labels

as i walk the earth
my soul wanders
hears whispers
pain
agony
hopes
dreams
of people never heard,
never talked about.

they live on the brink
ignored
marginalized.
for they are
not normal?
not whole?
disabled?
challenged?
differently abled?

it’s easy
stick a new label
and forget
the whole thing.
how many
labels
do we need
before
we really do something?

Truth

Truth sets us free.

Thanks

Dear Folks,

Thank you for passing the message about "Poorly differentiated embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma“ along. People I have never met before have given good advice and offered to find more information about latest developments in this area. I am now a member of a group related to sarcoma and a mailing list too.

The young teenager is under proper medical care at one of the best hospitals in India. He has had chemo and radiotherapy for a year. He is fine now and has to go for follow ups every 3 months. The disease is not very common and the real danger is recurrence. That is why we are trying to get in touch with people who have been through this.

He is very creative, very brave. He paints and writes very well. We are hoping and praying for the best.

Thanking you,
Nirupma

Poorly differentiated embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma

Dear folks,

Please, if you know of any one who has fought against “Poorly differentiated embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma“, or has a child suffering from this disease, request them to mail me at nirupama.kapoor@gmail.com

I know this young teenager who is fighting very bravely against this disease. The original malignant tumors have disappeared. Now there is a follow up every 3 months.

Is there any thing that can be done to prevent recurrence?

I have gone through the material on the net. It is mostly technical, meant for doctors. I need to get in touch with people who have won against this or are fighting against this. We need practical advice.

I hope and pray that no child ever suffers from this disease. If you have children or teenagers around, please ask them to inform you of any unusual growth or lumps. Early detection increases the chance of cure. Growing children may be painfully sensitive and shy. Please encourage them to communicate.


Please pass this message to as many people as possible.

Thanking you,
Nirupma Kapoor

Earth Speak

my core is heavy
winds awry
crust quavers
oceans surge askew.

melting glaciers
exploding volcanoes
earthquakes
tsunamis
cyclones
hurricanes
floods famines fires.
unexpected
changes in weather.

how long do you think
can I bear
the burden
of all your misdeeds?

you
pile concrete
upon my crust,
dig hollows
to steal my gold,
belch poisons
into my air,
pour rank filth
into my waters,
kill all species
for your greed.

and now
you drop bombs
fire missiles
by mega tons.

do you think
my crust
does not weaken
when you drop bombs?
do you think
heat and pressure
do not disturb
the dynamic balance
of winds and oceans?

why do you need weapons?
to kill all life?
once a weapon is made
it will be used for sure.

I have watched
for eons.
species have come
and gone.

if you do not
heed,
you may as well
be the next.

Dr. Tara

My sincere thanks once again to all the people who passed the information about Dr. Tarachand. By now we have received a number of letters, photographs and diaries.

His daughter Rachna is taking care of all this material. She has started posting some of this material on http://shreeshubh.blogspot.com , a web log named after Dr. Tara’s granddaughter.

Voluntary Experiments by Social Groups

Social Technology for a Better Future

Even as the society and the culture that we live in influences us, we have the power to influence our society.

In fact, we are responsible for creating our own society. Instead of being passive recipients of social influences, we can form voluntary groups in the neighborhood and try different social formations and determine their effects.

It has been observed that when children are cared for by a number of people that is parents, close relatives and people in the neighborhood; they tend to be more confident, emotionally secure, social and willing to learn as compared to the children of single working parents or isolated nuclear families where both the parents are working.

Parents in a neighborhood could form groups and take turns to look after the children. They could coordinate their free time in such a manner that some adult parents are available to the children when they need them. They could visit the local crèche, school and playground and keep actively in touch with the children in the neighborhood.
Many such formations can be conceived, debated, tried and kept if they benefit the community.

Ethics, Values and Norms

Social Technology for a Better Future

Anthropologists have studied so many different cultures and societies. We have seen a wide variety of ethical beliefs, values and norms.

As we interact with people from different cultures and society we see that some values seem to be treasured by most of societies. On the other hand there are norms and rules that vary from one society to another. Are there any universal values? If so which values? Honesty, Compassion?

Misunderstandings occur for we do not have a clear idea of the values and norms of other cultures. Values and norms are deeply embedded in the psyche of individuals. They are not static either. They seem to adapt to the changing world at variable pace in different societies.

We need to conduct research to determine the strands that are common to most of the societies and the skeins that are different. This would become possible by the accurate data gathering tools developed by information and communication technology. Such studies would be needed repeatedly because of the dynamic nature of the variables involved.

This will hopefully lead to better understanding and tolerance amongst various cultures, societies and groups.