learnings

A parent owned up for not spending quality time with his son. He did not turn blind to his son's irresponsible behaviour. He did not blame other classmates for the same. Oh this is not a fairy tale. It is an event that took place at my workplace. Rarely do I come across parents like this. Yet another parent is constant denial regarding her son. She constantly blames the influence of other classmates. I can work with the first parent. I know for sure that we will be able to bring about a positive behavioural change. Well not surprisingly the other parent has requested for a transfer certificate. She has found escapism a route. Is it a small wonder that the child does the same?

I do not know how I should feel now. On one side everyone is jubilant about the latest Mars mission. Indeed it is a proud moment. On the other side is the terrible episode that took place at the Delhi Zoo. A 22 year old man falls into the tiger's enclosure. 15 good minutes elapsed. There was nothing done. The naive crowd began to holler and scared the animal so much that it took out its fear and anger on the helpless man. It was a crule death. Ironically today's papers report that he was mentally deranged, a drug addict, separated from his wife and child. Was the media washing its hands off? were the Delhi officials washing their hands off? There has been no inquiry and nor will there ever be.. After all he was a common man. And labelled mentally unstable and an addict. It seemed as if the media and the Zoo officials were justifying their act of negligence. The security guards did not know what to do! They had to go to a vet hospital 1/2 km away to get a tranquilizer gun. ...

A few simple ways parents can help encourage learning at home: Ensure children have a quiet area to work on homework;atleast their own table and space to keep their stuff Limit children’s time on electronic media unless it’s being used for the assignment Don’t hover over your child’s shoulder, instead check on your child periodically to see if they need any help Be sure to encourage your child if they seem to hit a wall of frustration Praise children’s work and efforts Parents should regularly ask questions about the child's school day and homework. Set reasonable expectations for the child's academic success Compare only with the child's own work Visit the school at regular intervals to know about the child's progress.

My colleague had taken extra care in dressing today. During the course of our conversation she said that she took extra care to dress up when she had a bad day. That was her way of coping. Of course after a bout of self pity. I smiled. I too love to wallow in self pity, but for a short while of course. After which like a duck shrugging off water from its back I shake out of the mood.  Each one of us have our own coping mechanisms.  What is yours?

I watched Jigarthanda a new tamil movie. I loved it. Looking back it has no message. It is based on a violent gangster but the movie veers off the usual path. Humor, good editing, background songs and of course the right casting of actors helped. I came out with a smile on my face. Indeed it was relaxing. Finding Fanny--- I loved this movie. I had forgotten the genius actor Naseeruddin Shah. He is brilliant in the movie. Dimple is no longer the gorgeous babe but she has proved her mettle.. Deepika with minimal make up is gorgeous. Typical Goan setting and peppy music make it lovable. It was simply wonderful to have Pankaj Kapur back on screen. Maybe the voice over was not needed. Why go searching and knocking for love? Like opportunities it is very much inside us. All we need is to look deep within. Frozen-- Sigh what a lovely Sunday afternoon watch. Gorgeous visuals and a simple story. A rare sibling story and good casting. Optimism, love and being oneself ( freeing oneself from...

I happened to see a student being taken to task for being distracted in the class. After some time I encountered the student ( let's call the student X) on my way. I chatted for a while. X said that the neighboring student had the habit of doodling on the other person's hands! I asked X if X had a choice of not extending the hand. This simple question got X thinking. Often we get entangled in such situations. We make excuses or blame the other. But aren't we making the choices?