Blessings of not having a blessed life

As I look back on having completed 53 years of my life, I find it very fascinating. One of the things that I learned is that it is actually a blessing not to have a ‘blessed life’. I was born in a typical middle class and had a large family. Only when I grew up a little, I realized that the family was not actually so large and a good number of my uncles and aunts were actually helping hands like cook, house cleaner, washer man, milkman etc. Some time back was reading an article by Subroto Bagchi and then I realized from where I got a habit of treating even the junior most members of my team with utmost respect.
I studied in a neighbourhood Hindi-medium government school. My English writing was passable but English conversation was a herculean task and I had to prepare beforehand for speaking anything in English. I consistently scored first class, which used to be an achievement in those days. Yet the first major disaster struck when in an interdepartmental debate competition in the university, I forgot in the middle, and there was no way I could have carried on without crammed lines.
Back at home, having been brought up in a joint family, I did most of my studies in a shed on rooftop which helps me deal with extremes of weather better than most of my friends. For example, I become aware of excess humidity only when my friends complain.
Another challenge came when I joined MBA. From classrooms to canteen to toilet, suddenly the language of conversation became English. I somehow managed but as I came out of this ordeal, I resolved to master the Queen’s language. I even tried to master 1100-page Webster’s dictionary! The effort paid off as sometime later I rose to become the highest paid copywriter in my State with frequent day-commute to Delhi. And, all this as a part-time vocation.
My basic profession was in HR and I left job to start consultancy after working for 36 years. Being an entrepreneur has not been easy, specially the transition from worries about one’s own salary to those of other employees. But despite some tough times during this recession, I hate to trade-off my freedom, fun and learning for security of a job.
I have been training and speaking to thousands of people all these years, improving myself more than others. A long way for a person who found difficult to speak.
If one were to ask me to sum up my life experiences, I would say two things. I am blessed that I went through many adversities, each of which made me better. Secondly, the best is yet to begin.