TOM WAS KILLED BY HIS COOK

TOM WAS KILLED BY HIS COOK

Just like every other day, Tom would wake before sunrise, get kitted and go out for a one hour exercise which usually included running, cycling, weight lifting and other aerobics, then he would return home, get dressed and all set for work before having his breakfast and dashing off to work. He did his routine exercises with military accuracy.

Tom had inherited his father’s company – an oil servicing firm after he returned from the United States, He was a Harvard University scholar and was indeed a genius. He brought in the best of ideas and the company had grown to become one of the best from the moment he returned. His dad had been very proud of him and after a while he had handed over the company to him and had retired from active involvement in the business.

Tom had it all going for him, and because of his busy schedule (or domestic laziness) he had to employ a retinue of house helps. He had a cook, a gate-man, a security man, and a cleaner who also did his laundry. he lived in a big house and had all he wanted. He was the definition of wealthy.

However, Tom was a brute, he was arrogant and a despot. He never entertained opposing opinions because he believed that he had the best opinion on any subject matter. It wasn’t about his attitude in his work place but the fact that he treated his domestic staff with disdain. On different occasions, he had poured hot tea on his cook for adding either too much sugar or too little milk. He had no knowledge about the personal lives of his staff and was not ignorant of the troubles they had to go through. He paid their salaries late and did not care about their welfare.

He had a good life until his health failed him. He was up as usual, but tried without success in getting out of bed. He could not move and found it difficult to speak. His personal physician was called in and he was whisked to the hospital where several medical laboratory tests were performed on him but no positive result was found.

Meanwhile back at home, immediately he was carried off in the hospital ambulance, his domestic staff thought he had died and decided to take their fate into their hands, they invaded his room, ransacked and remove all physical cash they could find in the house (which was a lot because Tom usually converted huge cash into US dollars and kept a large sum in his safe at home). When they were done with sharing their loot, they left the house and moved to their various places of residence, far away from the town.

Eventually when the toxicity report came in, it turned out that he had been poisoned… Tom later died after suffering from grueling pains.

Incidentally, Tom’s story can be applied to most of us. I have watched with dismay, how senior executives treat the cleaners in their offices with disdain, or in most cases without respect. Most of us see those who we perceive are below our social status or below us in the wrung of life as if they were inferior creatures and not humans.

We should realize that it is these people who appear to be unimportant that are the most important in the life of any organization. I was in a bank one day and saw how one of the cleaners were shouted down at as though she were a second class human being. What got me interested was that after  she had been abused and tongue lashed, she was later sent to buy food by the same person who had called her names!

It is said that the strongest part of a chain is its weakest link. They may appear unimportant, but your comfort was made possible because they had to do their job.

Let us consciously begin to see them as our fellow humans and appreciate that we were privileged to acquire the education we had which put us on the pedestal we were able to achieve because of the sacrifice of other people at a time we had no control over how they would act and whether they would be ready to make the sacrifice for us.

Let us appreciate the work of these people and always treat them with respect.

Thank You.