All you can feel is distress and all you can see are tears,
Memories and recollections never to be forgotten over the years.
Laughter and smiles being so rare,
All happiness and joy are left somewhere.

Much is lost and life seems disrupted,
It is hard to let loved ones go,
And even harder to cherish memories and grow.
But is it impossible to find hope and faith?
And is it terrible to smile as better days are awaited?

Life must go on and challenges must be confronted,
What hope and faith was lost, must be hunted.
So trust in the Lord at any cost,
As all is not really lost.

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My hands are generally not the talkative type, my mouth makes up for that, so I was a tad surprised to hear them speak, “What’s with this new act?” they asked.

“New act?” I asked my hands, “What act?”

“This keeping us away from your face, washing us a hundred times a day. It’s like we’ve suddenly become pariahs! We loved touching your twitching nose, smoothening your unkempt beard, even helping you remove those morsels stuck in your mouth. But now, we’ve forgotten what it’s like to come close to your face!”

“It’s this virus!” I told my hands and explained what the virus had done to our intimate relationship, and that now all hands were barred from touching faces.

“But we were meant to touch!” said my hands simply.

“I know,” I said, “I’m terribly sorry!”

“We miss stroking your beard when you were in deep thought, brushing a stray strand of hair back when you wanted to impress a pretty lass on the road. We loved rubbing your nose to stop you from sneezing…”

“Stop!” I shouted, “It’s been difficult these last seven months! You don’t have to remind me!”

“Maybe it was a punishment!” said my hands thoughtfully.

“Punishment for what?” I asked.

“For not using us in the right way!”

“But I did!” I cried, “My nose, my head, my face, my mouth, my teeth, all belonged to you both!”

“Maybe that’s the problem!” sighed my two hands, as they lifted themselves dangerously close to my face, and I pushed them back hastily, “Maybe the world is being punished for what they didn’t do with us!”

I watched as my hands actually looked at each other and nodded in agreement, “We were meant,” said my hands thoughtfully, “To touch those who needed a helping hand, not just digging your nose, but opening your wallet to help others. We were meant to hug those who needed to be comforted, not just shaking the hand of your next customer to make more money!”

My hands looked wearily at me, “And Bob, how many times did you clasp both of us together?” they asked loudly.

“Clasp together?” I asked.

“Like this!”

“Those are praying hands!” I whispered.

“How many times?” they both asked sternly.

“Not too many!” I said slowly.

My hands looked at each other dolefully, “Maybe a little caring, a little sharing, some load bearing, of those who are poorly faring!”

“Yes!” I said simply.

“Don’t!” shouted my right hand as I nearly put it on my beard, “Learn to use them for others, your weaker sisters and your brothers, and maybe.”

“Maybe what?” I asked.

“We’ll soon scratch your face,” sang my right hand.

“Dig your nose,” sang my left.

“And chase the virus away..!” they sang together in crescendo.

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Grandma, lying in her comfortable bed, heard her door opening.

“Hello, grandma!” said her teenage granddaughter, as she swept into the room.

“Hello, my dear girl!” said Grandma. “How nice of you to see me today! I missed you yesterday!”

“Oh grandma, I had such fun yesterday!”

“You did; come sit and tell your grandmother all about it,” said grandma as she shifted a bit, and lovingly made place for her granddaughter. “So tell me what did you do?”

“Oh grandma, you know the malls are open, so I went shopping, and since I was out, called Susan and Kumar, and we went over to a bar and had a few beers. It was such fun, grandma!”

“Ah my child, I hope you wore a mask while doing all this?”

“You can’t sip a beer with a mask on, can you, grandma?” said the teenage girl, and they both laughed heartily imagining the scene.

“Looks like you’ve brought a gift for me?” asked the grandmother staring at a covered bowl, “Open it, dear, so grandma can know what you’ve brought me from the outside world!”

The scream that came from the old lady echoed round the house and even to the neighbour’s and the street below, as her granddaughter uncovered the bowl, and the green and yellow virus sprang out, caught the old lady around her throat and slowly entered her lungs.

A few days later, the family lit her funeral pyre. Grandpa couldn’t come for the funeral as he was beginning to feel sick!

Gruesome as this story may sound, this is exactly what we do, when we from the younger generation break norms prescribed to keep the virus away.

I spoke to a group of youngsters a few months ago, just after the lockdown had been imposed and asked them what they felt about being locked in at home. I felt so glad as youngster after youngster talked about it being a necessary sacrifice to keep their parents and grandparents alive and safe.

“If we don’t catch the virus, we are saving their lives!” they all said.

Rightly so!

“What they don’t know,” said the virus, chuckling, “Is that many of them never know I’ve got into them, and it’s only when a senior member picks it up at home, they realize they were asymptomatic all along, as they mixed and mingled with each other and loafed round without precautions! Ha, ha, ha!”

I personally know someone who went shopping, bought the best of delicacies for all at home, from the beginning of the lockdown. Today, she lives, while the two older ones are dead!

“Please don’t warn them, Bob!” mutters the virus angrily, “I quite like being a take home gift!”

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The Corona virus pandemic had forced a 20-year-old MBBS student, studying in Russia, to return to her home in India in July 2020. As she landed in India, she was quarantined in a house where she was all by herself. Five days later she ended her life by hanging from a ceiling hook. She took the extreme step due to anxiety, fear and mental stress of being under surveillance and in total isolation. One can imagine how she longed for emotional support and encouragement from her dear ones. But all what she got was the loneliness of fearsome nights, countless hours of boring days and a home empty of human presence.

Anxiety disorder is a consequence of the Corona virus pandemic. It causes fear and stress to many, especially as they are compelled to change their routines, lifestyle, plans and programmes. We are at a juncture when nothing can be planned for future. It is a distressing, frightening and worrisome time. Even after 7-8 months, since it first appeared, new cases are still on the rising spree.

Educational institutions have remained closed for several months now. Those who have given examinations are unable to obtain the results. There are millions who have not been able to give exams or get promoted to a new academic year. Others have completed their study and yet unable to pass out from their college and try their luck in the job market.

It is hard for most people to handle the uncertainty caused by the pandemic. They fall into a state of panic, tension, worry, nervousness, irritability and unease. They are unable to concentrate on anything properly. Anxiety disorder can lead people to the extremes of avoiding work, school, friends, and social events. In the worst scenario, such a state can cause depression and even the thought of ending one’s life. Here are some simple ways of how we can cope up with our anxieties.

Stay connected to God

A beautiful prayer card reads: “Today I will pray more, worry less; laugh more, stress less; hug more, hurry less.” Prayer to the God of love takes away our worries. The book of Psalms in the Bible says, “I sought the Lord and he heard me and delivered me from all my fears. (Psalm 34:4)

A new study published in the journal Sociology of Religion suggests that prayer can help people come out of anxiety. All religions advocate prayer and meditation as a sure means of attaining joy, peace and tranquillity. Here is a wish that we can share with others: “Today I pray that you be free of anxiety. I pray that you will be able to give your worries to God, and he will give you peace.”

Stay connected to people

The pandemic compels us to maintain social distancing and stay away from people. The idea of ‘work from home’ has gained popularity among several companies. Students miss the company of their friends. There seems to be an almost total embargo on all social gatherings and activities. Visiting families and relatives has become a thing of the past. All these restrictions are aimed at ‘breaking the chain’ of virus spread.

But “man is by nature a social animal,” wrote Aristotle. According to him, “a man outside a society is either a beast or a god.” It is necessary that we keep some form of connectedness in order to live a healthy life. We depend on each other for many things. “Man owes his strength in the struggle for existence to the fact that he is a social animal,” reiterates Albert Einstein.

Despite voluntary as well as enforced distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic, it is important to stay connected in some ways. Thanks to the advancement in information technology, there are ways we can connect with our family, relatives and friends, and reach out for support and care we badly need. We can use phone and social media to interact with our dear ones. A face-to-face video conversation with family and trustworthy friends acts as a ‘vitamin’ for our mental health. It can significantly reduce the risk of anxiety, fear and depression. Social media has the great capacity to bring us closer to people who are otherwise beyond our reach.

Although the social media platforms offer the best of possibilities in this time of the pandemic, we have to exercise extreme caution. There is need for putting a limit on the time spent on social media and the type of people we interact with. Short of this control and discipline, we are at a high risk of falling into the trap of dangerous relationships that will further plunge us into anxiety and depression.

Engage in helping others

Former U.S. President Barack Obama once said, “The best way not to feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, and also fill yourself with hope.” It is easy to be caught up in the fear and anxiety resulting from the pandemic. But we need to remember that we are all in it together. There might be people around who feel powerless, hopeless, and desperate. When we engage in helping others, our own fears and anxieties will vanish.

People who focus on others and reach out to them with help tend to be happier and healthier than those who are selfish. Helping another person can make a difference to that person. But it can make you a better person as well. When we do a kind act, it can fill our own hearts with joy, peace and a sense of satisfaction.

Engage in doing something new

“Opportunities to find deeper powers within ourselves come when life seems most challenging,” says Joseph Campbell, author, editor and professor. We can turn a crisis into an opportunity to discover our deeper powers. Staying in isolation and social distancing does not mean doing nothing and wasting away precious time. It’s the best time to bring out one’s latent talents like painting, music, dance, public speaking, reading, writing, blogging, computer graphics, etc.

The pandemic is not in our hands, at least for now. We are still a long way from the end of the dark tunnel. However, we can make our own efforts to combat the virus by making the world around us a better place to live in. There is always a positive side to everything, even in the global Corona virus pandemic. We have a choice either to focus on the negatives and get anxious, stressed out and worried or on the brighter side of the situation and find new meaning to it. Rabindranath Tagore once said: “If you shed tears when you miss the sun, you also miss the stars.” How true this is!

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Within days of imposition of the lockdown to contain the Corona virus, hundreds of millions of migrant workers packed up and set off for faraway home, trekking, often by foot, side by side, at unsafe social distances.

With the government having miserably failed to provide succour to the stranded people and the resources of voluntary organisations already overstretched, the sufferers were left to their ingenuity to fend for themselves. The crisis also brought out the remarkable tenacity of people in the face of hunger and misery. Some young people showed amazing resilience and came up with contextual responses.

Crises often bring out the best in humans, and the Corona virus pandemic is no exception. The pandemic sparked off hidden springs of courage and valour, particularly among students, who used their social media skills with remarkable effect. Many of them were able to shake the system out of its stupor. Thankfully, we are witnessing the emergence of an enlightened and resilient generation which won’t meekly accept injustices which their predecessors suffered on account of illiteracy and lack of empowerment. We can expect to see a deep wave of social churning and simmering unrest is going to manifest in complex forms.

Pravina Buradkar is a 23-year-old firebrand who comes from a poor family in Wanoja village in Chandrapur district of Maharashtra. She was taking coaching for civil services examination at a government-run facility in Pune. Since her parents couldn’t afford her monthly expenses, she took up a part-time employment. The lockdown was a cruel surprise. Pravina and her roommates had little savings to fall back upon. They located a relief centre where free meals were being served.

Meanwhile, Pravina kept scouring the internet for links which could provide clues for a safe passage to her village. The entire experience was a great learning for her. “I dialled almost everybody who mattered, right from the helpline to my local legislator. My applications would invariably return with inconsistent reasons being offered. I became so disillusioned with their answers that I would often lose my temper,” says Pravina.

Having lost all hope in the system, she started organising people of her home district who were stranded in Pune. She became her group’s leader and they started making a collective campaign for their cause. A local NGO, MPSC Students Rights, cobbled together by activist-oriented students like Pravina lobbied strongly with local authorities and finally succeeded.

Pravina recalls her journey by bus from Pune to her native village. “It took us a full day to reach our home. There was excitement at having got a reprieve from the tough ordeal of almost two months. But this joy was marred by the sight of thousands of migrants trekking their way on foot. We saw hundreds of vehicles that were ferrying loads of passengers as if they were a herd of livestock being taken to the abattoir. It was a spectacle I cannot forget. It gave me a clear understanding of the plight of India’s poor… bonded in their own homeland. That image refuses to fade away from my mind even though I have settled down in the rhythms of my home and village.” So, Pravina has turned into an active campaigner for changing the status quo and spends her post-return home quarantine swapping strategies with those of her ilk.

Enterprising young people like Pravina can become harbingers for a new rural revolution that could make villages a nucleus for local livelihood promotion. With thousands of migrants returning to their native villages, it is extremely necessary to create additional employment if we have to stave off social, political and economic unrest. Many of the migrants returning home have diverse skill sets, but they may not be suitable candidates for entrepreneurial ventures. A marriage between their skills and the business acumen of the youth can open new vistas of rural regeneration.

India is home to a fifth of the world’s youth. They make up the world’s largest ever cohort of like-minded young people, and they see absolutely no reason why the world shouldn’t run by their rules. Half of India’s population of 1.3 billion is below the age of 25, and a quarter is below the age of 14. India’s young population is its most valuable asset and provides the country with a unique demographic advantage. Young Indians are ambitious and show greater autonomy in their career decisions.Through their own individual experience these young activists are visualising a zoomed-out perspective that gives them some idea of the larger reality.

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Child scientist

The parents of Alok Dev sent their fourth grade son to a nearby dance school during the lockdown to learn dancing. They didn’t want their son to waste his precious time sitting the whole day in front of the T.V. or with a mobile or simply annoying his siblings or parents like other children.

But the boy, studying at Govindapuram Kendriya Vidyalaya in Bengaluru, was interested in making robots. He went to Savad teacher, who runs a robotic centre close to his house, to learn how to make one.

Alok had been hearing that hand hygiene is essential in the fight against Covid-19. He wondered: Why not make a robot that dispenses the sanitizer, so that one does not need to touch the bottle at all?

And he succeeded in making one.

“It was nice to see him make the most of this time and create things that are useful,” says his mother Poornima with a big smile.

Now Alok’s mind is turned towards making a robot that will fold clothes. “I need to make something useful for society,” says the ten-year-old boy. “My dream is to become a robotics scientist when I grow up and create robots that can make life easier for humans,” says the future scientist with a heart for humanity.

U.S. President honours Indian girl

U.S. President Donald Trump honoured hundreds of Corona warriors on May 15. One of them was 10-year-old Indian girl Shravya Annapareddy.

Originally from Andhra Pradesh, Shravya studies in a primary school in Maryland. The fourth grade girl wondered what she could do to help combat the dreaded Corona virus. With her school scout companions, Lila Khan and Lauren, Shravya made and sent 200 greeting cards along with boxes of cookies to the doctors, nurses and health workers who are caring for Covid-19 patients.

Appreciating the Corona warriors, President Trump said that these warriors strengthen our bond in difficult times. This fellowship will take us to further heights, he added.

The U.S. President honoured Shravya and both her companions — all younger than 10 years, for their little but thoughtful and sweet works.

Student warriors

When the nationwide lockdown was imposed on March 24, some friends in Guwahati discussed online its impact on daily wage earners living in the slums. Beginning a WhatsApp group called ‘Call of Duty’, these school and college students discussed what they could do to alleviate people’s sufferings during these difficult days.

They decided to initiate a crowdfunding process to aid needy families. Besides some volunteers, some local residents and shopkeepers, too, stepped in to contribute.

These volunteers raised about 2.5 lakh rupees. And they identified about 150 families in the Gandhi Basti. Four volunteers from the team, with the help of the Assam Police and CRPF personnel, served packets of dry ration to 100 families. While distributing the food packets, they also conscientised the people on personal hygiene, wearing masks and social distancing.

Inspired by their good works, more NGOs, institutions, commercial establishments and general public came forward to contribute. Two tempo drivers also stepped in to pack free of charge, delivering dry ration to orphanages and homes for the elderly.

“Ordinary citizens like you and me can help vulnerable communities build resilience in these hard times,” says one of the volunteers. “We have started with a small initiative of providing basic food items, along with awareness to a small section of the community. But a lot is yet to be done,” adds the youngster.

Miss England becomes doctor

When Miss England heard that Covid-19 was fast spreading in England, she left her modelling work and went to serve patients at Pilgrim Hospital.

Hailing from Kolkata, her family had settled down in England in 2004.

Prior to winning the Miss England title in August 2019, Bhasha Mukherjee was about to join as a junior doctor in that hospital. She had done her graduation in medical science from Nottingham. After winning the Miss England title, she had taken a break from her profession for a year.

Youngsters bring cheer to the elderly

Bengaluru-based Mahita Nagaraj wanted to help those confined to their residences. She began a Facebook community called Caremongers India. Volunteers began joining the group. It now has around 6,500 members. The initiative has expanded to other cities all across India. The members deliver groceries and medicines to the elderly, bringing cheer to them during these difficult times.

Corona gives him a father

Young Subhojit Bhattacharya read online about a 70-year-old diabetic patient living alone in Noida, asking for assistance. The youth started caring for and serving the elderly man as if he was his father. Subhojit visits S. K. Das every day taking with him milk, medicines, ration and other necessary things. Above all, he spends quality time with him. The youngster says, “My parents live alone in Kolkata. Maybe somebody is looking after them.”

“Never underestimate the difference YOU can make in the lives of others.”
— Pablo

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In the short story titled Misjudged by Cassie Jammie, three youngsters named Scarlett, Cash and Greyson are considered children of bad reputation. Parents advised their children not to have anything to do with them. In fact the whole town looked at them with suspicion and kept away from them.

Often, the three friends would buy canned soup from a grocery shop in the town and go to the deep forest. People assumed that they lived on this canned food.

One day they happened to meet Tommy, the ten-year-old guy, who felt dejected because his parents were fighting. The three friends took Tommy for a stroll. Greyson asked Tommy, “Aren’t you scared of us?” Tommy eyed them suspiciously and said, “Everyone says you’re bad.” “We’re well aware of our reputation,” scoffed Scarlett. “Some people just like to make assumptions about people before they get to know them.”

The three friends bought Tommy a cone of chocolate ice-cream which he enjoyed to the full. They then took him to the forest where their friend Sam, a homeless man, and a few others lived. They offered them the canned soup and told Tommy, “He’s a homeless dude that lives in the forest with a few others. We bring them a few soup cans once a week. We like to make sure they have something to eat.”

Finally, Tommy tells them, “Everyone thinks you’re bad, but you’re not!”

The world in our time is fighting against a dreadful virus called Covid-19. But even more dreadful and destructive is the virus of prejudice that wrongly judges, condemns, segregates, and discriminates against persons and groups. The story of the three friends throws light on this virus and its deadly consequences in today’s society.

Prejudice according to the Cambridge Dictionary is “an unfair and unreasonable opinion or feeling, especially when formed without enough thought or knowledge.” People whip up prejudicial statements against persons or groups based on their place of origin, race, colour, language, financial status, social standing, religious affiliation, family background, etc. Time and again the prejudicial virus lurking beneath the surface makes its ugly appearance. Often prejudices blind people to the real facts about persons, groups and situations.

The novel Corona virus was turning out to be a global pandemic that threatened almost every corner of the world. Two highly-respected French doctors were discussing on live television the potential new treatment for Covid-19. One of them said, “If I can be provocative, shouldn’t we do this study in Africa where there are no masks, no treatment, no intensive care? A bit like we did in some studies on AIDS. We tried things on prostitutes because they are highly exposed and do not protect themselves.” The other doctor immediately agreed to the atrocious suggestion saying, “We will in fact think seriously about it.”

Several persons, including officials from World Health Organization (WHO) and soccer players of African origin came out expressing their outrage at the two medicos.

The suggestion of the two doctors simply reveals the type of white supremacy which considers that the black and less-developed Africa can be used as a huge laboratory for testing. It amounted to nothing less than the virus of prejudice that manifested in the form of deep-rooted racism and lack of human dignity.

One of the consequences of the virus of prejudice is discrimination resulting from insufficient knowledge or total ignorance of the situation. In some towns in northern India shop owners refuse to allow medical students and nurses to buy food stuff from their shops because they think that these people are potential carriers of the corona virus. They are subjected to discrimination and even harassment. One young medical student laments, “These shop owners forget that we are people in the frontline of duty, risking our lives to save people from the clutches of the pandemic.”

A young girl from North East India, studying in New Delhi, was spat upon by a man riding a scooter, calling her ‘Corona’. The reason for such abhorrent behaviour was that the helpless girl looked Chinese! But not just her, many people from the North East have shared stories of discrimination amid the Corona virus outbreak. One social media user said: “It is a double crisis for us, first battle with the virus and then with the societal virus of racism!” In Kolkata, several north eastern students have been forced to leave their accommodation in the city. They have been abused as ‘chinkis’ and ‘bat-eating tribe’.

Such mentality can even affect the authorities. Recently, nine Naga youths were forced to spend 24 hours in quarantine in Gujarat despite having no symptoms of Corona virus or any history of international travel or contact with a Covid-19 patient. They were allegedly forced into quarantine, as someone made a call to the police about ‘Chinese people’ working in an office. In Punjab, students from the North East had to resort to Facebook to explain their ordeal: “People are calling us names like ‘Corona virus’. We are even denied places to stay on rent because many think we are from China.”

Sudha Murthy, Chairperson of Infosys Foundation, in her book Three Thousand Stitches, relates her experience of being a victim of prejudice at London’s Heathrow Airport: “Go and stand in the economy class queue. This line is for business class travellers,” a woman told Ms Murthy as she was standing in queue to be checked in. She says she was wearing salwar kameez which made her a ‘misfit’ for business class according to that woman. Murthy later gave the woman a piece of her mind for calling her ‘cattle class’: “Class does not mean huge possession of money. Mother Teresa was a classy woman. So is Manjula Bhargava, a great mathematician of Indian origin. The concept that you automatically gain class by acquiring money is an outdated thought process.”

When Jesus was preaching in a synagogue at Nazareth, many who heard him were amazed. But some others were very prejudiced that they remarked, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers? Isn’t this the carpenter’s son?” They would not recognize the real power that was in Jesus nor would they hear the real wisdom with which he preached. They rejected him because they thought that he was merely ‘a carpenter’s son’. Jesus had to move out of that town saying, “A prophet is not without honour except in his own country and in his own house” (Matthew 13:58).

The best way to eradicate the virus of prejudice is to educate ourselves about our identity as human beings, and not as members of some ethnic or racial groups. All of us together form the one human family; there is no ‘we vs they’ or ‘us vs them’. Real education should focus on the richness of our diversity rather than the supremacy of some groups over some others.

Another way to get rid of prejudice is to cultivate healthy interpersonal relationships. When we freely relate with people of various ethnic, social, racial and religious groups, there is no room for prejudice. Many of our pre-conceived ideas will dissolve and disappear when we know persons and their goodness more closely. Parents, teachers and elders can play significant role in encouraging young children to relate with and befriend their peers belonging to different ethnic, racial, religious and social groups. They are thus helped to grow up with an open and inclusive mindset, knowing that all are part of the same human family.

Scarlett makes a significant statement in the story Misjudged: “Some people just like to make assumptions about people before they get to know them.” But knowing their innocence and benevolent nature, Tommy, the new-found friend, retorted, “Everyone said you’re bad; but you’re not!”

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Millions across the world have already fallen victims to the virus, showing no real signs of respite, in spite of the herculean efforts carried out by all concerned to contain its spread, including the months-long lockdown enforced by most countries including the U.S. that has lost the maximum number of lives to the virus. India, entering its fourth phase of lockdown, this week, is no exception to this. The curve, as was expected, hasn’t flattened yet!

The silver line over the thick dark cloud of Covid-19 enveloping the world is that it has brought humankind closer than ever before. The world is fighting Covid-19, as one family, not as a tragedy affecting one country or another in some part of the world, but affecting the entire humankind, a gesture of human solidarity never witnessed before. We have witnessed and are still witnessing daily, during these months of great tragedy unfolding before us, unprecedented gestures of compassion, spirit of willing sacrifice, and readiness to let go even one’s life for the sake of others, shown by ordinary men and women. The present issue of The Teenager Today features a few of them.

We are also told of the moving story of a senior Italian priest who willingly parted with his ventilator to give it to the young man in the next bed, thus saving the youngster’s life. While the story has its uniqueness, reminding us of St Maxmillian Kolbe in the Nazi concentration camp choosing to die in place of a co-prisoner, we have hundreds of our doctors, nurses, para medical staff, men and women police personnel who go every day to “ground zero,” knowing well that they can be affected by the deadly virus, perhaps even lose their lives!

In fact, many in our country and elsewhere in the world have lost their lives in the line of duty, leaving their families and dear ones in deep sorrow. The Teenager Today salutes them all, and dedicates this issue of the magazine to them — the “true corona warriors.” May God bless and reward them all abundantly, in this world and in the next world!

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‘Twas the most unusual of gifts — a hamper full of different soaps! Now don’t make fun of me, dear readers, for receiving this gift. I’m sure there will be many who will say, ‘Bob, you must have raised a stink with the speech you gave for them to have given you soap! Or maybe you used too many four-letter words, and the soap was to have your mouth washed so you would talk clean next time?’

I’m not sure, dear folks, but twice I spoke in the same school, and twice I got a hamper of soaps! There they lay all wrapped and lying in my cupboard, looking quite forlorn, as day after day I used sophisticated shampoo instead, and handwash and body wash from the U.S. and ignored those lowly soaps lying in my cupboard.

Till the Coronavirus came along!

Oh yeah, she came, and the whole world went into panic because the whole world, which was sending rockets to the moon, making driverless cars, and 2G and 3G and 4G and 5G hadn’t prepared to see to a betrayal from a virus belonging to their own earth!

And suddenly as the people died, and as they found no cure in labs as they experimented on mice and rabbits, they found one in soap!

“Use soap,” they said, “and keep the virus at bay!”

“Aha, my soap!” I say, as I look with pride at my treasure that lies in my cupboard, and that slowly and steadily fights the virus, “Aha, you are now the cornerstone that the builder rejected!”

Wash, soap, wash, soap and the virus, it slinks away!

In a crisis you have been crowned king!

There are many like the lowly soap in the world. Men and women who feel they be inadequate against those others who they feel are more blessed.

Today is your day!

Today, while the strong around you sigh with depression, you bring light into their darkness, breathe positivity into the world’s negativity, bring hope and tell them you can see a ray at the end of a Coronavirus tunnel or any other dire situation.

Like the lowly soap, you lay quiet like, while those with health and looks and physique ruled the roost, but with the virus gloom, they lay listless on the ground.

So, dear Soap People, you who think you are useless, remember you are not. Build people up, show them the hope that comes from a God above, teach them to trust the Divine, and clean them soap-like, to face a tomorrow with joy.

Like I said, ’twas the most unusual of gifts, but one that today is most cherished. Be one today; a lowly soap that’s standing in the gap twixt life and death. You be the one that stands between despair and hope!

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Body knows only to do what is good for the body.
Mind knows only to do what is good for the mind.
However, what mind considers as good is most often not good for the body.

The mind is the culprit for practically almost all diseases, other than those that come from food, water and air. External causes amount to only about 10 per cent of all diseases. The Coronavirus is an outside invader.

Make it hard for the ‘invader’ to conquer your internal defence system

Do whatever you can to stay mentally calm. If you are looking for bodily healing, reduce your mental speed to 8-12 cycles per second, known as ‘alpha pace’. (Meditations are the best I know so far to achieve that speed.) So, the mind will stop interfering with bodily intelligence. The body becomes free to activate the self-healing system that is inbuilt into our biological system. Healing is a passive activity; we do not actively heal anyone or ourselves. Healing happens. It is done to us without even asking for it. That’s the way our bodies are wired.

4 techniques to strengthen your immune system

1. Activating the pituitary gland
Pay attention to the ‘master gland’ known as the pituitary gland, fitted in the brain. Since you have no way of getting inside your brain, you can do a simple and easy exercise to activate both the pituitary and pineal glands. How? In the illustration, the portion of the thumb marked in red connects to your brain. Whatever you do there affects the brain.

a. Keep pressing the left thumb with the right thumb and the index finger of the right hand, holding it to the right and left side of the left thumb. Keep on pressing it hard for 60 seconds; keep a mental count of one to sixty. Then do the same with the right thumb with the left thumb and the index finger for 60 seconds.

b. Hold both the thumbs together facing each other; use the index and midfingers, let us say first of the right hand and press with them the back of the left thumb hard for 60 seconds while the right thumb is pressing the front portion of the left thumb (the frontal lobe of the brain). Exchange the hands; give the right thumb a chance now; another 60 seconds.

While doing this you are activating both the pituitary and pineal glands and the entire brain. The master gland wakes up all others (particularly the Thymus gland) into action for self-protection and they get ready to fight the aggressor. (2 minutes)

2. Activating the thymus gland
You can see the thymus gland in the picture. Use your index, mid and ring fingertips together to tap/thump the left and the right side of thymus gland 1 minute each, three times a day. Thymosin, produced by the thymus gland, will start fighting antibodies and strengthen the immune system. This is the most important gland to fight viruses. (2 minutes)

3. Prana Mudra (Energy-enhancing hand gesture)
This is a gesture recommended by the Mudra Shastra (science of hand gestures) to enhance our immune system, to activate vital energy and fight allergies. You do not have to press the fingers together; they need to be in touch with each other. You may hold this position, the way you see it in the illustration, for 45 minutes, if possible. You can keep holding them while watching a movie or while having a stroll, etc. The three fingers bring together three elemental energies of fire, earth and water together.

4. Pranayama (Science of breathing)
One of the sad life-realities is that very few of us breathe properly; once again the culprit is the mind. We need to breathe in the way the lungs were originally designed for. Whatever the method you have learnt; do it for 15-20 minutes, twice a day. The more oxygen you supply to your lungs, the merrier they will be! With poor lung capacity, you are prone to asthma, allergies, pneumonia, etc. Breathe well and you will be well.

If you are interested, you may check out the videos on the YouTube channel of Dhyan Kutir, Andheri (E), Mumbai, showing two different types of breathing and some simple exercises to rid yourself of negative energy.

The Coronavirus is inviting us to take quality time for ourselves. Remain calm. Keep on blessing the universe; allow blessings to flow towards you and into you!

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