Cheesecake, snakes and the protege…
“Use what talents you possess: the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.”
Henry Van Dyke
My first meeting with Sanjaya was when he was a thirteen year old young man, bubbling with enthusiasm, and quite happy to talk for endless hours about reptiles. His sister worked with me at Sara Lee Courtaulds, and having heard much about him, I remember eagerly anticipating our meeting. He came in with his sister and their parents, and sat their happily gulping down a cheesecake Roons (my wife) had prepared. It was clear that his heart lay in studying reptiles (why, was certainly beyond me !) and seeing him talk with such awe and animation, the passion he had for the topic was abundantly clear. I still recall his detailed descriptions of the different snakes in the zoo !
Many years afterwards, Sanjay came to meet me, having just completed his Bachelors in Business. He told me that he wanted to get into ‘HR’ and that the dream for studying reptiles had died with the only scholarship for the area being taken out.
So began the journey of the ‘protege’ – and today, the young man is poised to take on the lead role of our research unit. This edition is largely his work – and boy did we all get a healthy doze of information about animals !
Thanks Sanjay – we look forward to further contributions…
High5 !
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Perspectives 