Once in our lifetime we have seen the sitcom F.R.I.E.N.D.S or have heard about it. In this post We are going to look at the complex pregnancies given to the lead female actors, Rachel, Monica and Phoebe.
F.R.I.E.N.D.S is set in the New York city. It has a crazy fan following since it first started to air on the television. Not only in the U.S but in every nation there’s a corner in the heart for ‘So no one told you life was gonna be this way…’. Anytime you open the Netflix among the top 10 shows we’ll always find this show in the list.
With this crazy fan following, the show did not have even one normal pregnancy. All the three lead actress had a complicated pregnancies, not medically but socially.
Monica and Chandler had adopted the twins, Phoebe was a surrogate for his brothers’ triplets and Rachel gave a birth to Emma as a single Mother. All three were aimed towards breaking the typical stereotypes society has around normal pregnancy. Along with the most popular show, it also aimed towards normalizing the pregnancy norms in the then society.
In Today’s time it is normal to adopt a baby or have a surrogate mother or being a single mother. But in 90s it was something not familiar and thus being the most popular sitcom and indeed one of the influential ones, it targeted to bring a change in the society by this simple and yet beautiful step.
With the changing times in the society, there are many places where women are still criticized for not having a normal pregnancy. We as people must normalize and accept their choices making it easier for them to survive in such a society. And those who face such problems always remember, ‘I’ll be there for you…’
For every business to prosper it is important that people are aware about the product existing. For this the advertisement becomes very important, but there are also thousands and millions of advertisement existing in the market. Thus it becomes very crucial for the company to produce an advertisement which stands out among these thousands and also attract the audience towards the product. This then comes to the hiring of Advertisement Script Writer. But how can we learn to write out-of-the-box script? Here are a few things to be learnt for the same:
First, let us understand what are the basics of Advertisement writing:
Primarily written for visual mediums:
While writing the advertisement script we must keep in my mind that it is been written for the visual medium. People don’t read something which doesn’t attract them at once. And for the primary attention of the people the visual portrayal must be outstanding.
Brevity is the key:
Because of the short time, it becomes a crucial task for the writer to use simple and exact words which also captivate the eye of the reader.
Needs planning and creativity:
Writer must be aware of the lack of time and thus plan the advertisement in a manner which outsources everything regarding the product in a minimal time. For this author must generate his creative cells in the brain.
Recognize the Target audience:
It is really important to plan the advertisement according to the target audience. If the advertisement is about a tractor then it becomes necessary to create an advertisement which suits their needs.
good Appeal:
For the best appeal a writer can use the cultural sentiments of the targeted audience or may even use multiple daily routine slangs of the audience. This will draw the audience towards the product.
Duration:
We all have seen various new advertisements on the television. One thing to notice among those advertisements is that with time the duration of same advertisement gets short with the passage of time. Thus it is necessary that writer employs his writing skills in a manner that even the duration is reduced, the essence of the advertisement must remain exact.
Composition:
Last but not the least is the composition of the advertisement. After taking care of all the above elements, The composition is the element which is the most important one. If the composition of advertisement is not good enough then the advertisement will lack audience’s attention. It is the job of the writer to thoroughly look at the composition of the advertisement. For this he even might consider taking help of Script Doctors.
Let us now look at the stages to write an advertisement script.
The FORMAT of an advertisement script is as follows:
Font: Preferred font is courier, but there is nothing specific about fonts in Advertisement Scripts as it is in the Scripts for Movies, Plays, Web etc.
Structure: Usually two columns are used for the advertisement script, rarely three. The first is about the video, the second describing the dialogues and the third is about the duration (if the column exists)
Size: The script must never exceed the length of a page because the advertisements are just a minute long.
Here is an example of the advertisement script:
Some of the KEY POINTS to remember while writing an advertisement script are:
Understand the Product: The writer must be aware about the Features and the Unique Selling Point (USP) of the product.
Understand the Target Audience: Who is this product for? Young or Old? Men or Women? Rich or Middle working class?
Do research: Understand the product and your competition. Mention the key features of the product which are different from others.
Think out of the box: Emotion is the hook. Humour adds an extra punch to the script, thus cleverly employ them for the task.
Writing: Don’t write to impress, write to communicate the core message clearly. Also focus on the language which is used by the target audience.
Emphasize the need: Allow your audience to realize the worth of the product and also why do they need it.
We all have seen the evil Mother-in-Law and the ‘bechari’ (Helpless) Daughter-in-Law stories since our childhood. With our mothers and grandmothers we all have seen Mihir dying innumerable times. But to our surprise, he was always found alive. Women were always portrayed as the enemies of each other. And Men, Men of the house had nothing to do except contribute to their family drama. (They still lived in giant bungalow, where did they get money for its maintenance?)
India’s first longest daily soap was ‘Hum Log’ which was terminated after 154 episodes; It was also the first daily soap to be aired in 1984. We had great daily soaps like ‘Son Pari’, ‘Malgudi Days’, ‘Karishma ka Karishma’, ‘Sarabhi vs. Sarabhai’ and many more. But then arrived Ekta Kapoor with her shows like ‘Kyuki Saas bhi Kabhi bahu thi’ in 2000 and after that the scenario of Indian daily soaps changed completely.
Every show presented the rich joint family and the indifferences the family members had. Every female actor was decked up with jewelry from head to toe. Amid all these cliche, arrived ‘Sasural Genda Phool’, a show which broke many stereotypes of Indian television.
Unlike rich families, this show presented a middle class family. It did not have an evil Mother-in-Laws or jealous Sister-in-Laws, instead it presented the bond of a joint family and the beauty of various relationships. This show introduced us to a romantic story of a rich girl Suhana (Ragini Khanna) married to a middle-class boy Ishaan (Jay Soni). A typical love story is plotted between Suhaana & Ishaan to which many married couples relate to. Ishaan is a caring husband. Suhana falls in an unexpected love with Ishaan after so many years of their marriage. Apart from Ishaan’s loving nature, what makes Suhaana fall for him is his big joint family which Suhaana lacks in her past life. Being a single child of a single parent, she was unaware of family’s love & affection. Also, Women are not tortured to wear heavy jewelry the whole day.
It also aimed towards breaking the stereotypes of Indian society who always portrayed the evil side of In-Laws relationship with their Daughter-in-Laws. It showed how a father (Ambarnath Kashyap) chose his Daughter-in-Law Shailaja (Badi maa) over his son. It deals with the trauma of a rape-child (Deepak) and his mother (Radha bua). While every other show was busy portraying ‘Woman is a woman’s worst enemy’, this show brings out the different essence of this incomplete phrase which is ‘A Woman is a woman’s best friend’.
It presented a real image of the Indian households i.e., financial issues, everyone contributing their pay in the household, Women working together in the kitchen, small fights with the neighbors, Husband-Wife fights, and many more.
Here is the picture of its full cast:
It is also having a comedy element in it which you can enjoy when you feel stressed. It shows how the family can choose to stay together in every difficult times. Instead of pulling the relationships down it aimed towards building them up together. Isn’t it a show worth watching? It indeed is.
So if your mother and grandmother are still looking for an answer to ‘Yeh Rishta kya Kehlata hai’ (What is this relationship known as), give them a relief by diverting them to this show.
Since the beginning of this pandemic, several companies are facing loss. Some of the companies and small scale industries have even terminated their productions. Even the largest of the Global economies are hit severely by this pandemic.
To solve this economic crises companies have been performing lay-outs. People who are no more required are getting laid out and losing their jobs. But what is interesting to see in this time is how this virus has affected the gender neutrality not only in India but globally.
Both the men and the women continue to lose their jobs in this national lockdown. But it seems that this pandemic has more adversely affected the jobs of women than men. Women account for about 39% of the global employment and 54% of the overall job losses. Globally the rate of women losing their jobs is 1.8 times more than that of the men. In India, there were 7 times more women who lost their jobs than men. But what is more striking is unlikeliness of women to return to the jobs is 11 times higher compared to men.
The lifting of lockdown restrictions was associated with a return to work but the recovery was more muted for women. Prior to the pandemic, about 70% of working age men were employed. By August – September 2020, 88% of them remained employed or returned to work. By contrast, of 10% of working age women who were employed before the pandemic, only 53% remained employed or returned to work by August – September 2020.
While there was a high job loss seen in the organized sector, the job loss wasn’t seen in the unorganized sector. Highly educated women were more vulnerable to lose their jobs. Education had its negative impact on the employment of women. ‘It is possible that relatively more educated women are able to withdraw from the workforce in face of uncertain conditions such as the lockdown, while this option might not be available to less educated women’, A research paper ‘Down and Out? The Gendered Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on India’s Labour Market’ presented in its observation. It also suggested that women did not have typical ‘fallback’ options in the terms of employment.
Some of the reasons are as follows:
Married women were less likely to return to work than married men.
Women from large households followed the same unlikeliness.
The social norms were again revoked due to the pandemic which resulted in this inequality.
The unappreciated household burden plays a vital role in the same.
A study showed that the difference created in the gender might take more than 135 years to recover. Women need to stand up for themselves. Husbands need to share the household burden of their wives. There can be simple steps which we can take to improve the condition of women in our country because as our Former Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru said, ‘The growth of the nation can be determined by seeing the condition of its women’.
A message from a frustrated Indian to every politician of the country
Being hit the worst by the second wave of the pandemic, Indians find it difficult on who to blame. Is the Government responsible and if Yes then which?
We all know about the situation of India and the frontline workers of India. Oxygen has become a new stock currency in India. In economy of class X we learnt that when the situation worsens, the community work becomes essential for development from the current situation. But how will those people understand this concept who have never been to school. Here I am talking about our politicians. But wait there are many who are graduates and post-graduates from the best universities around the world. Yes they are and still I think they might have skipped the economy class.
While the people of this country are dying, what politicians focus on is how to clear their image and win votes for the next elections. I won’t specifically mention a particular political party here because none of them have proved their potential in these time of pandemic. If Shiv Sena had been potential virus wouldn’t have affected the economic hub of India, had congress been potential corona wouldn’t be prevalent in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh etc., there wouldn’t be oxygen shortage in Delhi if Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was vigil towards the second wave, Not every second person would test positive in Bengal if Trinamool Congress (TMC) paid heed to the warnings of second wave in February, Had BJP been a little focused on building the Health Infrastructure rather than Central Vista there wouldn’t be bodies floating in the holy rivers of India. Following the list are CPI, DMK and many other regional parties who failed their netizens while playing their dirty politics.
Still when we see them addressing the public, all we can see is spreading hatred against the other political party. Really? Where do you get so many guts from? We need to stop flattering these corrupt politicians who only care about their own image. We as Indians need to stand up against the destruction being done to our democratic country. We need to raise our voice to teach the real meaning of democracy to those deaf sitting in the Parliament.
Democracy means, ‘of the people, by the people and to the people’. They need to realize this meaning because these politicians have really spoiled the infrastructure of our country for their well-being. They can’t drive people because it is people’s right to drive them. This is Democracy and not Dictatorship. Stop tweeting 6 tweets a day and start working for those who elected you.
They need to see what it feels like to beg for oxygen and lose our loved one just because they were busy protecting their image and spreading hatred. Every Politician must understand there are 140 crore citizens in India, they don’t even know the consequences if all these people stand together against them at once. Do not take the citizens of India for granted, I repeat DO NOT TAKE CITIZENS OF INDIA FOR GRANTED.
We as Indians stand united against any wrong that is being done towards our country.
Know the right age for pregnancy and also the risks involved in late pregnancies.
Every eye visiting this article would be having a definite answer in their head; NO. In these modern times when every women wants an established career no one even thinks of planning a baby before 35 or say 30. But the question that follows here is Does the age of mother really matter for childbearing?
The age of reproduction of women starts around 13-14 years and lasts on an average till 45 years. So some may be wondering that when the reproduction can be done till the age of 45 then why to have baby in 20s and 30s. But the answer to the previous question is ‘YES’. The age of the mother really matters when it comes to bearing a child. Let’s understand why.
There are some facts we need to understand while we understand the reason:
Definitely timed biological clock.
Quality of eggs.
Certain risks of Pregnancy.
Definitely timed biological clock:
As said that the reproductive age in women starts from 13-14 years and lasts till 45 years, there is certain age where the fertility of the women is at its peak. In her late teens and upto her late 20s, the women experiences the best fertile period. Post 30, the fertility potential decreases with each passing year. This decline is very pronounced after the age of 35. It decreases rapidly after that. So for a healthy couple if the chances of a pregnancy is about 1 in 4 in the late twenties or the early thirties, the chances reduces drastically by 1 in 10, by the time the woman reaches about 40.
Quality of eggs:
When we say that the possibility of the woman to get pregnant after 35 declines, but what is it that actually affects this? It is the Number and the Quality of eggs in a female. With age the number and the quality of the eggs reduces which opens the gates for the risks like miscarriage or having an abnormal baby. While the fertility potential of males also declines with age, this is seen to be dramatically declining in the case of females.
Certain risks of Pregnancy:
There are certain risks for the women and their foetus who plan their pregnancy after the age of 35.
The relative risks of having certain diseases like High blood pressure, diabetes, miscarriage, premature births increase with an increasing age of the mother.
The chances for genetic abnormality in an unborn baby of the mother who ages 25 is about 1 in 700 but this risk inclines about 1 in 400 for the mother ageing 35. Beyond the age of 40, this risk increases to 1 in 100.
Does that mean women have to leave their career and plan their babies first? No, it does not. With the progression of the science and technology there are certain solutions available. Do not look for them on the Google, instead visit a gynecologist for the same. Those women planning their babies after 40 can freeze their eggs when they are about 30 to 34 of age. Also the healthier the woman maintains her lifestyle, the lesser will be the chances of having a miscarriage.
And after all it’s not necessary to have a biological child to be a parent. Share this with every woman to spread awareness.
Women have evolved from a dependent gender to a representative individual in the society. When most of the women earn their living on their own, there are many people who keep on forcing them to give up their career choices. Why is society so much uncomfortable in accepting the independent state of a woman?
You might be thinking that in what era am I living in; aren’t things like these extinct already. But in an answer I would like to say ‘NO’. Even today society wants women to stay at home because ‘Agar zyada padhi likhi hogi toh zyada zubaan chalegi iski’ (If she is more educated, she’ll have more opinions) Wait… What? Why do you want to have a submissive, Why do you want women to follow your orders, Why such dominance over a specific gender?
These are some basic questions asked by every woman at one or the other place in her life. Sometimes these questions have brought revolutions in the old customs and sometimes these questions fade in the screams of domestic violence, rapes, molestation, etc.
With the spread of awareness, many women are getting justice against these crimes but who will get justice for women who are suffering everyday because of their own family members?
Yes, you read that right. These wrongs aren’t highlighted but one in every three woman in India faces the pressure of marriage. She is forced to continue her studies after the marriage. Women aren’t allowed to have jobs in which they earn more than their subsequent other. Fathers and Husbands want their daughter to be dependent on them because they think that the day she becomes independent ‘Ladki haath se nikal jaegi’ (We’ll lose the hold of our daughter).
I’ll tell you one story which took place recently with me, One of my friend stopped talking to me. All of a sudden, She blocked all my calls and messages. I stopped contacting her after trying for a while. After few months, I get to know the reason. The reason left me speechless. Loosely putting in her words, ‘When I placed my desire to have a part-time job, Mom scolded me and told me not to contact you anymore. She thinks you are a bad influence and all these seeds of being independent are sown into me by you.’
Amazing! Isn’t it? And I’m not building up this story for this article. This is a true story of me and my friend. If speaking up for yourself makes someone a bad influence then we really need to re-consider our thoughts and customs.
Family needs to choose between a submissive unhappy daughter and an independent happy daughter. Because its high time we start to address the issues which bachelor women faces not only from the society but their families as well.
On this International Family Day, I’d like to address every person with a family to treat their daughters as their own family and not like ‘Paraya Dhan’ (Other’s wealth); I’d also like to tell the daughters to stand up for themselves and not make any decision due to family or societal pressure.
I’d like to conclude this feature with the words of a famous singer:
People are going to judge you anyway, so you might as well do what you want.
Know about Why and How Eid-al-Fitr is celebrated by Muslim community.
Eid-al-Fitr (also pronounced as Eid-ul-Fitr) is one of the two Eids of the Islamic Calendar. It comes after the holy month of Ramadan. This holy month is observed by Muslims every year to acknowledge the revelation of Quran to Prophet Muhammad by Allah. It falls it always falls on the first day of Shawwal in the Islamic calendar, which date does not always fall on the same Gregorian day because the date for the start of any lunar Hijri month varies based on when the new moon is sighted by local religious authorities.
It is the day when Muslim start eating their meals in the sunlight again. This festival is also known as ‘Festival of breaking Fast’ as on this day Muslims break their fast which they have been doing in the month of Ramadan.
On this day Muslims gather to express gratitude for every possession they have. They also perform donations in the form of zakat. Every Muslim contributes to the zakat according to their situations. On this day they also come forward to help the ones who are less fortunate.
On Eid, Muslim men attend the prayers (Namaz) at their local mosque while women offer their prayers from home. They all wear new clothes and visit their relatives with sweets. One of the most famous dishes of Eid is ‘Sewaiya’. On this day children receive Eidie and blessings from their elders.
Muslims typically decorate their homes, and are also encouraged to forgive each other and seek forgiveness. In countries with large Muslim populations, it is normally a public holiday with most schools and businesses closed for the day.
In the Islamic countries like Unites Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iran, etc., the festival is celebrated with firecrackers and large Eid parties are held.
On this day every person greets each other with ‘Eid Mubarak’; Loosely translated: ‘Blessed Eid’. So wish all of you who fasted for a month; a happy and safe Eid. Eid Mubarak…!!!
“One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs, Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls.”
Title: A Thousand Splendid Suns
Author: Khaled Hosseini
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Genre: Contemporary, Historical Fiction
First Publication: 2007
Language: English
Major Characters: Laila, Mariam, Rasheed, Tariq
Setting Place: Herat and Kabul, Afghanistan
Theme: History and Memory in Afghanistan, Suffering and Perseverance, Shame and Reputation, Love, Loyalty, and Belonging, Gender Relations and Female Friendship.
Narrator: The story is told in the third person, alternating between Laila’s and Mariam’s points of view.
A Thousand Splendid Suns is a Heartbreaking story of Mariam and Laila. It represents the stereotypes against women and also implies the common quote, ‘Woman is woman’s worst enemy and a best friend’. The Storytelling is perfect and at no moment the reader feels bored or thought of putting it away.
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini stretches over decades and talks about the Afghan history in which the Soviets invaded and the Taliban took over and time after that. It revolves around the story of two heroines: Mariam and Laila. Both are born and brought up differently but the severity of the war and their fate brings them together.
While all the characters are fictional in this novel, the reader feels sad after reading it. The story of both the women is heartbreaking, I myself was shoving nails into my head while reading this book. It is a great melancholic representation of the sufferings of the Afghan people.
It deals with various injustices done against women. Most of them are portrayed through Rasheed. Khaled Hosseini explicitly deals with domestic violence, Discrimination in providing education to the girl child (Aziza; Laila and Tariq’s daughter), Exploitation of women’s right to freedom, and many more. He has also glorified the qualities of motherhood and sisterhood among the women.
This novel includes the romance of Tariq and Laila which shortly turns into a tragedy. But maybe Hosseini felt a little pity for his readers and thus united both of them towards the end of the novel.
‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ is a disheartening novel and it may not be a good choice for sensitive readers. Almost 3/4th of the novel is following a melancholic theme. The reader cries at the agonies and miseries faced by these two women. It is indeed a masterpiece by Khaled Hosseini. If the reader is okay with the gloomy factor of this novel then definitely should give it a try. You can purchase your own copy of this novel from here.
“She’s not even appreciating me for doing the household chores and managing the kids myself for the whole day…!!!”
Excuse me, What? Are you asking for an award just because you did the work that women have been doing almost everyday since ages?
This might sound astonishing to you but this is what our society has been fighting for. By ‘Our Society’, I indirectly mean to point out ‘Our patriarchal Society’.
We hear this word ‘Patriarchy’ on a day-to-day basis now, but what is the meaning of this word? Patriarchy simply means the supremacy of the male members of the family. What it indirectly hints at is the inferiority of the female members. We have witnessed this patriarchy since we were kids. Don’t tell me you did not. When you were asked who your superhero is, Didn’t you respond- Dad? We have always seen our mothers working day and night at home doing all the household chores, managing the kids, cooking the food and yet no one has ever appreciated her work. This is a very minute example for the patriarchal system that continues to be passed on as a legacy to every next generation.
But didn’t patriarchy exist before? And if it did then why was it not so much talked about? The simple answer to this is the lack of awareness among the women to acknowledge the wrongs being done to them. And one cannot fight the issue which is not even accepted as an issue. In the times of our grandparents, everyone believed this is how life ought to be and thus women accepted every dominance done by the opposite gender.
Today the means of communications have excelled and it has become quite easy for us to know what is going on in the other parts of the world. Because of the developed communication, social media and other sources, the women are aware of what is wrong and as the common proverb of hindi says, ‘Bardaasht karne ki bhi hadd hoti hai, jab sanyam ka ghada bhar jaata hai toh wo toot jaata hai’ Loosely translated: There is a limit to tolerate and when enough of the patience is tested, it breaks. This can also be the reason why women are raising their voices against the patriarchal norms.
While there are so many patriarchal customs being followed in our society, there are still many who deny it exists. For those denying these, some of them are listed below:
Dowry System:
This is one of the major reasons why women are considered as a liability on the family. There’s a celebration on the birth of the boy child whereas the family mourns when a girl child is born because when she’ll be married the family will have to arrange the dowry. As a solution to this many girl children are killed as a foetus whereas others are drowned in the milk vessel after birth.
If somehow the girl manages to escape the cruelty from their paternal family, she is killed by her in-laws if they are not satisfied with the dowry. This is termed as ‘dowry death’ in our Indian constitution. According to Indian National Crime Record Bureau, there were 8,239 dowry death cases, 1,285 cases of attempted dowry deaths, and another 4,890 cases with pending investigations in 2009.
Sati Pratha:
‘Shave her head, break her bangles’; ‘Who will take care of the child, you must remarry’. These are two different cases- First, when the husband dies; Second, when the wife dies.
It has always been believed in our Indian society that a woman’s life is nothing after her husband. After the death of a husband, a widow is seen as a public property by other men and as unluck by her own family. She is not allowed to enter holy events because her presence is considered inauspicious. Imagining the atrocities of this, many women wilfully gave up their lives by sitting alive on the burning pyre.
Ridiculous, Isn’t it? But many of these customs have been eradicated with the help of new laws and orders regulated by our constitution. In modern India, people have derived modern ways of formulating the patriarchy. Some of them can be listed as:
Unequal Pay:
When there is no inequality found in assigning the tasks to women, there is a major difference found in their pay-scale. This is one of the major issues found in the corporate world and even the movie industry. This issue needs to be spoken of.
Lack of policies:
While many companies offer paid maternity leave, there are still many companies who fail to provide the same. Left with no option, women have to leave their jobs. There is still the lack of creche facilities in every domain of the work sector. While fathers enjoy their fatherhood, we need to ask the mothers who lost their careers for their child.
Many companies lack the policies to safeguard women’s right resulting in the rise sexual harassment cases at work place. Due to the lack of these policies today only 6% of urban women enjoy employment.
Overburdening:
Some years ago, women used to manage the household. With the increasing inflation rate, it has become almost inevitable for women to not work. Women are stepping forward to share the responsibilities of their husbands, but this case isn’t vice versa.
With women stepping into the work-sector their workload seems to just have increased. Now they have to manage their work at the workplace and also complete their household chores. Too unfair!
For how many is this overburdening going to continue? It is high time for every woman to speak against injustice. Our Society really needs to understand that, ‘Women are not the goddess of sacrifice neither are they a sexual toy to be played with.’ As our former Prime Minister said: ‘You can tell the condition of a Nation by looking at the status of its Women’, Women are not a liability for the nation, instead they are an asset.
An article to pay tribute to all the frontline nurses on this INTERNATIONAL NURSES DAY.
When we have always celebrated the Raksha-Bandhan tying the Rakhi on our brother’s hand, we need to understand that in this pandemic it is not just the brothers who are protecting us but the Sisters who wear their armor as PPE kits and are battling against the virus. Today is the day we pay tribute to them, Yes today is International Nurses Day.
International Nurses Day is an annual event celebrated on 12th May every year. It marks the birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale, an English nurse, a social reformer, and a statistician who founded the key pillars of modern nursing. It is commemorated every year by the International Council of Nurses (ICN) who also decides the theme of the event. The ICN’s key pillars are Professional practice, Regulation, and Socio-economic welfare. The theme for International Nurses Day 2021 is ‘Nurses: A Voice to Lead- A vision for future healthcare’.
While declaring the theme for IND 2021 on 15 October 2020, ICN President, Annette Kennedy said, ‘This global COVID-19 pandemic has shown the world the important role that nurses play in keeping people healthy across the lifespan, While there has been significant disruption to healthcare, there has also been significant innovation that has improved access to care. In 2021, we will focus on the changes to and innovations in nursing and how this will ultimately shape the future of healthcare.’
According to the WHO, ‘nurses account for more than half of all the world’s health workers, yet there is an urgent shortage of nurses worldwide with 5.9 million (2020) more nurses still needed, especially in low and middle-income countries.’ As reported by INC on 31 December 2020, more than 1.6 million healthcare workers have been infected by the virus while battling against it.
Though being at the forefront since the pandemic started, many people fail to appreciate the services of a nurse which leads to the inhumane behavior towards the nurse. They forget that if doctors are able to save lives, it is because of the equal assistance given by the nurses. Nurses are the hospitality of the hospital. Let us not forget their selfless devotion and dedication to saving lives. Here is a video of frontline workers raising the spirits of patients:
This day comes of great significance in the middle of the pandemic. It is a great opportunity for us to pay a tribute to these heroes and express our gratitude for their noble work. Let’s laud them for their service towards humanity; ‘Respect and Gratitude…!!!’
Let’s conclude this article with the following lines from Muskurayega India:
Phir se sadakon pe sab naachenge (The roads will again be filled with dances) Patri pe pahiye bhaagenge (The wheels will bustle again on the tracks) Goonjege khelon ke maidaan (The Playgrounds will feel lively again) Baatenge sab khushiyan (Everyone will share the happiness) Gham bhi hum milkar baatenge (and will also share the griefs) Phir se hogi sapno ki udaan (The dreams will catch a flight again)
When you write a book, you spend day after day scanning and identifying the trees. When you’re done you have to stay back and look at the forest.
STEPHEN KING, Author of ‘It’, ‘Misery’ and many other horror fiction novels.
For a writer, Editing is one of the most important elements in their article. It revises the article and makes it accurate. While writing, the author may not be able to focus on the grammar or correctly using the punctuation marks, which makes editing an almost inevitable activity for the writer. But how can editing be done properly? Let’s find the solution from the following questions.
Before we start the first question which arises is ‘What is Editing?’ Editing is a preparation of written material for publication by correcting, condensing, and modifying it. It follows the principle of 3 Cs i.e., Complete, Correct, and Consistent. It ensures that the work is complete, it does not contain any type of typographical errors or grammatical errors, and it also makes sure that the pace, narration, and the flow of the subject are consistent.
After understanding the meaning of editing, another question we find ourselves asking is, ‘Why is Editing so much Important?’ Many times when we write, we are unable to detect grammatical mistakes. We continue writing with our flow without identifying the basic mistakes we are producing in our work. Here by ‘our work’ I do not point towards our daily journal, Instead, I’m talking about the work that is supposed to be read by a third person. No one is going to read our daily journal and thus we don’t have to be grammatically correct in it. But when we are writing for another pair of eyes then it becomes necessary for the writer to be precise with every letter he types/writes. It is also necessary that the work must be without errors because errors are those enemies of the writer who divert the attention of the reader, which may end up with the reader losing his interest to read further.
I am writing a first draft and reminding myself that I am simply shoveling sand into a box so that later I can build castles
SHANNON HALE, Author of ‘Princess Academy’, ‘The Goose Girl’, etc.
How can we start editing? There are two stages of editing. One, When the author edits his work himself. Two, When a second person edits the work. We may wonder that when the editing has been done by the author then why does it become necessary for the work to be edited by a second person? The answer to this question is many a time our eyes can’t detect errors in our work because of the flow our brain follows. Therefore it becomes really necessary for the work to be analyzed by a second person. For Editing, many authors even hire freelancers as a second person who can edit their work.
If your budget is low (like mine) and can’t hire a freelancer then here are some following tools and tricks I like to use before publishing my article:
Keep on checking the punctuation marks and other basic grammars while writing the article.
Make sure that there are no typographical errors.
Checking the correctness and accuracy on Grammarly App.
To find if the pace and narration in the article are consistent, I like to re-read my article at least 4 times.
Sometimes the hard words may distract the reader and so I make sure to use an easily understood and exact word. For this, I sometimes take the help of OneLook Dictionary.
After completing the above steps, I let my work settle for at least one day before publishing it.
On the day of publishing, I read the article once again.
After being fully assured of its correctness, I publish it.
This article which you are reading currently is written by me on 9 May 2021. Let’s see for how many days will it cool down before I publish it.
It was 10 a.m in Mumbai when Anjali rushed towards the fishermen’s bridge, Most fishermen have left the shore by this time making the place quiet and solitary. In haste, she lost track of her brown leather bag clinging to her right hand. Her eyes held more moisture than the sea, she couldn’t stop thinking about Nick.
‘How can he do this to me? How can he kill—’, she screamed to herself at the end of the bridge.
She couldn’t stop blaming herself for what her eyes had transpired a few moments ago. Her legs were not in her control as she kept walking from one end to the other of the bridge.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a voice, ‘Hello, Can you hear me?’ She turned back and saw an old man waving at her. He was having her bag in his hand. At that moment, the bag was aught to Anjali, her thoughts continued and she started running in the direction of the sea.
The old man was confused and tried to approach her. His doddering legs couldn’t match the motion of her. After running a few blocks his legs trembled and he fell on his knees. The crashing sound reached Anjali for her to look back. She had always been a person who liked to help others. She reached out to the old man and acknowledged his name to be Shantilal. He was a local fisherman who had come to the sea with his fishing hook to catch a fish. Anjali assisted him in getting back to his feet.
‘Are you ok kaka?’, she asked.
‘I am fine, beta but how are you? What’s wrong? Why are you crying?’, Shantilal inquired as he saw her moist eyes.
‘No, No, I am fine kaka—’ Her eyes could no longer hold her tears. Weeping she only muttered two names- Nick and Rajesh.
Shantilal sensed the distress and stayed back with her. He tried to calm her down and ask her whereabouts but her weeps only got vulnerable with every question. He feared the worst that might occur if he left her but he also had no idea of how to console her and decided to summon his wife. He stepped a few steps away from the weeping woman and dialled his landline number from his Nokia 3310 to describe the situation to his wife, Meenakshi.
Meenakshi reached the spot in a rickshaw and paid the amount shown on the meter. She saw Shantilal and walked towards him.
‘Kai Zala? (What happened?)’, She asked Shantilal. Shantilal pointed towards Anjali. She recognized her as the daughter-in-law of Sharma’s where she used to work as a maid. She rushed towards her and hugged her to calm her down. Seeing a familiar face Anjali’s emotion had no control but to flow out. After getting Anjali back to her senses, Meenakshi asked, ‘What’s the matter bibiji, why are you crying? Rajesh baba did something? Sharma Aunty said something to you? Tell me please….’
‘Sab khatam ho Gaya maushi— (Everything is over, Aunty)’, Anjali continued after catching her breath ‘Rajesh destroyed it all’ Meenakshi started assuming the extra-marital affair Rajesh might be having which was breaking Anjali.
There was a sound of a ship sailing which got the attention of Anjali who was calm now. After looking at it for some time, Anjali asked Meenakshi to get her bag. Meenakshi asked for the bag from Shantilal who was standing there trying to understand the situation. Shantilal took the bag and handed it over to Meenakshi.
Anjali opened the bag and took out a picture of herself with a man, ‘I loved him so much, I don’t know how will I survive in this world without him.’ Meenakshi and Shantilal were shocked. Meenakshi found herself thinking if her Rajesh Baba has left them all and felt a moment of guilt for assuming him having an affair. Less did they know a larger shock awaited them.
Consoling Anjali for her loss Meenakshi said, ‘I’m so sorry to hear about this. God is examining you. Just have faith everything will be fine.’ Saying this Meenakshi took the photograph from Anjali’s hand and hugged her again. Meenakshi always admired how good Anjali and Rajesh looked together and glanced at the picture only to find out it wasn’t Rajesh in the picture. It was Nick, Anjali’s colleague.
The disproportionate severity of the punishments inflicted upon the unfortunate people and the methods of carrying them out, we are convinced, are without parallel in the history of civilised governments…The time has come when badges of honour make our shame glaring in their incongruous context of humiliation, and I for my part wish to stand, shorn of all special distinctions, by the side of my country men.
From a Letter written to Viceroy, Lord Chlemsford; RABINDRANATH TAGORE.
The writer of our National Anthem, Jana Gana Mana is also the Knight who once renounced his Knighthood for India. Rabindranath Tagore was the first Indian as well the first lyricist to receive the Nobel prize in Literature. He played a significant role in building up the base of Literature in India. His 161th Birth anniversary was celebrated on 7 May 2021.
Today when India is facing a pandemic and every political leader is trying to maintain their supreme image, Rabindranath Tagore is being remembered for how he renounced his Knighthood against the wrongs done to fellow Indians. After the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre in 1919, every Indian leader was shocked and the whole nation was mourning the act done by the British Officer, General Dyre. At that time of mourning every great leader of India condemned the atrocities. And in response to the Massacre, Rabindranath Tagore renounced his Knighthood.
Tagore always opposed the idea of Imperialism. He supported the Indian Nationalists and criticized the presence of British administration as ‘political symptom of our social disease’. He also wanted the youth of the nation to develop and thus established ‘Santiniketan’ in 1901. He wrote the songs like ‘Chitto Jetha Bhayshunyo’ (Where the Mind is Without Fear) and ‘Ekla Chalo Re’ (If They Answer Not to Thy Call, Walk Alone) presenting the tensity of the Indian Independence movement to the British Administration.
Rabindranath Tagore is very well known for his poetry collection, ‘Gitanjali‘ (was awarded the Nobel prize in literature in 1913), his poems like ‘Manasi’, ‘Sonar Tori’ (Golden Boat), ‘Balaka’ (Wild Geese). He has also written many songs like our National Anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana’ which is first of the five stanzas of the Brahmo hymn ‘Bharot Bhagyo Bidhata’ that Tagore composed. The song which was written to criticize the partition of Bengal in 1905 was later adopted as the National Anthem by Bangladesh. Sri Lanka’s National Anthem is also inspired by Tagore’s work.
Every leader must learn from Rabindranath Tagore that it is not the prestige and the awards that matter but our brothers and sisters of the Nation. Amidst this pandemic, the leaders must pay heed towards the people of the nation and not on creating or announcing different propagandas.
Here are a few lines from the famous song written by Rabindranath Tagore to keep you motivated through the day:
Jodi shobai phire jae, ore ore o obhaga, shobai phire jai [If everyone walks away, O unlucky one, everyone walks away] Jodi gohon pothe jabar kale keu phire na chae, jodi gohon pothe jabar kale keu phire naa chaai— Tobe pother kata [If no-one looks back towards the (your) unpredictable path, then with thorn pricked (of the path) bloodied feet] O tui roktomakha chorontole ekla dolo re [walk alone If no-one heeds your call – then walk alone]
Jodi tor dak shune keu na ashe tobe ekla cholo re [If there is no-one responding to your call – then go on all alone]
World Red Cross Red Crescent Day is celebrated on 8 May each year. It is an annual celebration of the 7 principles of International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement; humanitarian, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.
Around the world, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement provide a wide range of services to the most vulnerable people in all situations, from responding to needs in disaster and conflict situations to assisting. They reach out to the community and advocate on behalf of those in need, those in urban areas, and difficult access areas.
This day is celebrated to mark their achievements and encourage people to help the ones in need. It is also celebrated to mark the birthday of the founder of International Committee of the Red Cross, Henry Dunant (8 May 1928). Henry Dunant was the first recipient of the Nobel Peace Price.
Let us know a little about how this day came into existence:
The idea for an “annual action that could take hold in the whole world … that would be a major contribution to peace” was introduced just after World War I.
This initiative, known as the “Red Cross Truce”, was studied by an International Commission established at the 14th International Conference of the Red Cross.
Its report, presented to the 15th International Conference of the Red Cross in Tokyo in 1934, was approved.
It was only after World War II, in 1946, that the Tokyo proposal was studied by the League of Red Cross Societies (LRCS), renamed the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in 1991.
Two years later, having considered the principles of the truce and its applicability across different regions of the world, the proposal of an annual International Red Cross Day was adopted and the first Red Cross Day was celebrated on May 8, 1948.
The official title of the day changed over time, and became “World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day” in 1984.
After that Every year 8 May Started to be celebrated as ‘World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day’. There were some themes and slogans introduced from 2009 onwards for the celebration. The Themes are mentioned below:
Year
Theme
2009
Change in the Climate and it causes on the Human’s which serves as a Today’s Solferino
The theme for ‘World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day’, 2021 is ‘Unstoppable’. This theme is particularly for the frontline workers who amidst this pandemic have been unstoppable in providing their best services to the patients. On this World Red Cross Day and Red Crescent Day, we are particularly proud of the work of volunteers and staff at the forefront of meeting the growing needs of the COVID-19 pandemic-influenced community. They spread goodness and solidarity all over the world, bringing hope and dignity in despair.
‘We Thank and Salute all the people who have been working day and night to provide the best facilities in this pandemic to the people, We are proud of you!’
Not everyone in this world has the fate to cherish the fullest form of love. Some are born just to experience the abbreviation of it.
‘I too had a Love Story’, Ravinder Singh.
When we think of Romantic Tragedy the stories that strike our minds are Laila and Majnu, Romeo and Juliet, Heer and Ranjha, etc. We admire their passion for love because they chose death over the separation. This book ‘I too had a Love Story’ is also a Romantic Tragedy but unlike those mentioned previously, it does not deal with the death of both the hero and the heroine instead tells us how difficult it becomes when a person in love is left alone.
The Novel consists of 9 chapters marking the different stages of the relationship between the hero, Ravinder, and the heroine, Khushi. ‘I too had a Love Story’ is an autobiography by Ravinder Singh. This book deals with his love life. But unlike the other love stories, this love story is very special to him. It is because of this book that he found his life partner; who met him after she read this novel and fell in love with him.
The Story starts with the reunion of four friends; Amardeep, Manpreet, Happy, and Ravinder. The reunion builds up the plot of Marriage. The story is then diverted to Ravinders’ when he creates a profile on a Matrimonial Site. On the matrimonial site, he meets the love of his life, Khushi. After talking for a while they find themselves madly in love with each other. This novel also tries to break the stereotype against Long Distance Relationships when Ravin had to move to Connecticut. Unlike the sayings, their relationship did not break because of the distance. They managed their relationship off the distance. This novel allows the reader to witness the courtship period between the engagement and the wedding to its fullest. The Author neatly builds up the plot where all the reader expects and excited is for the wedding to happen. But then the Author strikes his final chord when the heroine of the story, Khushi meets with an accident; It breaks the heart of the reader. The final chapters’ reading is equivalent to walking the fiery path. It hurts but you can’t stop until you finish.
The Author precisely plays with the emotions of a reader; The reader sheds tears along with the hero for his loss. It keeps the reader hooked to the love story from the starting till the end. Many readers have credited this book as the one you can’t put down. It is indeed a beautiful love story written by Ravinder Singh. Indian Express remarks about the author, ‘Singh has beautifully portrayed the various emotions of life and love’
If you are a beginner in this reading world and also enjoy Romance or Tragedy, then this book is totally made for you. You can purchase this book from here. Just go for it…!!!
The sages loved their music. It gave them the same spiritual boost as the sun did. Music made them laugh, it made them dance and it made them sing. It will do the same for you. Never forget the power of music. Spend a little time with it every day, even if it is listening to a soft piece on a cassette while you drive to work. When you feel down or weary, play some music. It is one of the finest motivators I know of.
ROBIN SHARMA, Author of ‘The Monk who sold his Ferrari’
The above words are found in the Internationally famous book ‘The Monk who sold his Ferrari’. These words endow us with a message of how important it is to always remember the power of music and even on our busiest day we must not forget to listen to it.
Every person has their taste in music, some like Soft and Sufi songs while others may enjoy listening to Jazz and Trance. Whatever their taste may be the function of music in everybody’s life is the same; Relieve the person of his daily-life tensity. Music is one of the greatest forms of art derived from Nature. Let us know why is Music so much important in our day-to-day life.
MUSIC: A UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE:
We all have heard this at one or the other time in our life. But what does it exactly mean? Let’s understand this with a simple example. Some songs like Despacito or Bella Ciao, in that case, are not understood by everyone but every other person enjoys these songs without even being able to sing them correctly. These songs bring people together. Similarly, the language of music is universal. It doesn’t matter from which corner of the world a person belongs, you can communicate with them easily through the language of Music. This is the only language which even if not understood but is enjoyed by all.
MUSIC AS A CREATIVE FUEL TO THE MIND:
As a form of art, music brings out the creativity of a person. Listening to instrumental music challenges one to listen and tell a story about what one hears. In the same sense, playing a musical instrument gives you the ability to tell the story without words. Both require maximum right brain usage which not only exercises one’s creativity but also one’s intellect. This is also one of the reasons why people turn to music whenever they feel worn out or out of ideas to recollect their minds.
MUSIC HAS SPIRITUAL POWERS:
Many theories are suggesting the presence of Music dating back even before the existence of mankind. Music is believed to be derived from nature and one of the most common uses is found at religious and sacred events. Many civilizations mark their triumph at war and the cremation of influential figures with Music. Some people believe Music to be a key to God leading to the holy path, this also signifies the presence of prayers at religious places.
AN EMOTIONAL HEALER- MUSIC:
Many studies have shown the connection between the human mind and the type of music a person listens to. There are times in every person’s life when he turns to music for achieving an emotional balance. This is because music stimulates the release of happiness hormone in our brain. It reduces the stress of a person and makes the person dance to its beat. Thus Music is known as one of the best therapies for dealing with emotions. So next time when you feel low; put on the headphones-play a song-turn the volume up-exit from reality.
MUSIC BRINGS PEOPLE TOGETHER:
Let’s first see the following video:
As we saw in the video that every person enjoys himself on the tune of the music. This is the reason music is seen as the key ingredient to bring people together.
When Music is so much important then why are we still not ready with our headphones? Let’s Go and enjoy our day listening to our favorite music.
We all are accustomed to having one or the other beverages in a day at least once or twice. While as children we were the fans of bournvita, horlicks, boost etc., as an adult we get habituated to coffee or tea. Both the beverages are good with their own benefits. But youth these days seem to be more of a coffee fan than tea. And this is one of the ways to lead a healthy lifestyle because coffee does have a lot of health benefits. Some of them are as follows:
Reduces Stress, Promotes Happiness: Harvard study of over 50,000 women found that depression risk decreased as caffeinated coffee consumption increased. Coffee reduces the stress hormones which further relaxes the person. Researchers found that drinking coffee is linked to positive emotions, including pleasure, kindness, affection, satisfaction, friendship, calm, and yes, happiness. The findings also noted that no negative emotions were tied to coffee consumption. No doubt why coffee is called the HAPPY JUICE.
Reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes: A 2018 meta-analysis of 30 previously published studies concluded that coffee consumption is inversely associated with the risk of type 2 diabetes. For each cup per day increase in coffee consumption, Researchers found that chance of developing the disease decreased by 6%. The possible reasons for the link include coffee’s antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects, ability to boost calorie burning, impact on the content and diversity of health-protective gut microbes.
Provides more energy for doing heavy exercises: Several studies have shown that in moderation, caffeine enhances athletic performance. The effects include improved circulation, increases in muscular strength, endurance, and power, plus reduced pain. That may help you push just a little bit harder during workouts, resulting in better improvements in muscle strength and/or endurance. A study found that muscle carbohydrate stores are replenished more rapidly when athletes consume both carbs and caffeine following exhaustive exercise. Compared to carbohydrates alone, the combo resulted in a 66% increase in muscle glycogen (the storage form of carbs) four hours after intense exercise. This surge in energy reserves ups your ability to exercise harder and/or longer the next time you’re ready to get your heart rate up.
Keeps you body Hydrated: Coffee has always been blamed as a great dehydrating agent. However, newer research indicates that after about four days of consistent caffeine intake, your body adjusts, which negates the dehydrating effect. The trick is, you have to be consistent. In other words, if you sometimes have one cup of coffee in the morning, sometimes three, or if you occasionally reach for it in the afternoon, you may feel the diuretic side effects, such as headache and low energy.
Has antioxidants: As we all know that coffee seeds are the seeds found inside red or yellow fruit. Both the fruit and the seed have high antioxidant power. In fact, one study found coffee to be the single greatest contributor to total antioxidant intake. This is likely because 65% of American adults say they drink coffee, while only one in 10 eat the minimum recommended five daily servings of fruits and veggies. In other words, coffee becomes the top source of antioxidants by default. Nonetheless, the antioxidants in coffee have been linked to health protection. Chlorogenic acid, a polyphenol abundant in coffee, has been shown to reduce inflammation, and it may play a key role in protection against chronic diseases, including obesity. And just in case you’re wondering about the coffee fruit, it can be turned into compost, or dried and brewed as tea. It’s also being used in products like energy drinks, since the fruit also contains caffeine.
If only drinking coffee can provide us such good health benefits then let’s promise a cup of coffee to our body everyday.
Online games can be credited for being the best help to parents at the time of lockdown. Games kept the children busy making it easy for parents to keep them at home. While it has not been hidden from us that the market of online gaming is growing very fast, the vulnerability caused in a child’s mind due to its addiction is out as well. There have been many debates regarding the advantages and disadvantages of online gaming. While many studies have presented its benefits some have criticized it for developing a lazy generation. Let us look at some of the advantages and disadvantages of online gaming.
Some of the Advantages of Online Gaming are:
Develops Multi-tasking skills: Many games in the market require maximum attention when the player has to gather the weapons along with fighting the opponent. This develops the multi-tasking ability in the player which can be very well equipped in real life. Hence providing an important life skill to the players.
Increased Concentration: Games that include warfares demands maximum attention of the player in every direction of the game. This way the player is forced to only focus on the game neglecting the outer disturbance, hence improving the concentration and memory of the player.
Promotes Teamwork: Multiplayer games are to be played with team-mates. This promotes the strategy of teamwork in the minds of the player. This can further help the player in his future jobs and also develop his mindset with a more compassionate approach towards his team.
Develop future skills: While promoting teamwork multiplayer games also demand instant reaction and problem-solving skills while attempting a task in the game. These skills when employed in real life can increase the outsourcing capacity of the player, thus developing his skills for future life.
With the above advantages, there are many disadvantages of online gaming as well. Some of them are listed below:
Addiction: This is one of the biggest disadvantages of online gaming. Online Video games are designed to be addictive but it is up to the person to control himself from getting addicted. One of the studies compares the addiction to online gaming as bad as that of drugs. This addiction can also affect the academics of a student. So if you ever feel like you are spending a lot of time on your computer or mobile then ALERT! This can be dangerous for your mental health.
Promote Aggression: Online gaming inhabits the player with a different level of stress. A stressful player can turn aggressive towards the people surrounding him. In a Psychological experiment, the people playing violent video games were examined to be more aggressive and have lower patience levels than others.
Social Replacement: While many stats are presenting that people who are regular gamers may tend to lose their self-esteem and their confidence, this can also result in turning the people anti-social. Players may start to find socializing too difficult and thus end up being a loner.
Obesity: As surprising as it may sound, one of the most common problems found in gamers is the problem of Obesity. Sometimes players get so involved in the games that they lose track of their appetite, eating more than required. Also, online gaming does not include any physical activity for the extra calories to be burnt resulting in the accumulation of extra fat on the body of the gamer.
Bad Vision: Spending a lot of time in front of the computer or cell phone may result in a distorted vision of the player.
It’s said that everything done in excess is harmful. It is best applicable to online gaming which if played for some time is beneficial both mentally and socially but is equally dangerous if played in excess. So while enjoying online games also pay attention to your physical and mental health.
We all know that laughter is one of the best therapy to heal a person. There are many laughter clubs and stand-up comedians who are trying to make people laugh through various antics and therapies. Today is the day to celebrate this best therapy; WORLD LAUGHTER DAY!
Let’s understand how this day came into existence,
It was established in the year of 1998 by Dr. Madan Kataria in Mumbai, India. Dr. Kataria was the founder of the worldwide Laughter Yoga movement. He was very much impressed with the Facial Feedback hypothesis. This hypothesis suggests the connection of someone’s facial expression to their emotions. This was the basis of the foundation of World Laughter Day by Dr. Kataria and his main aim was to promote health and positivity through laughter.
Every Year, World Laughter Day is celebrated on first Sunday of May. It is marked on 2 May this year. In the middle of the pandemic this day is acting as a ray of hope and brings out a little positivity amidst all these crises. Laughter day is celebrated for the positive manifestation of World peace and to promote global brotherhood and friendship. On this day people come together for some moments of time and laugh their hearts out. It was first celebrated in Mumbai in 2008.
We all know how beneficial laughter is to us. Let’s take a look at some of those benefits:
ABS through laughter?: Yes, you read that right. Studies have shown that laughter works just like those ab-workouts. So this means you can also have toned abs without having to do those crunches or HIIT Ab workouts. Thank God!
Improves Cardiac Health: If a person is unable to do a cardio workout, he can just laugh because laughter is considered as one of the best Cardio workouts one can do. When a person laughs, there is an increase in the pumping of heart which gradually improves the cardiac health of the person. It is like those sale which says Buy 1, Get 1 free! Laughter not only gives you better physical health but also enables you to have a mental peace providing a good mental health.
Reduces Stress: One of the main problem experienced by today’s generation is the stress. Every other person is stressed in one way or the other. When a person laughs the anxiety and stress hormones are cut off hence enabling the person to feel better. It is thus used by many doctors as a therapy against several mental disorders.
Releases Endorphins: Endorphins are the natural pain killers produced by our body. When a person laughs, it enables our pituitary gland to release endorphins which gradually allows a person to feel better and more pleasant overall.
Lowers Blood pleasure: Laughter impacts our blood pressure levels lowering the risks of stroke or a heart attack.
If we can simply have so many benefits just be laughing then why not let’s just laugh for sometime. Kindly spare 5 minutes of your time to see the following video:
As you can see how a simple laughter can bring a smile on so many faces. You can watch some comedy shows, movies or even some stand-up comedies on this laughter day. Let us promise to celebrate every day as a laughter day. Keep laughing your hearts out! Stay Happy, Stay Healthy.
With the dream city as its capital, Maharashtra is the second most populous state of the country. Along with being the most industrialised state of the nation, it is also the largest contributor to the GDP of India. It is ‘The Land of the Valiants’. The Ganesh Chaturthi celebration of this state is one of the famous festivals contributing to the economy of the nation. ‘Laal Bagh cha Raja’ in Mumbai is a great tourist attraction.
Shahaji Bhosale was the first Maratha to establish his independent rule. His legacy was continued by his son Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the one who is credited for the major expansion of the Maratha Empire.
The Marathas are largely attributed for ending the Mughal rule in India.
They were the chief participants in the Third battle of Panipat in the year 1751.
The rule of Marathas came to an end after the third Anglo-Maratha war. Though their rule ended their power was both appreciated and feared by the people.
“India contains no more than two great powers, British and Maratha, and every other state acknowledges the influence of one or the other. Every inch that we recede will be occupied by them.’Charles Metcalfe, Governor-General wrote in 1806.
The first railway line of the nation was laid between Bori Bunder and Thane in 1853.
The first textile Mill was set up in Mumbai in 1854. Mumbai became one of the most important ports on western coast overtaking Surat.
Bombay became one of the most important presidencies under the British rule. The second University in India was established here after the University of Calcutta in 1857.
After partition both the Gujarati and the Marathi people demanded a new state on the basis of their language. On 1 May 1960, their demands were fulfilled dividing the Bombay presidency into two states; Gujarat and Maharashtra.
Having a rich history, Maharashtra is also known for its various tourists spots. Some of the main tourists attraction of the state are:
The city of dreams, Mumbai.
‘The Oxford of the east’ and the IT centre of the nation, Pune.
The Hill stations like Lonawala, Mahabaleshwar, Khandala, Palghar and Matheran (the cutest hill station of India).
The famous temples of Nashik and Shirdi.
The historic cities like Aurangabad, Ahmednagar, Kolhapur, etc.
The majestic Ajanta and Ellora caves, Elephanta caves are the important UNESCO World Heritage sites of the state.
Sharing a coastline with Arabian Sea the state is endowed with numerous beaches and in-land fresh water lakes.
Many forts like that of Raigarh, Rajmachi, Pratapgarh, Sinhagarh, Kolaba, mark the historic importance of the state.
Adlabs Imagica is one of the best amusement parks in the country.
And the list goes on. Maharashtra has given many famous:
Valiant leaders like: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Rani Laxmi Bai, Peshwa Bajirao, Ahilya Bai Holkar, etc.
Independence warriors like: Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Tantia Tope, Vasudev Balwant Phadke, etc.
One of the most famous politician Bal Thackeray formed the party Shiv Sena for the welfare of the common man in Maharashtra.
Marathi people take pride for their valiant Heritage and celebrate the foundation of this state every year with great joy. Maharashtra is a must visit state for every Indian. Lets celebrate this pride with the recitation of ‘JAI MAHARASHTRA…!’
61 years ago from today, foundation of a state named Gujarat was done in India. Known for its rich culture and heritage, Gujarat is the fifth-largest state in the country. It is well known for its industrialization and diamonds. Surat is the city where most of the diamonds of the world are imported to get polished. Gujarat is one of the major contributor in country’s economy. What makes this state more popular is the rate of unemployment which is surprisingly low here and also the title of manufacturing hub of India. It is also one of the greatest producer of cotton. The textile industries have played a great significance in building up the industrialization in the nation.
Let’s take a virtual tour of Gujarat and for that let us know a little history of the state:
Gujarat was one of the main centres of the Indus Valley civilization. It comprises the ancient cities like Lothal, Dholavira, Gola Dhoro etc. Lothal is considered one of the first seaports of the world.
The popular temple of Somnath, Gujarat was looted by Muhammad Ghori.
The Architectural style of Gujarat was used by the Mughal Emperor Akbar in the incarnations of Fatehpur Sikri.
Surat was one of the most important ports for trading. It was popularly known as ‘Gateway to the east’.
Historic events like the Kheda Satyagraha and Dandi March were witnessed by this state.
After partition, Gujarat was a part of a large province called Bombay with the capital city Bombay (present- Mumbai).
When every state was being divided on the basis of the language, the Gujarati and Marathi speaking people demanded different states for themselves.
On 1 May 1960, their demand was fulfilled with the state of Gujarat for Gujarati speaking people and the state of Maharashtra for Marathi speaking people.
The first capital of Gujarat was Ahmedabad, which was later moved to Gandhinagar in 1970.
Places to visit in Gujarat:
Rann of Kachchh, One of the most beautiful yet surreal places in India with its white desert is a must visit for every Indian in their lifetime.
Gir National Park, A home for Asiatic lions.
Saputara Hill Station.
Statue of Unity.
Historic cities like Dholavira with the remarkable excavation of Indus Valley Civilization.
Famous temples of Dwarka and Somanth.
The city of Junagadh with its historical monuments.
AMUL (Anand Milk Udhyog Limited) Industry in the Anand district.
The Hills of Pavagadh and Girnar embedded with the stories of Mohammad Begda (Be-Gad: Two Hills) portraying communal unity in India.
With a coastline of 1600 kilometres, Gujarat is also famous for its different beaches. Kandla, one of the most important ports of India is found in this state.
And many more. People also find their interest in visiting the cities of Ahmedabad, Surat, and Vadodara. Ahmedabaad is also known as ‘The Manchester of India’. Tarnetar fair and the Rann Utsav are some of the famous fair-festival of this state after Navratri, main festival of the state.
Gujarat’s development was acknowledged by people when the earthquake hit the district Bhuj in the year 2001. An immense destruction was caused to the life and the property. When nobody was expecting the normalcy in the district for at least 5 to 6 years, to one’s surprise the damage was refurbished in about 2 years. Besides development, Gujarat is also known to be one of the safest state for women.
Gujarat marks the birth of great political leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Indulal Yagnik, of famous Businessmen like Mukesh Ambani, Gautam Adani, of famous poets like Zaverchand Meghani, Narsih Mehta, Umashankar Joshi etc. It is indeed the land where ‘great personalities’ are born.
Gujarati people take pride in celebrating the birth of this exemptionary state reciting ‘JAI JAI GARVI GUJARAT…’
In a recent news, NASA has confirmed of its trials to provide fresh leafy vegetables to the astronauts and currently the news that is capturing everyone’s eye is the success NASA achieved in accomplishing the same.
NASA took to its official page handle and shared the picture of plant. It also stated: ‘Astronauts on the International Space Station recently enjoyed a fresh supply of leafy greens, thanks in large part to the efforts of Expedition 64 crew member Michael Hopkins.’[1]
‘NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1 mission commander took the lead on conducting four Vegetable Production System(Veggie) experiments, with the last two wrapping up after an April 13 harvest. VEG-03K and VEG-03L tested a new space crop, ‘Amara’ mustard, and a previously grown crop, ‘Extra Dwarf’ pak choi. They were grown for 64 days, the longest leafy greens have grown on station.’[2]
Michael Hopkins smells ‘Extra Dwarf’ pak choi plants growing aboard the International Space Station on March 26, 2021. Source: http://nasa.gov
It was simultaneously reported that the pak choi began its reproductive cycle and the flowers were also observed on it. One of space crop production project scientist and science lead on the four-plant experiments, Matt Romeyn remarked about Hopkins as ‘ I wasn’t all at surprised that he chose this route to make sure the plants were fully pollinated because he has always wanted to be very involved’.
This is indeed one of the incredible achievements by NASA. It is expected to try planting more of them. This is a good news for the astronauts who are completing their duties at International Space Station.
With a constant surge in covid cases of the capital city, the central government makes the Government of NCT of Delhi (Amendment) Act, 2021 effective in the ‘National Capital Territory of India’ from 27 April 2021. It means that now while referring to the ‘Government’ of Delhi we will be referring to ‘Lieutenant Governor’. It is a big setback for the AAP Government and Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal.
The question that arises here is ‘What is the Government of NCT of Delhi Act and how can it be a setback to the AAP Government?’
For this answer let’s start from the Background of this act:
This act was introduced in the 69th Amendment, 1991 and it stated: ‘the GNCTD Act outlines the powers of the Assembly, the discretionary powers enjoyed by the LG, and the duties of the Chief Minister with respect to the need to furnish information to the LG.’
The Key-features of this Act are as follows:
The matters which dealt with public, public order and land were already in the hands of the central government and the rest were being handled by the government formed at the Capital. This Act gives discretionary power to LG even in the administrative measures where the Delhi government was empowered to make laws.
This Act hands over the power of the administration of Delhi into the hands of LG. When this Act is implemented, the AAP Government won’t be able to take any legislative decisions without presenting it to and getting permission from the LG. This Act thus acts as a setback to the Delhi Government and seizes all its administrative powers.
When an amendment in this act was being passed by Lok Sabha on 22 March and by Rajya Sabha on 24 March, the Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal mourned it as ‘Sad day for Indian Democracy’.
As per today this Act has been passed looking at the everyday spike in the cases. While the High Court had warned the government of this future, it was revealed shortly afterwards that the government had been spending more on Advertisements and was proving incompetent in controlling this crisis. This was when the central government had to intervene and bring the Government of NCT of Delhi in force.
We as citizens can pray for the recovery of our people and hope for this second wave to end soon.
From the intermediate schools, we have been taught about how useful oxygen is for us, but Indians are realizing its true value now.
We are in the middle of a pandemic and the cases in India know no upper limits. India is observing more than 3 lakh cases every day, officials are claiming these to be false data of the actual cases. Some officials are claiming to have everyday cases of more than 25 lakhs a day. Almost half of the world’s daily cases are reported from India. It seems Indians have learnt nothing from the first wave of the pandemic.
There is a shortage of beds, vaccines, medicines, and even death beds in the crematoriums. Many people are coming out to provide help for the same. People have even started making a business out of this scarcity by selling the vaccines and medicines in ‘black’. There are even cases reported regarding the loots of medicines. Religious places are converting themselves into covid-care centers. There are many organizations set up to provide food to those infected with the virus.
But the shortage of oxygen in the country was not expected ever until now. Today almost every other state of the country is facing a shortage of oxygen and one among them is our national capital, Delhi. Due to the presence of farmers on the borders, Oxygen couldn’t be supplied to Delhi through roads, while facing the crisis Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi, took to his Twitter handle and tweeted:
I am writing to all CMs requesting them to provide oxygen to Delhi, if they have spare. Though Central govt. is also helping us, the severity of corona is such that all available resources are proving inadequate.
When none had expected the shortage of oxygen, neither of states expected the arrival of Oxygen on Rails. Yes! That’s true; delivery of Oxygen in various states is being made through railways. In the states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, the supply of Oxygen is done through Rails to fulfill India’s oxygen requirements. While supplying the Oxygen to the capital through roads was not possible, the Oxygen Express arrived in the National capital on Tuesday, 27 April with 70 tonnes of liquid oxygen.
Indian Railways have always shown their potential and have been upfront amidst this crisis. Last year we saw the conversion of railway coaches into beds and this year along with continuing the last year’s measure, it also took the initiative of starting Oxygen Express. While its potential has never been doubted; Piyush Goyal, the Minister of Railways, tweeted on his official account regarding the fulfillment of India’s oxygen requirements through Oxygen Express:
#OxygenExpress is ensuring smooth, quick & uninterrupted movement of Liquid Medical Oxygen across the nation for COVID-19 patients.
Indian Railways is on a mission to fulfil India’s Oxygen requirements & win our collective battle against the pandemic.
Many other countries have also joined hands with India to fight the virus and the second-wave of pandemic.
Despite the shortage of oxygen in many states, there are several cases reported for the oxygen cylinders being stolen. People are panicking and thus storing the oxygen for their loved ones. The doctors have reported that Oxygen becomes important only when the condition of the patient worsens and even requested people to stop storing oxygen for it is more required by the critical patients in hospital.
Everyone is playing their part to control the covid crisis and so must we. The minimum we can do to control this virus is to stay at home and only leave home when it is really necessary. This is the battle every Indian has to fight by staying at home. Take Care! Stay Safe!
‘Tomorrow is the 30th day of challenge, this is it’, Anisha kept thinking. Started at 94 kgs before a month, Anisha was an obese girl standing 5’4″ tall. She wanted to make it to 60 kgs in 5 months for her brother’s wedding. The night before the result day was the longest night Anisha had ever seen. The excitement and nervousness of result didn’t allow her to sleep properly. It was this day she had been waiting for so long.
In the morning she was ready to step onto the weighing scale. The wait for the result day was finally over. She was also thinking about the chocolates, pizza, ice-cream and every other food item she’d eat today after a keto of one month. The day before there were only two emotions she was facing i.e., nervousness and excitement but today another emotion took the prior position and that was fear. What if she hadn’t lost any weight by now? What if that one spoon of custard spoiled it all? What if this one month of starvation and sweating goes in vein? She had been noticing the difference in her physique but still the fear of not losing weight took over.
She finally stepped onto the scale. Her heart pounded as fast as the rumbling of numbers on the scale. The number started rising over 80 kg, at that time Anisha just wished for it to stop before 90. She placed her palms over her face to cover her eyes from seeing the result, though she kept peeping from between the fingers. ‘89.75’ the scale said. Anisha was happy for she lost about 4 kgs in a month but wasn’t satisfied. After one month of the hard-work she expected to lose at least 5 to 7 kgs. But all she lost was 4 kgs. After a battle with herself she had decided onto a cheat meal but the disappointment with her results led her to grief eating.
At some point or the other we also have faced the same situation as Anisha. Losing weight or gaining weight has been a constant struggle in everyone’s life. The only thing that keeps the strugglers associated with each other is the ‘WEIGHING SCALE’. From the leanest to the heaviest, this scale haunts every person at least once in their lifetime. If you ask an obese person if what scares him the most, the answer wouldn’t be ghost, dogs or some fancy phobias but it would be weighing scale.
While everyone is trying to fit into the societal norms of the ideal weight, many are starving themselves to death for the perfect figure. But who has made these norms defining perfect body type? If the person if healthy in his own body weight then who is society to define his perfect body type or ideal weight?
This concept not only makes the people starve and over-eat but also ruins their self-esteem. In India specially a great emphasis is laid on the weight of adults who have just turned 20, for they have to get ready for the marriage proposals. ‘Itni moti ladki se shaadi kaun karega? Itne patle ladke ko toh ladkiya dekh kar hi mana kar dengi. Thoda sa weight kam karle/ badha le fir perfect hai shaadi k liye. Chaar log kya sochenge?
Do not let those chaar log or the numbers on weighing scale define your perfections. Everybody is a unique person and the key to happiness lies in embracing your uniqueness. It is always advised to live a healthy life, but healthy just doesn’t mean physically healthy but also mentally healthy. Love Yourself and embrace your flaws like your perfections.
Recently the elections took place in many states of the country. Amidst the corona crisis, the one state which captured everyone’s eye is West Bengal. While the entire nation is suffering from the virus, shortage of oxygen and beds, and high spikes in everyday cases, rallies are being held in the state of West Bengal. Hundreds and thousands of people are attending the rallies on daily basis without following the covid-19 norms. The state itself tracked about 12876 cases in the last 24 hours.
The eight-phase elections in Bengal during second wave of Covid seem to follow none of the covid norms and political rallies are a potential source of spreading the infection. While the Election commission being warned many times for the same, on Thursday finally the court censured the commission. The Chief Justice, High Court of Calcutta remarked: “The Election Commission is empowered to act, but what is it doing about polls in these Covid times? The EC is just passing circulars and leaving it to the people. But the EC has implementing authority” Stating that the election commission had not been able to match even one-tenth of T.N Seshan’s office. It further warned the commission, ‘They better act like Seshan or we will.’
This is not first time the name ‘Seshan’ has come up, even before this many times this name is cited while the elections are held. But Who is Seshan and why do people remember him during the times of elections?
Best known for his electoral reforms; the 10th chief election commissioner of India, Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshanwas born in 1932. He served as a civil servant and a bureaucrat in the Indian Administrative Services. He was awarded Ramon Magsaysay Award for government services in 1996.
He is considered to be the one who has redefined Election pattern of India. During his period as an Election commissioner (from 12 December 1990 to 11 December 1996), he acknowledged the malpractices which were going on in the electoral system of the nation.
Out of all the reforms he implemented some of them are as mentioned below:
Enforcement of Election Code of Conduct.
Appointing election officials from states other than the one facing polls.
He made Voter IDs compulsory for all eligible voters.
He implemented a limit on Candidates’ election expenditure.
Some of the malpractices identified and were prohibited after, are as follows:
Using government funds and machinery for campaigning
Using the places of worship for campaigns
Distributing liquor during the campaigns and outside the voting booth.
Bribing, intimidating, or threatening voters for the vote.
Barging into voters’ caste or communal feelings.
Using high music volume and loudspeakers for campaigns (however this was allowed only if the parties have sought written permission).
Some of his other works done to reform the electoral system are:
More than 40,000 expenditure accounts were reviewed by him and about 14,000 candidates were disqualified on the account of providing false information.
The Elections were canceled in Bihar and Haryana due to some electoral issues in 1992.
Based on these reforms, during the General Elections of India in the year 1999 about 1400 candidates were disqualified for 3 years based on not submitting their expenditure accounts. Even after completing his office periods his reforms proved to be the new shape of the electoral system of the nation, limiting the campaigning strategies for the political parties.
Whenever there’s an error noticed in the Indian Electoral pattern, only one name comes up: ‘T. N. SESHAN’.
India is one of the worst-hit countries by the second wave of covid-19 and the situation is getting worse with every passing day since March 2021. When 3,32,730 new cases were recorded on 22 April 2021 (the highest spike in one day), the cumulative count of coronavirus cases has so far exceeded the mark of 1.5 crores. The death toll is soon going to reach the mark of 2 lakhs. Along with the shortages of oxygen and beds in the country, there is a scarcity of even death beds for people to cremate.
Amidst this crisis, many people have shown up to help and support the nation in various ways possible. Tata steels and Reliance when working at the up-front to provide oxygen to the states worst hit by the pandemic, there are other small organizations set up which are providing food to the families hit by a coronavirus. Many Religious places have turned themselves into covid-care centers providing proper beds and nursing facilities.
While there are not just the patients infected with a virus, who are affected due to the second wave of the pandemic, there are many laborers, students, businesses suffering in their respective departments due to the virus.
Following the allegiance of helping poor people, The Government has announced to provide free food under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana on 23 April 2021 (Friday). Five Kgs of grains are dedicated to being provided to the needy for the two upcoming months i.e., May and June. A total of 26,000 crore budget is been assigned for the same. This initiative comes in after the spike of cases noticed in the country in the last few days. It is expected that this scheme will benefit about 80 crore beneficiaries.
Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana also described as PMGKAY was started in March 2020 when the country started suffering from the Global pandemic. It was part of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package(PMGKP) which was a package planned for the poor to fight the pandemic in March 2020. Last year it was planned for 3 months i.e., From April to June.
According to the Union Ministry of Food and Public Distribution, a total of 116.02 lakh metric tonnes of food grains was distributed to the 80 crores Ration-card holders under the National Food Security Act for free. Its success was observed in the first month of the scheme itself when about 93% of food grains were distributed among more than 74 crore beneficiaries. It targeted more than 72 crore beneficiaries with the distribution of about 91% of food grains. In June 2021, about 56 crore beneficiaries were allocated with about 71% food grains. This was done with the addition of subsidized food grain already provided under the Public Distribution System (PDS).
It is a good initiative taken by the government to provide help to the ones in need. While there are schemes and many people are taking up initiatives to help us during this pandemic, It is also our responsibility to take care of ourselves and our family. We must stay at home and leave only if it’s too necessary. Following covid-19 guidelines can save us and those related to us. Take care!
Social Media! One of the most happening things in people’s life these days. It was originally invented for people to connect, communicate and stay close to their loved ones but these days it has been used by people for the following main purposes: Learning, Interacting, Marketing, and Sharing.
Many of the young influencers have started using it as a means of earning. Companies are making huge amount out of Digital Marketing. Whether social media is good or bad has been a popular debate among both the old and new groups of people. Where some people find it comfortable to open up to some random person on social platforms, the vulnerable sides of these platforms aren’t hidden either. For one person social media can be a lifesaver whereas for the other person it can be just a video, a picture or even a heinous comment to conclude his career.
When on one hand it has made communication and connecting with people easy on the other hand it is also been accused of making people anti-social. Yes, you read that right. ‘SOCIAL’ Media accused of making people ‘ANTI-SOCIAL’; Irony! isn’t it? But what is more ironic is the fact of this being true.
Our lives depend on these platforms even for the slightest of information. These has been proving itself like an escape from reality; if you don’t want to talk to someone in front of you, then put your heads down into your phone. Regardless of how useful these platforms may be many studies have shown that due to the virtual life people have started losing their confidence to engage with a present life situation. They have discovered a new way of dealing: by posting their experiences on various apps.
Today not having access to internet is bigger issue to some than not having a dream for oneself. Imagining a situation where we can’t track our social accounts is worse than a nightmare. This has even led to a discovery of many mental disorders and the most interesting one for millennials is the FOMO. Those unknown to this acronym, it means Fear Of Missing Out. At present FOMO is more dangerous than depression!
But for once let’s consider WHAT IF LIKE THE OTHER STORES IN MARKET, SOCIAL MEDIA TOO SHUTS DOWN AT 6 P.M? What will our life be like in the last quarter of the day? Will people start connecting again at the night parties again or will their FOMO dig into them?
If we take out the pros of this situation, we can list them as follows:
More people will show up at the parties and families will be spending more time at the dinner table in the absence of cell phones.
People will start discussing real problems with real people.
What people are looking for in the world of social media may find it near them.
People may start spending time with their loved ones.
The hidden artist of the people will find the time to come out and hence allowing creative juices from the blocked canals of the brain to flow.
Out of the extra time, people may start taking care of their bodies more.
Even for a brief moment people will start paying attention to their own lives.
Aren’t these different therapies used by psychiatrists?
But this is all just an imagination and one thing which is not, is the need of improvement in living we all need. There is a fake world people have created around them. But we must understand that its not the Likes and comments that are important but the mental peace; which almost every other individual is lacking. We shall conclude this post with words of a famous German diarist :
“The final forming of a person’s character lies in their own hand”
Track2Training 
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