How often we see a mentally challenged child or one born with other disabilities and wonder how God could be so cruel, isn’t it? At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning disabled children, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be…
Robert Clements is a journalist and newspaper columnist. With an estimated 6 million readership, his column, Bob’s Banter is published in over 30 newspapers and magazines in nearly every state in India, as well as in the top newspapers of Bangladesh, London and Dubai and is also translated into Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.
Loud, Garish Music..!
A very stringent anti-conversion law that will ensure zero religious conversions in Maharashtra will be enacted once the Mahayuti comes to power… Times of India, 11th Nov Was driving down a silent road one night, when I heard the sound of loud music, and found another car drawing up close,…
Look Who’s Stupid..!
I enjoyed this imaginary conversation with a fellow who thought that all stupid people should wear a sign saying they are stupid. What I loved most however was how it ended: “Why don’t stupid people have signs? Stupid people should have to wear signs that just say, “I’m Stupid”. That…
The Breath Of God..!
It was a close friend who sent me this wonderful story, and I thank him for doing so. ‘A few years ago in downtown Denver, my friend, Scott, and I saw something tiny and insignificant that changed the world, but no one else even seemed to notice. It was one…
A Lifetime of Empathy..!
She was young and her eyes blazed with excitement and joy as she looked at me, “I’ve got a first class with distinction,” she said. “Congratulations!” I said and hugged her. I looked at her and remembered the same face streaked with tears two years ago as she learned she…
Stuck in the Basecamp…!
So, here’s the thing: You’ve decided to climb Everest. You train yourself to become agile and fit, buy all the necessary paraphernalia, take a train, bus or flight and reach the base camp of Mount Everest. And there you are overjoyed. You can see the top of Everest from here,…
Look at the Process..!
Something I love doing when on the treadmill every morning is to listen to good talks, and this morning it was by a very famous preacher, who said, “People hear me preaching and say, ‘I would like to become as good a preacher as you, and do you know what…
Touch them Even If They Don’t Know…!
Was at the funeral of a youngster yesterday, a close friend, who died of a mental disorder. Many spoke at his funeral, and said how helpless they felt in trying to reach out to him, but could do nothing. “Oh yes, you did,” I said, when it was my turn…
Education without Educating..!
With many state governments insisting that all students, whatever their marks, get admission in college, I wondered how the colleges were going to cope. The principal of the local college walked with me into one of the classrooms in his college. “It’s going to be tough for you”, I said….
Putting God and Ethics First..!
Whenever I’m called to speak at a Rotary meeting, I am fascinated by the Four Way Test, which Rotarians repeat together at the start. The Rotary Four-Way Test is a guiding principle for ethical decision-making, developed by Herbert J. Taylor in 1932. Here’s its story: Herbert J. Taylor, a prominent…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.