Why Change Anything at all?

Some of us feel this way - Life is so beautiful without any changes at all, and so is our country. In fact, some of us at times, feel like India is just perfect – diverse in all aspects. India is so full of diversities that we may also be proud of how our nation is almost like a treasure chest of different cultures, religions, people, how funny politics and illiteracy is, how patient and tolerant people are, etc. In fact, we laugh at ourselves, at every single thing that we think makes us ‘Indian’ – like watching movies in pirated CDs, throwing trash about, teasing politicians and more. Life goes on for all of us and it’s simply beautiful to live in India. Everything’s just as it should be, as long as you mind your own business and learn to adjust to the situations. So why should there be any change at all? Why should we start protesting for small stuff, restrain ourselves for trivial things and be so rigid? It’s perfectly okay to be carefree and easy-going, right? That way, we’ll find more happiness and joy in our lives. If we fight for justice, fight against poverty, fight against discrimination and a whole lot of such causes, where will we find the time to live?? Life will be too full of heart-breaks and disappointments and dangers, that we won’t be able to afford even a single moment of true serenity. Isn’t that just about right?

No. It’s not.

NeWsLeTTeRs

Our newsletters have been appreciated in such high terms by our school principal and believe it or not, our team seems to be going to great heights, very soon!

It was, of course a very silly decision at first… creating the newsletters for spreading awareness… newsletters which no one actually read. But the universe has once again proved that true hard work and passion never goes unrewarded. Through a twist of fate, what could have disastrously ended as a silly little girl’s team, is gaining more recognition and respect, among everyone from teachers to peers. This had given me a new strength, the strength of confidence. I don’t know if it is just me or something else, but it does awfully seem like we are very shy, timid and meek. What we need is self-confidence. We may have a great aim, a great team and great skills. But we lack the heart to believe that what we are doing is not silly or stupid. It’s mainly because we receive little respect or appreciation for what we do. But now, I think that what our team need is the ideal booster that has come along by naturally. And for that, we can only thank God [or luck, as it is for atheists ;)].

The two newsletters we made have received great attention and the entire CHANGE team is going to be introduced to our Principal. It was rather just shock at first, but now, thinking about it with a calmer mind, I think this is the perfect opportunity to boost the esteem and morale of the team. We are expecting the booklets to become the library’s possession after it has been passed into the school Chairman’s hands and received his approval.

Moreover,  as November 7th is Magazines Day, our first newsletter is going to be circulated among the English teachers of our school.

Meanwhile, it’s best if we plan our next edition, because now our reputation is growing, by all means, we should keep it up! :)
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Five Steps to Recycle Paper at Home

Paper is one of the most useful stuff on planet Earth. That’s chiefly why you can always see lots of paper, crumpled, filed, bound, etc. almost everywhere. But this also means that paper is one amongst the highest contributors to the domestic garbage bin. The trouble with this is not just waste disposal. Oh no, the matter is much more serious. Paper is made out of wood pulp and as a result, thousands of trees are cut every year for manufacturing paper. If you’re wondering why that’s a big problem, check this small excerpt from my 7th Std. Environmental Science textbook:

“Forests help in balancing oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, regulate earth’s temperature regime and the water cycle. Forests increase the local precipitation and water holding capacity of the soil, thus preventing drought situation. Vegetation cover slows down the run off on soil surface checking soil erosion, silting and landslides, reducing the danger of flood. Fallen leaves maintain the fertility of soil by returning the nutrients. Forests also provide home to large number of wild animals protecting them against strong winds and solar radiation.”

So indiscriminately cutting down trees does a lot of harm to the environment. But it would be absolutely crazy to ask everyone to stop using paper and go back to the old method of writing on cloth or animal skins. So, what is sane is to reduce the wastage of paper and to recycle used ones. With this, I better get into the real subject of this article – How to Recycle Paper at Home [the easiest and cheapest method by far].

Throwing Away...

One of the 100s of things which we are truly against is throwing waste [papers/wrappers/garbage/etc.] on any ground. This purely arises from the conviction that no matter what you throw inside the house, stop polluting the places outside… mainly because that place is not yours and you have no right to make it ugly. But then, there’s also another way of thinking about it – It’s our country and we have to keep it clean [an approach which doesn’t seem to be producing much results]. Nevertheless, no matter how you look at it, throwing rubbish on roads can never be justified. These are a couple of excuses people usually give for doing it [some of them are downright stupid, but like we say… the stupider they are, the more interesting they become!]:

The Power Of One

"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything but still I can do something. And because I cannot do everything I will not refuse to do the something that I can do" ~ Helen Keller.




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On Idolization & Madness

Drive through the streets of Madurai during the time of some minister’s arrival and you will be greeted by monstrous banners, so huge and yet so sneaky that you will never know when you’re going to crash into one. They will be everywhere along the road, and sometimes even ON the road… lurking round the corner, waiting to flash the faces of politicians and their families and followers. Apart from the terrible inconvenience and dangerous hazard that they are to drivers and passersby who are already strained because of the uneven, bumpy roads, killer vehicles and the unwritten accord for not following traffic rules, they are also rather the image of how really silly politics is becoming in our country.

One particular politician in Madurai is very famous. He is M.K. Alagiri, Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers, and is one of the two sons of Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister, M. Karunanidhi. This is like no news at all for someone from the South. This is because we are often reminded of this particular family of politicians whenever something or someone of importance comes to visit.

Let's Build the Nation.

About 482 years ago, the founder of the Mughal Dynasty, Babar, demolished a Hindu temple in a small plot of land in Ayodhya, which was believed to be ‘Ramjanmabhoomi’, or ‘the birthplace of Ram’. Then, nearly 464 years later, an angry mob led by some ambitious politicians destroyed the temple and this led to riots. But the matter didn’t rest there. A decade after the demolition, 58 people were killed in Godhra, Gujarat, in an attack on a train believed to be carrying Hindu volunteers from Ayodhya. Riots followed in the state and over 1267 people were reported to have died in these. And that’s just the official record of the number of deaths. The number of people who went missing, who were harassed, those whose properties were destroyed or those who had to flee was probably forgotten.

This whole state of chaos boosted the BJP and RSS to their positions in politics, with BJP becoming the primary opposition party in the Parliament.No wonder a guy in face book commented: “We have made enough of Mosques and Temples… Let’s build the nation now”