Here’s a question: what did you do first today when you woke up? Did you brush your teeth using a toothpaste of your preferred brand? Would this also be one of your last actions before hitting the bed at night? But why, though? Well, of course, we learned in our formative years that brushing our teeth twice a day can potentially prevent the development of plaque formed from bacteria acting on residual food particles. We impress this basic oral hygiene habit upon every generation not only because of the lessons learned from experience, but also due to the science behind it.

Our day begins and ends with a little bit of science, doesn’t it? Every hour of every day, we perform actions that are closely associated with science. There is a scientific explanation that is sought and discovered for almost every crucial element of life. Time moves because of the Earth’s orbital motion. Our bodies transform due to chemical and biological phenomena inside and around us. We walk around so casually because of the concept of gravity. Science is the language in which the nature of life itself is explained.

In 1930, an Indian physicist by the name of Sir C. V. Raman became the first Asian to be awarded a Nobel Prize in any field of science through a spectacular discovery that when light travels through a transparent medium, there is a change in the wavelength and frequency of the deflected light. He also worked extensively on the analysis of Indian percussion instruments and famously reframed the explanation of why the sea appears blue. The Raman Effect was discovered on 28 February 1928; almost forty years before India won its independence. This shows that there was an abundance of brilliant minds that was never shackled by a lack of liberty.

Fast forward to the present, this day, 28 February is celebrated as National Science Day.

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Drawing comfort from the beautiful verses that Lord Tennyson wrote over a hundred and seventy years ago, it is once again the perfect time to ‘ring out the old, ring in the new’. We welcome another year with gratitude to simply be alive and well, reeling from what has been a true test of the human superpower of resilience.

We arrived into 2021 fervently hoping to escape from the grasp of a global health crisis that the United Nations described as quite unlike any other in the history of its 75 years.

The novel coronavirus was and is not limited to a health crisis; it has wreaked havoc on social, economic and psychological levels. It claimed lives and livelihoods, hitting marginalized pockets of the world hard and affecting almost every industry. Children today have spent entire academic years indoors and have yet to fully grasp what our ‘normal’ used to be.

As vaccines were deployed successfully, we rose to the challenge and attempted to achieve a semblance of the pre-Covid era. Schools, colleges and offices reopened carefully. Entertainment and social gatherings became possible gradually. The world got back into its hustle and bustle.

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“Many people say that Sweden is just a small country and it doesn’t matter what we do. But I’ve learned that you are never too small to make a difference. And if a few children can get headlines all over the world just by not going to school, then imagine what we could all do together, if we really wanted to.”

These are the words of teen climate change activist, Greta Thunberg, who is challenging the world with her innocent defiance. Speaking at the U.N. Climate Change COP24 Conference, she broke down walls of political correctness with her honest statements, blatantly accusing world leaders and the privileged few of amassing large amounts of wealth whilst ignoring the scars that their cruelty was leaving behind for the planet to recover from.

Who is Greta?

Born in 2003 to actor Svante Thunberg and singer Malena Ernman, Greta was an unknown and ordinary schoolgirl until recently. When she was barely eight years of age, she heard that due to the actions of human beings, the Earth’s climate was being impacted negatively. When other children watched the informative movies and moved on to other mundane topics, little Greta simply could not get the thought of the dying planet out of her mind. “If burning fossil fuels was so bad that it threatened our very existence, how could we just continue like before? Why were there no restrictions? Why wasn’t it made illegal?” she wondered about such things incessantly.

As a result of how deeply affected Greta was by this, at the age of 11 she became ill, falling into depression. She stopped talking and eating, losing about ten kilos of weight within two months, following which she was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome, ADHD, OCD and selective mutism. Commenting on this during her speech at TEDxStockholm, she remarked that her selective mutism meant that she only spoke when it was necessary: “and now is one of those moments.”

Greta’s various ailments made it difficult for her to let go of something once she found it to be deeply disturbing. She admits to thinking about environmental injustice obsessively, which eventually led to her becoming depressed. Due to her being an introvert, Greta did not share her feelings with anyone until she was staying home from school and needed to speak to her parents. She explained how she felt and shared all the information that she had unearthed, following which they began to understand her concerns.

This was a turning point in Greta’s journey because it made her realize that instead of allowing depression to cripple her spirit, she could raise awareness and do good for the world. Greta’s parents say that she was relentless in her pursuit — she convinced her mother to give up flying and her father to become a vegetarian. Greta achieved this with a great sense of determination which fuelled her passion: saving the planet from destruction.

On one fine day in August 2018, still an ordinary schoolgirl at the time, she skipped school to sit outside the Swedish parliament with a handmade banner that roughly translated to ‘School strike for climate’. She sat outside the Swedish parliament every school day for three weeks to protest against the lack of action regarding the climate crisis and posted what she was doing on Twitter and Instagram. On 8 September 2018 she decided to continue striking every Friday until Swedish policies provided a safe pathway in line with the Paris Agreement. Initially, she received pity from passersby and was discouraged even by acquaintances until her consistent action began to get noticed gradually. The hashtags #FridaysforFuture and #climatestrike went viral and spread until many students and adults began to strike outside of their parliaments and local city halls all over Europe.

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Teenagers are under enormous pressure, with their personal ideas about growing up and changing, not to mention transformations in their physical appearances courtesy puberty. Acne is probably wreaking havoc on their skin causing them to wonder what they are being punished for, and they have to answer or avoid constant questions about what they would like to be when they are older.

Into this scenario of colossal mayhem enters depression, and it is rather easy to conclude that the game of life is lost before it has hardly begun. With all the confusion over hormonal changes, it can be challenging to discover depression and isolate it from general mood swings. Understandably, depression is a serious health issue and must be responded to with caution and sensitivity.

Generally, depression causes its victims to be in a state of extreme grief, which then begins to negatively impact their daily activities such as eating, learning, work, social interactions and so on. It is not a one-size-fits-all type of disorder, i.e., the diagnosis is dependent upon the patient more than it is upon the ailment. Teenagers generally hide their feelings, and may confuse depression with their other difficulties. Meanwhile, they may be desperately looking towards their parents, teachers, siblings or other elders to take note of their suffering.

Depression can cause anything between uncontrollable weeping for days, extreme exhaustion for no reason, weight gain or weight loss, insomnia, physical pain without a source and suicidal thoughts. Fortunately, depression is curable with the right approach and timely intervention.

How can teenagers combat early onset of depression?

There are plenty of ways to take action when you realize that someone in your life may be depressed, but there are also ways to avoid it, which most importantly, allows a person to march on into an adulthood full of potential.

1. No pressure, mate!
Avoid stressing out. Some amount of stress is normal and will certainly have to be faced, such as stress over exams, break-ups, loss of a loved one or a beloved pet, arguments among friends and other disappointments. We must learn to handle these situations intelligently and move on quickly after a healthy amount of grief. But stress can be caused by other factors such as bullying, abuse, unhealthy relationships, etc.

TIP: If situations arise where you are being cornered or hurt such as the ones mentioned above, react. Inform a trusted adult instantly — this is non-negotiable.

2. Exercise!
Your mental health is very closely connected to your physical well-being. If you are not a particularly sporty person, that’s completely alright, but your body requires some amount of physical exertion to keep your muscles working and to get your heart pumping. Take up a sport at school or a 5-minute run or power-walk around the neighbourhood. Exercise causes the release of endorphins, which are hormones that inhibit feelings of pain and additionally can cause you to feel happy. Yoga is an excellent option for days when you need relaxed stretching. It may sound all too easy, but a healthy exercise routine can absolutely change your life!

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We know that music is a language in itself and transcends the boundary of actual languages. But what if you knew of a singer who can do a lot more? We’re catching up with Suchetha Satish, the 12-year-old wonder who is taking the musical community by storm having shattered two world records by singing in over 100 languages at the same concert!

Suchetha is originally from Kerala and resides in Dubai with her parents who moved to the UAE in 1999. On 25 January 2018, she stunned the audience at an event at the Indian Consulate in Dubai by singing in 102 languages for 6 hours and 15 minutes. In addition to being a stellar singer, Suchetha is also an excellent dancer and choreographs her own performances. When asked about her hobbies, she says that she enjoys reading, art and craft, and not surprisingly, teaching herself to read new languages.

Here’s a young girl who loves to sing and is excited to have started the eighth grade at the Indian High School, Dubai. But there is so much more to her that we are delighted to find out about.

TTT: When did your passion for music begin?
SS: Well, my passion for music started quite early. I have been performing on stage since the age of 3 and have been training formally since I was 4. I started with Carnatic music from Smt. Annie Dominic and since about 5 years, I have also been learning from Guru Sujatha Harish Kumar. I have recently appeared for the level 3 exams in Hindustani music. I am learning to play the keyboard as well as the guitar.

TTT: Tell us how you came to sing in all those languages!
SS: My mother tongue is Malayalam, so I could sing in it already. My father’s friend, a Japanese dermatologist, came to Dubai a year ago. When she came home, she sang a Japanese song. I liked it very much and learnt it. So initially, apart from Malayalam, Hindi, Tamil and English, I knew songs in Japanese and Arabic. Then I learned a Tagalog song as UAE has many Filipino residents.

TTT: How long does it take for you to learn a song in a foreign language? Which are the easiest languages and the toughest ones?
SS: If I like a song, I can learn it pretty quickly! The easiest ones are in Malayalam and Hindi while the tough ones are in German, French, Xhosa, etc.

TTT: Family is the greatest source of strength for most of us. Tell us about your family.
SS: My father, Dr. T. C. Satish, is a specialist dermatologist and my mother, Sumitha Ayilliath, is a lecturer by profession and currently a homemaker. My brother, Sushant, is in India preparing for the medical entrance exams. My family helped me select the songs and ensure that the lyrics are age appropriate.

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