Food habits among college going youngsters

Food habits among college going youngsters

Infancio Pires

Introduction

We Lipton, Aegidius and me (Infancio) interviewed 30 college going youngsters to know about their food habits. We interviewed youngsters on and around college road. The method we used was primary data and the tool we used was a combination of questioner and interview schedule. We approximately got 2 hour. We began at around 2 pm and finished at 4 pm.

Objective: to inderstand the food habits of college going youngsters

Main content

A survey on the food habits of College going youngsters

City: Nashik

Age group: 17-22

Male	13
Female	17
Home food	13
Fast food	17
Influence of peers on food habits	Yes 21      No 9
Fixed pattern of eating	Yes 6        No 24
Tiffin to college	Yes 14      No 16

Money the youngsters spend on food on daily basis (in rupees)

10-30	30-60	60-90	Above 100	Above 500
19	3	1	6	1

We also asked 3 open ended questions

1.      What is your opinion about healthy food?

Most of the youngsters believe that home food is the best food for a healthy living. A considerable number said that veggies are the best and the healthiest food. Some added fruits to the least of healthy foods. When asked about non-vegetarian food they said it is important mostly when it comes to proteins. Some also said that we must not eat out of time. A youngster was of the view that we are mostly not aware of the raw materials use by food stalls to cook and also most of the outside food tends to be oily.

2.      what is your take on this statement: “do you eat to live or live to eat”

Most of the youngsters said that they eat to live. Some were of the opinion that the way we sometimes eat it looks like we live to eat. Some also shed light on the way food is wasted by many rich people while many go to bed hungry in our country.

3.      What do you feel about the way young people look at food?

Youngsters were of the opinion that nowadays food is used to show off status more that to fill our stomachs. Most prefer junk food because it tastes good (22 out of 30) while few felt there is variety when it comes to fast food(8 out of 30), therefore they prefer it.

Conclusion

The awareness level about healthy food among youngsters is very high, but as they themselves agreed that though they know yet they tend to do the opposite. They have junk food more often then home and healthy food.

Personal reflection

This was a overall enriching experience. It was fun interacting with the youngsters and knowing more about them and their food habits. The readiness to answer was really admirable. I was also impressed by a certain girl who let the bus go (and also her friends) so that she could complete the questions. Most were thrilled to answer our question while a few politely denied as they were not comfortable or shy or busy. I got a feeling that they also felt important as we interviewed them. Surprising thing for me was that there were quite a good number of youngsters who still carry tiffin to college (I myself during college days did not carry tiffin). Youngsters today according to me are very knowledgeable but do not act wisely.  

Siblings which God forgot to give

Our close friends are siblings which God forgot to give. Though we do not share the same blood our friends know us through and through. Friendship is something natural to us. We have been created as relational beings and we need the other to live a happy life. Our friends help us to grow in self-knowledge we go to self-acceptance this is because we feel loved and thus we begin loving ourselves. Good friends help us to expand or broaden our outlook friends also help us to come out of our comfort zone. Many things which we don’t even dream of doing we do because of the support and encouragement we receive from our buddies. There are some things we share with our friends which we don’t even share with our parents it’s not because we can’t confide in them but because are friends our more or less of the same age group and they tend to understand better. We are quite familiar with the saying a friend in need is a friend in deed. According to me this may not stand true in all the cases. Have you ever asked yourself, why that particular friend could not help you at some instance may be he was in a greater pain or trouble. What if that friend applies the same principle, a friend in need is a friend indeed, without considering the trouble you are facing. Our friendship will never be all happy happy all the time if it’s so it may not be a true friendship at all the time if it’s so it may not be a true friendship at all. In friendship there are always ups and downs. True friend may sometimes tell us things about ourselves which no one may have courage to tell. It may take time to accept some truths about ourselves which may lead to conflict. But a true friend will always want your good in whatever he does.

So how to cultivate such a friendship, is it easy to have a true and selfless friend, no! It’s not.

So here are some tips for cultivating friendship.

      Don’t look for a special friend whom you have not at found. Starts by being friendly to people you meet around.

      Friendships are most often founded on shared interest and common outlook (views)

      The only way to win friend(ship) is by being friendly yourself.

      All friendships are destined to last forever.

      We don’t own anybody thus we have to cultivate the ability to let go friends when it is time to let go.

      Don’t force your friend to share his\her personal life with you it will automatically happen when the right time comes.

      Don’t expect anything from the other, the less you expect the happier you will be when you get something.

In times of trouble we share our problems with our friends not because they will give us solutions but because they will give us such silly suggestions that we will forget our problems.

Being a missionary

Being a missionary

Who is a missionary? A missionary is a person who gives his 100% for the kingdom of God, to spread the Good news. The word missionary in today’s world is a noble idea many say we want to go, but no one gets up to go. When the thought of being a missionary passes our mind the first thing we must keep in mind is the parable of the window who put two coins in the donation box and that’s all she had, she gave her everything we to should be able to give our everything.

Teresa of Child Jesus never went to the missions than why is she the patron of missionaries? There is difference between being and having a missionary sprit. Though Teresa did not go to the missions she spent her whole life in praying for missionaries and she had a special place for the missions in her heart. A good example of being a missionary is our very own saint Francis Xavier. He was a man who spent his whole life in spreading the Good news and baptizing many. We all have the spirit of a missionary through our baptism. As the pope says our catholic church is a missionary church. It’s high time now that we become missionaries. This call of becoming a missionary is not only for priests and religious but for all people of God. There are so many young and old alike who zealously spread the good news in faraway places where people have not known Christ.

There are so many people in our localities that have not received Christ, so why go far and wide? It’s a very valid point it’s true that there are people around us who do not know Christ. Imagine if early Christians or apostles had restricted themselves only to Jerusalem till they converted every Jew, would there be Christianity in India? St. Thomas the apostle would have never reached our culturally rich India.

Can I become a missionary? Yes! All of us are called to be missionaries but there are a few qualities which help in making of a good missionary. A missionary primarily needs to be committed, sacrificing and needs to be a self-giving person(generous). But what if I fail? It’s better to try and fail rather than not to try at all. We are afraid of failing and making fun of ourselves therefore we don’t try out in the bargain we don’t grow. Its better people laugh at us because we try and fail rather than we sit and cry because we have not done something we wanted or had the desire to do. As someone said “missionary is a person whose heart is bigger than him”.

I have the desire of becoming a missionary but I am not confident, so how do I prepare myself? Following are few points suggested to me by a man of experience and above all a man of God. I don’t want to keep these rich thoughts as my personal treasure.

First, you need to discern a missionary vocation very carefully.  There are some qualities that you need to ensure before making such a choice.  Immediately, a few of them would be:

·         That you are strong in your vocation and that your religious life is firmly based on faith motives - not on emotional enthusiasm or human motives such as feeling good, enjoyable community life, security, etc.  To be missionary is to be able to withstand lots of struggles - the same as for all of us, except that as missionary it is in a foreign country!

·         That you are open minded and able to adjust and immerse yourself in a culture (language, food habits, values, mentalities) that is different from your own.

·         Generosity in offering yourself for a people that are not your own!

·         Ability for much sacrifice as such a vocation takes you away from family and friends.

These are some of the factors on the basis of which I would base my decision for choosing a missionary vocation.

Wedding cards of the Warli community

Wedding cards of the Warli community

If we see the wedding cards of the Warli (adivasi) community of Maharashtra it’s really amazing. The cards have more than 400 odd names of family and friends, benefactors and well wishers etc. on the wedding invitation card, this point out to the fact that there is a lot of unity among the people. We may say that they are illiterate but when it comes to people close to their hearts they are very sensitive and literally know everything about them. The ones getting married try their best not to miss out on any names. It is said that if the friends or relatives don’t find their names on the card they get angry even to the extent of not talking and not even attending the wedding. The quality of the card points out to the importance they give to this sacrament of marriage. They spend a lot of money during the wedding feast. The celebration is for two days. Most of the girls marry after the age of 18 and boys after the age of 21. This shows that they have given up the practices of child marriage. The people also permit widow marriage this shows that the people have got rid of some social evils that they used to have in earlier days. The reverence the people of this community of Maharashtra have for this union between man and women is also commendable. They also respect the women, but the only setback is that a man can have 2 wives while a woman marries only ones.

: this information is collected by interviewing and  through friendly chat with woman, man and many children from the Warli community of Gonde and also a few children of other neighboring villages.

    

      

SOMJIKAI, DHORM ANI DOYEST – MOG

SOMJIKAI, DHORM ANI DOYEST – MOG

Don Bosco-che porbem somoyar(Janerache 31-tarker), hea sovnsarak, tachea bhov motvachea deniacho ugdas koruya, tem zavn asa tachi xikxannik poddort.

Somjikai (reason), Dhorm (religion) ani Doyest Mog (loving kindness) he tin zaun asat koddegant khambe Don Bosco-che xikxonnik (xikovpache) poddortiche. He poddortik inglez bhaxen  “Preventive System” mhonttat. Hea utracho konknni bhaxentlean sompeponnim anuvad kelo zalear, addhavop vo addhkonn korop, him utram amchea monant rokddinch upzotat. Khorem mhonllear, bariksannin pollelem vo onbovlem zalear amkam khobor astoli, hi poddort addhavpachi vo bhondi ghatlea sarki poddort nhoi.

            Atanchea kallar kai zannanim he poddortik novem nav sodun khadlam, tem zaun asa “the expressive system.” Konknni baxen hea utracho anuvad kelo zalear hea utracho ghost vetolo. Tor ami bore baxen somzoche khatir hanv eka udaronna udexim spoxtt kortam. Peter, ho apleach vadeacho bhurgo. Science vixoi taka somzona mhonn pustok bhair udovnk to sodta. “Preventive” hea utracher ami niyall kelo zalear amkam oxem disunk xokta ki Peter pustok bhair udoitana xikxok taka adaita vo bhair udovnk dina. Punn “expressive” hem utor vaporlem zalear amcho ragrong bodlunk xokta. “Expressive” hea utracho upeog kortana amchea monant vegddench chitr upzota, tem mhonnlear tea bhurgeak somzaupacho, pustokachem ani xikxonnachem mol kollit korpachem, ani mogan fuddle pavtti oxem korchem nhoi mhonn sangchem.

            Hi poddort atanchea kallar khub famad zal’li asa. Don Bosco-cheach xallenim nhoi punn dusrea-i  xallenim  hem podorticho vapor khel’lo amkam disun ieta. Ami avoi-bapainim vo xikxokanim amchea bhurgeank sopurnn xikxonn ditoleanv mhonn bhas diuk zai. Xallek vo kolejik datt’tana ami amchea burgeanche  mon-bud’dikuch nhoi punn somajik, otmik ani kuddichea vhaddponnak mot diunk zai. Ami somzotanv ki  hea soglea vixoiam-cher, Don Bosko-n, zachia zolmachim donnxim vorsam ami gel’lea vorsa sazor kelea, tannem purai toren lox dil’lo asa. To zavn asa he poddorticho “expert” zannkar.