Remembering Shontal

We got her as a gift from a friend of ours as a 2 week baby. As she remained silent the entire day, we named her Shontal after the French word chanteuse—meaning “sweet voiced girl”. She has been an integral part of my life for a good number of years.

She was a Labrador retriever. She remained my constant companion and loyal friend until I met with a near fatal accident on August 15, 1997. I raised her almost as my daughter and she was a part of many a happy incidents in my life.

If you are thinking of getting a dog into your home, as a family member, remember you are making a commitment to that dog for its lifetime, probably even more than your own children.

I'm not such an expert, but I did try my hands at training Shontal for a number of years and had (accidentally?) used some of the friendly methods recommended by the a renowned, dog trainer—Mr. Ian Dunbar does in the video below.

I remember times when I started. I had no idea on dog training or education in general. My first dog was very patient, he taught me a lot. The simple rule that we followed was to teach obedience through simple play and award. Basically, I learned to appreciate every little thing that she did and said “good girl” and “thank you”.

It’s very important for us to see the world through the eyes of our beloved dogs. By knowing our pets' perspective, we can build their love and trust. It's a message that resonates well beyond the animal world.

As a result, I almost always had a happy, healthy and obedient dog. It's lovely to find out that some of my simple, easy and fun dog training methods belong to a wider philosophy on the subject!

It is essential that our dog needs to know that they can trust us and that we will never deliberately hurt or be unkind to them. All I ever had to do was call/ whistle and my dog immediately returned and were rewarded with hugs and pats.

The Necklace...

The cheerful little girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five.

Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, she saw them, a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box.

"Oh Mommy please, Mommy. Can I have them? Please mommy Please...?"

Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girl's upturned face.

"A dollar ninety-five. That's almost $2.00.

If you really want them, I'll think of some extra chores for you and in no time you can save enough money to buy them for yourself.

Your birthday's only a week away and you might get another crisp dollar bill from Grandma."

As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her penny bank and counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more than her share of chores and she went to the neighbour and asked Mrs. McJames if she could pick dandelions for ten cents. On her birthday, Grandma did give her another new dollar bill and at last she had enough money to buy the necklace.

Jenny loved her pearls. They made her feel dressed up and grown up.

She wore them everywhere, Sunday school, kindergarten, even to bed.

The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.

Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story. One night as he finished the story, he asked Jenny, "Do you love me?"

"Oh yes, daddy. You know that I love you."

"Then give me your pearls."

"Oh, daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess, the white horse from my collection, the one with the pink tail. Remember, daddy? The one you gave me. She's my very favourite."

"That's okay, Honey, daddy loves you. Good night." And he brushed her cheek with a kiss.

About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's daddy asked again, "Do you love me?" "Daddy, you know I love you."

"Then give me your pearls."

"Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She is beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that matches her sleeper."

"That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one. Daddy loves you."

And as always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.

A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed Indian style.

As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.

"What is it, Jenny? What's the matter?"

Jenny didn't say anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy.

And when she opened it, there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said, "Here, daddy, this is for you."

With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's daddy reached out with one hand to take the dime store necklace, and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny

He had them all the time. He was just waiting for her to give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her the genuine treasure.

So it is, with our God. He is waiting for us to give up the cheap things in our lives so that he can give us beautiful treasures.

Isn't God good? Are you holding onto things that God wants you to let go of?

Are you holding on to harmful or unnecessary partners, relationships, habits and activities that you have come so attached to that it seems impossible to let go?

Sometimes it is so hard to see what is in the other hand but do believe this one thing ...

God will never take away something without giving you something better in its place.

The greatest gifts happen when you share love and touch.

Happy Valentine's Day

Worms & Us

Take a trip to meet the charming, slinky creatures that turn your innards into their home sweet home

Worms have been living inside the human body since Homo sapiens have been around. About half the world's population (over 3 billion people) are in infected with at least one of the three worms—large roundworm, hookworm and whipworm. Most of those afflicted live in developing countries, where there is not enough clean drinking water or effective sanitation systems to keep infected feces from contaminating food and water, and where human excrement is used to fertilize crops. As you browse ahead, please remember that all of these infections are treatable.

Hookworm
Unlike most parasitic worms, which invade the body through the stomach, hookworm larvae can wiggle in through sweat glands or hair follicles in the skin. This typically happens when people walk, sit or lie on dirt containing human feces contaminated by hookworm larvae. Through the skin and into the blood vessels, the larvae make their way to the lungs, causing coughing and shortness of breath; they then migrate to the throat, where they are swallowed and delivered to the small intestine. They mature into adults measuring about 0.4 inch (10 millimeters) long, causing symptoms such as abdominal pain and anemia—a result of the worm sucking blood out of the intestinal walls. Some 740 million people, mostly those living in the warm, moist climates of Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia and China, suffer from hookworm infections, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The Large Roundworm (Ascaris)
Ascariasis, the potentially deadly disease caused by the roundworm Ascaris, is the most common worm infection in humans, affecting as many as 1.5 billion people worldwide annually and striking hardest in tropical and subtropical regions with poor sanitation, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). People often catch ascariasis by ingesting vegetables or fruit grown in soil fertilized with human feces contaminated with its eggs. On hatching in the intestine, the eggs develop into larvae that migrate through the blood and lymph systems into the lungs, causing fever, shortness of breath and wheezing. (Some people actually cough up the larvae.) From the lungs, the larvae make their way up into the throat; there they are swallowed and passed into the small intestine, where they grow into adulthood. (Imagine earthworms as long as one foot, or 30 centimeters, crawling around in your small intestine.) Severe infections can lead to intestinal blockage and death. The WHO estimates that ascariasis causes 60,000 deaths per year, mainly in children.

A Whipworm
Trichuris trichiura, commonly known as a whipworm because it looks like a cow whip, grows up to about two inches (50 millimeters, or as long as a thumb). The most common way to catch whipworm is by ingesting dirt containing human feces that are loaded with its eggs (think: children playing in the dirt and then putting their fingers in their mouths). The whipworm, which sets up shop in the large intestine, is what Despommier says may be "the secret to curing Crohn's disease."

Patients with Crohn's disease—an autoimmune disorder in which the intestinal tract becomes chronically inflamed, leading to symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal pain and rectal bleeding—are believed to have small proteins that resemble whipworm proteins jutting from the surfaces of their intestinal cells. Mistaking the protein protrusions for those of a whipworm, the immune system attacks them, causing Crohn's disease, Despommier explains. Studies have shown that when Crohn's patients are infected with whipworm, the body seems to redirect its focus away from its own cells and onto the worms, causing Crohn's symptoms to disappear. The problem with treating Crohn's disease with whipworm, of course, is that the worm causes its own suite of problems, including severe diarrhea, weight loss and anemia. Severe cases [see photo inset] can lead to rectal prolapse, a condition in which the walls of the rectum actually protrude from the anus.

Worldwide, some 800 million people, mostly children in tropical and subtropical climates, are infected with whipworm, according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Lymphatic Filariae
Unlike most parasitic worms, which inhabit the intestines, lymphatic filariae live in the lymphatic vessels and nodes. For reasons not completely understood by scientists, the presence of these worms in the lymph system can lead to severe inflammation called elephantiasis, which often affects the legs, arms, genitals and breasts [see photo]. Unfortunately for men, the worms have a propensity for the male genitalia. The worms get inside a person's body when a mosquito carrying their larvae sinks its proboscis into a victim's skin. The larvae travel through the skin and into the lymph vessels where they mature into adults measuring as long as four inches (100 millimeters). According to WHO, the infection usually begins in childhood but often takes years to cause elephantiasis.

Some 120 million people, mostly in the warm, humid climes of south Asia, Africa and the Americas, are infected with these tiny worms, and more than 40 million are disfigured by the infection, according to WHO.

Tapeworm
People accidentally ingest immature worms by eating raw or undercooked pork. Once the worms pass into the intestines, they latch onto the intestinal walls with suckers and hooks and begin to grow—and grow. The pork tapeworm shown here, Taenia solium, can grow as long as 20 feet (six meters). Often, people don't even know they have tapeworm until they see the worms—or pieces of them in their stool. If a person ingests the tapeworm eggs (by, for example, drinking water contaminated by egg-laden human feces), the eggs hatch into larvae the stomach and travel into the small intestine. From there, they may enter the bloodstream and migrate to the muscles, eyes or brain, where they can cause seizures, headaches and potentially fatal brain swelling.

Now, if you are interested in teaching your children on the importance of wearing footwear, you could use the video shown below.



Pinworm
Pinworm is the most ubiquitous parasitic worm infecting people in temperate climates—places like the U.S., Europe and most of China, which are neither tropical nor polar, but have four seasons. Nearly all children catch pinworm before they reach age 12 (yes, that means you, too) by digesting tiny bits of fecal matter from other kids. Pinworm inhabits the colon and rectum, feeding on Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria in the stool. Late at night when children are asleep, the female pinworm, which measures about the length of a staple (0.5 inch or 13 millimeters), emerges from the anus and lays her eggs on the surrounding skin. The eggs are itchy, causing children to scratch and contaminate their fingers. When they suck their thumbs, or touch other children who suck their thumbs, the cycle starts all over again.

When I Am Not Looking....

When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw you hang my first painting on the wall,

and I immediately wanted to paint another one.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw you feed a stray cat,

and I learnt that it was good to be kind.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw you make my favourite cake for me,

and I learnt, even little things are special in life.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I heard you say a prayer,

and I knew that there is a God and I learned to trust in Him.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw you make a meal for a friend who was sick,

and I learned that we all have to help each other.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw you help people who had nothing,

and I learned that those who have something should give to those who don't.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw you take care of our house & everyone in it,

and I learned to take care of what we have.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw how you handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't feel good,

and I learned that I would have to be responsible when I grow up.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw tears come from your eyes,

and I learned that sometimes things hurt, but it's all right to cry.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I saw that you cared,

and I wanted to be everything that I could be



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I learned most of life's lessons that I need to know to be a good

and productive person when I grow up.



When you thought I wasn't looking…

I looked at you and wanted to say,

'Thanks for all the things I saw




When you thought I wasn't looking.'

I am sending this to all of the people I know who do so much for others,

but think that no one ever sees.

Little eyes see a lot…



Each one of us -

Parent, Grandparent, Aunt, Uncle, Friends, Teachers…

Influence the life of a child.

Let's be a positive influence on the children around us

Children See, Children Do!

A brilliantly conceived, very powerful, poignant and thought provoking advertisement that a friend of mine sent me, about how children emulate adults. What is interesting is that children see and do what they often observe adults see and do. The issue is love and living love.

It's but also extremely frightening! I wish there'd been one or two more positive examples at the end to balance it up. Adults, like children, ALSO need to see lots of POSITIVE role models!

P.S
I really wonder, how much pshychological damage making this video would have been done to the kids who actually are a part of this video? Some of those scenes were very unpleasant and the children seemed too young to understand and yet old enough to maybe be affected by what they were pretending to take part in. I presume and hope the smoking child was a special effect?




Parents Let's Be Role Models For Our Children
Source: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) National Mental Health Information Center, USA.
Here is what we can all do to help keep our children “violence-free”

Helping children learn more about themselves and their environment can be a key step in preventing school and youth violence. Parents want children to be safe, and children want to feel and be safe.

The following information could be both helpful to us as a parent and caregiver, as well as to our children. So take time to read and make time to share this with your children. Violence prevention begins with US. Remember to make time to listen, take time to talk...these can be precious moments.

Nurture

Show love and concern

• Every day, tell your child you love him/her.
• Show affection daily with a hug, a kiss, and/or a touch.
• Make time for special family fun activities.
• Meet your child’s friends to ensure he/she has positive influences.

Emotions

Understand - don’t take a stand

Children who don’t know how to control their anger are more likely to fight. Teach children how to calm down and talk over their problems. Tips for keeping cool and solving a problem:

• Keep in mind that anger is real, but it usually goes away.
• To calm down, think about or do things you enjoy.
• Once you have calmed down, think about the problem with a clear head.
• Take steps to solve the problem.

Communication

Is a two-way street

Children who have good communication with their parents are more likely to ask for their advice than turn to peers. When talking to your child, always remember to:

• Listen to your child.
• Find out what your child knows about violence and how to prevent it before you start talking.
• Let your child know he/she can always talk to you about anything.
  

RESPECT

Find out what it means to me

Many youth fight because they feel disregarded and, as a result, feel angry, humiliated, or embarrassed. To stay violence-free, respect means:

• Give respect so you may get respect.
• Stand up for yourself without putting yourself in danger.
• Discuss ways to solve problems without fighting.
• Respect is not gained by physical force or intimidation, but by the quality of your character.
• Fighting doesn’t solve a problem or get you respect.
  

Education

Everyone benefits

Take interest in your child’s education and development:

• Read to your child and encourage your child to read.
• Meet with your child’s teachers often and learn about your child’s progress.
• Review homework and tests.
• Set short- and long-term educational goals together and help your children reach their goals.
• Encourage your child to participate in an after-school program.
• Give your child household responsibilities/chores.
• Children who aren’t interested in school, who have friends who use alcohol/drugs, and who are not bound by rules are more likely to use alcohol/drugs.
• Let your child know you disapprove of drug use, including alcohol, and WHY.
  

Peaceful solutions ...another way

How to get your way without fighting:

• Talk clearly and calmly. State the problem and your desire to solve it without fighting.
• Humor—Make fun of the problem.
• Compromise—Both give up something and get something.
• Avoid/ignore—Sometimes it’s not worth the bother.
• Remember, it takes more guts and self-respect to walk away from a fight than to fight.
  

Bullying... NO WAY

Prevent your child from becoming a VICTIM:

• Instill self-confidence in your child.
• Help your child establish good social skills.
• Teach your child to speak out for him or herself.
• Teach your child to seek, if harassed, help from you and other caring adults.
• Try to meet with the bully to work things out. If the problem continues,call for a meeting of all those involved.
  

Prevent your child from becoming a BULLY:

• Present yourself as a model of non-violent behaviour.
• Clearly state that violence is not acceptable.
• Assist your child in finding non-violent strategies for anger management and conflict resolution.
• Seek help from mental health/school counselors to help stop bullying and aggressive behaviour.
  

SEEING VIOLENCE...Through a Child’s Eyes

Children who have seen violence are more likely to become involved in violence as victims or perpetrators. You can:

• Minimize your child’s exposure to violence.
• Tell your child that media violence is not real - it is glamorized, misleading, and fails to depict the real pain and suffering of the victims.
• Talk to your child about the violence he or she witnessed.
• If you see changes in your child, after they’ve witnessed a violent act, talk to a mental health professional.
• Some warning signs of emotional distress related to witnessing violence include sleeplessness, lack of appetite, lack of attention, anxiety, and frequent thoughts or flashbacks of the event.
  

Rules for quality time together

TEENS

• Don’t insult, shout, walk out or away...SHOW RESPECT.

PARENTS

• Don’t boss, preach, judge, or criticize...SHOW RESPECT.

FOR BOTH

• Spend more than 15 minutes each day together listening and talking.
• Don’t have outside interruptions.
• Don’t blame or try to defend anyone.
• DO MAKE one-on-one time SPECIAL.
  

Be a role model

• Warm family relationships protect children FROM violence and many other risky behaviours.
• Be aware that everything you do, your children see and do.
• Talk to them and, most important, listen to them.
• Spend valuable time with them that includes fun activities.
• Find out who their friends are and if they are a positive influence.
• Find out where they hang out and make sure it’s safe.
• Let them know you disapprove of fighting.
• Keep your children “drug and violence-free."