Tirelessly, I tried to feed Pinto. I had absolutely no idea what exactly Pinto would eat. It was much like the way a new employee is trained in an organization about various aspects of the organization. It was the training-time for Pinto. I tried so many types and compositions of fish food. But, Pinto failed to recognize those as food! I had placed Pinto's jar on my study table. It was in front of my eyes over so many hours every day. I kept trying new foods and kept changing the water to keep Pinto's home clean. After about two days, there was success awaiting me. I noticed that a small piece of food that was placed in Pinto's jar had disappeared. I was so happy to know that. I shared the news with my wife and she felt so relieved to learn that the poor fish finally started eating! I trained Pinto with that exact food composition. And, over the next few days, Pinto was absolutely comfortable with its new home and food. I had removed the glass marbles from the jar. Those had become a barrier between Pinto and the food particles that had fallen through the gaps to the bottom of the jar. With the glass marbles removed, Pinto could easily reach every bit of food available anywhere in its jar.
The scenario felt somehow like this: A person joined an organization. The new employee went through some trainings in the new organization. The new employee took some time to get adjusted and feel comfortable in that organization. And, eventually the new employee no more remained a NEW-employee, but, became just an employee! The case was not much different in the context of Pinto, our new wild river-fish at home. Since the jar that housed Pinto was on my study-table, Pinto probably was an important witness of the effort I had to put into my Executive MBA studies. I am sure, it was not able to understand what was exactly going on around it. But, it, somehow, demonstrated signs that indicated it responded to and acknowledged always my presence around its jar-home. And, that was not unnatural. I used to take a break from my books and watch Pinto. I always felt, it was probably trying to say something. It usually had it's face towards me. I tried my best to get Pinto the best food available and some exercise. Since, it was a wild fish straight from a river, it was not built genetically to live in captivity. However, Pinto seemed happy and did not, usually, demonstrate prominent signs of discomfort. Life went on. I prepared hard for my Executive MBA exams. And, Pinto was a great source of refreshment on my desk. I used to feel recharged and fresh everytime I watched Pinto for a while. It, kind of, became my companion and communication between us was not based on any specific language. With Pinto on my desk, a feel-good factor got added to my study and exam-preparation routine.
To my delight, Pinto continued to stay healthy and strong. My daughter gradually learnt that the name of that fish was Pinto. Sometimes, she called it Pinti! That was funny. After more than a month after I brought Pinto home, I eventually got done with all my Executive MBA exams. And, all those really went well. What a relief it was! That day, I was back at home after my last exam. I fed pinto. I had some good time with my family and had my dinner. I was tired and fell asleep. Since I was done with the last one of my MBA exams, I was not required to study over that evening. I got up very early and, as a practice, came straight over to Pinto's jar. I could not believe my eyes. Pinto was not in its jar and had fallen dead on the floor! I was really shocked. I examined Pinto and realized that it had jumped out of its jar many hours back and had suffered a painful death. It had been more than a month and Pinto had never shown any sign of a slightest possibility of its jumping out of the jar. I could never understand why Pinto chose to commit suicide! I always felt that Pinto was doing reasonably good in its new home. I did not know what went wrong that night. I could not understand what was different that night. But, much later, during that day, it flashed in my mind. I, finally understood what was so different that night. It was the very last exam of my Executive MBA Program. Beyond that night, I was not required any more to struggle with my management-subject books. It was exactly an end of that difficult phase of my life. The day next was going to be a completely different day for me. I was not going to spend hours at my desk again! May be, Pinto came home to add that feel-good factor to my life during that difficult phase. And, it, probably, wanted to go away after that phase was over. I sincerely thank Pinto for the role it played (or the role I felt it played). This was what happened NEXT!
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