Let us then be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labor and to wait.
‘A Psalm of Life’, H. W. Longfellow

“I heard an old religious man
But yesternight declare
That he had found a text to prove
That only God, my dear,
Could love you for yourself alone
And not your yellow hair.”
‘For Anne Gregory’, W. B. Yeats

Strength of numbers is the
delight of the timid.
The Valiant in spirit glory in
fighting alone.
M. K. Gandhi

⁽⁰⁾

And that softness of your countenance
How once inspired me
To touch the unprecedented heights in life!
Sometimes, I return to my fancy,
But soon reality dances before me
In its stark nakedness.

How sweet is fancy!
How bitter is reality!
That soft face,
That soothing look,
Those watery eyes,
Those lovely graces,
Are no more for me?
And I am no more
The hero of your life.

Past Memoirs
Shadows fade away, memories stay,
Reality flees from me
And I return to deep recesses of my mind.
Those shady trees still cast
Their shadows deep and quiet
Whereby, we used to sit as lovebirds.
It causes pain in a distant corner of my heart!
Just there under the spell of emotions,
How I surrendered to your wish once!
And how it rent me and captivated me for years!
Life fled from me as you turned your back to me.
I, listlessly, gaze at those trees
That now are, my lone resort
When lamentation grips me
In my isolation.

⁽⁰⁾

That is what the future holds for New Orleans, published Scientific American in October 2001. It further said that the city lies below sea level in a bowl bordered by levees that fend off Lake Pontchartrain to the north and the Mississippi River to the south and west. And because of an uncomplimentary union of factors, the city is sinking further, putting it at an increasing flood risk. The low-lying Mississippi Delta, which safeguards the city from the gulf, is also rapidly vanishing. A year from now another 25 to 30 square miles of delta marsh will have vanished because an acre disappears every 24 minutes. Each loss gives a storm surge a clearer path to wash over the delta and pour into the bowl, trapping one million people inside and another million in surrounding communities. In that case evacuation would also be impossible as the surging water would cut off the few escape routes.

Scientists at Louisiana State University predicted that more than 100,000 people could die, that it was a disaster, a little had happened until now and more could happen any time.

Not just that, they also calculated that any such catastrophe at New Orleans would have serious economic and cultural consequences as well. Louisiana produces one third of the country's seafood, one fifth of its oil and one quarter of its natural gas. Then it is the abode of America’s inclination for jazz, Cajun and Creole, and who can even ignore Mardi Gras.

So it is not to say that we were not warned. Almost everything the article predicted has come true. Could it not have been avoided then? While families have broken forever, so has the New Orleans social structure. For years to come, that state is going to be different.

BUT, it is one thing to bear with the geographical factors, things we have no control upon but to very humbly comply with the supernatural intervention, for, since time immemorial mankind has seen such highs and lows, AND, it is another thing to bear with the very much controllable factors. The other hurricanes. The fact that a lot of the humankind could have been saved by the not-hit-by-the-storm kind, just by being there in time. That the issues of ‘race’, 'poverty' and 'class' could have been left aside.

Well I just forgot that that is also an old thing.

Putrefying bodies are being evacuated every moment in New Orleans. Perhaps it is an obsolete question to even ask as to when the putrefying minds will be evacuated. Can we ever connect with our own fellas on a deeper level?

For now, the wreck is total.

Yours, with disgrace,
Manjit

⁽⁰⁾

The origin of the tomato fight is disputed and everyone in Buñol seems to have a different story, but most of them agree that it started around 1940, in the early years of the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco.

The battle takes place as a part of a week-long celebration filled with festivities that represents the culmination of the week's events. The biggest tomato fight in the world, La Tomatina started as pure fun activity; during the forties, in Buñol's main town square, some friends initiated a tomato fight for unknown reasons. It's unclear what exactly triggered the fight—whether the hail was aimed at city officials or something else was the cause—nobody knows exactly. As per the stories, a vegetable stall was nearby in the town square and everyone started throwing tomatoes at each other. Soon enough, the rowdy hooliganism drew passers-by into the fray and before time everyone seemed to be having a great time. It was so much fun that from that day onward, the fiesta began to be celebrated annually and has grown bigger with each passing year.

And who doesn’t love a good food fight? The populaces of Buñol paint the town red each August. Harmless tomato warfare. For a week leading up to the epic battle, the town of Buñol is filled with parades, fireworks, and food and street parties. The night before La Tomatina, the narrow streets beneath the town's medieval bell tower are filled with tomatoes in a much more appetizing shape than they will be the next day. Wine and food flow around the small town until the wee hours of the day. Then, early Wednesday morning, shopkeepers and traders along the Plaza set out covering windows and doors in preparation for the oncoming mess.

The festival is started with a ham-on-a-stick contest where competitors race up a pole to recover a smoked leg of ham. When the ham is cut down, people wear eye protection and cry for tomatoes as trucks dump the squishy produce onto the streets. Then, it's time for war and they proceed to bombard each other with the produce until all have been exploited. Dressed in clothing doomed to be garbage, more than 20,000 revelers retaliate against the truckers, each other and anything else that strays within range of their reach. The more imaginative among the partakers often rub the tomatoes into their hair, or that of their companions while others don’t shy from licking or taking a bite either. Soon the streets are flooded in seeds, pulp and tomato guts—a river of marinara sauce.

The insanity ensues until more than 90,000 pounds of tomatoes have been hurled at anything that is tangible. And a special word for the visiting tourists—be aware that a camera or any such object is not spared either.
Surprisingly, the battle is over in less than half an hour. Within a few hours, one would never know that any such thing ever took place in the sleepy streets of Buñol. All traces of pounds of tomatoes are washed from the streets while the revelers go to the riverside to clean up. Order is thus restored.
In order to draw more tourism into the small town of Buñol, La Tomatina has bloomed into a full fledged fête which coincides with the festival for the town's patron saint.

While there are revelers who devour upon the tradition, there are also people who are critical of the whole idea itself—people who vouch for the famine driven, poverty ridden all across the world. History has it that the practice of the fiesta was banned by the authorities for some time, but due to popular demand, was again given official recognition in the year 1959.
Think of it, some garlic added to this river of tomato sauce as topping to pizza(s) could feed numerous hungry mouths in the Third World Countries. Food for thought??

⁽⁰⁾

Travelers have taken this plant all over the world now. First mentioned in the Egyptian "Papyrus Ebers" in 1550 B.C., it can now be found all over China, South East Asia, Australia and tropical America. Aloe is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Asphodelaceae, containing about 400 species. They are cultivated as ornamental plants, especially in public buildings and gardens, for their stiff, rugged habit. The leaves are generally lance-shaped with a sharp apex and a spiny margin, but vary in color from grey to bright green and are sometimes striped or mottled.

This humble roadside plant can even be a sunburn lotion. Legend has it that Napoleon’s wife Josephine used a milk/ aloe gel lotion for her skin. Cleopatra used it for the same reason. Ancient Egyptians used it for embalming processes. Ancient Greeks used it for Insomnia. In the African Congo region, Slukari hunters rub aloe over their bodies to hide their scent and related species as an antidote to poison-arrow wounds. In ancient Indian medical science – Ayurveda, aloe gel prepared with honey and spices is called “Kumaryasava” and is used for anemia, poor digestion, and liver problems. Greek physician Dioscorides wrote of Aloe for constipation, burns and kidney ailments. Pliny recommended rubbing the leaves on male genital ulcers. Leading author on Herbology, Alma Hutchens claims, "Aloes are one of the most sovereign agents we have among the herbal medicine being cleansing to the morbid matter of the stomach, liver, spleen, kidney and bladder. Does not gripe and is very healing and soothing to all the tissue it obliges."

Uses
New and startling cures are emerging from around the world using this plant which has been growing on the roadside for thousands of years. Aloe contains a number of medicinal substances used as a purgative and produced from various species of aloe, such as A. vera, A. vulgaris, A. socotrina, A. chinensis, and A. perryi. Several kinds of aloes are distinguished in Barbadoes, Socotrine, Hepatic, Indian, and Cape aloes. The first two are those commonly used for medicinal purposes. Aloes is the expressed juice of the leaves of the plant. When the leaves are cut the juice flows out and is collected and evaporated. After the juice has been obtained, the leaves are sometimes boiled, to yield an inferior kind of aloes.

In Vancouver (B. C. Canada), Ayurvedic practitioner Dr. Sukhvinder Singh (web link: http://www.ayurvedaa.com) suggests few First-Aids of Aloe Vera:

Acne:
Apply a paste of turmeric and sandalwood powder to the affected area. You can use about half a teaspoon of each powder and mix it with water or rose water to make a paste.
For internal treatment take a cupful of aloe Vera juice two times a day until the acne clears.

Burns:
Make a paste of fresh aloe Vera gel mixed with a pinch of turmeric powder or apply ghee or coconut oil.

Bad Breath:
Drink half a cup of aloe Vera juice twice a day and eat fennel seeds. Cleanse the mouth with licorice powder until freshness is restored.

Burning Eyes:
Introduce four drops of pure rose water into the affected eye. Fresh aloe Vera gel may also be used. You can also apply castor oil to the soles of the feet.

Hemorrhoids (Bleeding and Non-Bleeding)
Drink one-half cup full of aloe Vera juice 3 times daily. Drink one teaspoon sandal wood paste mixed with milk twice daily. Boil 50 grams onion with 150 ml milk and drink twice daily.

Recent Medical Studies
In treating HIV-infected patients, Dr. Reg McDanial states, "It appears that acemannon neutralizes the AIDS-virus by transforming its protein envelope, thus preventing it from attaching itself to the T4 cells."

Dr. Robert H. Davis, a physiologist at the University Of Pennsylvania College Of Podiatric Medicine, has conducted research on Aloe Vera since the early 1970s. Results of laboratory tests on animals indicate that Aloe Vera can prevent and arrest arthritis, improve wound healing, inhibit pain, block inflammation, restore bone growth, and act as a vehicle for the delivery of nutrients to the body. Dr. Davis says "Aloe Vera contains the greatest number of active substances of any plant I've looked at."

Following are few links on recent medical studies on Aloe Vera. Please consult respective authorities for further information.

A Phase III study on the efficacy of topical Aloe Vera gel on irradiated breast tissue. Queensland Radium Institute, Division of Oncology, Royal Brisbane Hospital, Australia. Pauline_Rose@health.qld.gov.au

The effect of Aloe Vera gel/mild soap versus mild soap alone in preventing skin reactions in patients undergoing radiation therapy. Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami, USA.

Herbal therapy: what every facial plastic surgeon must know.

Closing
Drinks made from aloe pulp are popular in Asia, especially in Korea, as commercial beverages, and as a tea additive. You can search for them in your local superstore’s Asian food section or local oriental shop. So rev up your immune system with aloe drink, its not just healing but is a good replacement for aerated drinks like coke.

Photo credits:
"Forest & Kim Starr (USGS)"

⁽⁰⁾

2. Bolster
a) A solid support
b) A blindfold
c) To add support
d) None of the above

3. Circumfuse
a) To pour around
b) To diffuse
c) Rotate
d) Both a & b

4. Deferent (anatomy)
a) Conveying toward
b) Related to nerves
c) Conveying away
d) None of the above

5. Enamor
a) To obsess with
b) To fill with love
c) A kind of shiny metal
d) An ancient armor

6. Flapdoodle
a) Swimming gear
b) Wayward hand
c) To wave wildly
d) Nonsense

7. Holler
a) To shout
b) Speak with difficulty
c) A dog bark
d) Bear howl

8. Laudable
a) Related to laughter
b) Condemnatory
c) Praiseworthy
d) None of the above

9. Pliant
a) Suggestible
b) Related to trees
c) Flexible
d) Both a & c

10. Weariful
a) Full of fatigue
b) Pleasurable
c) Tedious
d) Both a & c

Answers:

1. (a) 2. (c) 3. (d) 4. (c) 5 (b) 6 (d) 7 (a) 8 (c) 9. (d) 10 (d)

Your Score:

8-10 Excellent
5-7 Good
1-4 Need improvement

⁽⁰⁾

This line of thinking has gone out of the corridors of medicine since long. The role of existential dilemmas or anguish on health does not bother medical specialists these days anymore and if any one dares rake these issues they are conveniently pigeonholed into ‘new-age thinkers’.

This short 100 page book is packed with natural prescriptions to reclaim our health and well-being. “It provides a simple systematic approach to diet, exercise, breath awareness, positive use of emotions, relationships and meditation…so that the whole person—body, mind, spirit—can achieve radiant health” (Foreword, IX). What makes this small book stand out from all others in a bookstore is that it explores the concept of health from the perspective our purpose in life. “What is your purpose in life?” it asks, and “how are you going to achieve that purpose?” It is hardly a question we think about when talking about health and wellness. We are more given to healthy physiological indices and measurements and the whole field of science is devoted to correcting these indices or bringing them back to ‘so-called’ normalcy. But here lies the difference between Swami Rama, who amazed scientists at Menninger Foundation of Topeka, USA in the 70’s by willfully controlling his involuntary physiological functions such as heart rate and conventional experts. Conventional wisdom in science at that time was of the opinion that one cannot control vital functions of the body.

Thinking of health in terms of existential purpose or dilemmas is natural to a person who spent a large part of his life meditating and mastering his inner processes. Holistic health to Swami Rama is to understand the entire human being, its preferences, strengths and weaknesses and not simply the physical body. “When we start to analyze our self…we know that we are not body alone. We lived with the body so much, and have been told so often that our body is who we are, that we constantly identify with it. This belief is so strong that no matter how much we read or study, no matter how much someone teaches us differently, our entire consciousness comes back to the body alone” (pg. 7). But are we body alone?

The book is divided into seven convenient chapters. It talks about holistic health, cleansing, nourishing, exercise, being still, emotions and finally self-training. But all these issues are dealt with added context of ‘higher purpose’, ancient yoga practice and Ayurveda. Cleansing does not just mean simply throwing out physical waste from body. To Swami Rama, cleansing is much more profound and should be undertaken consciously so that we get rid of all the toxins that lie in our body because “[I]f cleansing systems are not functioning properly, the nourishing system (the second stage, added) cannot do their work; the body will begin to break down” (pg. 17). Cleansing, in this case, is not limited but extends to breathing as well. Lungs are a powerful channel for expelling toxins. Alternate nostril breathing can help to purge toxins from body. The author recommends that “You should be aware of inhalation and exhalation and make sure they are regulated properly, for this will clean the lungs” (pg. 19). In addition, the book comes with a suggested intake of foods, fluids and appropriate method of fasting so that our body is cleansed properly.

After talking about cleansing the body of unnecessary physical and mental toxins, next comes the nourishment: what should we eat and how it should be eaten? “Watch carefully what and how you eat…Gulping down food and drinks without chewing properly, or without resting between the meals, or eating during stressful circumstances, leads to poor digestion” (pg.30). By staying away from bad foods, too much sugar or salt and chewing foods properly, one sets the stage for good health and can avoid digestive problems. Proper exercise is the next important factor which each one of us should follow to maintain good health. But he emphasizes a ‘proper’ exercise, not just mindless panting-puffing running or jogging we often witness on the roads. Swami Rama recommends combining yoga (gentle in nature) with jogging (aerobic) to reap maximum benefits. Ill-health is largely a symptom of physical and mental breakdown and “[I]llness often follows inactivity and depression, but it can be removed with exercise and sense of purpose and well-being” (pg. 53). Through proper mindful exercise, we can reclaim our vitality, awareness and “only when you are healthy and strong can the mind, will and emotions be trained, and this is essential for spiritual growth” (pg. 54).

Next prescription is ‘being still’—to create a sense of inner peace and tranquility because it is not possible to have a healthy body without a healthy mind. Mind and body run hand in hand and influence each other profoundly. As mind is usually made of habits and impression, it is imperative that we develop a discipline to unlearn all those negative habits and impressions. When you sit still and delve deep beyond your ordinary thoughts and patterns, you “come in touch with your inner potential for creativity, happiness and truth” (pg. 57). Another important factor given prominence in this book is emotions because correct emotional expression can lead to creativity and freedom. However, in order to get in touch with our emotions, we need to master our thoughts because “it is the bridge between consciousness and creative thought” (pg. 74). Understanding the origin and effects of emotions such as anger, jealousy, love, pride, attachment etc. can open the door for creating a life full of happiness and joy. As our emotions become more fine-tuned and we are able to control their expression without going to extremes, it exerts positive effects on our health and well-being. Research has shown that positive attitude, happiness, good relationships and humor have powerful health-promoting effects. Additionally, “positive emotion leads you to self-reliance and self-confidence, and motivates your mind, action, and speech in joyous and creative way” (pg. 84). Health is all about understanding and accepting one’s inner reality. Resistance of any kind to our inner reality leads to self-condemnation and generates various physical and mental problems and “there is no way to over-come self-condemnation except to rely on your own inner mirror, your conscience. Going against your conscience is suicide” (pg. 86).

And the only way we can let this not happen, is to embark upon a personal ‘self-training’—a purpose-driven quest where we know why we are doing what we are doing. This book is about creating health and well-being. But rather than dishing out conventional recommendations about proper diet, exercise etc. so common in health arena these days, it challenges us to find the purpose of our life so that we become in tune with our mental, physical and spiritual calling. When we are in touch with the higher purpose of our life, ordinary stresses, depressions and meaninglessness related to daily grind disappear or turn into mere inconveniences of life. In that case, we become truly independent and self-reliant and minor disappointments do not send us on a binge-eating or the blood pressure soaring.

If you are looking for perennial remedies for health and life, you should not miss this book. It is a no-nonsense, practical guide from a person who knows what he is talking about—from direct experience. And most of the resources he suggests to be used are well within us—without any extra cost.

A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO HOLISTIC HEALTH
by Swami Rama
Himalayan Institute Press
ISBN 0893891746 | $14.95

⁽⁰⁾

Of how it feels when you do not get the medal home? Listening to her side of the story. . . Joanne’s father was a teacher and she the 3rd of the 4 siblings. She was introduced to swimming by her father as he loved outdoors and camping. Being a teacher, he always had two months off which he could easily devote on the family and other outdoor activities. Joanne remembers that before the age of three she knew how to swim (including breast stroke and butterfly), long before she joined any swimming class. She guesses that even before learning to walk, she must have learnt to swim.

When she was three years old, her Dad put her in a competitive swim team and by the age of six she had already started participating in international sports. It was not that her parents did not encourage other activities like dance, piano lessons and skating and not that she did not try them all but it was swimming that came more naturally to her. From six years of age to fourteen years she learned to swim under the guidance of one coach after which she switched over to another professional trainer until about twenty three years of age. Childhood was not just practicing to swim but also full of fun. She remembers long road trips to Vancouver and Las Vegas with her family, when she would be playing with her siblings at the back of the car. A close-knit family, they always had dinner and vacations together. At the age of fourteen, with funding from the province of Ontario, she participated in the ‘Eight Nation Swimming Contest’ and went to Holland where she was the youngest competitor. In hindsight, she thinks, being young was an asset because the more experience you get, the more you become afraid.

As a twelve year old she was already training as an Olympian, for about 18 hrs every week and at that young age (of twelve), she had already made it to the Olympic trials of 1988. Later, as a mature swimmer and competitor she practiced for 25 to 28 hours every week, when at the age of sixteen, she stood 11th at the Olympics in Barcelona. Four years from there, at twenty years, she came 4th in the 1996 Olympics, in Atlanta.

At sixteen, still a teenager, she was happy to be participating in Olympics and scoring a rank, which felt like being on top of the world. Four years later, her life had changed drastically. She was the ‘number one’ going in the Olympics, won World Championships, participated in Pan American Games, had an agent, was in a commercial, and had five sponsors. People knew her and she hoped for a medal in the next Olympics.

But the very first day at the Games in Sydney 2000, was not a positive sign. When she thought it was time to get a medal, things did not work out. She was devastated, lost confidence. Later, although after leaving Sydney, she came to know that the girl who came first had actually cheated.

It was a time she did not want to face anybody. Although her friends were excited on her arrival back home, but the overall reaction of the media and people in general, took a toll on her moral energy and confidence. She was now called “a disappointment” and labeled a “bad person”. It was like undergoing the feelings of a “criminal”. That was the time her Mom supported her and hid all the articles in newspapers that were belittling and hurtful. It all killed her. She had stood 5th in the Games and when she told the media that she was “ok with coming 5th”, the media was surprised as they expected her to be frustrated. Toronto Star published with the headline: “Malar settles for mediocrity”.

Heartbroken, Joanne was now back in University from 1996 to 1997, but somewhere down in her heart, she was not ready to leave it at that. She always knew that media was never anybody’s friend and that their job is to write a story but it definitely made her “recovery from disappointment” very difficult. Hurt as she was, she took time to go to Australia for about 5 weeks, only to come back to Hamilton, Canada, with a renewed interest and zest in giving it another try for the next Olympics in 2004. She wanted to perform in Athens. It was a “now or never” situation and her motto: “What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?”

One year was gone and she had three years more. She now went to Calgary to find a new coach and the change of place and environment elevated her spirits.
During this period she went to Malaysia for swimming contest and won a Gold, participated in Pan American Games and won that too in 1999. She was now twenty four, a lot more confident and smarter.

And then it was 2004. Luck did not favor her this time again as she missed the qualifying standard at home in Canada itself. Athens was a lost dream. Unfortunately she had missed it by less than a second. She had qualified for the Olympian standard but not the Canadian standard because for the first time the Canadian standard was set higher than the Olympics.

Did she learn anything then? Lots. She learned, “how much you can do when your mind is strong”. This period of training was “the best time” of her life, the time when she enjoyed even everyday training. She thinks: “Not everybody can go to the Olympics, but it doesn’t mean you’re not a champion”. And she left the competition “feeling like a success”, not worrying about the results. Because “knowing yourself” is the biggest thing in life. As life would have it, this was the time she underwent a divorce and subsequent emotional turmoil. She was never able to figure out the cause of her divorce but strongly feels that distance (training in Calgary, while her husband was in Hamilton) could have been one major factor.

Her source(s) of inspiration: When young, her inspirational sources were mostly sport heroes or record holders, now her inspiration are people who are “beautiful as human beings”, those who are ordinary and no record holders, but hold virtues like perseverance, confidence, compassion etc. Inspiration now comes from “living” itself. Her so-called “setbacks have been learning experiences and have only made her rich”.

Her plans for the future: Doing everything concerning Health and Wellness and combining media, healthy living and nutrition. On a personal level, working on “relaxing” because she still feels that she is a ‘Type A’ personality.

Her message to the Readers: “Everything passes. When feeling good, enjoy it. When feeling bad, even though it hurts and feels awful, later when you look back upon it, it would already be a fond memory.”

Getting the gold is good, but being golden is the ‘best’. Joanne’s swim towards the latter is a reward well deserved.

BRAVO!

⁽⁰⁾