I Did It My Way

By Sanjay Gandhi

I read to my father a few nights a week as his eyesight is not what it used to be due to macular degeneration. In the last year, we’ve read books about Michelle Obama, Jim Thorpe, Charlton Heston, Marlon Brando, and the Conquistadors, to name a few. One book we recently started reading is titled Einstein , written by Walter Isaacson. In the first chapter, “The Light-Beam Rider,” Isaacson writes, “His quest began in 1895, when as a 16 year old he imagined what it would be like to ride alongside a light beam. A decade later came his miracle year, described in the letter above, which laid the foundations for great advances of twentieth century physics: relativity and quantum theory.” Albert Einstein had immersed himself in mathematics at an early age, his theories revolutionized science and technology.

Global positioning satellites, or GPS, is a technology that is possible nowadays because of “general relativity,” a concept conceived in the early 20th century by Einstein. His “stimulated emission” theory, proposed back in 1916, led to the development of light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation, or LASER technology. In the last decade, The U.S. Mint, Royal Mint of Great Britain, and the Polish Mint have incorporated the use of lasers to etch die work. The influence of Einstein’s imagination has continued to grow exponentially.

One of Einstein’s many famous quotes is, “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world." Actor Charlie Chaplin was one of those imaginative geniuses of the silent-film era who expressed human emotions without words. His ability to express himself as “The Tramp,” or his signature character with a mustache and hat, was created during his relentless pursuits of the arts. Chaplin’s upbringing was extremely difficult to say the least. Both of his parents were artists, who endured extreme poverty in Victoria, London, England, and unfortunately they could not raise their children on their own. Charlie and his brother were sent to a school for orphans at early ages.

Once Chaplin became a world-renowned artist, his encounters with other famous people became more frequent. Einstein was invited to the premiere of Chaplin’s film City

The two shared some interesting conversations. One such conversation unfolded as follows:

Einstein: “What I most admire about your art is your universality. You don’t say a word, yet the world understands you!”

Chaplin: “True. But your glory is even greater! The whole world admires you, even though they don’t understand a word of what you say.”

On September 21, 1931, Chaplin sent a telegram to meet with Mohandas Gandhi in the East End of London. Gandhi had never seen his films but his circle of confidants knew of Chaplin and they welcomed him. On September 22, 1931, a meeting took place at a friend's home. Both men shared a common view that machinery should not replace man. ChatGPT, which is an artificial intelligence chatbot, has spurred a similar debate worldwide in the past few months. Chaplin was quoted as saying, “Gandhi was the most entertaining man I had ever met.” Chaplin would go on to make the movie titled Modern Times, which was inspired by his meeting with Gandhi.

A little over a month later, in October 1931, Einstein had written a letter to Gandhi. It mainly reads, “You have shown through your works that it is possible to succeed without violence even with those who have not discarded the method of violence. We hope that your example will spread beyond the borders of your country, and will help to establish an international authority, respected by all, that will take decisions and replace war conflicts. I hope that I will be able to meet you face to face some day.” Unfortunately, a meeting between these two individuals never transpired. However, they had great admiration for each other throughout their lives.

The imagination may be expressed in limitless forms such as physics, mathematics, comedy, film, law, humanitarian efforts, and the minting of coins, to name a few. Artists may choose to express themselves freely to the world. There is no wrong way. Filtered or not, artists have their own style, and may attempt a multitude of approaches. Which may lead them on directionless paths of creativity. Free to imagine what their hearts desire. During their lifetimes, these three individuals could have never envisioned how their contributions would impact and shape humanity throughout generations of lifetimes.

The times I spend with my dad reading about others' experiences is awesome. Books about others continue to expand both of our imaginations and experiencing life through the lens of another individual will be a different journey for everyone. The journey of coin collecting will be a different experience for each individual as well. History and numismatics are intertwined like a strand of deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA. It twists and turns and is fairly uniform most of the time. But, sometimes, deviating outside boundaries can open up our thought process beyond whatever we thought possible. Possibly, like the individuals noted above… or Frank Sinatra.