Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.
Nelson Mandela
Whatever might be the change we look forward to, education will definitely be the passport to the future. The much awaited tomorrow we all long for, belongs to those who prepare for it today.
When we say preparation today for a better tomorrow. There comes a question does everyone have the access to make themselves prepared. This is where access to education plays a major role.
Though we say that our literacy percentage has been increasing through the years. There is still a percentage of children who either have no access or have partial access to education.
Let’s try understanding partial and no access here. Partial access would mean there is access but either it is not fully utilized due to family situation demanding to be employed instead of being educated.
No access is due to lack of facilities in terms of infrastructure and resources in the form of skilled members to provide education.
Though we do have efforts from the Government coming up with new schemes in terms of compulsory primary education. The kids and families also need inspiration and the motivation to send them to school and make them understand the change that will unfold before them once they are educated.
These are people who need to told they have the opportunities and they can be utilised for them to get access to educate. But there are another section who are on a constant struggle each day for their recognition and for the basic human right to get access go education.
It is heartening to see young kids who have the spark in them and long for education but couldn’t because of family’s socio economic background.
But on the other hand we see a lot of NGOs trying their best to reach out to topographical locations to provide the necessary infrastructure and resources so that this section could also get education.
A lot of corporate companies as part of their CSR have taken up activities like teaching at schools in remote locations, helping people there set up a proper infrastructure with basic facilities that would help children there get access to education.
Helping them with resources also includes providing them a library , educational aids that would facilitate smoother access to education.
I was happy that during my tenure in the IT industry, I took part in notebook collection, book collection and library set up drives. It was an enriching experience to meet kids who were thrilled when they received new books, notebooks and their interest in education and getting to know their future dreams.
It was very evident that of these children are nurtured well with quality education we will definitely see a change that we look forward to tomorrow.
Losing a loved one can make your shatter like the sky coming down on you. Grieving is a natural response to loss, many of us fail to understand how it can affect lives.
The loss of a loved one can make irreparable damage to what we say the foundations of our lives. This damage is prone to affecting both the mins and body.
Preoccupied with thoughts, memories and images of the loved one, having difficulty in accepting the reality that they’re gone, waves of sadness and yearning about them is all part of the grieving process.
It’s been six months since my mom passed away, but i still find it difficult to come to terms that she’s gone. Waiting for her to open the door while I knock, checking on me if I had my meal not just once every meal of the day, checking if I’ve taken medicines, that tender love and care when I’m sick, those gossips during coffee, lying down on the lap, falling asleep on her shoulders during TV time is all something that I yearn for now.
I know that won’t happen now, but still my heart fails to accept and makes me ask the supreme ‘ please just one more time’. There are days I feel absolutely normal, and days I cry like a baby. Not just a metaphor I really do. Somedays I find it very difficult.
My sleep cycle has gone for a toss. Blame my photographic memory, not sure if it’s a boon or a bane, I keep getting visuals of mom’s last few days with me on repeat. Which makes me not shut my eyes. But there are days I fall asleep unknowingly.
I am still trying my best to deal with her loss. Began to focus on reading how to process grief and deal with it. I thought why not share it here, might help someone who is on the same phase like me.
Grief can be classified into acute and persistent grief.
The first six to twelve months after the loss of someone we experience acute grief.
If it lasts over 12 months, it is termed persistent grief.
Chronic stress is commonly experienced during acute grief, it can lead to a lot of physical and emotional issues like anger, anxiety, pains, sleep issues amd depression. But if the person is old these signs shouldn’t be ignored.
People with persistent grief need to take therapy or counselling to deal with it by taking up cognitive behavioral therapy. But for acute grief there are certain ways that can help you ease.
Take new responsibility
Losing a loved one will also lead to you taking up new responsibility. Say like cooking, households chores. This can probably add to your stress but can be a mood uplifted experience if you take it in a positive way. Focusing on task can help you divert from grief.
Healthy diet
When you are under stress it acts as a trigger and makes you crave sugar and fat. Feel good, high calorie and high fat foods is what people reach out to make them feel better. But it can worsen your condition. Planning to take a well balanced diet will definitely help you maintain good health.
Sleep cycle
When you deal with grief your sleep cycles get affected. You might find it difficult to fall asleep, wake up a number of times and not having sound sleep. But following a sleep routine on a regular basis , avoiding screens close to bed time, avoiding caffeine and alcohol can help for a sound sleep.
Move your body
A daily walk can help in easing depression, agitation and sorrow related to grief. We find ourselves less motivated to go and workout. In that case a workout partner or a group ca help you sort this out.
Look after your health
Our general health gets ignored when we are going through grief. But dont take it lightly. Set reminders for any tests that you should be taking, tablets or medications. A little help from a family member to remind you doesn’t hurt.
Reach out to people
It’s most painful to see people and the outside world but also important to not miss the connections. This would serve as a reminder that you are not alone and when you feel isolated you have family and friends to help you out and be the supportive hand. Go out for a coffee, invite people for lunch. If not be in touch with someone over mail Or call.
Grief affects mental and physical health to a great extent. Reaching out to help and help make a betterment in your mental health is not something to feel shy or to be hesitant to ask of.
As much as all of us want to make ourselves presentable in terms of physical appearance and also to smell good, we fail to notice one of the most important after effects.
As per studies an average human uses about 30 gallons of water to wash . And when I say wash it does include the chemicals we wash away too like soap, face washes, shower gel. This not only goes to our drain but ends up in the aquatic ecosystem.
All this because certain substances are non biodegradable and we also end up consuming the aquatic life which have been affected by the harmful chemicals. So it is indirectly affecting us.
They not only affect by indirect usage by us but also when being tested directly on animals that’s another topic of discussion.
What are the products that harm the environment??
Oxybenzone
Oxybenzone is predominantly found in sunscreens. Since sunscreen is widely used in tropical places they end up being present in the water harming aquatic life. They have an adverse effect on the coral reefs which ends up bleaching them. Hence always choose a safe sunscreen that doesn’t have oxybenzone.
Parabens
Parabens are mainly used as a preservative in cosmetics like primer. They end up being found on the tissues of aquatic life. They can damage coral reefs and introduce reproductive issues in aquatic life.
Triclosan
Mostly present in soaps and handwashes, triclosan also can be present in toothpastes in minimal quantities. They end up killing the algae which is food for majority of aquatic life. Also cause hormonal problems in dolphins and disturbs ecological balance.
Silicone in whitening creams
High levels of siloxane, a derivative of silicone was found deposited in skin of fish and other marine life denoting the fact that it fails to leave the skin.
Microbeads contains polyethylene and propylene
Face washes, shower gels, detergents all have variants which have plastic microbeads. Aquatic life predominantly fishes misunderstand the beads to be fish food and end up confusion them. It takes hundreds of years for them to break down to simpler substances.
Wet wipes having plastic fibres
The wet wipes we use for convenience has plastic fibres which does not disintegrated instead binds to fats from the sewer and clogs drains. They cannot be recycled and hence end up polluting the environment and drains. So avoid sheet masks and wipe pads too.
In addition to all these a major contributor is the packaging which the products come in. Mainly packed with plastic and cardboard though their main purpose served is safe transportation and for usage purposes. These packing materials also contribute to keeping the environment polluted.
The beauty industry has been named to be contributing to the environment degradation because they pollute the landfill and end up in pollution.
The cardboard is made from tree pulp which also indicates harm to trees used for packaging materials. On top of this, companies also use mixed materials like polyethylene which are non biodegradable and end up in the aquatic life adding more fuel to the already existing pollution problem.
Almost all products have chemicals in them which cannot be broken down to the lowest levels. These products cannot be destroyed either. A
As consumers we cannot abstain from buying products but the choices we make can bring in a lot for difference.
Next time before buying make sure to check labels and help conserve the environment by embracing brands that are eco friendly and contribute our part to preserving the mother earth.
Inspiration from consumers who opposed using such chemicals has made brands adopt green strategies. This also proves that in the end the consumer has the power to change the strategies for businesses and help them undertake sustainable practices.
Responsible purchasing choices should be practiced and proper education what should be avoided citing the adverse effects, consumers will definitely have an impact on reducing the harmful effects.
Nature can play a major role to leave a profound effect or impact on our brain. This in turn influences our behaviour helping us to alleviate stress and anxiety. Increase in attention , creative thinking and social connections are also being observed as nature’s touch to leeaad a good mental health. We’re still in the beginning stage to find more and more evidences to prove the above.
Nature helps to heal
Spending time in a greener and nature dense environment had its effects on improving self-esteem and alleviating depressive symptoms on those suffering from mental health issues.
Not only improvisation of mental health but also significant progres in physical well-being, reduction in muscle tension, heart rate and blood pressure is also observed to be some of the benefits to indulge in nature therapy.
The multiple incoming sensory signals is caused by soothing effect of nature. Lush greenery, mild natural sounds and nice fragrance also have their place in contributing to good mental health. The sight of flowers or even the scent of roses can leave a relaxed effect.
There are numerous ways to enjoy nature right from the comfort of your home. Tending a garden, working from the outdoors, meditation outdoors than doing them inside is a great change. Working or doing your daily tasks with natural light from the sun and sky is also a great way to enjoy nature indoors.
The sight of an unpleasant environment on the other hand can reverse the healing effect. Regardless of age people find nature to be soothing and pleasing. ‘ Healing Gardens ‘ is a book that cites over two-thirds of people choose natural sights to resort to when being stressed.
A recent research also proves that having a small plant indoors in offices, hospitals and at work or school can have an lessening effect on stress and anxiety.
Nature’s help in soothing
In addition to above effects of nature to heal we often resort to nature when experiencing pain and discomfort.
Our bodies are genetically engineered to look out for trees, water and natural elements and when we absorb the natural scenes we get distracted from pain and discomfort.
This was evidently seen when two sets of people post surgery where made to stay in rooms facing trees and the other group facing wall. It was fascinating to know people who see natural scenary showed better pain management than people who were made to see the wall.
Nature helps in restoring
Nature also helps to aid better general wellbeing. Almost 95% of people would assure that they felt relieved from being depressed or stressed after spending time outdoors. It also helps calm anxious mind keeping it more balanced.When you’re in a positive mood and good psychological well-being it in turn improves vitality and meaningfulness. The ability to stay more focused or pay attention also improves when we spend time looking at nature. Nature is inherently interesting to us humans that we tend to focus naturally on what we are currently experiencing. So this serves to calm down the overactive mind and keep it refreshed for the upcoming tasks.
Research also shows that children with ADHD shower improved attention span after spending time in nature.
Nature helps in making connections
When people spend time in nature it helps them connect to one another and also to the world outside.It is also said that people who surrounded their houses with trees and greenery ended up knowing more people,have more concern with helping out each other and have strong sense of belonging than tenants who do not have trees around. They also have increased feelings unity towards their neighbours.
These people show better capacity to deal with life demands ,less violence and aggression between domestic partners.
When brain activity during nature exposure is studied it was evident that the parts of brain that are associated with empathy and love lit up and it ignited the fear and anxiety in urban scenaries.
Deadly screen time
Too much of time spent before screens lacking time to enjoy nature is said to increase depressive symptoms and isolation. In the worst case it can also lead to loss of empathy and altruism.
Nurture children with nature
So it is advisable if we bring up the younger generation to spend very less time in front of the screen and to engage with nature. They could take a walk around the block, read by the window or play outdoor games.
Nature is a vast subject to talk about. Who doesn’t love nature? Age is no bar to talk or to experience the magic of what nature holds to show us.
Kids are no exception. In fact, they show interest in involving themselves close to nature. Quite often this is restricted keeping in mind the safety and hygiene. But why not? How else would they learn to experience or cherish nature’s gift.
But as years pass by and the way the earth is dealing with global warming, it is certainly alarming that would future generations have something left to enjoy. Carbon footprint, greenhouse gas emissions though have been brought to significant reduction through awareness in various media channels, the damage that was done before cannot be reversed and we would have to deal with it.
So when we introduce kids to nature or bring in the concept of nature play, it is also our duty to let them know about nature conservation.
This being the month having the world nature conservation day, it is one of the best times to start teaching about nature to kids if you still haven’t begun.
Nature conservation day is celebrated to stress the importance of preserving natural resources and to spread awareness about the conservation of nature. Working towards building a sustainable environment is very much essential to ensure the well-being of the future generations.
There are a lot of ways to teach about nature conservation. When you do it with activities it makes the learning even more interesting.Here’s where to begin with.
Exploring the garden
A walk in your backyard or in the garden definitely fascinates kids. The insects, crawling beings, plants definitely increases their curiosity. Have you noticed this behavior in your toddler ? It is also a form of learning. You can take this opportunity to explain about the various types of insects in the backyard or garden and their way of life.
If your child is old enough, you could even play a game identifying them and make note of it as a record.
DIY bird feeder
With online shopping we end up with a lot of cardboard boxes. Making a bird feeder with them, by simply giving it a makeover is a great activity to engage toddlers. They could make the cuts for opening, and paint it with bright colours go attract birds. Filling the feeder with grains using spoon also is a good activity that would improve their motor skills.
Growing plants and making composts
Children love go watch things that bring out magical changes. Say the development of plant from seed. Try growing Microgreens in your balcony or kitchen garden. They’re easy to start with. Click here to know more about Microgreens.
Using chemical fertilizers to boost yield definitely will harm mother earth and will have adverse effects for future generations. Click here to know what are the harmful effects and how can you help in lessening the damage.
Making your own compost is a great alternative to harmful chemical fertilizers. All you need is a pot, soil and some peels from kitchen. The process is very simple and is a great activity that makes kids environmentally responsible human beings. Teach them about growing plants using own compost, I’m sure they will never say no.
DIY planters
So when I say teaching them to grow plants, did you also realize we already have the planters at home too. I’m sure most of us use coconut in cooking. The shells make great planters making it a more sustainable option and also an additional home decor.
Use old tyres or coconut shells. Involve the kids in painting and tying the strings to hand. You now have an activity for quiet play.
Nature walk
If you have a safe trail or a place to hike, you could take them out on a nature walk. That is all the more beneficial to make them apply what you taught them at home.
The different terrains, climatic changes, availability of resources and life during the change of place is definitely a much needed lesson for them in life.
Tips to teach them conservation
Be a role model. A picture is worth a thousand words. They see you doing it, they model it too. So make sure you first incorporate conservation, before teaching them.
Introducing concept of reduce, reuse and recycle. Start from home and you can see them applying it outside.
Turning off water while brushing and bathing. Children must understand that water isn’t available always and needs to be saved.
Involving them in making garden compost.
Using their help to segregate trash as in which and which is not recyclable.
Turning off lights while leaving the room.
Giveaway toys, clothes and resources that are not in use.
Involving them in beach clean up if they are old enough.
Teaching them to respect nature alongside if they’re being taught to respect human beings.
Teach children to have a bold and a beautiful environment. Help them to make choice to live, play and work in a way that doesn’t harm nature.
‘This post is part of #CauseAChatter with Blogchatter’.
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If patriarchy had a specific beginning in history,
It can also have an end.
– Maria Miles
Smash patriarchy
Patriarchy is a system in a society, where the male gender hold the power and the females are excluded. Given a super power this word is in the top of my list of words to be removed from dictionary.
The term in itself might sound new to many but is an age old practice that’s been there in the families for long. A lot more women and a handful of men who understand that this needs to end have taken necessary steps to get this out. But the efforts are all still only a drop in the ocean. But nevertheless it cannot be ignored and such experiences can motivate more people to come forward to get rid of it permanently.
What made me write this article is a recent movie that me and the hubster sat down to watch during one of the weekends.
“ The Great Indian Kitchen” it is. The movie has been getting attention from all directions as in the sub titles made it easier that people from er languages also geared interest to watch it. Not to forget the fact that the movie got released in a much lesser known OTT platform, people even went to the extent of paying the membership just to watch this movie. Thank goodness the movie stirred up a lot of news and Amazon decided to stream it on their platforms , that it saved me from spending on a new OTT membership. Glad this happened else that would have been one more reason for me to brood.
The film is set in Kerala, where in a newly wed couple start getting to know each other. That’s what happens in arranged marriages. You don’t immediately let your husband take up kitchen duties or pitch in to help, because it’s a society governed by patriarchy.
A typical morning in the house, and as the scenes unfold the husband does not even drop his coffee mug in the sink and that is the duty of the wife. Should I mention as one of the duty? The mother in law makes elaborate preparations chopping vegetables, grinding, tossing vessels, cookers what not. What I thought was supposed to be a lunch preparation turned out to be the scene for breakfast.
Not to mention the chutneys being ground on mortar and pestle and dosas straight to the plate from tawas. To top it all the way in which the father and son eat literally got me sick as I was having my lunch.
The mother in law and daughter in law sit down on the same table which the daughter in law finds difficult to cope. It looks like the mother in law has no voice to speak against such practices or is gotten used to adjusting. The level of treatment the men expect goes to Himalayan heights when the father in law is given the toothbrush with paste in hand to go brush the teeth and slippers being delivered right at his feet when he steps out. Blood boiled that I had to turn it off to calm myself for a while before I resumed watching.
The mother in law leaves abroad to help her pregnant daughter leaving all the responsibilities and duties to take care of the immature children of the house( the father and son). What started off to be a little hectic gets worse in one or two days. The never ending chores in kitchen , house cleaning , washing clothes makes her tense. To add to the woes the kitchen sink starts to leak which is left unattended even after multiple reminders she does so that her husband calls up the plumber.
The husband who is a shabby eater in the house is a perfect gentleman with table manners at the restaurant. When commented he gets pissed and makes the woman apologize. Atrocities!
The poor thing when she decides to take up a job is being advised by the father in law to leave all the thought because that’s what the mother in law did. Makes me want to question, who are these people to give opinions if a girl should work or no? All the education and experience only to wash clothes by hand and pound chutneys in mortar is highly unacceptable. It is really saddening to see that women in yester generation continue to do all this for their husbands and son and also give unrealistic hopes that the daughter in law who comes in will continue to do the same.
Being a millennial parent, it is our duty to raise sons who will equally respect the female gender. Raise sons who will cook, clean and help the women in the family. Raise sons who will do their own chores which includes keeping their rooms, tables clean , help in putting away dishes to sink and give some rest to the ever working women in the family.
Do not glorify if men in the home do this or tell the woman she is lucky to have them do all this. Let’s normalize such behaviour from men.
It was said in olden days that” the key to a man’s heart is through his stomach”. Whoever said that only meant tasty food not sumptuous spreads for every meal of the day that also includes room service to clear away mugs, plates and not to mention the leftover clean up after they ate.
Mentioning the clean up, I feel even diaper duties were far better after I saw the table in that movie.
The generation we now are supports equal parenting and gender equality. Let the men of the family take up kitchen duties during the period when the women menstruate, not citing purity as reasons as I also do not believe in it. This is just to make them capable of taking it up and not just relying upon women for food and everything.
Stop practicing that women should serve food to men and should serve themselves. Change that. Either sit together for a meal or have the men serve you once they finish. I don’t think that is going to reduce their worth or what so ever.
Raise your sons equivalent to your daughters. Do not practice gender based chores at home, it has to be shared equally. Only if this is done , your daughter in law would be happy that she is into a home that believes in modern way of thinking rather than surrendering to patriarchy.
Recently a picture that brought tears was a woman with an oxygen concentrator cooking in the kitchen captioned unconditional love= mother. This is the result of patriarchy. The person has no shame in portraying the suffering of the mother. The picture brought in a lot of negative traction. The women need to stand up against such practices.
It all comes down to making a change . Be the change to see more people joining you.
Men can make their own coffee or tea and can clean up. They can also look up simple recipes to cook, just saying.
If the daughter in law decides to make a change support them and don’t stand as a hindrance as push them into the same pit.
Do not raise sons with expectations that the wife will take care of everything for him just like how she does.
The lockdown made me think on a lot of aspects. It was also the time that I had delivered and I needed something to keep myself occupied and not get into PPD. That is when I stumbled upon kitchen garden.
Growing up I’ve always enjoyed watching Nigella Lawson use herbs in cooking from her kitchen. The sight of bright green tiny herbs that are brimming with freshness definitely could be felt even if I am watching it over television.
I did set up one in my balcony that had spinach, coriander, mint , chilli and mustard. I also did try and have some microgreens since I recently read about the benefits of consuming them, so I thought why not give it a try. I did and I succeeded. I had good yields but not for long. My plants needed something more. What was it? Fertilizers. They help in boosting the growth of plants offering necessary nutrients to the soil. That is when I started my web search to understand more about fertilizers.
I also read about the harmful effects of pesticides and fertilizers that are being used to give quicker yields. The health hazards that are waiting to attack once you consume the yield made me think that if this is what we have been consuming all along.
These fertilizers though are being used to boost the growth to meet the rising food demand of the growing population. Though on one hand it is deemed to be a scientific evolution that fertilizers and GMOs can give you tremendous yield. The effects in long run on both the humans and on mother earth is definitely going to be of humungous amounts.
What are the effects on environment?
Poor quality of soil
Using too much of fertilizers can give you yield results in multiples but on the longer run the usage of the same oil will become a bigger question mark. On repeated usage of fertilizers the acid levels in the soil seem to be getting higher upon each yield. Acidic soil does not give any or much yields so in the longer run it would be of no use. So it is paving the way for slow depletion.
CHANGING WATER BODY BIOLOGY The fertilizers used contain phosphates and nitrates which when combined in the sewers are released into the oceans. This results in increased growth of algae and decrease in oxygen levels. SO therefore we see a lot of destruction in marine life resulting in an imblance in the food chain.
HEALTH OF HUMANS
The nitrates and phosphates also contaminate ground water which the humans consume resulting in various health hazards. Not only ground water but also the vegetables and grains that are yielded with excessive use of fertilizers will lead to human body collapse involving the failure of multiple organs.
CLIMATIC CHANGE IN THE WORLD
The nitrates, phosphates, ammonia, methane and carbon dioxide have also contributed on a large scale to the emission of green house gases. The global warming and drastic weather changes are the end result of excessive fertilizer usage. So in order to satisfy the demand now we see to be digging ourselves and the world we live in into bigger problems.
Let’s take a look at using options at home that help make good fertilizers.
BANANA PEELS: Bananas are rich in potassium which make them the main reason for us to consume. The peels are rich in potassium as well. So they make great alternatives to potassium fertilizers. Simply burying them in the soil in a hole beside the plant gives you the needed benefit. This works best for roses. So as it grows you could bury on the layer at the top.
EGG SHELLS: Egg shells are great sources of calcium carbonate or lime as its commonly known. Its main benefit is to reduce the acidity of the soil. Plants do not grow in highly acidic soil. Next time don’t throw away the egg shells. Crush them and use it up. COFFEE GROUNDS: Some plants like tomato only thrive in acidic soil. The use of coffee grounds is to increase the acidity in the soil. Or alternatively you could also pour in the decoction.
FALLEN LEAVES: Leaves which fall in have some trace minerals and also retain moisture and hold the soil tight. They also attract the earthworms which are known as the farmers friend.
KITCHEN SCRAPS: These include vegetable and fruit peels. You could add them to your compost They release nutrients in a slow manner but yield good results. This does not require any application of fertilizer even up to a year. The compost also has moisture holding capability which is must needed for plants to make them thrive under the dry summer conditions.
WEEDS: Weeds are unwanted plants that grow alongside in the garden . Though they are deemed unwanted they are rich in nitrogen so its a reason to retain them to extract that benefit. So prepare a weed tea , by soaking the weeds in a bucket and fill up with water. After two weeks when it turns brown you could just use it on your garden.
Using these alternatives as fertilizers are small steps that we could take in order to bring in big changes.Lets hold hands and keep mother earth safe for future generations.
‘This post is part of #CauseAChatter with Blogchatter’.
When I was young, the word gender was seen or heard only once a year. I hope I would bring back nostalgic memories to all of you. That was a filed in DATA SHEET in school diary. I really could not understand whatsoever was the reason to have the field, cause can’t we identify them with the names? Do we specifically require a field? This was way back in the 90s when we did not know there was something termed “gender stereotyping”.
UNISEX NAMES
But now are the times when people say we have chosen a unisex name. I was like “What the hell is that?”. I thought the term “unisex” was used only for dresses, shoes or salon. May be this is why schools had the field on their forms procrastinating such a situation that both genders can use the names. Don’t get me wrong that I have a wrong opinion about unisex names, I am all okay with it, but just that it was something new to me and discrimination based on gender with regards to naming was so very new.
Where does it all start?
At home is definitely the straight answer most people would give you. And why would that be? It’s because we were brought up that way.We I mean the previous generation But during the course of us growing up and getting exposure to information of all kinds, somewhere down the lane we realized that this is not how it should be.
We as humans have evolved a lot and especially with concepts like gender stereotyping, sustainability, saying no to patriarchy. But we still have a long way to go in making our parents or grandparents understand the same. We have to be patient and understanding to make them absorb the concept on why we do not agree upon gender based discrimination. Making them understand that it has to be corrected from the roots I.e. home is another herculean task.
The Millennial parents, may be I’d say a 50% of us depend on our parents to help raise kids. Most parental conflicts arise here where our methodologies of thinking with respect to bringing up kids differs.
We believe in gentle parenting, no gender bias however that might sound weird to them because them and their forefathers had an entirely different way of parenting.
Our ways of treating kids, bringing them up to understand that a boy playing dolls and girl playing with a car is totally acceptable is kind of hard for them to process. But in a slow pace they would understand that in today’s way of life it is more necessary that both man and wife contribute and take up roles that are not looked down based on gender bias.
In a nuclear set up a man doing laundry and helping with chores around is totally acceptable, Their way of lifestyle of being there for each other taking up or swapping each others role is definitely making them good role models for their kids and a bad portrayal for the elders who still aren’t aware of the gender stereotyping.
Gender stereotyping could have adverse negative effects on children because of early environmental influences in their life. Any kind of genetic bias could be termed as insignificant and can be overcome by positive environmental influences.
Recently I came across books that support gender stereotyping. As a parent I would never opt to do something like that. But in this case my daughter received this as a birthday gift. Drawing book for girls with bright pinks all over. I was dumbstruck looking at the level of how even books try to thrust such notions. Shouldn’t girls colour dinosaurs or vehicles and only stick to princesses and flowers. I was totally not okay with her getting this book having been raised in a gender neutral environment.
Leave alone books, if you look at toy section in most outlets you do have separate sections based on gender. Where house keeping and cooking ranges are placed for girls; boys will conquer the world with scientific experiments and robotics. Why can’t girls play with robots and boys with kitchen sets? It sad to know that parents and kids these days don’t bring in gender discrimination but that feeling creeps when you enter the toy stores. This should definitely change.
How to handle kids and raise them in a gender neutral environment?
Support the choices they make –Let kids take up what might interest them and not discourage them from playing with toys and activities they show interest. On another note, if your kid is following stereotypical choices by nature, do not intervene. In order to prove gender evenness do not offer different stuff to girls who love to cook and boys who love to ride. Offering them cross-gender alternatives is a definite must. Do not influence them in a gender stereotypical manner be it a toy, dress, activity, friends or making choices in career. Asking them to evaluate their strengths, encouraging and respecting their choices is definitely a good way of upbringing.
Battling Social and Peer pressure – Kids often make mistakes in making choices at schools or more based on what their peers choose and even if that is something that doesn’t make them happy, they make the choice for the sake of making them feel accepted. Teach them how to be true to themselves by making choices that make them content rather than pleasing others.
Encouraging positive traits which the kids have irrespective of the gender something like being fearless or nurturing. Boys being of a nurtured nature and girls going out to conquer is totally acceptable.
Being okay with dressing practically – A girl needn’t be in skirts and frocks all throughout her life. Dressing up in shorts and pants when practical or when she needs is acceptable. And for boys hot pinks and reds are definitely must wear colors. If not they’re definitely missing out on something.
Say no to – toys and activities that are openly sexist. Take to social media to influence your vision so that brands realize that changes should be made.
‘This post is part of #CauseAChatter with Blogchatter’.
The last time you visited the restaurant and your salad has tiny plants on the top , made you wonder what this is?
After taking a small bite, did you feel that you tasted the vegetable or the grain? If yes, you had yourselves a serving of microgreens. Haven’t heard ?
What are microgreens?
Microgreens are vegetable greens which are bigger than sprouts but tiny than baby plants.
Their tiny size can noway be compared to the amazing nutritional benefits they have to offer. Would you believe that they offer more nine times higher nutrients than mature vegetable greens? That’s indeed true. So the next time your given a choice for microgreens or vegetable greens make sure you choose microgreens. But if you can have them both together that’s even better. Microgreens are great addition to any diet.
They are about 1-3 inches tall, but rich in nutrients, aromatic and available in variety of colours and textures.
You needn’t confuse them with sprouts. Sprouts do not have leaves whereas microgreens do. 2-7 days is the grow cycle for sprouts whereas it’s 7-21 days post germination the microgreens are harvested. This is after their first leaves appear.
Microgreens are rich in potassium,zinc, iron , magnesium and copper. They’re also a great source of antioxidants.
They could also help in reducing risk to a number of diseases if included in diets.
Heart diseases – Microgreens contain polyphenols a type of antioxidant that helps reduce risk of heart disease. Studies also prove that they help in lowering LDL or bad cholesterol.
Diabetes – Microgreens help in reducing stress which help in preventing sugar from entering cells . This is in particular study pertaining to fenugreek microgreens.
Types of cancer – microgreens which contains certain type of polyphenols also help in reducing cancer risks.
Alzheimer’s disease – Foods rich in antioxidants which are forms of polyphenols helps in reducing risk to Alzheimer’s disease.
Incorporating into diets
Microgreens can be incorporated into diets by a number of ways. Most common would be to include them with salads to give the crunch and texture. They could also be added to sandwiches, pizza toppings and soups.
They could also be included to juices and smoothies. Wheatgrass is one such example.
Microgreens and sustainability
Crops grown to maturity on large farms use pesticides and chemicals because they need to stay fresh to be transported to long distances. Compared to these crop grown to maturity, microgreens are more sustainable. That degree of sustainability would increase if you use organic seeds to grow them.
Microgreens are not an expensive way of lifestyle or something that needs to be consumed at high end restaurants. People often resort that crops that feed us like rice and corn need to be cultivated rather than microgreens that only is for high end lifestyle. The answer is a simple no. My response for that would be below.
Food production on our planet is happening in abundance. But the problem we face is it’s not at the right place. We seem to lose more of it while harvesting, transporting and processing.
One such industry that brings in a lot of waste would be the food industry as per what I had mentioned above. We do not need more staples we need to make food available from what exists.
They’re space saving compared to their conventionally grown peers which are raised to maturity. Microgreens can be grown indoors or in controlled environments where in the mature crops cannot be grown.
They enable you to increase the amount of space that you put into food production.
Most often when you pick up a salad outside all the ingredients like the vegetables,greens are sourced from long distances. They’re bulkier, heavier and could also lose nutrients on their way to the destination. However, microgreens on the other hand can be just transported as seeds to a local farm and cultivated. They can be consumed fresh immediately after harvest compared to matured grown crops that are transported from long distances. In this way, microgreens help in sustainability.
Mature grown crops are sometimes grown with pesticides, chemicals and there are also those which are grown from GMO . These types grow to give yeh perfect yield but only with the use of specific chemicals or fertilisers that were produced by the companies which created the genetically modified seeds in the first place. Imagine the amount of harm they do to the soil.
You don’t use more of peat containing compost that is non-renewable while cultivating microgreens. They can also be grown hydroponically. So, microgreens don’t harm the soil.
Usage of water is very minimal when it comes to microgreens. On fields or farms you end up watering larger areas where water is lost due to evaporation. Water used to nutrient ratio for the microgreens is very much high.
So if you’re wondering to grow your own produce I’d suggest you start with microgreens.
Why growing microgreens at home is easy ?
They don’t require much of equipment or dependent on time. They can be grown indoors or outdoors. This makes it very easy and convenient.
What do you need to grow microgreens?
High-quality seeds.
Growing medium. This could be a container with soil or growing mats specifically designed for growing microgreens.
Good lighting that could be sunlight or 12-16 hours of UV light.
How to grow?
Fill your container with soil and lightly water it.
Evenly sprinkle seeds on top.
Mist the seeds not generously watering them. Cover with lid.
Keep a check on them daily and mist the seeds. The seeds need to be moist.
After they germinate in a couple of days, remove the lids and expose to light.
Given that they’re easy to grow at home, stating convenience and the ease, they’re an especially cost-effective way to boost nutrient intake without having to purchase large quantities of vegetables.
I’d started including microgreens into my diet thanks to Indian Organiko from Chennai. I enjoyed varieties of microgreens that were freshly harvested and made me indulge in nutrient rich food.
‘This post is part of #CauseAChatter with Blogchatter’.
Mental health can not only be at stake when you pipe things up on your mind about yourself or at behaviour people exert on you .
Did you know that your way of thinking about others can also cause issues to your mental health. Yes by this, I mean pointing out at others.
While there are people who only think about themselves, there is another category that people fall into that’s much more dangerous. Some people can’t be or cannot keep quiet without pointing fingers at others or blaming others. They fail to notice that it is only one of their fingers that points to the other person and the remaining point to them.
This way of pointing out is not only for things that happen to you, but even otherwise they are habituated to pointing out at people’s mistake or at how stupid they can be.
It’s a habit that can ruin yourself where people bother you easily which puts you in a situation where you can’t stop from sharing your thoughts of judgement. Most importantly it could be happening even without you knowing about it. Doesn’t it sound dangerous?
But the good news would be that once you realise or if somebody helps you understand what’s actually happening by making you pay the price for the self-harm that you have created it can definitely be avoided. Now that’s something you could be relieved of.
Why is pointing out at others put you in serious risk?
Peaks the negativity in your body and kills the cells.
People can’t get close to you because this behaviour of yours is turning them off.
The behaviour inadvertently creates and perpetuates depression.
Definitely starts limiting your happiness.
Creates a band of negative energy around you and name you as a negative energy radiator.
Will be a hurdle in your important relationships and isolates you.
Our way of upbringing or the way we are brought up definitely contributes to our sensitivities. Finally it all comes down to whether we have a monitor system to make you aware of how and when you share what bothers you about people around you.
Quite often if you see the prime candidates list who take the blame would be the kids, parents, spouse and friends.
Blaming your husband for not being outgoing and that bothering your social life.
Blaming kids behaviour for not inviting guests at home.
Blaming relatives for relationship issues and your perspective of viewing a relationship as healthy.
The ones I stated above are just some of the examples.
It could be really tempting to go blame others , your habits , thinking habits for things going wrong in your life. But that’s definitely not leading you to the root cause of the problem.
Blaming others for emotional and mental issues can make you rely on the habit to such an extent that it is the permanent pathway to sabotage the ability of you keeping yourself and others who surround you happy.
Your aversion or pet peeves provide the pathway of how to interpret to see the world and something that you use to look through other people’s action.
So when you’re in a group and you have the habit of blaming others, I’d bet you would be the most unhappiest person in the whole group. The habit typically makes you a fault finding radar and literally pushes you to keep finding faults on others.
Why does this habit make you unhappy ?
Insecurities
Insecurity
Most probably people are seen pointing out faults in which they’ve struggled during childhood. It totally points to insecurity of things that people find faults in others. A person who finds faults constantly is characterized as someone who finds it difficult to apologize and denial of responsibility.
It leads to negative and pessimistic environment around you. Instead of focusing on people’s good deeds you seem to find faults. So this is something like instead of proceeding to solutions you choose to stay with the problem.
Memories of influential parents
Influential parents
If you make people recall they would have inherited this behaviour from their parents or a close relative. A resentment towards this parent or relative who was critical on them often shows up in this behaviour.
Instead of working on ways to curb this negative behaviour in present scenario, this will make you stay in the past.
Makes feel superior but brings unhappiness instantly
When people find faults with others or point fingers at others it gives them a rush or a feeling of superiority. But with minutes you can notice that it changes the mood to unhappiness instantly.
It takes very little time for you to spoil your mood if you keep finding faults in others. Self – devaluation or finding faults on others can lead to depression.
How do you solve this ?
Start pointing out the goodness in people or their deeds even if it’s something small.
The more you do invest in recognising others you could also see an improvement in self recognition.
Having difficulty in apologising cannot be wiped out in seconds, it takes a lot of effort to understand that it could be a way of clearing out the mass.
Make sure you avoid to show people how you inherited the tendency to judge other people and their actions.
Create an imaginary filter that helps to separate what to express and what not to.
“If you don’t have something nice to say, keep it to yourself.”
Too much bothering or finding fault in others problems or issues is definitely a sign that you definitely need to spend more time on doing what you need to achieve. This may be your goals to achieve personal growth.
Make a list of things every morning that you’re grateful for.
This habit in the long run might be Blogchattereating you bit by bit. So it’s better to avoid it to keep yourself and your body safe.
This post is part of #CauseAChatter with Blogchatter’
That Madras Mom 