SCOUT HIKE REPORT Kilbil Nashik 2016

SCOUT HIKE REPORT  Kilbil Nashik 2016

Infancio Pires, Scout Master (coordinator)

The Students of standards 7^th and 8^th gathered the school premises on the chilly morning of 13^th November 2016. After reporting and a short prayer the buses left the school for Chamberleni by 8:30 am. In the bus there was sing song, games, and loads of fun.

On reaching Chamberleni at 9.30am the expression of most of the scouts was very much that of surprise. Climbing up the mountain and the temple steps which I guess were approximately 350 to 450 seemed impossible to a few of the scouts who had never tried such a thing before. Brothers in-charge of various Patrols taught the scouts differ kinds of knots such as clove hitch, sheet bent reef knot, etc. This was followed by the most awaited hike. The students were given snacks for the climb, as it would be tiring.

The scouts reached the temple following the various arrows and doing the forfeits they were supposed to do on finding chits, which were placed in bottles at various intervals. Some climbed and reached the temple with ease whereas a few struggled but none gave up. On the way as well as on reaching the temple the eyes feasted on the beauty of mother nature, birds, insects, trees, plants, monkeys and the clear blue sky which realize the power and love of God.

The descend was much easier. On reaching flat ground every body’s tummies rumbled in hunger, so the necessity was met. The 7^th std students had a session on values which primarily focused on respect towards girls and women, while games were conducted for the 8^th std students and vice-versa. There were games conducted in common for both the students of 7^th and 8^th. A short break was given, after which time was given to prepare for the skit based on conservation of environment which they were to perform shortly, according to their patrols. The program was not only entertaining but also educative.

We left the place at around 4:30 after having our refreshments. The journey back to school also was fun, but the energy levels were down because of the tiring yet trilling hike. It was a wonderful experience for the boys as well as brothers.

Sexualizing Women

Sexualizing Women

Day by day our world is becoming more and more sexually explicit. We in India though not very comfortable talking about sex yet we want things to get messy. It’s a fact that we voice are opinion about the injustice that women face yet we want to have fun.

A few days back, as I was flipping through the newspapers, I came across pictures of some half-clad women. The women were advertising a car. The irony of the situation was that normally a car which is bigger than a human being was shown smaller, while zooming in on the women. Looking at this, I wondered what the object of the sale was: women or the car? At another instance there was a women advertising a bag but it looked as though she was advertising a backless dress.

The way women are portrayed in media does not speak well of our mentality. We are objectifying women by the way they are portrayed. Mostly, in ads, we see women touching, caressing, objectified, lying on the floor, body contorted, dressed like a child, sitting on a bed or chair, eyes closed, not alert, confused, holding an object or a man for support, sexy and sexually available, playful, careless and the list goes on. Most of the positions or behavior are either seductive or show vulnerability. These are positions of submissiveness and powerlessness. This can be clearly seen when women are shown lying on the floor, as men stand over them, literally depicting them as commodities and giving the impression that female bodies are quite plainly ‘prepared for consumption’.

Feminity, in advertising is not only used as a ploy of sexual appeal, but also in keeping with societal norms of how women are “supposed to look”. The ideal female is white, thin, sexily clad, tall, with ‘tubular’ body, blonde hair and above all, submissive. When a girl sees this and finds that she does not meet the expectation, there are chances of developing frustration, stress, low self-esteem, identity crises and other psychological problems. This can also make the women believe in ads and she may start buying the products just to look like the models, leading to consumerism. We often hear that sex sell; most of the time what they really mean is that sexy women sell. For scores of years, advertisers have been finding different ways to feature women in ads in order to entice buyers. The way women have been portrayed in media has changed over the decades, and changed the way society views women because of it. Images in the media today project an unrealistic and even dangerous standard of feminine beauty that can have a powerful influence on the way women view themselves. Women become sexual objects when their bodies and their sexuality are linked to products that are bought and sold. We also see that women’s bodies are often dismembered into legs, breasts, hips or thighs, reinforcing the message that women are objects rather than o whole human being.

“Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder”. This is a famous quote we hear over and over again. The question we have to ask is who feeds the views of the beholder? What we see over and over again makes an impression on our mind and we tend to think that, that which is shown is beautiful. We need to be critical about what we see, or rather, we need to be critical of what the media wants us to see. It is publicized because we enjoy seeing, without our support there would not have been sexually provocative advertisements on women. Another question that arises is “why are women degrading themselves?” everyone has their own reasons, some for money, some are forced or some others may take pleasure in such cheap type of publicity.

The way women are portrayed in the media is one of the major reasons for social evils like rape, eve teasing, harassment, abuse and other such evils that take place against women.

Women like men are fully human thus we need to respect them and treat them like human beings and not as entertainment or inferior beings who are born just to satisfy men. There is awareness about equality of women and stuff like that. But the change will happen only when we personally take steps towards improvement of the situation. We need to stop encouraging and watching things that degrade women and treat them as objects. When we watch or circulate such things the demand increases thus the makers make more and more women to such stuff just to satisfy the viewer.

Philosophy of My Life

Philosophy of My Life

Introduction

Infancio Pires was born in Carambolim, Goa, India on 10^th October 1994 in a devout catholic family. At this point of time he is doing his philosophical studies at Divyadaan. His father is an accountant in Taj and mother a teacher while his sister is doing her studies in Goa medical college. His family is very much involved in church activities. Looks like all these factors influenced him a great deal and thus he has decided to become a priest and help others to live life to the full. He also wants to go to the periphery to preach the Good News and give dignity to others.

Basic conviction

·        There is just one life, live it to the fullest

·        Happiness will not easily come to us we need to strive towards it.

·        Sorrows are part of  life without which we would not understand the meaning of happiness

·        Whatever happens, happens for good, we may not realize the good that comes out of it immediately

Philosophy of God

·        God exists, he has created us and he sustains us

·        Deep within us we either affirm or negate the existence of God

·        The fact that the thought of God’s existence or non-existence crops in our mind shows that there is someone. Or else the thought would not have come at all

·        I believe in God’s existence because I feel his presence even though I did not see Him, hear from Him, nor touch Him.

·        When I question myself how can I trust my feelings so much? The rational side of me awakens.

·        I am convinced that this whole world and everyone and everything in it cannot just be mere chance.

·        Thomas Aquinas’ 5 proofs are convincing enough at least for me. And those who don’t believe even after all these proofs and testimonies of people I am sure they won’t believe until and unless God himself reveals himself to them.

Philosophy of Man

·        Man is like the cherry on the cake, God’s final and most beloved creature

·        Human being are community beings or social animals

·        Human beings cannot live as an island, we need other human beings to have meaning in life

·        Human beings are the rulers of the earth; I say this because we are blessed with a unique gift: reason and we are expected to be just and merciful.

·        Human is the most powerful being as we use intellect to make life for himself and others comfortable and easy

·        Human being is expected to live in communion with other beings but at times the selfishness overpowers and man becomes an animal.

·        Each person is unique. There are no two people who are same. Each one is created with a purpose. Therefore we have no right to take any one’s life or our own.

·        Man and women are created to complement each other and live happily. No one can claim to be superior or inferior to the other.

·        Without any of the one, men or women the human race would not have continued therefore we need both and need to respect each other.

·        Nowadays there is also an increasing awareness of who have homosexual orientation, we need to respect them and give them space to live as normal human beings.

·        Crimes in the world are increasing because we are becoming selfish

Philosophy of World

·        This world or earth is our first home. Without which we would not exist.

·        World is the creation of God and this world we live in is the best world for us. I say for us, because there may be other undiscovered worlds but this is best suited for us.

·        Our world is good and beautiful, because we know that God does create junk.

·        The existence of this world is also a proof of God’s existence.

·        The world was created out of nothing and is sustained by God directly or indirectly.

·        I believe in the theory of evolution this does not mean that I don’t believe in God .

·        For something to evolve there needs to be that something. And that something is created by God.

·        We are the crown of creation, this does not give us the license to kill and destroy other creatures for our selfish motives. On the contrary since we have reason we need to take care of the other beings.

·        All the creatures in the world are interdependent. Therefore the death of one can lead to the death of other.

·        All the natural calamities are partly the result of the harm we do to our mother earth.

·        God has created the world and it cannot be destroyed completely without his will.

Good and Evil

·        As we have learned that evil is the privation of due good.

·        I have an analogy which helps me to understand good and evil, I equate good to light and evil to darkness. What is darkness? It is the absence of light. Why is darkness necessary? To understand the importance of light. Only in darkness does the light shine more brightly.

·        We do not choose evil intentionally. Most of the time evil is chosen by us on pretext of good. The evil my apparently seem good but in the long run we realize that what seemed good is not good after all.

That what gives Purpose and Meaning to my life

·        First and foremost what gives meaning to my life is the love which I receive from my family and friends.

·        I am blest with this life this shows that I am not useless. I have to play my part; this conviction gives me boost and zeal to live my life well.

·        Life is difficult but surely wonderful. so each of us need to live our God given life well.

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet

William Shakespeare

- Infancio Pires

Romeo and Juliet is a story from Verona, Italy. It’s about a love story of two young lovers Romeo and Juliet. There is a long dispute between the Montague and Capulet families. Romeo belonged to the Montague family while Juliet belonged to the Capulet family. They both fall in love with each other at a party. Since they come from families which dislike each other, they were sure they will not be allowed to marry. Romeo and his cousins would often get into arguments and fights with the cousins of Juliet. Knowing a marriage would be impossible and the parents would not give their consent, they with the help of Friar Laurence, marry in secret. Juliet’s cousin Tybalt, searches for Romeo, but gets into an argument with Romeo’s friend and kills one of them. This makes Romeo furious and he chases him and ends up killing Tybalt in a duel. When the Prince of Verona arrives at the murder scene, he banishes Romeo form Verona and warns him that his returns to the city, would lead to his death.

Meanwhile Juliet's parents wanted her to marry a noble man named Paris. Juliet’s parents were unaware that she was already married. Juliet refused to marry, her father even threatened to disown her. After a lot of declining Juliet finally agrees because she plans to fake her death and escape to be with Romeo forever this was done with the help of Friar Laurence who was an expert in the field of medicine.

Friar Laurence envisaged a plan. He gave Juliet a potion which would put her to sleep for a certain period. Where she would appear to be dead. Friar Laurence who had come to preside over the marriage suggested that they should have her funeral rites without any further delay. The demise of Juliet left all the marriage guest grief stricken. Her potential groom too was shocked and heartbroken. On the other hand Friar Laurence sends a novice to inform Romeo about the plan he had chalked. Unfortunately Romeo’s cousin who was unaware of the plan reaches Romeo before, and informs him of Juliet’s death. By the time the novice reachs Romeo it was too late, Romeo had already left to see her mortal remains. On the way to her tomb he buys the deadliest poison to kill himself. When he reaches the entrance of the tomb he finds Paris who was supposed to marry Juliet guarding the tomb. Romeo battles him and kills him just to get the last glimpse of his true love. On seeing Juliet’s dead body lying in the tomb, Romeo drinks the poison and gives her a last kiss and dies.  

On the other hand Friar Laurence comes to know that Romeo has not received his note and hurries to the tomb. But by the time he reaches the tomb Romeo is already dead, while Juliet slowly wakes up from the effect of the medicine. Friar Laurence tries to convince Juliet to flee, but upon seeing Romeo’s dead body she takes a dagger and kills herself. The people of the town getting to know about the tragedy that took place comes to the tomb, both the Montague as well as the Capulet families arrives. Friar Laurence tells the whole story and finally the two families agree to live in fellowship ones again.

Reading the Face of Mother Teresa

“Intense love does not measure it just gives”
Mother Teresa‟s whole life has been that of giving and doing for the love of Christ and humankind. She was born on August 26, 1910 in Macedonia. Her real name was Agnes Gonxhe Bojaxhiu. She joined the Loreto Novitiate on May 23, 1929. After her first profession she was known as Sr. Teresa after her patroness St. Theresa of Avila. After her final profession she was to be known as Mother Teresa following the Loreto custom. Mother Teresa had a life changing experience while on her journey from Calcutta to Darjeeling. She received a “call within a call”, she saw people in pain and decided to love and work for those deprived of love. Thus began her journey. Many were impressed by her service and collaborated with her, and hence was born the congregation of Missionaries of Charity. Mother Teresa‟s life can be summed up by just contemplating at her face. In the silence it speaks a million words loud and clear.
As I was gazing at a image of her face, each part either reminded me of an experience or told me a story.
“The world today is hungry not only for bread but hungry for love; hungry to be wanted to be loved.”
Head and Forehead- Her forehead not or hardly visible due to her sari, no hair or short hair on her covered head shows detachment from the world like most female religious. This reminded me of an incident. Once when in school we friends were fooling with scissors in the absence of the teacher. There was a girl who was resting her head on the desk, I caught a strand of her hair and pretended to cut it. She exclaimed in furry anything but my hair „hair is one of the most priceless possessions for a girl… Please don‟t mess with it‟. I was shocked and embarrassed. But looking at Mother Teresa I don‟t think her hair was a possession she cherished, she was more focused on serving those who lacked the basic necessities of life.
“I am so used to seeing the smile on our people, even the dying ones smile.”
Eyes- Her eyes were always filled with compassion and never did any one whom she serve doubt her. It is because they saw love in her eyes. Though her eyes were old and weary, she never looked at her self but at others, and did not stop at that she made sure she did something about it. Once I said to a friend of mine I am really jealous of your charcoal black eyes. He was all puffed up and proudly said that many have commented on his eyes and thus he has decided to donate them once he dies. Wow! Firstly nice eyes, and added to that, noble intentions. I must say I was
impressed, (but not) until I thought of this incident in context with that of the life of Mother
Teresa. She really made good use of her eyes when she was alive to see, and seek for those living
in misery. The boy‟s intention was not bad, but not good enough in comparison.
“The poor are very great people they can teach us many beautiful things.”
Nose- She had a nice plump rounded nose. I am sure she could smell well. Saying about her nose
reminds me of an incident of which I was a part. Few years ago I had visited a convent of
Missionaries of Charity. There was a man rotting to death brought in by the ambulance. The
sisters immediately rushed towards the van. I quickly covered my nose because the smell was
unbearable. Now reflecting back I wonder how the sisters were able to clean up that person
without any sign of disgust. I marvel, if the followers are so committed the founder must have
really lived an exemplary life. And I am sure that Mother Teresa did not have any olfactory
defect. I guess she was able to do this because of the love, by which all her senses were
possessed.
Mouth- her mouth more than receiving gave. Why do I say this? Mother Teresa always had
something good to say about those she met. She received a lot from others on account of her hard
work. Apart from things, she was also offered food which she first gave to those under her care
and only then did she think about herself. I know of an elderly lady who was filthy rich. Her
mouth knew only to boast of her own self and hog at places where she was invited because of her
superior statues. And yet she complained about the places and people she encountered. What a
contrast between these two women, I said to myself. One had nothing with her yet with a smile
said and also did good things, the other had most of the things needed but always grumbled and
expected more and more from others.
“We can do no great things only small things with great love”
Facial skin- finally when I look at her face with creases all over, it looks like a parched land
without water. Her sunken cheeks and wrinkled pink chin shows all the hard work she has done
over the period of a lifetime without concentrating on her own looks. As I was putting to paper
my thoughts, I remembered an advertisement of a female facial cream which said „to be accepted
by people around you, you need to look fair, young and need to have smooth skin‟. The ad
assured to make one look younger and fight all the signs of aging. If I am not mistaken Mother
Teresa was not only accepted by those around her but practically by the whole world. It is not
only the exterior looks that make one beautiful but also the qualities of the heart. Along with our
exterior appearance let us also concentrate on the growth of our interior life. We all are saints
and we need to live like one.
“How can we love God whom we do not see, if we do not love our neighbor‟s whom we see,
whom we touch with whom we live?”

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.