Blog

Here is a link to a blog I posted in the 6 S social site:

http://sixsentences.ning.com/profiles/blogs/a-summer-morning-reflection?xg_source=activity

The Green-Eyed Monster

The green eyed monster lurks in the shadows, unwavering, looking to pounce. Then, he creeps up unexpectedly on the oblivious victim. He has a hunger for human meat; he greedily enjoys his carnivorous appetite while completely devouring some people of their humanity. Shakespeare writes about him in “Othello”.

"Iago:
O, beware, my lord, of jealousy;

It is the green-ey'd monster, which doth mock

The meat it feeds on. That cuckold lives in bliss,

Who, certain of his fate, loves not his wronger:

But O, what damnèd minutes tells he o'er

Who dotes, yet doubts, suspects, yet strongly loves!"

He is as old as time itself, and somehow, we have fallen prey to his appetite. So, what makes humans succumb to him? People like to compare everything against others, not realizing that they can’t have everything that everyone else has. Even when they become jealous of one aspect of something someone has, they don’t realize that there are so many elements in other people’s lives that they are not even aware of. Everyone says that they like to help people, but when someone has something better than them, many of them surrender to the green eyed monster.
The only way to defeat this evil monster is to not fall prey to him. We know that he only feeds on those who succumb to him. Weak character provides him nourishment and strong character starves him. Somehow he knows he can never be defeated, and in the realm of time, he always manages to find his prey.

Spring in New York City

Spring in New York City feels as if the world is starting anew: blissful squirrels loitering near cherry blossoms; tiny sparrows circling newborn leaves; a murmuring brook created by melting snow; a new song sung by colorful birds for a new season. All of these sights can be seen in a green oasis in the middle of the city - Central Park.

Indian Students and Exams

I recently came across an article in the New York Times about Indian high school students competing for top colleges:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/24/world/asia/24test.html?WT.mc_id=WO-SM-E-YT-SM-VID-ICE-032610-NYT-NA&WT.mc_ev=click

I am impressed with these students’ ambition and determination to get into the best college programs. The parents are as involved as the students are in this process and it creates a culture of responsibility for learning. However, I am concerned that the tough competition and rigid grading system is giving these over-ambitious students skewed lessons about life and success.

In the United States too, for most upper middle class or wealthy families, there is increasing pressure on their children to get into the top colleges or Ivies. There are several very expensive tutoring services for these students to prepare for these colleges. This is especially evident in some of the prestigious high schools across America. In some cases, this pressure starts from gifted kindergarten programs to the top high schools. Nevertheless, most ambitious American students are just as competitive in other areas such as Sports or Music. In addition, most American parents don’t chart their children’s career destiny like many Indian parents do. Thus, ambitious students are likely to excel in fields that they choose.

The situation in India seems too focused on paper grades and rank. There is also pressure to get into engineering or medicine, whether or not the students have any interest in these fields. This creates a culture of robotic students whose only aim is to focus on the future, instead of living in the present. In addition, high financial cost of achieving their goals leave out the majority of the Indian population who live under poverty.

This competition extends to prestigious colleges too. The plot of a recent Bollywood movie called "3 Idiots" revolved around the theme of competition at a prestigious engineering college. The tone of the movie was more of disdain for this system, so it seems like many Indians are waking up to realize the problems with this system.

This generation of Indian students will eventually enter the corporate world. If they continue to look to their future as an extension of their educational system, they will be in for a huge disappointment. Leadership skills, empathy, creativity, time management, maturity, critical reasoning, and a variety of other skills cannot be learned in this rigid system. They may also have to start learning how to live in the present once in a while.

Dancing Snowflakes

Yesterday morning, I watched the snowflakes outside my window dance to the music of Mozart in my room. The day before that was a day of misery in the city, a day of rain and snow combined that caused a vicious combination of slushy sidewalks, cancelled trains, and hopeless waits to even catch a yellow cab. Then, came the 'snow day'.

'Snow day' is the most favorite day for every school children. I still have memories of being eagerly glued to the television in the wee hours of the morning waiting for the closing announcement of my school district. As soon as the name of the school district came out of the announcer, it was music to my ears and the snow seemed more beautiful than ever.

For all the snow days to come, there will always be a childhood memory, and while you trek through the snow, drive through it, or take a slow bus to get to work, you will remember that it is another ‘snow day’, your favorite day.

A breath of fresh winter air

December is a time when the weather gets bleak and there is not enough sun or daylight. Amidst the freezing weather, it is the spirit of being with family, a warm cozy crackling fireplace, or an occasional cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows that helps the mood. Then, comes the New Year, a time to reflect back on the past year and think about what went well and what could be done better. We all have resolutions and plans and everyone hopes to follow them. However, not everyone follows their resolutions and somehow their busy lives start to take over.

People usually think about their lives when they are not busy. “Busyness” is a culture that is seen as glamorous and idolized in the United States. Everyone is always “busy”. If you are not busy, somehow you must be a looser or not successful. When did we start to associate success with “busy”? Also, when did we start thinking that “busy” people are more productive? The real answer is that constantly “busy” people are not the most productive. If you have good time management skills, you will not be busy 24 hours a day. Also, many people spend too much time on unproductive things and don’t know how to prioritize their time. This leaves them in the busy cycle all the time. The concrete jungle of New York is a haven for “busy” people. They fill every minute of their day with things to do and love to over-commit themselves. They also tend to look down on people who are not as busy as them.

In the workaholic world that we live in, sometimes it is good to take time to breathe. Once in a while, it is nice to take time to enjoy the aroma of a morning coffee or to pick up a tiny snowflake and see what it looks like. Once in a while, it is good to be a little child that sees wonder in little things.

Thanksgiving week in Paris

I was in Paris this Thanksgiving week. The city of lights and love, fashion and culture, cozy cafes and holiday markets. Hundreds of years of history are packed into its wide boulevards and monuments. In the last three days, I was in the Latin Quarter area (le Quartier Latin), the intellectual hub of the city pulsing with curiosity, rows of academic bookstores, ethnic restaurants, and chatty cafes. One cloudy morning, I took a stroll along Rue de Saint-Jacques. Most of the stores were closed, but a few boulangeries were open and the warm glow of the light from them contrasted with the gray skies. Some cobblestone streets away, I saw a morning flower vendor slowly assembling different pots of colorful fresh flowers. A few elderly smiling faces were queing up to buy the morning baguette from the boulanger. A baguette in one hand, they quietly went about their lives. For a moment, I thought about my own fast paced life, and realized that time waits when you want it to. I never really felt like a foreigner and my minimal french did not discourage anyone from talking to me. You can walk into any cafe and in a few minutes you will find 'friends' who want to talk to you.

In the prestigiuous Champs-Elysees, the holiday markets had already opened up. The vendors were selling everything from stuffed animals (made of animal fur) and Russian Matryoshka dolls, to hot cholocolates and crepes. One afternoon, I climbed the 255 steps to the top of the Cathedrale de Notre Dame. I saw the city, with creatures that have been looking out to the city for hundreds of years with history etched into them - the gargolyes. When a stranger becomes a friend, a city will not feel as foreign or strange, but as a familiar place, a place you know you will return to.