TECTONIC MOVEMENT

The incident comes from the time when I used to work for one organization which I felt gave me real good exposure towards CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility).

Diwali is always a great time to enjoy all the goodness of life. Especially this organization always made it a point to gift something special to all its employees on the occasion of Diwali. It was a big deal because the strength of the organization at that time was 2500 employees and giving a good gift to each employee every year without fail was something that the organization was proud of.

The team that I was a part of was big. We were 20 members and we had a good combination from really experienced people to absolutely fresh out of college ones.

Being close to the procurement department, we always got to know beforehand about the gift that would be distributed during Diwali.

Like it happens with most of us, our desire, our greed and our expectations far exceeds our contentment level and thus the dissatisfaction in our life takes birth.

Upon hearing that the Diwali gift was a backpack, most of the team members were upset as they already had one and probably few more at home. They tried to influence the procurement team to purchase some other gift but the deal was already done and the items were shipped.

The disgruntled team members started showing their dissatisfaction at work and for most of the day, they would criticize the other departments for not being able to get a better gift.

My supervisor, a wise man, observed all this and decided to approach the matter in a different way.

As a part of our CSR activity, we had selected a high school and we were aware that the organization provided some financial and other assistance to the school and for the students.

Just 2 days before Diwali, my supervisor asked all our team members to join him to visit that school. He just told us that the organization had provided some stationery to the school authorities and we had to go and check if everything was fine.

The already disengaged employees got all the more reason to skip their work. Some of us had some critical tasks to finish and hence did not appreciate this sudden instruction from the supervisor to visit the place. Moreover, he had made it mandatory to visit that place so there was no question of trying to get an exception.

All the team members reached the place. The supervisor was already there, waiting for us.

None of us were aware that we were about to enter a place which would change the way we perceive things.

As soon as the gates opened, the principal along with her teachers and other staff members were there to welcome us. There was also a representative from the CSR campaign, who was the contact between us (the organization) and the school.

This was the first time we were going to that school. We were not prepared for such a pleasant experience.

They took us inside where few students from class 10 were standing with flowers to welcome us. As soon as they saw us, each one came forward and gifted us the flower. They then took us to show the classes. Each class had about 15-20 students. As soon as we entered the class, all the students got up and greeted us with claps. Gladly they showed us few pencils, erasers and some books. Though we didn’t understand what that gesture of showing their stationery meant, we anyway enjoyed their energy and enthusiasm. Later on, we were informed that those pencils, erasers and rulers were given by the employees of our organization to them during last Diwali.

It is only when the teacher motioned them to sit down, we realized something different. They were divided into pairs and each pair was given a small piece of mat to sit. To ensure that each child gets a small space in the mat to sit, they had to sit with their face in the opposite direction and their backs almost touching each other. This allowed them to share the small mat and also study.

We observed this same thing in almost all the classes we went.

Then during the lunch time, we saw the teachers and other staff members becoming their lunch guides. The children of classes 1 to 7 were made to sit in a row and the students of class 8-10 were serving the food to them. Then once those kids were done, the students of class 8-10 sat in a row and the teachers served the food to them and then once those students were done with their lunch, the teachers would sit and the students of 8-10 would serve the teachers.

Most of us were emotional looking at such a lovely scene of care and service. Though we were part of an esteemed organization, we could not think of serving each other like that.

However, as is common in most of the situations, usually a person passes a comment, intentionally or unintentionally, which hurts the feelings of others. A member from my team sarcastically commented that maybe all this is happening because they were aware that we (the employees of the organization) are coming to see them and maybe all this is a drama in front of us.

The principal, the teachers, the staff, my supervisor and all of us were embarrassed by this comment. We could see that the remark was hurting them. Then one student came up and said “sir, with due respect, even if it is a drama, to bring this kind of perfection so that the entire lunch with all of them serving each other in such a disciplined manner and is finished within 20 minutes, requires tremendous practice. So, we are glad that because of our good practice and hard work, today you liked our show.”

There was silence everywhere. A student lecturing a corporate employee was something I had not witnessed before. After the pin-drop silence, there was huge round of applause for the student and the applause was led by my supervisor.

However, the principal and the teacher made it a point to apologize for the student’s behaviour (it is to be noted that the student was polite and courteous throughout).

Once the inspection was over, all our team members came back to office. Only that team member took permission to leave early and did not report to work the next day as well citing health issues.

Then on the day of Diwali, while all of us were busy with the preparations for the festival, the office was being decorated and beautiful lights were up everywhere, we saw that member of the team coming towards us.

He was quiet, unlike his usual self.

In the evening, after the pooja and the Diwali event, it was time for the gifts to be distributed.

The chief guests after distributing the gifts to other departments, came to our zone. All of us received the gifts (some thankfully, some grudgingly). After we took our gifts, suddenly that employee announced something which took us by surprise.

He said, he wanted to give his gift (the backpack) to that school. He said he reflected upon all the things that he saw that day. He had also purchased 20 mats so that the students could get more space to sit on the floor.

All of us were greatly touched by this gesture. And the power of sharing and caring came over us and in that moment, all the members from my team decided to give our share of gift to the school.

The news spread like fire in the office and to our pleasant surprise, many employees came forward to give their gifts as well.

Never in the history of that organization something like that had happened. 1100 backpacks were gifted to the school so that each teacher, each staff and each student has one.

The VP came to our zone at night and as our team was enjoying the Diwali dinner, he asked ‘What happened to your team suddenly? How did this thought come?” to which my supervisor replied “Tectonic movement” and all of us laughed. This time it was not the laughter of sarcasm, but that of contentment and pride.

 The Earth is in a constant state of change. Earth’s crust, called the lithosphere, consists of 15 to 20 moving tectonic plates. The plates can be thought of like pieces of a cracked shell that rest on the hot, molten rock of Earth’s mantle and fit snugly against one another. The heat from radioactive processes within the planet’s interior causes the plates to move, sometimes toward and sometimes away from each other. This movement is called plate motion, or tectonic shift.

Just like the movements of plates, sometimes toward and sometimes away from each other, human emotions keeps shifting, sometimes for good and sometimes for not so good. What that employee experienced that day and what we experienced through him that evening was the ‘tectonic shift’ of human emotions.