A Minute of Positivity Delivered Fresh

Hey,

I guess you do enjoy solving puzzles every now and then, so here's one for you.

Clue A: The word starts from M and ends with Y.

Clue B: It's worse that good but better than poor.

Clue C: It makes you feel so, so frustrated all the time.

If you haven't guessed it already, then let me just spill the beans. I am talking about mediocrity. That old, familiar feeling of rubbing shoulders with regular, ordinary, average people. That feeling of not being able to deliver the best that you can. No, you don't deserve to be there! You belong to a rare breed of doers who plan well, execute even better, win hearts, spread warmth and go back to bed at the end of the day with joy in heart and peace in mind. Let tonight be the last night of your mediocrity, and tomorrow mark the beginning of excellence in your life worth every pound of gold!  

A little bit on life's journey

It doesn't matter where you come from

What matters is where you want to travel to,

The path you take,

The people you chose to engage with,

And the decisions you make

http://www.ltgtr.in/2012/07/the-journey_19.html

Reveal your True Colours!

I recently heard Cindy Lauper's True Colours for the first time and found it to be one of those songs that has the potential to inspire people. While others may have different thoughts about what this song is all about, for me it conveys that we are all capable of doing great things in life. Each one of us is capable of living a life we dream of living. And when is the right time to do so? Now! So shed away your inhibitions, insecurities and everything that holds you back from doing what you are meant to do, and reveal your true colours, the different facets of your personalities and abilities, for the world to see, take notice and recognize. 

The Inheritance of Fate

Situation 1: Gauri's stomach is aching badly. She is weeping and nothing seems to help her. She tells her class teacher to allow her to go back home. But the teacher won't let her go on her own, as she is too young. So the teacher makes a call to her father. It's only 8:30 in the morning and the man has already began his work as a peon in an office. He cannot come to school to pick his daughter up. The teacher now inquires about his wife. The lady has also left for her work. Gauri has no option but to stay in school for the whole day.

Situation 2: Harish is a well-to-do businessman, husband and a father of two. He meets the same teacher at a departmental story, with clothes for self and kids in a shopping cart. He wants the teacher to tutor his younger son who is in fourth grade. He is willing to spend obscene money but just wants his son to do "better than his peers". During the conversation, he mentions about his son's expensive holiday home work projects, which he got made from a stationery shop, English speaking classes, piano lessons and skating practice. 

Are we being a little over-hopeful when we talk about bridging the achievement gap? The teacher now feels so. 

Thinking of Farheen

Farheen was one of my brightest, most effervescent and participative student. She outperformed the other kids in class both academically and non-academically. She was a gifted artist, a talented singer and a member of our school's choir group. She also danced well and always participated in school events. Unlike some of the other kids, she was very inquisitive and wanted to know everything. She also picked up things really fast.

Farheen left school at the end of the last academic year. She has permanently shifted to her village with her family and has no plans to come back. When I got to know about her leaving school, I was shocked and upset. She used to burst into tears whenever I or somebody else interrogated about this. She was really attached to the school, classroom, her classmates and friends, and me.

Alvi and Gulfatima, her cousins, who are also my students, recently went to their village, the same village where Farheen now lives. As I met Alvi and Gulfatima in school two days back, they told me about their experiences of visiting their village and also mentioned about Farheen. The latter had sent a message for me, for some of her close friends in class as well as one message for all the students: to not fight with each other and listen to bhaiya, as she used to fondly call me.

I can only pray to God that she receives the kind of education and upbringing she deserves to, and grows on to become a teacher, which is her ambition in life.

Sharing Knowledge through Wikipedia

Did you know that all Wikipedia articles are written by regular folks like you and me?

I used to assume they had thousands of skilled authors who spent hours each day researching and writing millions of articles on this gigantic encyclopedia. But today, after attending an event, I got to learn that anybody can create content on Wikipedia for millions of people to read. Besides creating content, you can also edit the existing articles. Editing can be done in terms of addition of more information about the particular topic, as well as replacing incorrect data with the correct one, besides checking for spellings and grammar. While there is no tangible incentive for you to write or edit for Wikipedia, getting your work read and appreciated by millions of readers all over the world is quite an ego-boost.

Writing and editing on Wikipedia is fairly simple and self-explanatory. That said, you can glance through the how-to guides which are widely available online. I am excited to be writing for Wikipedia. Are you?