A beautiful thing is never perfect

The craziest thing we heard last week was the news article on Daily Mail accusing Pippa Middleton of wearing a 'false bottom' at the Royal Wedding. Pippa was praised around the world for her shapely figure after the Royal Wedding. Now after more than three years, even after the royal couple had Prince George, French experts have figured out that Pippa was wearing a false bottom on April 29, 2011.  It is either that French experts are not so expert that they took more than three years to recognize that they were fooled with a false bottom or they were too mesmerized by the beauty of it that they couldn’t come up with the accusation until now.

However, it doesn’t matter whether Pipa was wearing a false bottom to us. It is not our bum to be concerned about. Yet, this implies how people are obsessed about their body image; a person's feelings of the aesthetics and attractiveness of their bodies. Psychology Today says that body image is the mental representation we create of what we think we look like; it may or may not bear a close relation to how others actually see us. That is, it is subject to all kinds of distortion from internal elements like our emotions, moods, early experiences, attitudes of our parents and much more. Further, it strongly influences behavior.

We all are concerned about our body image, one way or the other. I don’t think any of us are 100 percent happy with the way we look.  But among us there are people who are overly concerned about it. I believe that this problem affects both men and women; I have noticed people from both genders moaning about how fat or skinny or ugly they look.

There are risks which could follow you if you become overly obsessed about your body image. People who are unhappy with bodies have a risk of developing eating disorders. This may develop as constant dieting, fasting, binging, purging and even overeating if you think you are too skinny which may lead to a series of health issues. Also psychologists say that the body image is closely linked to self-esteem. Low self-esteem can also lead a person to eating disorders, early sexual activity, substance use and suicidal thoughts.

I personally believe that it is not an issue of being happy or unhappy about the way we look. It’s whether we are comfortable with our body or not. Most people do grow out of their self-esteem issues and eventually take their body for granted, but some don't and force themselves to do what not to make them feel and look better. This is also where false bottoms and breasts, even false six packs come in handy. If you go to a pharmacy, you’ll notice how much money they make from selling shape-up milk, diet pills, weight gain or loss powders.

When you look in the mirror, if your first thoughts are to start a diet, how much do you ‘hate’ your nose, hips, breasts or the backs of your thighs? To truly love your body, focus on being active, healthy and fit. Get out and move. Walk, swim, cycle, dance, do yoga, aerobics, participate in any kind physical activity. Don't do it because you think you have to in order to look thinner. Do it because it makes you feel strong and energized and confident. An Egyptian proverb says that ‘a beautiful thing is never perfect’. Perfection is dull, if not impossible. Being happy with your body doesn't mean that everything is perfect. It simply means you've chosen to embrace your imperfections. Look at the handicapped people in the society; look at the people who were born without their limbs, look at the people with birth defects. Think of yourself in that position. Be happy with what you have.

I am just a silly human being

There is a family I know. There are three children in that family and all three were barely adults when both their parents passed away, leaving them stranded, with no proper income. The eldest took the responsibility, got hold of his father’s business. During the funerals, I heard people saying, “Puthalawa deyyo balagani” (God will look after you all). The eldest was an innocent fellow, he couldn’t complete his education.

Yet, he helped his younger brother and sister to continue schooling. He got married young and now he is a father of two. People continued to say, “Baya wenna epa, deyyo ogollonwa balagannawa” (Don’t worry, God is looking after you). He was a fighter. He fought many battles in life as strongly as he could. He too believed that they have the blessing of God. Yet he failed for some unknown reasons. And now everyone blames him, for disorganization, poor plans and silly decisions. No one blames God, who was supposed to look after them. It seems like God is punishing him for something he didn’t do.

I am a powerless human being. I cannot question the almighty God. 

On my way home, I observe the presence of  a handsome young man from a well-to-do family. He has the perfect curls, a pleasant face and a well-built body. As girls pass by, he turns his attention to them as any other boy would do and sometimes he smiles. His smile looks painful for a reason I couldn’t understand for a long time. Later, I knew, his smiles look painful because his smile is all he’s got. He is unable to word his feelings, therefore unable to say ‘hello’, to any of those pretty girls passing by. He is unable to say how much he loves his mother and father. He is even unable to hear the sound of the wind. He does not know what the chirp of a bird sounds like. He cannot listen to a song when he is stressed. He cannot feel the beauty in it.  God gave him all, but forgot to make his tongue and ears active; consequently he cannot speak or hear. I am glad that he cannot hear people calling him deaf and mute.

I feel so powerless. I cannot question God, why he forgot.

I recently visited the Maharagama Cancer Hospital. At the ward, my friend was admitted in, there was a very young boy, not more than 17 years old. Since it was the visiting hour he was surrounded by friends. They were laughing and joking, as if they just got their class interval. The boy looked cheerful as he joined his friends. But there were moments when he was thinking to himself where his smile faded away. I could see his worry and the feeling of uncertainty. “He got blood cancer, recently diagnosed,” our friend, Witha, who was being treated for cancer, told us, I remember. Witha was our friend from the Sub Editors' Department at The Nation. It was our final visit to see Witha, we didn’t know, he passed away two weeks after that visit. We miss him dearly, yet I cannot forget the boy who was lying in the bed in front of him. He has to spend time on a hospital bed, fighting cancer, when he should be hanging out with his friends, having fun.

I am an ordinary human being. I don’t know why God couldn’t notice what I have noticed.

I see and I hear stories how big shots in our country cheat and make unlawful profits. I see and I hear how only a set of people live luxurious lives. I hear stories of poor farmers in my country committing suicide, unable to make money to feed their children. I frequently hear about mothers abandoning their new-born babies, just because they are unable to feed them. As I walk along the streets of Colombo, I see children, who don’t have proper clothes to wear, staring at children travelling in luxury cars wearing colorful clothes. I travel in the bus; I meet beggars, at least one beggar per day, who is trying to find some money to feed his children or to get his mother’s medicine. I go to churches, temples and kovils, where we believe God can hear us and I see homeless people begging for kindness from the devotees. I cannot understand why they were not allowed to have what other people can enjoy.

I am just a silly human being. Who am I to question why God has abandoned them?  

- See more at: http://www.nation.lk/edition/free/item/28679-i-am-just-a-silly-human-being.html#sthash.XKillvEx.dpuf

There is a family I know. There are three children in that family and all three were barely adults when both their parents passed away, leaving them stranded, with no proper income. The eldest took the responsibility, got hold of his father’s business. During the funerals, I heard people saying, “Puthalawa deyyo balagani” (God will look after you all). The eldest was an innocent fellow, he couldn’t complete his education.
Yet, he helped his younger brother and sister to continue schooling. He got married young and now he is a father of two. People continued to say, “Baya wenna epa, deyyo ogollonwa balagannawa” (Don’t worry, God is looking after you). He was a fighter. He fought many battles in life as strongly as he could. He too believed that they have the blessing of God. Yet he failed for some unknown reasons. And now everyone blames him, for disorganization, poor plans and silly decisions. No one blames God, who was supposed to look after them. It seems like God is punishing him for something he didn’t do.
I am a powerless human being. I cannot question the almighty God.
On my way home, I observe the presence of  a handsome young man from a well-to-do family. He has the perfect curls, a pleasant face and a well-built body. As girls pass by, he turns his attention to them as any other boy would do and sometimes he smiles. His smile looks painful for a reason I couldn’t understand for a long time. Later, I knew, his smiles look painful because his smile is all he’s got. He is unable to word his feelings, therefore unable to say ‘hello’, to any of those pretty girls passing by. He is unable to say how much he loves his mother and father. He is even unable to hear the sound of the wind. He does not know what the chirp of a bird sounds like. He cannot listen to a song when he is stressed. He cannot feel the beauty in it.  God gave him all, but forgot to make his tongue and ears active; consequently he cannot speak or hear. I am glad that he cannot hear people calling him deaf and mute.
I feel so powerless. I cannot question God, why he forgot.
I recently visited the Maharagama Cancer Hospital. At the ward, my friend was admitted in, there was a very young boy, not more than 17 years old. Since it was the visiting hour he was surrounded by friends. They were laughing and joking, as if they just got their class interval. The boy looked cheerful as he joined his friends. But there were moments when he was thinking to himself where his smile faded away. I could see his worry and the feeling of uncertainty. “He got blood cancer, recently diagnosed,” our friend, Witha, who was being treated for cancer, told us, I remember. Witha was our friend from the Sub Editors' Department at The Nation. It was our final visit to see Witha, we didn’t know, he passed away two weeks after that visit. We miss him dearly, yet I cannot forget the boy who was lying in the bed in front of him. He has to spend time on a hospital bed, fighting cancer, when he should be hanging out with his friends, having fun.
I am an ordinary human being. I don’t know why God couldn’t notice what I have noticed.
I see and I hear stories how big shots in our country cheat and make unlawful profits. I see and I hear how only a set of people live luxurious lives. I hear stories of poor farmers in my country committing suicide, unable to make money to feed their children. I frequently hear about mothers abandoning their new-born babies, just because they are unable to feed them. As I walk along the streets of Colombo, I see children, who don’t have proper clothes to wear, staring at children travelling in luxury cars wearing colorful clothes. I travel in the bus; I meet beggars, at least one beggar per day, who is trying to find some money to feed his children or to get his mother’s medicine. I go to churches, temples and kovils, where we believe God can hear us and I see homeless people begging for kindness from the devotees. I cannot understand why they were not allowed to have what other people can enjoy.
I am just a silly human being. Who am I to question why God has abandoned them?  
- See more at: http://www.nation.lk/edition/free/item/28679-i-am-just-a-silly-human-being.html#sthash.XKillvEx.dpuf

Class clown - You never know why they are funny

Class clown; there is one of them in every class. At least there was one in each and every class that I attended. Class clown is the one who makes you laugh with raw humor; he is the one who has to see the Principal or the Dean once a week. Class clown is the person whom you will be avoiding most on April 1. Surprisingly, I have never seen two clowns in one classroom or a girl clown in a mixed class room. However, there are girls who act as clowns in all-girls class room.

 Class clown is the one who continually disrupts class with his wisecracks; who will do or say anything to be in the spotlight; who has no idea when he should stop; who is smart and will respond to anything with a smart answer. He is very popular among the students and loves to be with company all the time. If he wishes to, he can crack a joke about almost anything. He bothers other students, sometimes by talking, touching or grabbing their hands during lecture hours. Usually the one who sits next to him also gets scolded by the teacher for encouraging him. Class clown is often unprepared for the class; he is the one who will always ask others for pens and papers.

Even a clown or a joker can become a pain with too many jokes. His witty remarks are entertaining yet there are times when it becomes repulsive. His jokes are smart enough to grab the attention of the teacher and the classmates and sometimes the teacher is unable to control him. Things get worse in an incident where others also join him, making fun in the classroom. If the teacher is not smarter than him, she or he (usually she) becomes upset and starts nagging the class as a whole. That’s when things start to become disgusting. Once attention is lost, you know how hard it is to regain it, especially when he is humorous beyond doubt.

Usually the clown gets what he wants. The teacher spends so much time with the class clown and sometimes it is very resentful that others have to try harder to get that attention from the teacher. It is irrepressible that we laugh at this smarty pants, yet we have always had this disgusting feeling towards the clown, often wondering what makes him behave like that.

We usually tend to encourage the clown to joke around class. We laugh at his jokes, enjoy his twisted answers and even take his stories to the dinner table sometimes. If you are the teacher dealing with a class clown, you should know how embarrassing it is when you cannot handle him during the lesson. True, this one can become a pain in the neck, yet have you ever given it a thought why this one is always behaving frantic. Even though class clowns were present in the classes since forever, it’s doubtful, whether you, as a young teacher reading this or as the friend who is sitting next to him, have understood the role in helping him.

We never see the clown as a person who needs help; he always seems to be happy. Although we usually condemn him for being the joker, never taking him seriously, psychologists say that the class clown is a person in need of help. His pranks are his way of crying out for help. Attention he seeks from the class could be something that he lacks at home. Maybe the situations at home or at school are painful and this student may be hiding the pain by being the class clown. Sometimes the student’s inability to succeed in the academic world causes him to become the class clown.

Think about it for a moment. Although he or she gets on your nerves by all his annoying tricks and jokes or makes you laugh unnecessarily during a lecture, this student may not like the role of class clown. Think of what you can do as a friend or a teacher to help the class clown to become a normal student, who does not disturb the class or get on teacher’s nerves.

- See more at: http://www.nation.lk/edition/lifestyle/item/27492-class-clown-you-never-know-why-they-are-funny.html#sthash.amYnakyC.dpuf

Class clown; there is one of them in every class. At least there was one in each and every class that I attended. Class clown is the one who makes you laugh with raw humor; he is the one who has to see the Principal or the Dean once a week. Class clown is the person whom you will be avoiding most on April 1. Surprisingly, I have never seen two clowns in one classroom or a girl clown in a mixed class room. However, there are girls who act as clowns in all-girls class room.
 Class clown is the one who continually disrupts class with his wisecracks; who will do or say anything to be in the spotlight; who has no idea when he should stop; who is smart and will respond to anything with a smart answer. He is very popular among the students and loves to be with company all the time. If he wishes to, he can crack a joke about almost anything. He bothers other students, sometimes by talking, touching or grabbing their hands during lecture hours. Usually the one who sits next to him also gets scolded by the teacher for encouraging him. Class clown is often unprepared for the class; he is the one who will always ask others for pens and papers.
Even a clown or a joker can become a pain with too many jokes. His witty remarks are entertaining yet there are times when it becomes repulsive. His jokes are smart enough to grab the attention of the teacher and the classmates and sometimes the teacher is unable to control him. Things get worse in an incident where others also join him, making fun in the classroom. If the teacher is not smarter than him, she or he (usually she) becomes upset and starts nagging the class as a whole. That’s when things start to become disgusting. Once attention is lost, you know how hard it is to regain it, especially when he is humorous beyond doubt.
Usually the clown gets what he wants. The teacher spends so much time with the class clown and sometimes it is very resentful that others have to try harder to get that attention from the teacher. It is irrepressible that we laugh at this smarty pants, yet we have always had this disgusting feeling towards the clown, often wondering what makes him behave like that.
We usually tend to encourage the clown to joke around class. We laugh at his jokes, enjoy his twisted answers and even take his stories to the dinner table sometimes. If you are the teacher dealing with a class clown, you should know how embarrassing it is when you cannot handle him during the lesson. True, this one can become a pain in the neck, yet have you ever given it a thought why this one is always behaving frantic. Even though class clowns were present in the classes since forever, it’s doubtful, whether you, as a young teacher reading this or as the friend who is sitting next to him, have understood the role in helping him.
We never see the clown as a person who needs help; he always seems to be happy. Although we usually condemn him for being the joker, never taking him seriously, psychologists say that the class clown is a person in need of help. His pranks are his way of crying out for help. Attention he seeks from the class could be something that he lacks at home. Maybe the situations at home or at school are painful and this student may be hiding the pain by being the class clown. Sometimes the student’s inability to succeed in the academic world causes him to become the class clown.
Think about it for a moment. Although he or she gets on your nerves by all his annoying tricks and jokes or makes you laugh unnecessarily during a lecture, this student may not like the role of class clown. Think of what you can do as a friend or a teacher to help the class clown to become a normal student, who does not disturb the class or get on teacher’s nerves.

- See more at: http://www.nation.lk/edition/lifestyle/item/27492-class-clown-you-never-know-why-they-are-funny.html#sthash.amYnakyC.dpuf

Class clown; there is one of them in every class. At least there was one in each and every class that I attended. Class clown is the one who makes you laugh with raw humor; he is the one who has to see the Principal or the Dean once a week. Class clown is the person whom you will be avoiding most on April 1. Surprisingly, I have never seen two clowns in one classroom or a girl clown in a mixed class room. However, there are girls who act as clowns in all-girls class room.
 Class clown is the one who continually disrupts class with his wisecracks; who will do or say anything to be in the spotlight; who has no idea when he should stop; who is smart and will respond to anything with a smart answer. He is very popular among the students and loves to be with company all the time. If he wishes to, he can crack a joke about almost anything. He bothers other students, sometimes by talking, touching or grabbing their hands during lecture hours. Usually the one who sits next to him also gets scolded by the teacher for encouraging him. Class clown is often unprepared for the class; he is the one who will always ask others for pens and papers.
Even a clown or a joker can become a pain with too many jokes. His witty remarks are entertaining yet there are times when it becomes repulsive. His jokes are smart enough to grab the attention of the teacher and the classmates and sometimes the teacher is unable to control him. Things get worse in an incident where others also join him, making fun in the classroom. If the teacher is not smarter than him, she or he (usually she) becomes upset and starts nagging the class as a whole. That’s when things start to become disgusting. Once attention is lost, you know how hard it is to regain it, especially when he is humorous beyond doubt.
Usually the clown gets what he wants. The teacher spends so much time with the class clown and sometimes it is very resentful that others have to try harder to get that attention from the teacher. It is irrepressible that we laugh at this smarty pants, yet we have always had this disgusting feeling towards the clown, often wondering what makes him behave like that.
We usually tend to encourage the clown to joke around class. We laugh at his jokes, enjoy his twisted answers and even take his stories to the dinner table sometimes. If you are the teacher dealing with a class clown, you should know how embarrassing it is when you cannot handle him during the lesson. True, this one can become a pain in the neck, yet have you ever given it a thought why this one is always behaving frantic. Even though class clowns were present in the classes since forever, it’s doubtful, whether you, as a young teacher reading this or as the friend who is sitting next to him, have understood the role in helping him.
We never see the clown as a person who needs help; he always seems to be happy. Although we usually condemn him for being the joker, never taking him seriously, psychologists say that the class clown is a person in need of help. His pranks are his way of crying out for help. Attention he seeks from the class could be something that he lacks at home. Maybe the situations at home or at school are painful and this student may be hiding the pain by being the class clown. Sometimes the student’s inability to succeed in the academic world causes him to become the class clown.
Think about it for a moment. Although he or she gets on your nerves by all his annoying tricks and jokes or makes you laugh unnecessarily during a lecture, this student may not like the role of class clown. Think of what you can do as a friend or a teacher to help the class clown to become a normal student, who does not disturb the class or get on teacher’s nerves.

- See more at: http://www.nation.lk/edition/lifestyle/item/27492-class-clown-you-never-know-why-they-are-funny.html#sthash.amYnakyC.dpuf