September 4, 2026

We are four siblings - three sisters and one brother. I am the second child, having an elder sister and two younger sisters. My youngest sister, an engineer who worked with TCS in Bengaluru, later settled down in the USA after her marriage. She and her husband are blessed with two children. They usually visit us once in` every two years and make it a point to visit the plots they own on the outskirts of Bengaluru and in neighbouring districts.

In the last week of April 2026, my sister asked me to visit one of her plots in Doddaballapur, about 56 kilometres from our house. The property had not been visited for nearly five years, particularly since the COVID-19 period. So, along with my family and a cab driver, I decided to go and inspect it.

The property was part of a large 15-acre development where all the plots had been sold, yet hardly any houses had been constructed. As we entered, we were amazed to see hundreds of mango trees bearing fruits of different varieties. Many mangoes had already fallen to the ground. The sight was irresistible as that of Eve getting attracted to the shining apple in the Eden Garden. Soon, myself and the cab driver brought four empty rice bags that we had placed in the car and began plucking the mangoes. Soon, all four bags were filled consisting of approximately 50-60 kgs.

When we reached my sister's plot, we discovered that it was completely empty, without even a single mango tree as we had not planted any. After spending about an hour there, we returned back to Bengaluru.

Upon reaching our house, we poured out all the mangoes on the floor and divided the mangoes equally between myself and the cab driver. Since most were unripe, we waited for them to ripen. However, when we began cutting them, we were shocked to find out that every mango was rotten and had a foul smell emanating from it. Day after day, the same thing happened. Within ten days, nearly 25-30 kgs of mangoes that I had taken as my share had to be thrown away. Not a single mango was fit to eat.

Two weeks later, a friend of mine, an orthopaedic doctor who owns a five-acre mango farm in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh, called me. He sent me a big bag containing nearly 25-30 kgs of mangoes including Alphonso, Mallika, Gir Kesar, Badami and other varieties. The Gir Kesar mango was so big that each mango was approximately weighing 1 kg and was enough for the entire family to sit and eat together. To our surprise, every mango was perfectly ripe and delicious. Over the next fifteen days, we consumed all of them without a single mango being spoiled. They were so good that at times we ate nothing but mangoes for lunch and dinner, and my children thoroughly enjoyed them.

That experience made me realise my mistake that I had stolen mangoes from somebody else's property without seeking their permission. What I had considered a small act of offence had consequences, and I felt that God was reminding me that what is not rightfully ours should never be taken.

My father always taught us that every person has an angel assigned to him/her, who stand by our side and witnesses all our actions and records them in the Book of Life daily. He would remind us that we must therefore live honestly and walk according to God's commandments.

I experienced this lesson again through several incidents listed below:

I had been suffering from serious gum problems that my dentist advised me to undergo deep cleaning costing ?1,500. Due to financial difficulties, I kept postponing it for nearly one and a half months. Around the same time, I had purchased a second-hand scooter and owed the previous owner the balance money. After receiving my salary, I went to his house to settle the balance. After counting the money, he simply smiled and returned ?1,500 to me saying it’s a discount.

On my way home, I realised that the exact amount I needed for my dental treatment had been provided to me in an unexpected way. I felt that God had made a way for me to take care of my health. The very next day I went to the dentist and got deep cleaning of my teeth and gums.

On another occasion, I bargained with a shopkeeper and managed to reduce the price by ?1,500 insisting him that I needed that amount to undergo a medical test. Later that very day, I developed a high fever. The doctor suspected dengue and advised a blood test. When I reached the laboratory, the bill was exactly ?1,500 - the same amount I had bargained with the shopkeeper.

The following day, I was diagnosed with dengue and was bedridden for four days. On the fourth day, a prayerful person came to our home to pray for me. She was about to place her hand on my head but suddenly withdrew it. Later, my wife told me that the person had felt prompted not to do so because she was revealed that I had been dishonest and had lied to the shopkeeper to make way ?1,500.

I was deeply moved. I knelt down, confessed my wrongdoing and asked God for mercy. That very night, I felt within me that I had been healed. The next morning, for the first time in five days, I got up, went outside, felt the fresh air and sunlight and returned to work. I completely recovered from dengue and was healed instantly.

Another powerful experience occurred when I was eight years old. In the year 1986, my father met with a road accident in Bengaluru and remained bedridden for nearly two years. He was the sole earning member of our family, while my mother was a homemaker and besides we were four children. Those two years were among the most difficult periods of our lives.

Our savings and fixed deposits were gradually exhausted, and eventually my father asked my mother to sell her gold ornaments to support the family. We struggled even to afford rice. Most days, we survived on ragi rotti and ragi mudde. We had gone months without eating non-vegetarian food. Although we were invited to birthdays, weddings and First Holy Communion celebrations, we often did not attend because we could not afford to go empty-handed.

Then, one evening at around 9 p.m., immediately after we had done with our family prayers, someone knocked on our door. A lady was standing outside and asked whether we would accept some food because there were substantial leftovers after the birthday celebration at a party hall. We agreed and took some empty vessels to their house. What followed was something we will never forget. They gave us biryani, kebabs, mutton fry and other food - enough for our family to eat our stomach fill for the next two days. Indeed, God supplied abundantly looking at our struggle.

Looking back, I see these experiences not merely as coincidences but as reminders of God's providence, justice and mercy. The mango heist taught me not to take what does not belong to us. The ?1,500 incidents taught me that God can provide exactly what we need, sometimes in unexpected ways. My illness taught me the importance of honesty and repentance. And the food given to our family during our most difficult days showed me that God's help can arrive through the hands of ordinary people.

These experiences have strengthened my belief that God sees, God provides, God corrects, and above all, God forgives those who sincerely repent and turn back to Him.

The Book of Sirach 23:19 says that “the eyes of the Lord are ten thousand times brighter than the sun, that he sees everything we do, even when we try to hide.” James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” Further in Philippians 4:19, we read that “God will supply every need of yours.”

Moral: The mango heist turned to be rotten while the gifted mangoes turned out to delicious and was supplied in abundance. Don’t go beyond your boundary to steal because the Almighty God sees everything we do, even what we do in the dark and even listens whatever we whisper.