I always believed it was easier to be a villain than a hero. “Everything is simple, you fight only for yourself, not for others like a hero”. But it was not as simple as I thought. When I was in school many years ago, everyone in my class was “villain”, including me. We all studied to get better grades ourselves. We didn't help each other, we didn't even explain if one of us didn't understand, except one girl. There was the most intelligent girl in our class. She was shy, quiet and a bit mysterious. Everyone used her to raise their grades. They pretended to be her friends. However, they were fake friends like birds which flies when winter comes. One day I also decided to use her. Not to raise my grade, but to lower other classmates' grades through the essays we wrote and gave to the teacher for checking. Teacher believed her and gave this essays her for checking instead. I pretened to help her like others did. At that time, I talked with her alone for the first time. To be honest, she was different than I knew. Cheerful, kind and most importantly, sincere. She talked about her interest in drawing and what kind of pictures she drew. At this time, I wanted to distract her and achieve my goal. I hesitated, though. I felt fear and distemper inside. In order to be evil, one should not be a coward, but on the contrary, one should be brave, cold and strong. But at the same time, it took courage and strength not to be evil. These were different things that were similar to each other. And I became stronger, not to be villain. On my opinion, being the villain in someone's life isn't as cool as we watched movies. When someone becomes evil, he or she does evil to himself or herself first.
Life is a canvas waiting for a unique brushstroke, a journey filled with twists, turns, and moments that define your resilience. Life is interesting. The person who was jumping in front of you and playing with you yesterday may not be around tomorrow. I didn't think about such things before, because I didn't want to, but life forces us to realize these concepts. On the ceaseless snowy day of December 18. 2023 our bustling preparation for my mother's birthday added an extra layer of anticipation to the atmosphere. We were all happy and having fun celebrating my mother's birthday with my family. Only my brother had not yet come and we were all eagerly waiting for my brother. Suddenly, the distressing news we received on that fateful day plunged us into a collective state of shock, transforming what was meant to be a joyous celebration into an unexpected period of mourning. I got a call from my brother's phone saying that my brother was brought to the hospital in a serious condition and there was a strong possibility of death. For me, that day was a massive blow and no comfort could ease it. Once a week before, this incident happened, my brother and I had a big fight. And even without knowing it, I looked at him and said:" It would be better if you were not in our lives, you were created only to harm us. I wish you would die sooner." Each utterance I directed towards him in a tone of reproach reverberated so loudly within the confines of my mind that I found myself grappling with the challenge of justifying and consoling my troubled conscience. Around 2 a.m. in the morning, my brother was taken to a major surgery. My parents and I begged God at night not to take my brother's life and return him to us. At that time, my mother's struggles weighed heavily on my heart. . All my mother's prayers to God were very touching, even my heart was broken. At that time, I truly came to believe in the profound difficulty of being a mother. Around 5a.m my brother left this world. Darkness enveloped my vision, leaving me uncertain about what steps to take or what the future holds. My mother's cry resounded so painfully throughout the hospital that no one didn't cry. My parents, even I couldn't say a word that day. I couldn't wish such intense pain, such profound loss, even upon my enemy. In the following days, I realized that simple tasks became arduous, and the weight of loss pressed heavily on my shoulders. Amid these dark times, I sought solace in memories of happy times spent with my brother. One day, I stumbled upon a box filled with mementos from our happiest days. Photographs are frozen in time, capturing smiles, silliness, and the essence of our unbreakable bond. Each picture told a story, a testament to the love and joy we shared. In solitude, I began to discover myself through these memories. I found strength in the love we had for each other and gradually the pain started to subside. While the ache of loss never completely faded, I learned to navigate the world without my brother physically by my side. I carried his spirit with me, finding comfort in the knowledge that the happy times we shared would forever be a part of me. After this incident, I made a conscious effort to treat everyone in my life with equal kindness, learning from my mistake with my brother. Recognizing the fragility of life, I began to invest more time in my family and express my love and appreciation more frequently. Discussing this matter and recalling the circumstances from that time is a challenging task for me. However, such is life. It presents us with numerous highs and lows and we should brace ourselves for each. In sharing this story, my sincere intention is for you to value your dear ones and express your love to them regularly, because, in the end, they might not be with you tomorrow.
I was sitting in the cell-like room of my dormitory while everyone was celebrating the end of the induction week at my University. Since the event was happening just outside the yard of the dorm, I could hear the voices of happy and energetic students who had participated passionately in all the activities during that week. I was blaming and questioning my mind and soul for not going outside, getting involved, and enjoying student life instead of reading boring Computer Science books. I asked myself why I could not become the person who exposes myself to people, is extroverted, and enjoys the life she is experiencing. Yes, I was the person who buried myself in my world, only studying, desiring good grades, and aiming to become a professional. But seeing the outside world and my coursemates being very communicative, managing both study and extracurriculars, made me wonder if I was not using my full potential. Deep down, I knew that the solution was going outside, meeting my new coursemates, and forming friendships by exchanging ideas on how to start our academic journey. The difference between them and me was my frustration at that very moment. A stream of questions ran through my mind, and with some courage, I barely pushed myself after that incident. I began visiting small events and participating in national holidays held at different places, but I was still afraid to approach and be sociable in front of people. After the first midterms, I witnessed many students struggling to get good grades and master some subjects. Since I am good at math, I decided to mentor my peers. That is when my A+Club came to life. I started talking with my peers who were good at other subjects and invited them to share their knowledge with those struggling. I organized the days to teach each class, made announcement posts, reserved rooms after classes, and created sample question papers, managing my personal life simultaneously. Almost all students visited A+Club's mock exams, as my prepared questions closely resembled those of the professors. Most failing students in midterms succeeded in finals due to their hard work and the unconditional help from peers through A+Club's learning space. I have developed adaptability, problem-solving, and courage, realizing my full potential and correctly using it for the community around me. This realization led me to be a leader in two student clubs and an ambassador in three social organizations. Because I embody effective altruism. I am always ready to serve my community, helping each individual thrive by being a role model and a leader. Leadership and impact do not require a specific position or company; they start with beliefs and actions. When I see a societal problem, I do not just observe; I search for viable solutions, utilize my collective experience, learn new things, and put them into practice.
I didn't know when it started or how it started. Or what was the real reason to happen for all of those things? No, in reality, I knew the reason. I just didn't want to accept it. Maybe, I was too scared to accept it, after all decisions that I had made. Now I think that it does not matter, I mean “the reason”. What does matter is that those things have happened, and have happened with me… I decided to talk about the period of my life that I have tried to avoid thinking about for a long time. To be honest, I had never imagined that situation, certainly, those feelings were going to happen to me. I think when all of those things happened, nobody knew or realized them. How were they supposed to know? Even I was shocked by those sudden feelings. Also from the outside, it seemed like I was living in my best time ever. Finally, I was a student at one of the prestigious Universities in my country. At first, it seemed to me that I had lived for this moment only. Unfortunately, it did not last long. After a few months in my first student life, those dark feelings became to walk inside me to the outside. I felt lost. I felt something wrong with me. I felt like I had missed an important thing, the thing that I should not miss. Then, after my lessons, to avoid those feelings I got used to sleeping, even though I had never been a fan of sleeping a lot. Why all of a sudden I changed dramatically? There was no answer. I became not to read books or not to watch movies, even music became to irritate me. I didn't understand myself… I just cried and slept… I hated every single thing and person around me. Before that, I had made too many plans for my future, especially, for my student life. But I could not remember any of them... It lasted long, I mean, the pick of my “strange feelings”. If at that time, Death came and took my life, I would say nothing, even, would feel happy for his coming and making me free from those feelings. I asked God to take my life because I did not want to make my parents upset by committing suicide. Then, after “years” of that period (it seemed to me lasted that long). I tried to find the strength to do my favorite activities again. Because it is the fact that despite those feelings I used to go to my lectures and lessons every day. Also, I continued to smile at everyone and make some jokes as well. I watched movies, but not like in old times, I just watched beginnings and endings. Because of it, I had a habit of watching various videos and news on the Internet, I had never had a mobile phone, so it was new for me. During my “searching activity”, I found interesting news about “The most handsome men in the world”. I was interested in who is the first one on this list and it was some Korean boy who I didn't find handsome. After that, I searched his name on Google and found that he is a member of a famous Korean boy band. I was really surprised and interested at the same time. Then I tried to find a few songs of them on YouTube and watched some music videos of their songs. The next day while walking to my University Campus on my way, I listened to their songs, and one of them attracted me, the rhythm was really interesting, although I couldn't understand their language. I watched the music video of that song with subtitles and the song was about "dream". And there were words like “What do you dream about?” For a moment, I just froze, as it seemed that question was given to me. I realized the thing that I had never done before was "dream". I had never dreamed. Yes, there were the things that I wanted to have, or wishes that I wanted to make true. But I didn't ask myself a question, the most important question “Are they things that I want?” After that event, I became to give questions myself “What are dreams?”, “What I should dream about?”, “What makes me happy?” Day by day I understood that all my old wishes, even University decisions were made by others. In other words, people around me affected me and the decisions every single time that I had never known before. The society in that I lived was the pressure and the reason to make me do this or that decision, which was sad… sad side of my life that I had been trying to avoid. I was limited by them and just said “yes” to all their offers without thinking. “Those feelings” were my hidden emotions which I had kept deep inside for a long time. This story is not about “my dreams”. It is about a song that I found accidentally. It is about the song that helped me to find my true way. This song is not the best song ever or something like that, for others it is just a simple song. But it was the song that could be the only light for me when I was in the dark. When even though I didn't try to help to find a way to escape from those feelings to myself, a song and a boy band became “my only hero”. It might seem unbelievable, but it is true, true story about an ordinary song that taught me to dream!
a daughter's humorous hope for a mom desperately missed OK, so first things first …of course Mom has Vidal Sassoon himself doing her hair and is looking fabulous! Mom met Nora Ephron at orientation and thought she was a cool chick. The two of them hitched a ride to the party with Ferdinand Porche in his 911. The excitement and grandeur was beyond words. Everyone was still buzzing about their Secret Santa gifts. Mom got a painting of a tree next to a cottage, all signs point to Thomas Kinkade. Soon after arriving Nora made a beeline for Helen Gurley Brown. "Are you seriously wearing nylons in heaven Helen?" Mom is definitely wearing "pantyhose" in heaven too, regardless of their extinction on earth. To the squish squash of rubbing thighs she approaches the ballroom in awe. Spotting an empty seat at Henry Hill's table, she goes for it. "This guy has to have great stories" Even in heaven, the scene is reminiscent of high school; the jocks sit at one table, the politicians, actors and musicians all with their respective cliques. The champagne flows. In one far corner Robert Bork, George McGovern and Arlen Spector can be heard having a spirited conversation about the recent election. Daniel Inouye is clearly the most excited. Ernest Borgnine and Larry Hagman haven't budged from the buffet. Sally Ride has clearly had one too many Tangtinis and is chasing Neil Armstrong around with mistletoe. Richard Dawson leads a rousing game of spin-the bottle. Phyllis Diller is thrilled to be the only woman this round. Andy Griffith, Jack Klugman & Sherman Helmsley don't seem to mind indulging the harmless fun until Zalman King takes things too far.James Herr stops by to offer some potato chips. Oh boy Mom, I know you're a sucker for a man in uniform but don't go stormin Norman yet, he just got there! And now, the moment Mom and everyone else in Heaven's Class of 2012 has been waiting for…Don Cornelius introduces Whitney Houston and Donna Summer! Let the party begin. Mommy could not walk for some time, now she grabs Robin Gibb and dances the night away. She never sits down and sings along to every song at the top of her lungs with boundless energy. Adam Yauch is teaching her to rap though she has no clue who he is. Davy Jones stands on a chair for a better view. Free from physical pain and mortal concerns everyone is smiling & laughing. At last, Etta James takes the stage and slows things down. Dick Clark presides over the big ball drop while the room counts down in unison. The Class of 2012 has graduated and the calendar begins again.
it was our last race of the day. when reaching the top of the mountain, we all grabbed our equipment and veered to the side to get settled into our skis and boards. i started off rather confident, flying ahead of my family and competing with my younger brother Lucas for speed. after a few family check-ins to make sure we had everyone as we went down, I rode ahead and was determined to beat them down the mountain. I got into a nice groove, feeling my hips sway fluidly with the board as though they were one. it was a lovely slope and quite a scenic one at that, with vast mountain ranges and trees from near to far. I was skiing towards the edge of the mountain when suddenly the front of my board got caught on a patch of ice, jolting me forward off the slope, downhill towards a stream and face full of trees. I flew down head first, caught by a thick branch of a tree in the snow that knocked the wind right out of my chest. I was stuck upside down as my board was tangled within branches and the blood was rushing to my head. I tried to move my legs from up above me but the lower half of my body was simply not strong enough, I knew something was wrong with my leg but the fear that struck me worse was being trapped in the trenches of the snow for eternity. I hoisted the upper half of my body up, holding for dear life with my right hand on the branch as I carefully tried to unravel my shoes from the board. the last strap finally came undone and I watched my board plummet from above me, down to the stream of water below. it was easily a 15-foot drop from where I was hanging. I started skidding downhill uncontrollably as the branch beneath me was starting to give out from my weight. With the weight of my board off my legs, I was able to slowly reverse my body upright where each of my limbs was being held by a different branch. I could feel the branches breaking beneath my body, I could hear them crunching. I needed help. I was screaming at the top of my lungs. MOM!! DAD!!, this lasted for easily 10 minutes as I heard skiers above me whooshing past. my yells were being drowned out by the waterfall below me and I realized my voice was simply not powerful enough. panic overwhelmed me and I felt fear beginning to go into overdrive. it was just me. I had to save myself. nobody knew where I was. nobody could hear me. nobody was coming. I had to do something. I started talking to myself, saying I could do this; that I would get through this. I wasn't going to die on that mountain. I was going to be okay. one of the branches underneath my right leg had suddenly snapped, firing the adrenaline into my brain that it went time. I quickly looked around for other branches, any ridge in the snow, or an opportunity to get leverage. I needed to get my body up at least 5 feet more in order to be seen by passing skiers. it was now or never, my right leg started to slip down and I started chanting to myself that I could do this, grabbing onto anything close to me. sticks and rocks fell past me as I tried to not let that be me next. I had at least another foot to go but seemingly no way to lift myself up. as I looked up, my fingertips just touched the tip of the slope and I thought there was no way I could be seen. I took off my glove and tried to get extra height by dangling it above the ridge of the slope, to people passing by all you could see was a glove flopping in the distance above a cliff. I did this for what felt like ages as I felt my lower body tremble underneath me and my left leg throb under the pressure. I called out for help, hoping the little distance I was able to hoist myself up would make a difference in the way my voice traveled. I looked up to the sky and prayed. I had never been particularly religious and actually had pushed myself away many times from such concepts however I thought to myself if someone, something, anything was out there; I need it to please help me. it was a Christmas miracle. within minutes, I heard the voice of an older man call out from above. I remember seeing his bright red jacket as I looked up and felt a rush of hope run through me. he looked around at what he could use to help get me up. he tried lending me his hand which I was too far away from. and then he tried his ski which was not long enough to reach me. survival instincts must have struck this kind stranger fast as he started ripping off big branches to pull me up to safety. with a few inches left, I was close now and he pulled his arms underneath me lifting my body entirely back onto the slope. I fell to the ground in disbelief as he rushed to find the ski patrol.
Busy streets. Deafening sounds of vehicle horns. The irresistible aroma of Kwek-kwek, Fishball, and other Filipino street foods. And the wide smiles of the students every after class. I can still vividly remember how an everyday school dismissal looks like. It was worthwhile. Not until one day, everything changed in a blink of an eye. An unprecedented crisis entered and interrupted our lives, the COVID-19 pandemic. No one expected it. No one was ready. No one thought it would happen. We were all stuck in our homes because of the mandatory health protocols implemented worldwide. It affected our daily living big time. Routines were forcibly changed. Schools and workplaces were closed. Businesses were shut down. Most people lost their jobs. It was just a matter of survival. It was something terribly different. Full of adjustments and hardships. It felt like imprisonment, not having the freedom to do things you used to do. Just like how a face mask covers half of our faces as it serves as a wall of protection from the virus. This pandemic has been a barrier for easy communication and physical interaction. Needless to say, the transition from the normal world to the situation we are in today was challenging and crucial. I should say losing a loved one is difficult, but it's even more so in our situation today. I lost a good friend, a dedicated educator, and a selfless grandmother on the verge of this pandemic. We were not able to see them for the last time because of the prohibitions from the health department. It was something unwanted and was just a result of having no choice. I fought something bigger than the virus in this pandemic. I suffered from anxiety. I was not used to not having good grades after good grades, medals after medals and praises after praises. I dwelled on my insecurities and flaws. I felt like the odds were never in my favor. Slowly, every morning felt like I just needed to survive a day and I'm done. That I'm just a living organism wanting to escape the harsh realities of the world. That time was one of the moments I wish I were a kid again. That I'll just play minecraft or watch Barbie: The Princess charm school to ease the pain away. I started to question God because of the tragedies that have happened in my life. But after days of being empty and nights full of tears. I realized something. What are the chances of a person living in a city with existing local transmission and rising cases day by day to be Covid-free for almost 2 years. What are the chances of a person to be privileged enough to eat three times a day, have a family to be with through all these, and be able to study despite this pandemic? What are the chances of a person to be able to breathe fresh air rather than inhaling from an incubator? To be alive and kicking today is already a precious gift. The moment I accepted my imperfections, my flaws and my whole being, I began to see life in a bigger, better and brighter picture. I've come to the point where I continuously embrace not just my strengths, but also my weaknesses. I decided to feel human again by not letting my expectations and my thoughts define who I am. I chose to live without regrets, just gratitude. I always wondered about the things that I can do and how I can achieve those things. I explored myself. I bonded with my family more. As a matter of fact, we'd watch Netflix movies every friday night! I learned to check up on my friends and chat with them every once in a while. I started to play different musical instruments passionately. Those instruments include the harp, the kalimba and my favorite, the piano. Because of that, I became our church's pianist and safe to say, I have improved my people skills. Though face-to-face classes and interactions were banned, I found a way to enlarge my environment. I connected with people through joining online youth organizations. I should say my birthday this year is the best. Instead of having a glamorous party, I chose to celebrate it with street children, and it was fun! To satisfy my love for literature, I participated in writing webinars and joined international writing competitions like this! Fortunately, I won an outstanding position over 1500 participants in the International Creative Writing Competition organized by India. Sometimes, we forget to appreciate the beauty of life because we focus on our downfalls and shortcomings. There are still so many things to be grateful for. Look around and see what the universe can offer. Use it to your advantage, for you to grow and to be the best version of yourself. Always strive to get better each day, even if you're not in the best situation and in the best circumstance. Never let any catastrophe, even this pandemic, ruin the person you were, the person you are and the person you will be. Find your sanctuary of peace in a chaotic world. There will always be light in the darkness.
“Beep Beep,” my alarm clock perfused the room and woke my sleepy self with exasperation. It was another mundane cycle of attending online class, schoolwork, and to dread life. I pulled the covers over my head and allowed myself to be completely obscured from the world. I couldn't deal with this stress anymore, I was enervated. I tried to fall back to sleep, but I couldn't. I thought to myself, “When is life going to be back to normal?” “Beep Beep,” my alarm clock rang again. I was in no mood to wake up just to repeat the same cycle. “SOPHIA, YOU WILL BE LATE,” my mother screamed from the kitchen while I was still in my hazy state, hiding under the covers. “SOPHIA,” my mother hollered even louder in another attempt to rid my drowsy state. “Ughhh, do I really have to do this again?” I thought as I snuggled into my bed for another second. I eventually gave up and ripped my covers from my body. Each step I took cracked every bone in my body. My mind was still in the state of sleep and my eyes were still droopy. I glanced at the clock. 8:10 AM, it read. That was enough for the adrenaline to run through my entire body. “OH, I AM GOING TO BE SO LATE,” I cried and ran directly to the kitchen. My hair was an utter mess and I was still in my pajamas. My mom looked at me and shook her head in annoyance. “Here's your breakfast, hurry up now.” I gulped down my breakfast and trod straight to my bathroom. “I FORGOT TO BRUSH MY TEETH!” I exclaimed in disbelief as I stared into the mirror. Dark circles under my eyes. I frowned as I crossed my arms while staring at my own reflection. “Ew,” I said as I began to criticize every detail of the disgusting creature I saw in the mirror. It was clear that I had developed body dysmorphic disorder since the start of online school. I lost interest in everything as I stayed confined to my house. I had no energy to start another cycle of this turmoil again. I glanced back at the clock. 8:19AM, it read. I began to frantically panic and grabbed the nearest pullover and threw it on. I ran all over the house at such a rapid speed. I looked like an old lady that had just lost her dentures running around at 8AM. I reached for my eyedrops now, deliberately playing a game of aim trying to place these drops into my eyes. In the end, half of my eyedrops rolled off my cheeks and plopped onto the floor. I thought, “Yes, great precision”. I glanced at the clock one more time again. 8:29AM, it read. I turned on my laptop that I borrowed from school and made it just on time. 8:30AM, my laptop read. I joined the meet at the last second just to realize that it wasn't even worth joining. “Good morning class, review your notes and assignments I posted and have a great day. Goodbye,” my teacher said as she ended the meeting. “Seriously?” I asked in an annoyed tone and clicked on the notes she posted. The title read: AP Biology from 2003 and the assignment was 10 pages in total! I began to feel overwhelmed as I skimmed through the notes. “Seriously? All of this in one day! It's not even made by her!” I buried my face in my hands and felt even more stressed out. I repeated this same process of teachers posting an insane amount of schoolwork and wishing us a great day for the next 6 hours. “Yeah, such a great day doing all this work,” I mumbled under my breath. I felt like procrastinating to ease my mind and scrolled through my Instagram page. All sorts of ethereal models showed up on my explore page and I felt downgraded immediately. I closed out the app just to find my brother standing next to me holding his Ipad with his homework out. At the same time, my friend began to Facetime me and I hesitantly picked up the call with my brother wailing for me to help him with his homework. After hours of talking, there was no time to procrastinate. I threw my phone on the bed and told myself to just finish my schoolwork. “Sophia, your brother needs your help,” my mom said as she peered into my room with my brother beside her. I was furious, stressed, and annoyed with the world already. “Fine”, I said and scrolled through my laptop just to see “More mutations of the coronavirus are now spreading”. I sighed and I looked out my window, gazing at the beautiful trees and the freshly mowed lawns. “Such beauty,” I thought to myself. But, we were all trapped inside our houses, distant from nature, away from luminosity. I glanced back at my laptop and saw my piling schoolwork and the endless responsibilities I had to do. I took a step back and took a quick deep breath. I turned on my favorite songs and looked out the window. It did feel quite nice to step away from all the stress. Even through the toughest times, there is still a way to feel comfort and ease. That night I laid wide awake in my bed with my playlist still playing in my headphones and thought, “There's beauty everywhere you just have to find it”. With that, I smiled and closed my eyes to sleep peacefully because tomorrow will be better.
Karma So this is about a boy named xyz who live in a small city with his family which includes his father mother and his siblings. His Father is a well reputed lawyer and full of morals and ethics and he taught same thing to his children. His teaching includes no matter how bad the circumstances are, you should always be positive, should believe in god and most importantly should never do harm to anyone no matter what. And he always say do good and it'll return back with something great. The lawyer was a morally sound and always helped anyone who would come and ask for help. He was a complete family man, he had two brother and two sisters whom he loved very much and being the eldest he used to help everyone whenever they were in any sought of trouble. But his sibling doesn't loved him the way he use to love them, their love towards him was very conditional and fake. They all use to call him or meet him whenever they were in trouble and needed any kind of financial help. The lawyer was well aware of this but neglected this because he loved his sibling very much, so much that for their help he would even ignore his own family. So his life was running normal and everything was good. And one day lawyer fell ill and was taken to a doctor, where he was diagnosed with some rare lungs disease but was treatable and so the lawyer siblings thought he won't be able to survive this so they forged his signature and transferred all his property and wealth to their names. When the lawyer came to know about this he was completely broken and his health began to decline rapidly, he lost the will to survive but somehow his wife and children helped him to overcome all this. After few months he was able to fully recover but all his saving was gone, he was forced to shift to a rented apartment and was finding very difficult to pay the rent but somehow he managed. His life become very miserable and he lost all the hope. And suddenly one day he got a call from one of his former client about a property dispute case and he asked him to handle it as client was financially strong and that property belongs to his ancestors and someone has illegally occupied it, and that someone was socially, politically strong and corrupt . The lawyer fought the case with all his heart and won the case for his client. And finally when the client got to know about the lawyer situation he gifted him an apartment and insure the lawyer to help in future whenever he need. This is not a fiction but a true story about my father who got cheated by his siblings and left in a situation where he got so depressed that he was thinking about suicide but somehow we all managed save him and all this happened in the time of this covid pandemic. The life was pretty miserable that time but somehow we managed to survive all this, still everything hasn't come to track but we are hopeful everything will be alright. The title KARMA for this is because my father believe that whatever you do good or bad comes back to you and that's why you should always do good to others and avoid doing harm to anyone because whenever karma gives you back your doing , it amplifies everything good doing comes back with something great and wrong doing comes back with something worse. So keep watching your karma you never know what might come back to you.
It is no secret that we are living in a crazy time right now, one that we have never seen before. I do not think anyone could have ever prepared us for the dramatic changes that the COVID pandemic has inspired. I do not think anyone could have prepared us to handle the pain-staking death toll that this virus has brought about. I feel as though that is how tragedy works, though. Even though we think we are prepared for major events to happen in life, there is nothing that can be done to prepare us for the consequences of a horrific event, no matter if the outcome is expected or unexpected. As sad and frankly shameful as the pandemic handling has been in the United States, there are also positives in the situation as well. I believe that there are positives in every situation in life, even if you have to search high and low for them. I believe that the pandemic has strengthened many relationships due to all of the time most of us have been having to spend together in close quarters. This either has strengthened your relationships or made them worse. Do not worry, though, you are not alone. We have all been stuck together, and we all get on each other's nerves after long periods of time together. In the case of being homebound most of the time, this pandemic often just felt like my normal life. I have Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy, and as a result, I have to be dependent on a wheelchair to move about my days. To many people reading this, this might sound like a nightmare. It is really not that bad, though, and if it is all you know, it is what you adapt to. I am not able to work a normal job due to chronic pain issues and extreme fatigue. As a result of both of these issues, I am used to being home at least 5 days-a-week with the exception of medical appointments and the occasional grocery trip. When the pandemic first began, I honestly found solace in the fact that a large number of normal people were experiencing what it was like to live within the confines of a limited lifestyle. Even though this led to an increase in cabin fever for many, it was almost like everyone else had developed a sense of understanding when it came to my lifestyle and the opportunities that exist, albeit limited. Many of you were forced to find and discover new hobbies and activities that you enjoyed doing to fill the empty spaces. I can definitely relate to that idea. Coloring has always been a hobby for me. It carried through with me from my childhood. It has been a huge relief for me throughout the hard times last year and through the problems that we have yet to overcome this year. Coloring has been significantly helpful in treating both my anxiety and depression. I am confident that there has been an increase in depression throughout these times. It is not only understandable but relatable. There is nothing wrong with asking for and receiving the help that you may need. I am sure that there are people in your groups of family and friends that are willing to help you along your journey, and if you find that their advice is not sufficient, you can always seek the professional help of a therapist or counselor. Needing help in life, especially during significantly tragic events, does not make you weak. If anything, it makes us human and more compassionate about life. I am often asked how I am so happy and in an even-keeled mood most of the time, even when times get hard. The secret is actually not much of a secret and it is not that hard to maintain. It is that I am grateful for everything I have in life. I count and rely on my blessings every single day to help me along my life journey, which is both arduous and amazing.
My father was always an imposing person, tall and dark-haired, with a piercing judgmental gaze. He tended to look at people from under his brow, giving him an almost constant glaring look. He was quiet, almost to the point of muteness, and preferred books and solitude over parties or socializing. He was by no means wimpy looking, rather a strong quiet aura seemed to radiate off him. He had many dislikes, and was distasteful of people in general, always finding a flaw he did not like in anyone he met. As a child, I was always a bit fearful of my father, yet I yearned for one of his rare smiles to shine on me. My mother always smiled. She seemed to light up a room wherever she went, and everyone loved her. Why she would marry (let alone fall in love with!) such a gloomy pessimistic loner, no one knew. They had met in college, as many couples do, and from what I understand my father found my mother insufferable at first. Why was she always smiling? Why did she show such an interest in him, in everybody? It confused and annoyed him, why was this girl not taking his many hints? He refused to be some popular girl's pet or charity case. It took a long time for him to realize that she was genuine, her actions were not driven by greed, but by a genuine interest in whatever she was doing. He soon fell in love and so did she. Now, it would have been such a romantic and heartwarming story if it had ended right there. His heart was thawed by her warmness, and he became a better person because of it right? No, unfortunately, that wasn't the case. He was still the same, cynical and people hating, disliked many things, and scowled more often than smiled. It was just now...there was a glaring exception; my mother. Picnic dates and going to the movies, things he would have normally scoffed at, he endured just to see her smile and laugh. Don't get the wrong idea, he didn't suffer through these things for my mother, he was many things, but a pushover was not one of them. I am fully confident that if he had truly wanted to, he would have objected. No, just the simple act of doing the normally annoying and insufferable activities with my mother, he enjoyed it. Such was my mother's and father's love; un-understandable for everyone but still strong and true, nonetheless. My father never wanted children. Why would he? Annoying screaming babies that grow into brats that grow into ungrateful selfish adults. But he did have a child, me. I suppose he figured that he could endure it if my mother was alongside him. I think he thought that his enjoyment he shared with my mother could be transferred to me. Perhaps. And anyway, my mother desperately wanted a child. How could he say no? I was born a spitting image of my mother, down to her light eyes and pale complexion. We smiled the same, we laughed the same, we talked the same. Everyone always connected us as familial at a glance. While my father looked more like he was some kidnapper when it was just me and him. His dark aura didn't help at all. We may have looked like an odd family, but regardless, we were happy. As a very small child, I felt that my father viewed me with distaste, but as I grew, I thought I could feel him thaw more and more. His small smiles seemed to grow more frequent the more I grew. I don't think he loved me yet, but it seemed he was coming around. Who knows, maybe he would have loved me one day. Maybe I would have grown through my teenage years with a father and not a stranger. We will never know. Because my mother died when I was 11. And the second she died so did my father's budding love for me. My endearing traits, traits that reminded him of my mother, became a curse. No longer did it make me easier to love because it reminded him of his love for her. All he saw when he looked at me was his dead wife. A constant reminder of her missing from his life and his hatred for me became palpable. “How dare they.”, he seemed to seethe. “How dare they live and thrive, while she rots in the ground” I knew he wished it was me instead of her.
Covid brought about devastating consequences. Forced us to look at the bright side and appreciate things we often take for granted like family time. Often we leave it up to chance or reschedule because we don't get paid at the end of the day for something that is so priceless. Unlike the procrastination of homework and projects, life is too short to reschedule or have a deadline extension. As a sister, eldest of five children I have realized how much time we waste as a family or siblings doing our own thing only coming together when food is being served. The lock down taught me that it is important to have intimate family moments building stronger relationships. The lock down made me renew or rekindle the relationships I have with each family member. With schools out, I had to take the role of a teacher with two of my eldest siblings. They are at the same level at school. Working together to achieve one goal until schools open and even after has reinforced what we all know inside our hearts. We need each other emotionally, mentally, and physically. Through studying together I have realized that everyone is comfortable voicing out their weaknesses so that we turn them into strengths. There is something about being vulnerable inside a family set up that's comforting, knowing that family has your back and asking stupid questions is a sign of intelligence. I get to know them better through the jokes and laughter we share, and the feeling we have for one another to succeed is awesome. While I continue to look at the bright side I'm reminded of a Shona proverb,''Kushata kwezvimwe ndokunaka kwezvimwe'' meaning ‘'the bad outcome of one thing is the good outcome of another.” Since the beginning of lock down we have had uninterrupted power. Before long you would wake up to see it gone and we would be using firewood to cook or heat up bathwater. It's almost as if the government is bribing us to stay inside. Laugh out loud. Walking into town is like walking onto the set of ‘' I am Legend.” You keep thinking zombies are going to pop out of somewhere with streets deserted. Other than that I noticed the streets are cleaner, no litter. The air is even cleaner. Makes ask. Do humans really destroy everything they touch so much that we need a pandemic to reduce all the gases we release into the air, that in turn kill us? We are better than that. Looking at the bright side I realize that somewhere along the line, it goes dim. The virus robbed us of the chance to say goodbye to our loved ones properly, and undid age old tradition which had become a doctrine in some cultures. Sign that we can adapt through anything if push comes to shove and we do not live and survive on luck.
In the year 2020, lots of disasters have taken place but the most popular and terrible one is the pandemic CORONA that taught us to stay at home and forced us to rely on technologies for our work but technology has been proved as a boon to us and especially for children. Due to this pandemic, a term of technology that was very unusual proved its necessity i.e. Digital communication and meeting. Schools opted this plan to teach students by staying at home and it is good for students to interact with technology nowadays because we all know that in future, technologies will take over the world and will become a basic requirement. For the better use of technology it should be in better hands too. As every coin has two faces, a positive or a negative one and it depends on us which side to choose. Like, some students make technology a matter of distraction and do unnecessary activities instead of study. Earlier in offline classes, they had pre-planned routine, followed discipline, punctuality in attending classes, better and interactive way of discussion and there was a little push from the teachers to make them more sincere and responsible. But in online classes, some of the students do not care about time, attend classes very late and leave whenever they want, that is improper and it can have adverse effects on their future . It is the responsibility of students to do their classes properly, maintain silence, create a study environment and thoroughly involve in the discussion. So, it is the role of students to be a good and attentive listener. Only this way the new idea of digital classes will be effective and productive.
It was a usual rainy day. I was heading towards home after a long exhausting day. The roads were wet and vacant. It was slowly turning dark the signal turned red and I stopped my car, played my favorite song, closed my eyes and leaned with the seat to just let all the worries evaporate. Suddenly, my solitude was disturbed by the knock on window mirror. I lift my head up and pulled the mirror down. In front of me was a small lad. He was drenched in rain from head to toe. In his hand were few bouquet of flowers. I caressed his chubby cheeks and asked what he want he passed me a smile and show me his vibrant flowers .I reached for my wallet and gave him few bucks. He gave me the flowers that had almost lost their fragrance and freshness. I said him, ‘It was a gift from my side to you'. He stared at me for a while and replied, “Ummm! Sorry but I can't accept it without selling flowers ! I peered at him, gave him a big smile and demanded to hand over flowers . He asked me back, “which one will you like?” I replied, “ I would buy any that you will endow”. He explored his small basket and took out the roses and said, “ this is the most beautiful of all have this!” I offered him a ride to his home that he accepted happily and sat next to me. On the way ,we both had a little conversation He told me that his name is Hussain and he lives in a nearby slum and is the only breadwinner of his family; an enfeebled and widow mother and 2 younger siblings. He sells the flowers made by his family without using any kind of machine or tools. I appreciated his hard work and dedication towards family. I stopped the car by a local restaurant and ordered burger and fries and gave one to the little boy he devoured the food and finished within few seconds. And it was then I realized that he was hungry; he was starving. I gave him more food so that he can feed his family with this. As I drive through the link road towards his area he showed me where his house was. It was almost near to collapse. I asked, “Hussain don't you feel bad about yourself. You don't have a good house to live, sufficient food to eat, you have to work while children of your age are going to school” He smiled and replied with words that still echoed in my head, “If you had seen that smile on my family face when I return home, the spark in my sibling eyes that lightens up by me, you would have left your job and start doing what I do” His words left me speechless my jaws dropped open. He grinned, jumped out of car and thanked me for the favor. I just stayed there for while to make sure he had reached home safely and what I saw was astounding. As Hussain walked past the narrow rough path, he opened his food parcel, took out a piece of bread and fed the stray dog. It sent a shiver down my spine and I bursted into tears. On that day, I learnt that life is not about living for yourself, grabbing all for you but life is living for others , to put others first and then yourself. I found out the reason behind the distress in my life, the cause of my loneliness, the reason for lacking happiness despite having all facilities ;it was all because I wanted everything first for me and then for other folks. Obliged by the lesson young boy taught me, I went to a property dealer the other day and asked for a little furnished house that he showed me .few weeks after, I shifted Hussain's family to their new house, admitted him and his cute naughty siblings to nearby school .Every month I pay for their rent, food, fee and bills. Nothing much is left behind for me but I've found the happiness that I always longed for.
“Your face looks so red! Have you been from a roaster?” yelled someone from the horde. No! I had not been to a roaster but I had been burning from inside my body. Heat was emitting from my head like chimney. My face was flushed and my heart was hopping within my rib-cage. I didn't watch a scary movie recently but I just came out of an exhausting situation, losing another set of our badminton match against the toughest girls' badminton team of our university campus. They were from final year MBBS and had been defending champions for last four years, while we were merely the youngest batch i.e. 1st year MBBS. We were novice in the academic field as compared to our opponents but not in the sports field. But it was not all about a game, it was a matter of our dignity which was threatened a few minutes earlier by our seniors. In the mid-summer of 2017, sports event was about to begin. I was so excited for I've always been crazy for sports. I made a team and then the match day arrived. We won our initial matches smoothly. It is where the twist came in the story. Now we had to face the strongest team i.e. final year team. We were a bit muddled as we heard about their game. While we were waiting for our next match we got to know that the final year team would arrive late due to their clinical sessions and in case they don't show up, we'll get a walkover. What else we could want then? We started praying for a walkover. Few minutes later, repugnant to our expectations they arrived. Sigh! But they were two of them instead of three and still agreed to begin. Match started and I was playing first set against the strongest player of their team. Within few seconds I acknowledged her knack and command on the game. I was overwhelmed by her skills and attacking strategy. But I didn't give up for a moment and retorted with same energy. Early in the game she was on the driving seat with more points but I didn't take long to get hold of the game and won the first set. Then we won the second set too. Hurrah! We had won the match, winning two straight sets out of three. We were celebrating but then what happened was filthy pathetic that no one could expect. Their third and very defiant teammate entered the court and got to know they've already lost the match against first year team. Her ruthlessness was discernible as she started yelling at us as if we had won unfairly. We were bewildered on her condescending gesture. Her bulky stature was making her personality more vicious. “They won unjustly. How could you start the match since I was not present?” She was bickering over her loss with referee. Then her other friends stepped in. Now on one side there were those final year freaks and on the other side were three of us. Our opponents were not simmering down at any cost and demanding for a rematch. “Why did your teammates agreed to play in your absence?”, we questioned. But they were continuously emphasizing on starting all over again. Our seniors mortified us this whole time. Organizers tried to solve the matter but it was futile. None of us was settling on a sole solution. They claimed, “You guys are credulous and know nothing about the game. You'll ruin our university name if you people get to play inter university tournament.” I was so shattered while watching them fraught with arrogance. At last, conclusion made. We had to play 3 more sets. If we win single set out of three, we'll win as we previously won 2 sets. On contrary, final year team has to win all 3 sets to win the match. Match resumed and I went to play first set against their most aggressive player who created all the fuss. I was confident but nervous at the same time. Now the spectators were double than before. Everyone witnessed our fight and was curious to see who's going to win this tussle. I lost my set against that arrogant girl. Then we had second set which we were an inch away to win but at last we lost that set too. I was disconcerted but still prayed to God to give me strength to win this last set. As it was not about my team's victory and qualifying for inter university tournament but it was about our self-esteem. I so wanted them to face the music for their arrogance and how they maltreated us. Match began and I faced her again whom I confronted in the first set. I did strive so hard to make it this time and yeah I did it. Cheers! Everyone was shouting in my support and my teammates ran and cuddled me so hard. I couldn't believe this. Meanwhile we were celebrating, our opponents came and they congratulated me, “Well played! And we are sorry for our intimidating attitude.” This moment was priceless. We had won again and more importantly their vague pride had faded at last. We played inter university tournament and aced it as well. I learnt from this incident that never belittle your opponents nor underestimate them. Moreover haughty attitude leaves you always with regrets and you lose worth in the eyes of people as well as God.