I had a meeting with my tax consultant last week. He asked me a whole lot of questions about my earnings, savings, stocks, medical expenses, educational expenses etc. Routine stuff, in other words you hear in the tax office. He asked me how much I had spent towards religious activities last year. I asked him to clarify. He said, "You know, how many miles did you travel to go to the temple?"
Boy! A tough question. I made a quick calculation and told him, "About 60 mi".
He seemed excited. "Good. So how much for the whole year?"
I should mention that this tax consultant was Indian, calling me from Bangalore I guess.
"Actually that's about it." I clarified.
He was speechless for a few moments. Or maybe it was the phone connection. "What?? How many times did you go to the temple?"
"About two-three times."
"Shouldn't you be going more regularly?" He asked.
"To get more tax rebate?" I quipped.
He seemed aghast. Perhaps a little disappointed. "No you know, aren't you a Hindu? You should."
I have not been so much patronized by even my parents since I was 12. Why do people seem so surprised to hear something like this?
signing off,
No comments:
Post a Comment