Save your family from Dengue

Tags

causes to champion, dengue

Dengue the very word scares me. I have had Dengue once last year, I remember I was in Hyderabad on a consulting project and suddenly felt drained and had this terrible pain in the back of my eyes. I decided to go to the hotel room and rest for a while, only to wake up to raging fever of 104, upon doing a blood test next day dengue was confirmed. I remember the killing 15 days that followed, the body pain and the platelet count dropping, the test everyday and in the end when I was fine, I still remember being tired and drained for months. Immunity down and catching cold at the drop of a hat.

I know of people who have lost their lives to Dengue and a friend’s son got dengue second time and was so critically ill. Few people know that second and third episodes of dengue could be worst. In the words of my friend Suman

“If you have ever suffered from dengue in the past (even if it was many yearsago), the second episode can be much worse and extremely dangerous. If you have had dengue previously, you MUST take any fever very seriously, and inform the doctors immediately that you have suffered a previous episode. In a second episode, blood pressure drops dramatically because blood vessels burst, and all organs become inflamed due to the excess fluid. Without very strong antibiotic treatment, this fluid has a high risk of becoming infected – leading to often-fatal septicaemia or pneumonia. You could also go into shock (dengue shock syndrome), for which the mortality rate is very high. The progression from platelet drop to death happens with stunning speed – a matter of hours. This happens because the antibodies developed during the first episode actually enhance the entry and replication of the virus – a phenomenon called Antibody-Dependent Enhancement, or ADE. The antibodies in your system from a first dengue attack can remain in your system for up to 20 years.”

It is important for all of us to take dengue seriously and that is why I think this initiative from SC Johnson is noteworthy. The site talks about Payal, a 12 year old from Jaipur who wants to become a doctor and fight dengue. Lets all come together to encourage kids like Payal and make sure we are soon a dengue free country. Check the website for details on what you can do at your home to prevent and call at 1800180181818 to show your support.

You can check out this video as well for more details : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbTa4IG9Nww

prevent and call at 1800180181818 to show your support.

You can check out this video as well for more details :

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55 word fiction : They said he died because they wouldn’t accept him

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55 word fiction, 55-er, 55-err, causes to champion, fiction, LBGT, Marathon Bloggers

They said he died because they wouldn’t accept him.

They said he died because they got him married hoping it would cure him.

They said he died because he stopped loving.

They said he died because they could not find him smiling anymore.

They said he died because just breathing isn’t living after all

———————

And with this we have finished a week of 55 word fiction on Marathon Bloggers. A week of fiction in Jan. I am happy with myself and my fellow bloggers. Here’s to more such challenges

55 word fiction : She looked deep into her eyes

Tags

55 word fiction, 55-err, causes to champion, child sexual abuse, CSSAM, Marathon Bloggers

She looked deep into her eyes not able to bear the emptiness in them, searching for the innocence they had held in them, the dreams they dreamt.

She looked deep into her eyes and promised her 2.5 yrs old girl that she will kill the monster who had touched her, the monster who snatched those dreams.

55 word fiction : Just when he was leaving

Tags

55 word fiction, 55-er, 55-err, causes to champion, fiction, inspired fiction, kashmir, kashmir pandits, life, Marathon Bloggers, pandits

Bags packed, belongings taken, people hugged.

But he looked reluctant to let go,

He looked at the temple in the room,

He looked around for the childhood he had,

He looked around for old age me might have had,

And just when he was leaving he looked around at the Kashmir he might never see again.

———–

Done as a part of the 55 word fiction week at Marathon Bloggers

A Day of Remembrance

Tags

causes to champion

 Dear Friends, fellow bloggers

I am one of the blogger who is taking part in observing silence for the innocent victims who lost their lives on Friday’s shooting rampage at Connecticut.  Like you we cried as the news reports come in. As a mother of two, it is really hard for me to imagine about how somebody can hurt those innocent 6 and 7 years old. Who supposed to be laughing at their Christmas gifts wrapped under the Christmas tree and long waited holidays? In the time of happiness we are mourning for the loss of these tiny angels.

Their life was cut short, their dreams were crushed. Those late night kisses and wonderful smiles when you pick them and light sadness when you drop them in the school is going to be missed forever to that little angel’s parents. Also to those moms, wife, grandmas, friends who lost their lives doing their duties as teachers and staff of Sandy Hook Elementary school.

We know that no words, no gifts, no act of service will ever take away the pain, but we, as bloggers and also parents collectively want those affected by this to know how close to our hearts they are

We love you; we pray for you, we are so heartbroken for your loss.

To honor the memory of the lives cut short, we choose to step away from our blogs and computers today to celebrate the gift of life and those we love the most, our children, families, good friends and community. We’re holding our kids little tightly, reaching out to neighbors and giving thanks for the moments we have together. Thank you for stopping by today, we hope you will join us in remembering, praying and gathering close. We wish you and your families a safe and blessed holiday.

Thank you Swathi for doing this.

April is here – CSA 2012

Tags

causes, causes to champion, child sexual abuse, CSA, CSAAM

Remember April 2011 on Twitter, Facebook and blogs? We talked about Child Sexual Abuse – the hows, the wheres and the whens. We were overwhelmed by the response it generated, humbled by the weight of the personal stories of despair and courage.

It’s that time of the year again and we’re going ahead with Child Sexual Abuse Awareness Month – April 2012.

Do you have a story to tell? Tips to share? A video, a link, an ebook? As a parent, as an adult, as a child? As before, we honour all requests for anonymity.

Bring your experience and your expertise to this awareness initiative via

Blog posts with the logo (you can copy the image above), linkback to our blog, with the words “CSAAM April 2012” in the title
Twitter posts or links to @CSAawareness, tagged “#CSAAM”
FB notes linking to our Facebook page
Emails to csa.awareness.april@gmail.com
Or just simply show support by displaying the Picsquare badge on your site/page/profile

This year, we hope to increase our focus and reach with our new CSAAM App and our sensitisation workshops. You’ll find both in our blog come April 2012.

Stay tuned

A Calendar Too Crowded

Tags

a calendar too crowded, book, book review, causes to champion, Feminism, Sagarika Chakraborty, womans day, women, womens issues

My state right now and a book review too… I MUST begin this post by profusely apologizing to Sags and Harish… Sags because she is such a good friend and whose book I loved that I should have posted this review eons ago and Harish because damn, I think this is the record number of follow ups he would have done for a review with anyone I think… Unless Swaram hasnt still posted it 😉 But guys truly my state these days is just as the title of the book in a different manner that’s it… (but what I am upto is a topic of different post altogether and hopefully after this post, I will try to be regular :P)

Now Coming to the book itself, it was a book I was really looking forward too and not just because its been written by a very very dear friend but also because its on a topic very dear to my heart (surprise surprise? I can see the regular readers of my blog, smiling wide enough on this)

For those who don’t know what the book is about, here is the excerpt

Sagarika Chakraborty is a lawyer and student at ISB. Her début book is “a collection of stories and poems woven around the theme of womanhood”. Throughout the year there are a few dozen days set apart for women and issues surrounding gender. As is usual, we hear a lot about these issues on the special days and then go back to routine stories for the rest of the year.

In her introduction Sags goes ahead to explain the intent behind choosing the unique concept for the stories in the book

“The attempt is to delve deeper and analyse whether it is merely enough to rely on statistics and be complacent in the knowledge that the numbers indicate a better society in the making, or whether there is an urgent need to look beneath the covers and realise that despite all such dedicated days, there are 300 odd days when there is nothing special that life has to offer. Where each day is still an unending drudgery and where womanhood is cursed and trampled upon.”

I love the way the stories have been threaded in, the unique approach of picking up dates and how very true it is that its not just dates that matter, its all year through that we have to suffer, does a woman’s day make a difference to me if I see my maid coming home beaten blue by her drunk husband a day after 8th March? Does it hold any significance at that point of time? Standing for woman and improving there plight is a task that has to be done every single day through the year, through the life and that is what the book attempts by bringing to front the numerous stories

that touch you deep inside somewhere.

When I started reading the book, I was heart broken and the eyes were wet, the feelings becoming numb as I moved forward and somewhere in the middle of the book I realised that these are not the stories she wrote, these are the stories so unfortunately we see all around us 😦 Yes I know there are a lot of people which will say… “oh well the book is too depressing”, “naa you women aren’t so deprived these days” to those people I just have one answer… if the ostrich ducks her head, the problems don’t go away. Just look around yourself, the women in your life, the one that cleans your utensils? the one you have hired as a nanny to take care of your child? May be a distant (and god forbid a close one) who has gone through a divorce and had to listen to taunts from all and sundry, a woman who doesnt want a child or god help her if as a couple they can’t have a child… These are the stories of woman around us that touch you deep inside. Yes its depressing, yes its heartbreaking and that is exactly why its important to read it. To be aware, to be shaken out of our comfort zone and to be able to do something.

The book stands up and questions many things that will trouble us and its amazing to note how the author has gone under the skin of many many women so effortlessly.Another thing which I loved about the book is the how lucid the language is in the book, its hard to believe that its her first book.

The thing that may be could been improved in the book? The names, the names, the names… None of the characters in her books have names and when I started reading it, I found it very disturbing, we are used to of relating to people my name, then why leave such an important thing aside? May be she wanted to shake us out of our comfort zone while reading the book? But yes initially it did disturb me but slowly as I read more, I think it kind of stopped making a difference.

Final Word : A must read book for people in this generation, people who think that the problems of womanhood existed only in the era gone or these problems exist only in remote villages. It opens your eyes wide and clear. And yeah my fav three would be – Naked, Can you Hear me ma?, An equal friendship.. Do share which are yours?

Author : Sagarika Chakraborty

Publisher : Niyogi Books

Rating : 3.5/5

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

PS: do u like the new look of the blog?

VAWM | How long is long enough?

Tags

causes to champion, Domestic Violence, fiction, gender issues, inspired fiction, vawm, violence against women

Ranju was playing with her brothers and sisters, all 5 of them when her newly married uncle came visiting along with his new bride. She always used to look forward to the visits from uncle, he would bring along with him sweets from the city and a adult male presence in the house which was missing since her father left them all to deal with their luck and poverty one day to become a man of God, a man of God he wanted to become when he really couldn’t even become a man of life. In her uncle she tried to find her father, a father they had lost.

She was smitten by her aunt too. Pretty like any other new bride, gentle with her, she played with all of them while uncle and her mother tried to work out how will they survive the next month. When they were leaving the aunt asked Ranju if she wanted to go to city with them. The thought of a vacation excited her, she packed her bags quickly and was ready to go. A couple of days passed by like a fairy tale – good food, new clothes and many places to see. After couple of days the aunt suggested her that why doesn’t she stay in the city with them, study in a good school. She was enrolled in the near by school and the aunt brought her up like her own daughter. She had kids that treated her like their elder sister. Time passed by Ranju graduated and started doing a job, the aunt was more her mother than the one in the village. And like all girls one day it was declared that she is ready or marriage, some rishtas came her way and the one that sounded suitable to everyone was promptly fixed. A decent looking guy who runs his own shop and a nice family what else does one check. Ranju and Mohit were married with all the grandness the aunt could afford.

However reality dawned a couple of months later when she realised that the shop is owned by the father and he actually does nothing in it, a job was arranged by the uncle who came to her rescue. However Mohit didn’t last in the job long and when Ranju asked him why, began a new chapter in her life, Mohit slapped her the first time that day and the abuse never stopped after that. The mother in law and everyone else in the house would stand and watch when Ranju was being beaten and later verbal and emotional abuse would follow from all of them saying that if she didn’t even care for her mom, its only money that mattered to her. The thought that she has already troubled her aunt too much and her mother could hardly do anything. Bringing up 4 children with no source of income wasn’t easy made her tolerate the abuse and so did the fact that she was carrying her first child.

The abuse continued, eventually the aunt came to know about it but hardly could did anything she had her own kids to look after, she would sit at times and think how life came a full circle and her situation  became much like her mother, probably worst she atleast didn’t have anyone beating her, she would live on the money given to her by her aunt and Mohit’s brother. If she would talk about going back to work, she would get beaten again and slowly this started taking toll on her health but she held her fort. Today she has by her sheer will power managed to bring up a daughter and a son who are both educated and working, who stand by her and ask their father to stop if he tries to raise his hand. The emotional  abuse unfortunately still continues but she has made the focus of her life her kids and derives her pleasure from them.

Ranju’s story is unfortunately a story of many women in India. We as a society need to do something about it. Stand up raise a voice, do something about. If you observe domestic abuse around you, don’t be afraid to interfere. You could save a life