Okay, you have always had time on your side....you have counted the minutes and they did in fact elapse. Then the moment you were waiting for happened. Have you ever been asked to do those hard squats where you remain mid-way and someone times you? The first few seconds make you feel you are a master! The next you actually feel you are breaking some tendons, ligaments, sinews..you name it. In moments like these why does time go really slow? You are almost 200 pounds, six feet tall and have an attitude of been there! Get up that pulley. Lift yourself without letting your hands stretch out full. Keep them folded...aha! There! Like that. And so, you go up and down. One , two , three.....Then you stop because you have run out of breathe! Then you are led off to do those crazy press ups designed to punish you. Someone must have had it in for you! You think. Then you are led to the 'burps' platform. You jump up the platform with legs inward, then outward you jump off. You jump off and bend, with your your palms touching the platform and you perform the push-ups. Then you go through the cycle. Ummhh.....say, 20 times will do!! What?????? That is after 5 times! Oh! You are now at the abdominal exercise gear. Harness up, raise legs, breathe out as you bring them down. Do it like 12 times. And do three sets please. "Can the trainer, disappear off the face of the earth?" No! He is still around and timing! That was my one hour at the gym this Saturday. I have had to swaet in my life but not this profusely!
Saturday, 25 May 2013
Thursday, 23 May 2013
Qui Tacet Consetir Videtur: He who is silent is understood to consent
He who is silent is understood to
consent. I faced up and made noise against my weaknesses. I no longer consented
to what relegated me to being the loser. I had these three deep seated and
jealously guarded fears. I had earlier
made a decision. I agreed to myself never to raise any argument on the subject
of my own weaknesses. ‘What are those 3 fears?’ You may be driven to ask. Yes,
number one on the list is vanity, secondly a tendency for prodigality and
thirdly a contentment with simplicity. I do want what is good. I guess this is
every one’s story. I want to show the
goodness of life and treasures. I know hard work is fruitful. I have always
driven myself so hard to achieve a better life. It is a lonely path. It is not
taken by many. I did give up when I realized I was alone in this. I slackened
the grip and mentality towards work. This was my undoing. I have accumulated some
assets in my life but I have ended up giving them away to supposedly badly off
friends. I later turned to them in my times of need and they remarked: ‘why did
he not save his money for such bad times?’ I could have remained on the very
hard roads of life’s toil. I gave up so much. I discouraged myself from
achieving more.
That stopped when I stopped
consenting to failure. I stopped giving in to fear. I made noise. I discovered
what I could be. I immediately designed and embarked on a plan of action to
re-educate myself. I crossed out the word ‘quit’ from my action verbs. I went
deep into myself and brought out my fears. I decided to surround myself with
success. This is my re-birth. I faced anything that belittles me. I set myself
on a path of knowledge. I knew I was held back by what I decided not to learn.
I knew so much yet knew so little. I chose to know myself. I chose not to
consent to silence. I chose not to acknowledge defeat, fear, ridicule and
belittling. There is uniqueness in every one as long as we all know we are capable
of being better. I am unique and different. I looked into myself with honesty.
I am full of life and am around loving people. I got to see this because I made
decisions that galvanize us more as we continue interacting. I do appreciate the people I come into
contact on a daily basis. They appreciate me too. I am conscious, I am part of
them and I matter to them. I continued
interacting with them as I continued on the path to self actualization. I shared my dreams with them. They were
honest with me. They guided me as I continued being open to them. I admitted I
needed their help. I would give them guidance too. I worked consistently and persistently. This is what made me who I am. This now defines me. The world inside me was cleansed. I decided to make a new garden in me. I make
sure that I listen to myself, evaluate myself and reduce all sensual reports,
experiential cues and visceral stimuli into a unified common purpose and goal. I
am true to myself above all. Truth
follows as night does day. I am sure then I cannot be false to any other
person. I decided not to be silent lest I am understood to consent to failure.
Sunday, 19 May 2013
A public health Resource Facility targeting low income beneficiaries
In providing services for low income beneficiaries my experience has been based on a model that has a static facility which acts as a base. This resource Center will be a drop-in facility with scheduled
health education and Life planning resources catering to young persons and
adults. The P-health will be an
opportunity to bring policy, personal development and public health together at
a venue and in an environment that is friendly. The resources collected and
distributed will be in the forms: paper, electronic and prophylactic
consumables. This venue will have a library, office, meeting place, training
facility and a conference space to enable persons engage in mentored
conversation. A one stop community services center, the P-health will offer the
following services: provide information, education and communication services
geared at influencing decisions for health seeking and life preserving
practices.
The P-health is part of the bigger Universal Mission Foundation LLC whose mission is to serve new Americans. We believe that integration and assimilation for a new comer in USA may require psycho-social-economical empowerment. We also believe that for all these to occur an individual’s public health status has to be of quality. We empower individuals to take charge of the basic preventive health practices by guiding them to access health services in their vicinity. We encourage our beneficiaries to know their contexts. This empowerment gives control and belief in life.
The
following are our main activities:
1. Design and develop a standard operating
procedure manual ( documentation, transportation, mobility, nutrition,
assimilation and integration)
2. Establish a support service
directing beneficiaries where to seek health care and psycho-social support (identify
referral points for further interventions).
3. Provide a hotline to link
beneficiaries with service providers.
4. To follow up beneficiaries (encourage
screening strategies: depression. Substance use, pre-existing chronic care,
employment, benefits, education)
5. To design and develop information
and use of resources (Special supplemental Nutrition, housing, job training,
documentation, community activities, education, food pantries, life planning
skills, self-help development, personal safety, security, legal, civic order,
conduct).
6. To act as a drop-in venue.
7. To collect and distribute life
preserving resources (consumables).
8. To engage in mobilization of
beneficiaries to adhere to life preserving commitments.
9. To link beneficiaries with wider
community.
The activities of the P-health will help increase on the critical number
of persons who engage in life preserving activities, who seek health services,
who access social benefits and create a wider high value peerage/ support
community.
The Heart is in it!
Today is Pentecost day. I
overheard a conversation where one was saying it is also the birthday of
Christianity. I went for service early in the morning. I liked, as always, this
morning’s preacher who was from the Dominican Congregation of Virginia, USA. I got
to learn the Dominicans are also known as the Order of Preachers. Now, I happen
to be in an area where there are quite many Jesuits. I know of the jokes they
exchange among themselves that is the Franciscans, Jesuits and Dominicans. It
is joked that one of each orders has a combination of these virtues in
different amounts: hermitic, pragmatic
and philosopher. These virtues happen to be the butt of many jokes. This time
it was about...never mind. The joke is so old I may sound like an old broken
record. But, my morning Sunday service was a warm and a spiritual fulfilment
for me.
At around 10.00 am, I joined 3 friends of mine
as a team of four. We were part of a larger group of over 300 people (adults,
young and children pushed in prams). We walked 1:3:5 miles to raise funds and
to raise awareness around what communities can do to reduce the risks that
exacerbate cardio-vascular diseases. We met at one place, were flagged off and
as a team we walked the different assigned miles. Our team walked all the five
miles. There are so many lessons one learns when one decides to engage in community
activities. As a strong advocate for community-work in which one expects not to
be paid a salary, I have always told my friends and any who cares to listen to
my philosophy the three reasons why we engage in work: reward, skills and
networks. Rewards may be in various forms and not necessarily the salary. It
could be psychological satisfaction that one is able to take time off and be
part of a number of persons who have accomplished an activity. Skills may come
in many ways including person-to-person communication or organization of an
event. One does not fail to pick a lesson or two on organization of events.
Humans are social and in engaging in these kind of events it may enable one fulfil
the social aspect of meeting other people. It may add to the feeling of being
part of society. It may be a point of reference for one as well as topic for
conversation. Such experiences make up the stock materials in one’s brains and
being part of one’s memory it may be enrichment that will form future
conversational or problem-solving points of reference.
There were two major intentions
of the walk: raising awareness about cardio-vascular diseases and; renewing a
commitment towards engaging in physical exercises as one of the best ways to
prevent cardiovascular and lung related diseases. The event was colourful and
the sun was bright. By the end of the walk a dark cloud was forming and later
after two or three hours a down pour followed. I had kept my bicycle somewhere convenient.
I managed, to barely make it back home before it rained, to file this report.
Thursday, 16 May 2013
The 10 basic charitable acts and good practices that can make adjusting to American society/community possible:
1. Meshing
with your hosts: at all times show courtesy to your hosts
2. Appreciating
and finding what you can do: After studying your environment get something to
do in order to earn respect, money and continued positive regard.
3. The
kitchen practices: Wash utensils, prepare meals for all, store food that is not
warm in the fridge. Clean kitchen area at any opportunity. Use the food wrapper
sparingly if you are to use microwave as this avoids heated food spilling all
over the insides of the microwave.
4. The
bath/wash-room practices: use the bath/wash-room knowing that others will also
use it and after clean it. In case you are using a public laundry ensure you
have coins ready as most machines do take coins. WAIT UNTIL YOUR CLOTHES ARE READY AND THEN PICK THEM TO LEAVE
ROOM FOR OTHERS.
5. Throwing
away garbage/waste: Garbage or waste is thrown in baskets with polythene-bag
insertions which once full up are tied up at the rim and carried to kips/bins.
6. Sharing
the doors, alleys and lifts: Hold door for others until they have passed
through once you are the first to open the door. Walk on the right to leave the
left side for those approaching you.
7. Road
discipline/Transport means: Follow all road use instructions to avoid
penalties.
8. Meeting
other Americans: America has a multitude of races and people from different
countries. Learn something through meeting them or making friends.
9. Working
in the American society: Arrive earlier at work, keep on the job and sign out
appropriately.
10. Sharing your dollars with the
team: You may be staying in a place with others. If the arrangement is
cash-pooling adhere to it.
Tuesday, 7 May 2013
Saying ‘Volksbook’ about facebook much the same way we say Volkswagen about Volkswagen
We were about 17 young men and 5
young women, all of us from different ethnicities and races. I imagined we were
between 17-45 years. I am from Africa,
another was from Vietnam, another from Canada, well, from all over the world as
well as those who were born and bred from USA generations back. Many had iPads and latest model phones which had
various websites including facebook website open. We talked about different
things and somehow we found ourselves steering into such conversations that
depicted sacrifice, inventions and gratitude. It came to my turn to chip
in. I talked of people whose ideas
continue to create opportunities for others to see life as a potential and live
it to the fullest. We talked about so
many other issues and we exchanged e-mails and phone contacts. I left, like
many in the group, to return to the library for another hour and later went
back home. That day at the library was a worthwhile activity in which I
experienced more interactions with people from many parts of the world. That
sun break helped me break down what was eating at my mind as I was preparing to
write my regular pieces for my blogs and facebook walls. Humans are a grateful
species, humans are an enterprising species. We also reflect upon economics and
conservation. Given the levels or our state of competence we may be able to
create possibilities and opportunities where there was none. I came to this
realization when I compared things here and back in Africa. My question this
time was whether we can be able to say ‘Volksbook’ about facebook much the same
way we say Volkswagen......about Volkswagen! Fuel/energy is to the car as the
car is to the road. I wanted to relate the people to facebook, Google and the
computer. I dare say, the people are likened to the energy for the car.
Facebook (platform) is the car and Google (website) is the road. The computer
is the key that starts the ignition. As part of those who had come out of the
library to sun ourselves (a sun break) or for a smoke break for those who smoke,
I could not help but note all of us were had active facebook accounts.
Anecdotal remarks, plus visible interactions while we were at the break,
informed my opinion on this. Smoke and
sun breaks are two things one cannot do inside a library! At what standard would humans be if for
instance we lacked initiators who were more skilled, far seeing and movers of
things? What if there were no early adapters? I gazed around the Worcester (MA)
Public library. It was an idea of a person whose deed commits it for use by
other people. It is an idea of utilitarian quality. This large concrete, steel,
fibre and glass edifice was the idea of a person whose mission statement is ‘to
serve as a gathering place that actively promotes the free exchange of ideas in
our democratic society.’ This thought triggered another. What is the
relationship of facebook and the people who subscribe to it? The relationship
is captured in the facebook mission statement which goes thus: ‘to
give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected.’
Founded in 2004 as an exclusive student website it grew to become a website with
over 12 million users from the entire world by 2006. At a growth rate of 10
million users per month, it currently has over 650 million active facebook
accounts, 16 million facebook fan pages and it is valued at $ 80 billion. As a
website, it is only surpassed by Google. Every 20 minutes at facebook, 10.2
million comments are posted. 48% of users between 18-34 years check facebook
right after waking up. Almost 10% of the world population is connected to
facebook by an active account. An average account user has 130 friends. 50% of
active users log on to facebook any day. It is a promise of continued
interactions, reading, writing, drawing, composition and connections. This and more, indeed, make facebook a
‘Volksbook’ (People’s book). The mission
statement that willingly calls on as many people to join, the interesting
interaction and share tools make it a motivation for continued use. Facebook
has another entity it resembles in winning people’s hearts. This is the very
popular Volkswagen. Outside of Germany, this little car came to be liked as the
‘people’s car’ by all definitions. It is a translation of the name Volkswagen.
As of 2012, Volkswagen (people’s car) has produced 5, 771789 cars and to-date
Volkswagen is the number one automobile maker in the world. The ‘Beetle’ and
‘Golf’ are the flag-bearers. They are a family car, they are dependable, they
do not break down on the roads and once handled well can last many years. Many
families have held on to their Volkswagens.
For facebook and Volkswagen, dependability, built-in interactive apps,
stirring connectivity, information medium, status symbol and utility include
some of the reasons why many choose to ‘like’ these inventions.
Interesting links for further
reading:
9.
Tuesday, 30 April 2013
7 enemies of commitment
I was going to write a lengthy experiential story in which I captured these 7 situations. But, I did walk into a friend's office and saw this on her wall.
The 7 Enemies of Commitment
1. A lifestyle of giving up.
2. A wrong belief that life should be easy.
3. A wrong belief that success is a destination.
4. An attitude of negative thinking.
5. An acceptance of other people's fences.
6. An irrational fear of failure.
7. A lack of vision
Source: The choice is yours: Today's Decisions for the rest of your life by John G. Maxwell, 2005 J. Countryman
The 7 Enemies of Commitment
1. A lifestyle of giving up.
2. A wrong belief that life should be easy.
3. A wrong belief that success is a destination.
4. An attitude of negative thinking.
5. An acceptance of other people's fences.
6. An irrational fear of failure.
7. A lack of vision
Source: The choice is yours: Today's Decisions for the rest of your life by John G. Maxwell, 2005 J. Countryman
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