Karma

I walked into the office and as if on cue, the phone started ringing. Still 15 minutes to go and here was the first call of the day, already. So much for coming in early to enjoy a quiet cup of coffee before starting my day.

I answered, listened and asked, “May I know who’s speaking, please?”

It was Mr. Rao as usual, launching straight into his problem before bothering to identify himself. Why couldn’t he read the letters we sent from the office before making his marathon calls which anyway amounted to nothing? Just yesterday, before I left the office, I had sent him a detailed offer, keeping in mind his penchant for dissecting every little point. Oh well, I thought, might as well get it over with. I patiently answered his questions until he was satisfied and finally ended the call which had lasted exactly an hour.

Grabbing my favorite pen, I pulled out my priority list for the day and added a note. Would there ever be a day when I’d check off more than ten out of the twenty-odd items on the list? Smiling to myself, I looked up to see Kumar grinning at me. We greeted each other and he went on his way to get me my special cup of strong coffee. In anticipation, I browsed my appointment diary when the phone rang again.

Sighing, I picked up the call. ​Turned out to be a wrong number. Glad I could get on with my work, I quickly scheduled the day’s tasks, simultaneously writing on sticky notes for my colleagues. Then I tackled my email as best as I could, forwarding, deleting, marking for action later.

I heard the clinking of coffee cups and looked up to see Kumar with two cups on his tray with Lakshmi, my assistant, at his heels. Over coffee, I told her about Mr.Rao’s call and then briefed her on some urgent paperwork, along with some phone calls. We chatted companionably as we sipped our coffees and got ready to begin our day.

The phone rang. Motioning for Lakshmi to stay put, I picked up the receiver. A voice identified the organization the call was from and requested me to hold while she connected me to the individual who wanted to speak to me. As I waited, I enjoyed the strains of a Beethoven symphony and idly twiddling the phone wire, thought, what good taste in music. One usually heard something pretty boring or annoying. The music stopped, interrupting my thoughts and I became alert. The voice at the other end — a rich baritone that sent my mind on overdrive visualizing its source — greeted me and asked, “May I know who’s speaking, please?”

I identified myself. He introduced himself and stated the purpose of his call. He wanted to meet me as soon as possible as he had an urgent requirement. I probed for more details and as we talked, I scribbled a message for Lakshmi asking her to reschedule all my appointments until 2 pm for tomorrow. She made a face at me and smiled. I gave her the thumbs up sign and finished my call.

By now, Lakshmi was bursting with curiosity about who had called. I told her and we semi-hugged each other across the table. I packed my brief case quickly with all I needed and headed out to the guy’s office.

I looked around appreciatively as I was ushered into his office. Irrelevant detail, but he was 100 % eye-candy. As we reintroduced ourselves and shook hands, I conversationally asked him who had referred him to us.His response made me speechless.

The meeting went very well and I was especially excited because it was tough to make a breakthrough into this organization. I couldn’t wait to share the news with Lakshmi, both about the huge order I was carrying in my briefcase and about the source of the referral. I breezed into the office. But first, I had to make a call.

I dialed the number. The voice at the other end said, “Hello? May I know who’s speaking, please?” I identified myself and said, “Mr.Rao, I called to thank you for the referral.”

I was grateful. Overwhelmed at being rewarded for my patience with Mr.Rao.

It pays to be nice. Always.

My Karma had caught up with me.

What goes around, comes around.

You get what you give.

This week’s prompt: have one sentence that is repeated at least thrice in your post.

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