes. ’’Today’s a crap day,’’ is a perfectly realistic approach. It’s all about finding a kind of mental umbrella. ’’Hey-ho, it’s raining inside: it isn’t my fault and there’s nothing I can do about it but sit it out. But the sun may well come out tomorrow and when it does, I shall take full advantage.’’

I don’t know if any of that is of any use: it may not seem like it, and if so, I’m sorry. I just thought I’d drop you a line to wish you well in your search to find a little more pleasure and purpose in life.

Very best wishes,

Stephen Fry

Get Inspired by Madhavan

Ranganathan Madhavan or Maddy, born on 1 June 1970 in Jamshedpur, is an Indian actor, writer and film producer. He was invited to G R Damodaran Academy of Management in Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu. His speech became inspiration for many.

Check out the video to get inspired too.

Hyderabad Engineer's Amazing Tea Stall

Satyanarayan, ME and The Taste Buds

For an 18-year-old in Hyderabad, an attempt at serving tea in eco-friendly ways turned out to be a means to get a college education. And all thanks to thirty-seven-year-old mechanical engineer Satyanarayana of Hyderabadm who launched “Taste Buds”, a chain of tea stalls on December 11, 2015, across Hyderabad. Instead of using plastic or paper cups, he serves his customers in earthen cups shaped like glasses.

Sampriti Bhattacharya invented world's first underwater drone

At 28, Sampriti Bhattacharya,a PhD scholar from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has created an underwater drone that can map ocean floors and explore the deep sea, where even GPS doesn't work. 

Sir Ganga Ram. Father of Modern Lahore

 

Sir Ganga Ram (1851-1927) was a civil engineer and leading philanthropist of his times, who established the Renala Hydral Power Station in Renala Khurd in 1925.

Sir Ganga Ram, the great son of Punjab, was born in 1851 in Mangtanwala, a small town about 64 km from Lahore. From the beginning, he proved to be a brilliant student and in 1869, he joined the Government College in Lahore on a scholarship. In 1871, he obtained a scholarship to the Thompson Engineering College at Roorkee, India. He graduated in 1873 and was awarded with a gold medal.

Story of a Chaiwala Martial Arts Teacher

I am Raju Jadhav. 

I lost my parents very early on and came to Bombay at the age of 6 with a relative. I began begging at signals since that age and eventually became a ragpicker. I've had a tough time on the streets, where I couldn't defend myself on many occasions and had no food for days -- Bombay isn't friendly to us street rats. A few years later, when I was rag picking, a man came upto me and asked me if I wanted to work at a chai stall-- and I immediately agreed! I began selling tea, and making my own money after working for almost 12 hours a day.

Hemant Patel - Man who Feeds Hundreds daily

  

Hemant Patel has personally witnessed what hunger can do to people — not once but twice. That's why he understand the need to do something.

“I know what hunger is,” says Hemant, with deep sorrow. He remembers the time when his daughter fell ill and was admitted to VS Government Hospital, Ahmedabad. She asked Hemant to get her some food from outside because she could not stomach the hospital food.  

Pakistan-born scientist played part in discovery of gravitational waves

Pakistani-born astrophysicist Dr Nergis Mavalvala was among the team of eagled-eyed scientists who, for the first time, observed ripples in the fabric of spacetime called gravitational waves.

Mansi Prakash - Taking an Initiative for a BRIGHTER TODAY

“I often think about a girl I met while installing bulbs,” she told the Glamour magazine. “She longed to go to school, but her parents couldn’t afford it. Once they started saving on their energy bill, they could. She is why I do this. It’s her life I want to change.”

Story of Neerja Bhanot – Indian Flight Attendant Who Saved 360 Lives

Courage. Commitment.Compassion.

Three simple words that best personify Neerja Bhanot. 

Three simple words that explain why this young and vibrant girl earned world-wide acclaim for her courage and gallant actions.

Three simple words that show how at the tender age of 23 and just 2 days before her birthday, Neerja laid down her life, while saving hundreds of others. 

Sabrina Pasterski: Meet the world's next Einstein

“Physics itself is exciting enough. It’s not like a 9-to-5 thing. When you’re tired you sleep, and when you’re not, you do physics.” – Sabrina Pasterski

 

Animals need care too. See how Kelsey's life changed

Stray animals are always heart breaking to see. Whether they were born of other strays or left out in the streets from a previous owner it is devastating to see the conditions that many homeless animals live in. Unable to care for themselves, they often end up with parasites and illnesses that will take their life without intervention. This dog, despite living a very difficult life abandoned by society and struggling on the streets, remained sweet and trusting and was given a second chance at a happy, healthy life thanks to a kind stranger. You won't believe this transformation. 

Mansukhbhai - The modern potter who created MittiCool

Mansukhbhai had a traditional business of pottery making, but he wasn’t interested in it, because the business was declining. His mind diverted to rooftop tile manufacturing. Being a potter himself an idea hit his mind one day when he thought, if tiles could be made out of clay, then why not other products?

Giving children a fair moment of life

Kochi's well-known pediatrician  Dr PC Alexander took four street kids to a restaurant, Saravana Bhawan on Janpath, New Delhi, to buy them a hearty meal. 

A highly distinguished pediatrician Dr Alexander works as a Senior Consultant Aster Medcity at Kochi.

The kids had stopped Dr Alexander in front of Saravana Bhawan for money. Instead of coins he marched inside along with them and gave them a sumptuous treat. 

Jagdish Lal Ahuja - Man who sold his Property to feed the Needy

The first step toward change is awareness.

For 80-year-old, Jagdish Lal Ahuja feeding the poor and needy in Chandigarh is the utmost priority routine of his life.

Sportsmanship at its best

Australian tennis player Lleyton Hewitt may have won Tuesday night’s Hopman Cup match in Perth, Australia, but the real winner — in terms of sportsmanship — was his American opponent, Jack Sock, who encouraged him to challenge a serve declared “out” that was actually in.

Kramer-Golinkoff making an Effort to Find Cure for Rare Form of Cystic Fibrosis

For most, turning 17 proves an awakening of sorts. The occasion marks the final year of the carefree trappings of adolescence, placing one squarely on the precipice of adulthood and a world of exhilarating changes. But for Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania's Emily Kramer-Golinkoff, diagnosed with a rare form ofcystic fibrosis at six weeks old, the day marked an ominous turning point.

"At the time, life expectancy for CF patients was around 34 or 35," she tells PEOPLE. "It dawned on me that I was at the half-point and I just thought, 'I am not ready to be at my midlife crisis.' "

How a man’s inspiring New Year message on Facebook became his last

Matthew DeRemer/ Facebook

What if the message you post on Facebook saying, “I really don’t know where I end up tonight but I do know where I windup is where I meant to be” turns out to be your last message? This is exactly what happened with Matthew DeRemer, a 31-year-old from Seminole, Florida.

Ramesh Babu - Billionaire Barber from Bengalore

Leonard Willoughby said, “As you begin to live according to your own guidance and your own daring everything changes completely.”

Life was not always perfect this man. His father died when he was 7 years old. All that his father left behind was a run down barber shop. With her husband no more, Ramesh Babu's mother had to work as a cook to help feed her children and give them a decent living.

Since she couldn't run the barber shop, she rented it out for Rs 5 a day. Ramesh recalls that their family survived on one meal a day.

Encouraged by her mother, Ramesh decided to earn a diploma course in electronics. His father's shop was still being rented out for meagre amounts. He then decided to run it himself and in 1989, he began working at the salon .

In 1994 Ramesh decided to buy a Maruti Omni for personal use. But since the car was most of the time idle, he decided to lease the car. One of his mother’s employers advised him to lease the Omni to Intel, the company she worked with.

“It all began from there and, by 2004, I had six cars all engaged in the same business,” Babu says.

Eventually, the car rental drew in customers from the travel and tourism industry. With the help of a bank, he bought seven more cars between 1994 and 2004 and his company was now known as Ramesh Tours and Travels.
In 2004, Ramesh decided to penetrate the luxury car segment and bought a Mercedez Benz for Rs 4.2 million. After that purchase, his car rental literally mushroomed. As they say, the rest is history. Ramesh now own a fleet of 154 luxury cars - Toyota, Volkswagen, Mercedes Benz, BMW and a Rolly Royce. With a crew of 60 drivers, he rents out his cars for as low as Rs 1,000 a day to Rs 50,000 a day.

Today, his fleet consists of around 200 cars, including imported vehicles like Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, Mercedes C, E and S class and BMW 5, 6 and 7 series.

  

Despite of this success, Ramesh still cut hair in the barber shop from 8 am to 10 am. From 10 am to 4 pm, he works at his car rental office. At 4 pm, he goes back to his saloon and works there till 7 pm Thereafter, he comes back to the rental agency and stays there till 8.30 pm.

He is as happy to receive the payment from his customers in the barber shop the way he did when he first worked as a barber. Ramesh charges male customers for Rs 65 a haircut and ladies’ are charged Rs 150. There are five more people working with him. 

He says “This is my way to remind myself of my humble beginnings.”

Ramesh Babu still keeps his Maruti Omni but he does not rent it out anymore, the car now a lasting monument to his success, showing that one good choice coupled with hard work can lead to success.

“Somehow, things have clicked for me,” says Babu, whose clients include politicians, police officers and film stars such as Salman Khan, Aamir Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. With a film on his life — expected to be released in three languages — in the pipeline, his Bollywood contacts may come in handy.

Ramesh, who speaks Telugu and Kannada at home, says, “There’s a phrase in Telugu which basically means that don’t forget your past, even if you reach the highest milestone in life. I truly believe in that.”

Ramesh, a +2 dropout, who later finished a diploma in Electronics from Industrial Training Institute, has been a lucky man. Be it from his children, who are always in awe of their dad, or the elders in his family, Ramesh has always found encouragement.

Ramesh Babu reiterated the simple message to entrepreneurs that he told students to follow in his TED talk.

Work hard. Be Humble. Anything else is just luck.

He gave her the gift of life on New Year's eve

“I was going in, but the elevator started going down and he said ‘Happy New Year and pushed me out”, says Sanchez. Stephen Hewett-Brown, a 25-year-old was in the lift when it stopped midway.

He pushed her out of the lift, but when he tried to escape, he, unfortunately got pinned between the elevator car and the shaft. It came down quickly, and crushed him.