My husband and I, selected the biblical name, 'Gideon' for our son,but he was called 'GIDHON', as pronounced in Hebrew. His middle name was 'Israel'. This biblical character (also known as Jerubbal and Jerubbesheth) was a military judge and prophet whose calling and victory over the Midianites are accounted in chapters 6 to 8 of the book of Judges in the Bible.
In his brief lifespan of 28 years, Gideon achieved what most people would take up to 50 to do.
He grew up a hyper-active child with ADHD, as though he knew by intuition that he had a short life ahead. Always occupied with a 101 things, and an uncontrollable urge to try the new and daring.
Even before he was one year old, he could already walk and talk. He hated going to school, but was eager to learn on his own.
Innocent, curious, always respectful, never hurtful, even though he was hurt many a times, Gideon was loved by all.
As time passed by he grew up into such a handsome young lad. At times, I had to pinch myself to remind myself that the years were indeed flying by, and my little boy was growing into a man.
GIDEON THE BOOKWORM
Gideon was a voracious reader. He loved the Bible, and Bible stories as a kid.
He had a great appetite for books, and devoured them page after page. I used to get him books from the Mazgaon Dock lending library every week, and he would eagerly pour over them for hours on end.
He had a photographic memory as well. He could read things only once and store them up in memory. Once I had brought him books on aeroplanes to read. He literally made the books by heart, and for a long time, wanted to become a pilot. He started making cardboard models of planes, and soon we had a loft full of different model planes. I narrated this tidbit to my then company superiors, who have now become the company's Director and CMD. They were thrilled to hear this and said that he was an amazing child.
He was too! He grasped words very quickly, and all that reading helped him to develop a good vocabulary.
I remember before appearing for his Xth grade exams and his ICSE Course Exam, he read the Harry Potter Series! :-)
Gideon was also a member of the British Council Library.
He was a linguistic as well. He aced his French A levels, and had a host of French pen pals. He would send them post cards and text messages in French.
His article "A Toast to Post" was published in the MID-DAY newspaper.
In 2015, when he met Daniella - the love of his life, he joined German classes which he could hardly attend. I asked him if there was a possibility that I could attend in his stead! Over the course of time, Gideon learned to speak German as well.
GIDEON THE CHILD PRODIGY
Gideon
launched his career at 17, soon after he saw the degrading system of education
in Mumbai especially in colleges, where the youth were getting degrees without
any knowledge of the subject they had learned.
He
applied for admission for BSc Computers in college, and was accepted, but never
stepped into the course.
His teachers thought him far from perfect, but he had an unusual potential that belied his youth, and a genius mind that was not recognized at the time.
Gideon began teaching in APTECH, in Agripada. Many among the faculty were envious of
his knowledge and teaching skills, as he was operating at such a high skill set.
Sometime
later, he got a contract of Rs. 1 Lakh from State Bank of India to develop
software for their investment platform. It was for this job that Gideon poured
out his sweat and blood.
In
the course of time, CONSINDIA found a gem in him, and put him on their decision
making panel as a child prodigy.
Gideon never left anything unfulfilled in life, whether it was getting a job contract at
17, without a college education, or achieving independence at a tender age.
He never saved up anything much for the future, as if he knew he had balanced out the achievements of his life span.
GIDEON THE MUSICIAN
Music was in his system. Any instrument he touched, he could play by ear, be it the violin, the keyboard, or the guitar.
 |
The ukulele was the last instrument he fell in love with.
He loved dance as well. In 2009, he joined J.J. Rodriguez's 'Cours de danse' and ended up dancing with his sister for the MDL Catholic get-together.
GIDEON THE SPORTSMAN
GIDEON THE SPORTSMAN
Gideon was a playful child, and an active one. He wasn't actively selected for sports while in school. However, once out of school, he kept himself healthy and actively involved in various sports. He took good care of his body, and would often jog at night, when the streets were deserted.
He swam 40 laps per day, cycled intensely, and was a regular at the YMCA and GUI Gyms (famous for its celebrity membership).
He loved participating in cycling feats and marathons, and was an aspiring triathlete. I remember him once cycling from Agripada to Mira Road to attend a birthday function, and returning late at night.
He had once cycled from Mumbai to Nashik and back. And at another time from Worli to Goa.
Gideon once ran a 302 km marathon from Five Gardens, Dadar, to Shahapur through Audax Club, Parisien, Randonnours, India.
He also liked playing tennis and frisbee.
GIDEON THE SOFTWARE ENGINEER
From a young age, Gideon had a constructive and engineering mind. He made drawings of wiring, connections, and other complicated architectural drawings that we could only marvel at.
He would be thrilled to see bull dozers, JCBs, fork lifts, cement churners, and such vehicles. He could name all of them as soon as he began to talk.
Being somewhat of a computer genius, Gideon helped the comp. fraternity with Stack Overflow. (Stack Overflow is the largest online community for developers to learn, share their programming knowledge, and build.) He ranked high in the Stack Overflow list of professionals, and would usually answer the queries of those who had difficulty in finding solutions to computer based issues.
He was even interviewed for Booking.com. And also had a telephonic interview from a Japanese company.
Gideon was always up-to-date on current technology, always going for the latest gadgets - the latest iPhone, Computer, digital camera, iPod, CD/ DVD players, the latest computer books, and more....!
He loved robots and experimented with creating some of his own. In the hospital, he felt that it was a waste of time lying in bed, and wanted to play with robots! I still have his robotic toy car as a memento.
Gideon was selected to go to Amsterdam for an interview process. He enjoyed the trip though he didn't get the job, as PERL programming, a requisite, was not in his curriculum. They assured him of a job though, if he studied and tried again the next time.
His professional acknowledgement came with 7 years of faithful service in CONSINDIA as a Technical Team Leader. He helped CONSINDIA develop software for hospitals to assist management from the time of patient admission to their discharge. His office colleagues and superiors respected and admired him.
He slowly made his way to Team Leader. Later, when he was given authority to interview young incumbents, he selected those who were not computer literate, so that he could teach them from scratch, to build them up as his students and later assistants who would render good output.
GIDEON - TEACHER BY HEART
He was a self-taught computer programmer and software developer. He could teach programming in such a simple, easy manner, even a child could grasp it.
He taught Computer Science students who had failed their exams, and helped them pass their re-exams.
Gideon paved his own path without any mentor, firm in his belief that the education system in India was only 'rote learning', with archaic subjects.
He acquired degrees online from Microsoft, but obtained jobs solely with his skill and aptitude, not with his qualifications.
GIDEON THE ANIMAL LOVER
Gideon loved animals. Once he brought a rabbit home and cared for it and fed it. But after a few days it died somehow, and he was inconsolable.
Whenever his father would catch mice in the mouse-trap, he would not permit them to be harmed.
In Germany, he had a dog of his own, and once he passed away, the dog would not eat seeing that his master was not in the house.
GIDEON THE TRAVELLER
Gideon was a big dreamer. He gave us big talks, and dreamed big dreams. He always dreamt of a bright future, was always researching about different countries; But the country that fascinated him the most was Iceland - with its beautiful changing landscape and hot water springs. It was where he met his lady-love.
Gideon loved to travel, and he made the most of this disposition by travelling to Israel, Singapore, and Iceland.
The city of his destiny though was Germany, where he breathed his last.
WHAT MORE CAN I SAY?
The little things about my son that I recall now and then, are what make me look back and miss him even more.
Gideon was a gem of a person, a thorough gentleman. He was a dutiful son and always helped out in chores whether it was laundry, making dough, chopping veggies, or dropping me to work on his scooter. He never grumbled about anything.
I remember he loved to cook, and I remember him making awesome cakes with the help of his sister and buddies.
I remember he once won a Nikon camera as a prize for some online competition.
I remember that he was seldom sick, even as a child. There was one time he broke his wrist but recovered quickly. He never believed in burdening others or inviting pity.
I remember how, when he was young, he loved playing with G.I. Joes and collecting the Tazzos from Lays chips packs. He had a whole album of Tazzos. :-)
I remember growing up, his sister Apphia Ruth, 2 years younger, was his constant companion. They were seldom apart from each other, almost inseparable...They would invent their own crazily creative games, and have mad adventures together. 
I remember how they constructed a club house for themselves with cardboard and bedsheets, and how, when they got bigger and were constrained for a playing space, I cleared out the loft so that they could make the most of it for their games and make-believe. His sister used to make the most beautiful posters of her elder brother and herself with real photos and animation. They understood each other perfectly, and shared a very close sibling bond, a sacred sibling unity that remained strong and unshaken throughout the storms that blew.
Gideon enjoyed his life, savoured every moment, every breath, every nuance, even the storms. Every new day was an adventure, a new opportunity, a canvas of hope on which he would paint the colours of his experiences.
Oft times, he appeared a puzzle to others, incomprehensible in his vivacity and undying optimism, his love for life. Sometimes I wondered whether he could decipher himself - all his mighty thoughts running around in that brain of his....
I have penned down a long list of achievements, witticisms, and all the adjectives I could think of in praise of my son. However, no words could capture the essence of his soul, no grand descriptions could truly define who he was as an individual.
He was an amazing child, a bright, talented, intelligent young man, wonderful brother, and loving husband. He shall be sorely and incomparably missed by all who knew and loved him.
He has left in my heart a deep void, which I know, can never again be completely filled. For a long time, I wasn't really able to face the fact that he was no more. I wasn't able to come to terms with my loss because I did not want to analyse it. I kept away from cleaning my wounds because the reality of it would end up hurting me too much, and I was afraid more than I could bear. So, I went on with my life, taking this as everything else, in my stride.
Looking back, maybe there are things that I could have done differently, things that I could have done more, better, we all have these thoughts. Only God though can really understand the depth of my pangs for him as a mother. And He alone can heal this hurt in time.
Remembering you always - my unforgettable Gideon....
No comments:
Post a Comment