Namaskar. Moshi moshi.
How has the week treated you?
Feeling better about the world and yourself?
Well, since last Friday,
scientists working in different labs around the world have inched closer to
their next big breakthroughs. Just imagine – a 100% effective antidote to
malaria, HIV or even cancer might become reality one day soon. We are getting
there. One step at a time.
Meanwhile, tiny tots have spoken
out their first words, taken their first steps and played their first tune. A
billion reunions have taken place and each one has left behind a whiff of
positivity.
Having realized that the world is
made up of small and beautiful moments, let’s get more specific. This week, we
will find beauty and inspiration in some astounding real-life stories. As always.
J.
News from the public domain
A gift to survive
Stacey Kramer knows a thing or
two about surviving. Her final sentence in this moving
TED talk is as follows: “The next time you are faced with something
unexpected, unwanted and uncertain, consider that it just may be a gift.”
Intrigued? You ought to be. Be
prepared to receive an altered perception in less than 4 minutes.
Doing what you love: the Chales Bukowski way
Till the age of
49, Charles Bukowski was a post office clerk. Of course, he then did what he
loved. He wrote. And oh so prolifically.
Do read this revealing
interview to learn how to “not entirely waste one’s life”!
A hospital that practises and celebrates humanity
Our Guest
Editor Mohan Ra files in this amazing story:
Subhashini Mistry lives in a village called Hanspukur just about 20Km
south of the city center of Kolkata. Her husband died of gastroenteritis in the
70s. He was a poor labourer. Soon after his death, she decided that she would
not let anyone else face the kind of difficulties she had to face due to lack
of healthcare. She had to bring up her five children and keep her own body and
soul together. Over the next twenty years, she toiled as a housemaid, manual
labourer and vegetable seller and saved 100,000 rupees. Meanwhile she educated
her son Ajoy Mistry and got him to be a doctor with the help of philanthropists
(mainly community workers and neighbours). She then got the residents of
Hanspukur to pool in more money which was used to establish a trust called
"Humanity Trust" and to buy about half an acre of land. A hut-sized
hospital was established in this space. Today, he same hospital has a 5000 sq ft
building. A new floor is being built even as you read this.
In this hospital – aptly named Humanity Hospital – no treatment
costs more than five rupees and no surgery costs more than five thousand rupees.
Ajoy's wife doubles up as the manager and nurse.
“I do not know much, all I know is that people should not suffer the
way I did, I was able to do what I did by my inner strength given by god,” says
Subhashini. She does not sell vegetables in the Sealdah market anymore.
This is how you
bounce back
Life’s unpredictable. Life can be tough. Especially when one
is young and helpless.
But Life is also what we make of it. Do read about these 13
famous Americans who once relied on food stamps to survive.
They made it!
In conclusion
I’ve been wondering about how I often come across a quote
that encapsulates or elucidates my feelings at the moment. What causes such serendipitous
events? We may never know the answer to that, but I do feel happy knowing that
seemingly random acts of learning are possible in our world.
I hope you learn from our wonderful world, wherever you are.
And, most importantly, if you haven’t learnt it already, I pray that you learn
to be happy.
Take care. :).
To read the previous volume of Positivity Weekly, please click
here.
To read the next volume of Positivity Weekly, please click here.
To read the next volume of Positivity Weekly, please click here.
And as always, do write in with story ideas and personal
contributions. You can reach us at positivityweekly@gmail.com
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