Emerging Hope

From Dhar Mann to Jay Shetty there’s no shortage of inspirational videos on social media. As millions watch these videos they get inspired with positivity to counter the negativity that surrounds them. Hope isn’t restricted to merely social media. From festivals to a subtle hint in movies we encounter diverse sources of hope in life. Hope is often associated with internal dilemmas but more often than not hope can extend beyond internal conflicts. 

Apart from being a third year student of ‘Bachelor of Science’ in Chemistry at ‘Dnyanprassarak Mandal's College and Research Centre’ in Mapusa, Ornella Menezes also has a part time business in which not only does she design beautiful crochets, but she teaches the same to others.  Though she initially began designing crochets when she was 12 years old, she only started selling it from 2018 after drawing inspiration from a pop-up bazaar in which she and her friends sold handmade items.

Ornella crafting her masterpieces

In 2019 she took her creativity up a notch by collaborating with Wendell Rodricks in which she designed various accessories for a show called ‘The Zentangle Collection’ in October 2019 which was held in Delhi. She proceeded to work with a designer from Saligao and is presently working with an international fashion designer from New Delhi called JJ Valaya.
 

A model of 'The Zentangle Collection" wearing a necklace designed by Ornella

 

Her designs are not restricted to tablecloths, but it includes earrings, necklaces, doilies, table runners and table covers as well. She customizes her orders too based on the orders she gets. She gets a few of her orders from WhatsApp groups and also from her Facebook page called ‘Ornella Creations’. As is the case with numerous businesses, she faces obstacles like encountering customers who don’t appreciate her artwork and end up saying it’s too expensive. She persists despite such negativity as she is aware that she doesn’t require the help of people who only end up demotivating her.

Masterpieces designed by Ornella  displayed by Wendell Rodricks in Panjim

She also finds the task of balancing her academic life with her part time business a difficult one as she gets plenty of orders and not enough time to complete them. As a result of these time constraints, she works on the designs in her free time in class. Just as Ornella took the time out from her hectic schedule, we can also take her example to be a light in the lives of others. Doing this will go a long way in helping individuals as the whole of Goa.

Ornella

The political scenario in Goa is an excellent example of the darkness as well as the light. Due to the former members of the ‘Congress Party’ in the ranks of the ‘BJP’, there are many who have given up hope on the Congress. The notion of the light as well as the darkness exists in the entire political scenario in not only Goa, but in other states and countries as well.

 

Its common knowledge that there is a shortage of workplaces in Goa, though the governments that have ruled Goa should have been alert to it, unfortunately their priorities were elsewhere. ‘Save Mollem’ and ‘Aarey movement’ are evidences that some parties think that our green cover is expendable. Is development turning us into monsters?

An inconvenient truth is we have the remote control to almost everything by looking after ourselves. When better jobs, educational facilities and healthcare facilities come to Goa the entry of outsiders is inevitable but by being narrow-minded and listen to the venom of ‘Revolutionary Goans’ are we really protecting Goa?

It is only due to the historic ‘Opinion Poll’ that we have a place to call home along with shameless politicians to destroy it. We can protect Goa at the grassroots level by promoting Konkani including both the scripts Romi and Devnagiri. One of the reasons parades are held on Red Fort probably is to remind India of its history. Similarly while we speak Konkani each of us are in charge of preserving Konkani.

That doesn’t mean English has to be treated as the enemy. We all have to work in unison to protect Goa. This blog probably wouldn’t have seen the light of day if I wasn’t a former student of St. Aloysius in Mangalore. Along with the memories I made there, I also got the inspiration of my blog through the project which I had to do.

If all of us become proactive, creative and have the attitude of seeing the light at the end of a long tunnel, Goa will never be doomed, let us stop giving our remote control to people who don’t know the meaning of altruism. It’s time for ‘being Goan, being smart’

A Societal Analysis

There’s a time of the year across states and countries which is notorious for raking up diverse issues among people. Elections bring several issues to the limelight, either deliberately or accidentally, this is done not only through the ruling government, but also various outfits including the opposition. 

 

From promises like ‘free electricity for 300 units to families’ to the selection of a government that works for the people, various issues enjoy the limelight as elections are around the corner. As time and again people fall victim to various mind games by politicians, how do we decide what’s best for a state? While firms have a designation called ‘Business Analyst’ why do we fail to decipher the issues that matter the most to us?

More often than not we tend to focus on the ‘what’ aspect of things that occur rather than placing an emphasis on ‘why’ does it occur. An excellent example of this is the emergence of the newly formed political outfit called ‘Revolutionary Goans’. I strive not to advocate for a particular political party as I too share a dream that many have. I believe we can attain this by analyzing several issues.  

Sunny Fernandes is a person whose life drastically changed when a series of unfortunate events culminated with damage to his retina, resulting in him being 75% visually challenged since 2014. ‘Snehadeep Trust for the Disabled’ is an NGO in Bangalore that taught him to use computers again with the help of JAWS (Job Access with Speech) and NVDA (Non Visual Desktop Access). NAB Rehabilitation Centre is another institution that is based in Mumbai that assisted him with his mobility like using the white cane and being independent.

Sunny Fernandes

Sunny utilizes diverse skills in daily life which he picked up when he was out of Goa, for example the white cane aids in his mobility. He uses the NVDA in computers while working at home as well as office. His cooking skills come into the picture everyday as he stays alone. According to Sunny there are differences in the infrastructure that cities outside Goa have. While Bangalore has special sirens installed at signal crossings for visually challenged people to cross the road, metro stations too have special tiles that guide visually challenged people to the doors. 

 

The local train stations at Mumbai also have similar tiles that assist visually challenged people find their way to the special compartments, along with beepers that guide them to special compartments on the train. Two of these compartments exist per train.   

 

Goa can go above and beyond to boost employment for the visually challenged in private establishments especially in scenarios like back office jobs in hotels. The government too can focus on having footpaths built in areas that enjoy a good crowd like marketplaces, government offices, bus stations. There can be accessible gardens and open spaces where the ‘Persons with Disabilities’ (PwDs) can go during their leisure time.

While the employment of the disabled in private sectors calls for an immediate resolution, there are many others too that deserve to be in the limelight. Often political outfits toy with the emotions of people and put ideas into their head. Revolutionary Goans is a simple example of this. People are so caught up with the issues of ‘Goans vs Outsiders’ that they fail to ponder the issues of increased paychecks in Goa to match cities like Bangalore. While the outsider issue is a sentimental one, if we go by the ideologies of hate we might as well block all means of travel in Goa.

 

While AAP’s intention of distributing cakes to defected MLA’s may have been a reminder of the embarrassment that turncoats have to endure for opting to sleep with the enemy, no political party is exempt to the rule of defection. Elected representatives probably do this as they view political parties as corporates, where it’s normal for people to switch jobs for higher packages. While the betrayal of turncoats can’t be justified, an efficient method to strive to embarrass turncoats would be to vote for their rivals.

While the upcoming months will unveil a lot of drama, we must differentiate between the crucial and trivial. A calculated approach is the need of the hour rather than an emotional one. Let’s show our anger by saying “Enough is Enough”!!! 

Persistence Despite Resistance

Diverse situations in life bring with it a shadow of gloom. In such scenarios we are called to display our persistence. Though the pandemic serves as a ripple effect of devastating news, it can also make us stronger if we let it. Our self-confidence and worth will get tested through numerous setbacks in life, but life hardly offers us the luxury of stopping. Though we may be in grief we must remember life will go on irrespective of our response to it.

 

Despite there being darkness in life, there will always be light at the end of the tunnel. We have the option of becoming that light. This aspect is often mandatory as we live in a world where politicians form the core of major decisions that have an impact on human life. While the impact of decisions that politicians make is inevitable, we must strive to be persistent. From jobs to sports persistence is the only path to success. 

 

Goa has the potential to be more than a mere tourist destination. With proactive people in several fields, we can convert it into a reality. Enhancing the lives of many since its inception “Novi Survat Goa” is a name that has been the source of comfort for many by supporting their patients in diverse areas like nutrition, education, travel, provisions of medications, disability aid and appliances, counseling and therapeutic services for patients from diverse age groups. 

Logo of "Novi Survat Goa"

An initiative by two visionaries which began in 2007 by Dr. Philomena D’Souza, a Pediatrician and Ashika Sawant, a specialist in Pediatric Physiotherapy, "Novi Survat" began as a therapeutic center for the physically challenged and their parents who couldn’t afford paid therapists gradually evolved into something more significant over the course of years. Despite having a small team the professionals at "Novi Survat Goa" they ensured the patients kept coming back, as breaking the sessions midway would undo the progress of the previous sessions.

The Founders of "Novi Survat Goa"

Enthusiastic Good Samaritans from abroad collaborated to take care of the smooth functioning of “Novi Survat Goa” in various areas like its establishment, therapeutic services and the maintenance of the establishment and ensured treatment could continue without the financial burden on the patients. A small but effective team enabled “Novi Survat Goa” to individually focus on 5 people with children per day, and an average of 20-25 children per month.

A Physiotherapy session

Gradually the focus of the professionals of “Novi Survat Goa” began to spread to other needs such as nutritional needs, medical needs, and the need for speech therapy among others. Several situations over the course of years helped the experts of “Novi Survat Goa” understand that more children could avail of such advanced facilities. Thus medical assistance was extended to children with conditions that threatened their productivity and made them entirely dependent on their parents.

Children’s Palliative care was initiated by "Novi Survat Goa" in June 2019 with the objective of aiding children born with conditions that gradually became chronically progressive, and life limiting conditions that threatened their productivity and life span. Referrals are sent from several healthcare organizations which include both the government as well as the private sector, along with recommendations by individuals. 

 

Since "Novi Survat Goa" has been established there are two main areas of work which are:-

a) Physiotherapy clinic to provide physiotherapy, speech and language therapy to children with multiple disabilities.

b) Home care for all children in need of palliative and supportive care like children with HIV/AIDS, Cancer, Birth Defects, inherited diseases, and others.

 

The ripple effects of the pandemic were felt by the professionals of "Novi Survat Goa" as the lockdown disrupted physiotherapy sessions, along with undoing the progress made by the previous sessions. This hasn’t affected the drive of professionals of “Novi Survat Goa” to help their patients. Despite the pandemic they strive to assist their patients. From conducting video sessions, to diverse forms of relief like financial support, provisions for rations and medications are providing during the lockdown to their patients.

 

The Good Samaritans of “Novi Survat Goa” can either be e-mailed on ‘novisurvatgoa@gmail.com’ while also being accessible on Instagram as ‘childrenspalliative_novisurvat’, along with an elegant website called novisurvatgoa.com.

Discriminations That Prevail

We render our support to various things over the course of years. While the support for a few things can put them in the limelight, a lack of support can often make a society oblivious to certain things that should be considered common sense. The passage of time always sends us an indication of whether we are right in extending our support to diverse issues, but are we receptive in a fast paced world? Often people excel in certain fields that they develop a fan following. Their fan base increases to an extent that these celebrities criticize international celebrities who go out of their way to highlight a major human rights issue, yet why do we extend our support to such people who trample over human rights? Though a section of society may be experienced in judging issues shown in the media, we have failed to decipher issues in our backyard.  

Breaking barriers is a trend set by some and Tukaram Shanu Gaonkar is an excellent example of that as he is a visually impaired talent who also doubles up as a cricketer. Emerging on a journey as a cricketer from 2017, his parents encouraged him to pursue it as they received a boost in their confidence when Tukaram won a Gold Medal among the visually impaired contestants of Goa in the Paralympics held at Bangalore in 2012. Being a member of the ‘Blind Cricket Association of Goa’, he travelled to other states like Punjab, Rajasthan among others with his team mates. His adventures across states led him to milestones like scoring his first half century in the famous Wankhede Stadium. 

The squad of 'Blind Cricket Association of Goa'

 

 

Though time and again history has proven that disabled people can excel in diverse fields while competing with others in a society, people are guilty of discriminating against these talented individuals. Jolene Dias is one such talent who never let Muscular Dystrophy deter her from pursuing her passion. Developing an interest in the world of music from the early age of five, she introduced upcoming talents to the world of music through ‘Blue Ocean Waves,’ an initiative she began since 2009 where she used to mentor students from her home in Goa. Though she loved singing and enjoyed her time as a musician, she never pictured herself as a music teacher, and hence was sceptical of this suggestion by her parents. Today she is passionate about imparting others with the knowledge of music that she has continued her passion in the U.K after the completion of all the musical grades required. She additionally has a belief that everybody can pick up music which is why she began teaching children with special needs since 2015.

Jolene Practicing

Despite being a student of an ICSCE school, the discrimination Jolene endured forced her to skip school. Her condition meant that Jolene had difficulty in getting up from low seats. Rather than being compassionate, her classmates just found another excuse to poke fun at her. She underwent an ordeal while climbing the stairs, as she could climb the stairs very slowly with the help of a railing. As sources of humiliation started piling up, she would avoid school from Tuesdays to Fridays to get away from the taunts of her classmates. Avoiding an encore of the humiliations meant that she had to think of diverse tactics like headaches and others to remain at home

A happy Jolene

 The worsening of her disability in 12th Std meant that she would limp, and have frequent falls whenever she used to encounter either uneven paths, or surfaces which were very smooth. To make matters even worse nobody from her school used to assist her, and it was only the labourers who used to help her. Her knees used to bleed frequently and she used to cry a lot because no one from the school used to be come to her aid. Though things improved slightly, her disability made it impossible for her to continue her studies from college, and had to continue the remainder of her course from home.  Whenever she used to advertise about her music school too in public places, people used to tear the posters down.  When she released her first single, the public used to discourage those who assisted her. Marriage was again another area where she faced massive discrimination.

Jolene outdoors

 These repeated taunts of society forced her to migrate to the UK. As UK is a disabled friendly country she gradually had the courage to replace the previous bitter memories with happy ones. Accessible structures and significant amounts of help from the government which she could never have dreamt of in Goa have aided in making her life in UK a memorable experience. After witnessing the concern which UK displays towards the disabled, she has renewed hopes of achieving her visions which includes converting Blue Ocean Waves into her music school, and finding a husband in the UK. Despite these discriminations finding its way in the 21st century, I am not surprised that society has devised new methods to sweep these under the rug, especially in ‘modern India’ where people gain international fame for finding unique ways to highlight issues, only to be jailed for their efforts. What’s even more humorous is that Indian lawmakers who are aware of article 19 devise methods that drive a wedge between people, and emerge from it unscathed.

Ironies That Matter

Numerous emotions combine to form the complex beings called humans who are responsible for inflicting others with positivity as well as negativity. Ironies are a complicated reaction which has existed in the earth for a single reason. From a mere thought which creates dilemmas in people to controversial deeds, people have been causing ironic thoughts in the 21st century. Politicians too cannot escape from the rule of irony which is evident in the digital era. Even as Twitter did the world a favor by banning Donald Trump, Indian politicians like Tejasvi Surya and Amit Malviya condemned the action by the social media platform by citing ‘threats to democracy’ and ‘curtailing freedom of speech’.

 

At times people don’t give a second thought about what they are going to say; while these blunders can be reversed for a normal person thoughts that evade logic by certain elected leaders should alarm us. One such example is UK’s regulator Office of Communication fined Arnab Goswami’s ‘Republic TV’ £20,000 for hate speech, while the arrest of Arnab Goswami was defended by Rajnath Singh as an attempt to save democracy in India’s recent past. 

 

Another example of an ironical situation in the recent past occurred as UP police had lodged an FIR against a journalist called Supriya Sharma for reporting on the Prime Minister’s adopted village in Varanasi. If we do an analysis of ironies in human life I guess the list would be endless, but citing the various ironies is crucial in society. For those who didn’t get a clue from reading the above examples, all will be revealed in the article. A massive source of strife as well as irony is the endless debates between private vs government jobs. 

 

Ehrlson de Sousa who currently works in various private hospitals as an ENT specialist previously worked in GMC as a senior resident ENT for three years followed by a stint in Ponda sub-district hospital for a year as a consultant ENT. Unavailability of further posts played the decisive role in his decision to opt for the private sector.  Though he was initially skeptical of the private sector due to diverse uncertainties, it has been one and a half years with the private sector. 

Ehrlson de Sousa

Though he agrees government hospitals ensure a steady flow of income irrespective of the number of patients seen, and the teaching experience offered is superior to private, he also acknowledges the stress due to a government job, for example the night shifts. He has gotten calls again to return to the government sector but prefers not to do so, as the private sector offers him a flexibility which he otherwise couldn’t afford.

Ehrlson de Sousa

The ability of friends to swim against the tide and pave the way for sources of income has been proven true by Mansi Kumbharjuvekar and Shreyash Duikar who shared a passion for traveling. The venture called ‘Folk Living’ was supported extensively by the parents of the courageous duo, being a Konkani teacher Mansi’s mother had extensive knowledge regarding the subject. She encourages her daughter’s endeavours by being a quick responder to new posts on Instagram and Facebook pages. Arising from a combination of sustainable tourism, experimental learning, and research ‘Folk Living’ was born on October 2019. ‘Folk Living’ strives to give its guests a raw rural experience by leading them to villages that are not found on Google Maps.

Tourists with the enthusiasts of 'Folk Living'

It also connects people and gives a platform to showcase the works of artisans in the process. While Shreyash has an MBA in Marketing, Mansi is a post graduate in Film Studies, and is currently pursuing masters in Anthropology. ‘Folk Living’ continues to empower itself with recruits like Sampan Sail who utilizes his MBA in rural tourism to enrich the experiences, along with Sampan Anushree Divkar also contributes to make events a memorable experience worth relishing. Samradni Kumbharjuvekar and a group of enthusiasts take care of ‘Folk Living’s’ shop, and assists in simplifying the connection to the villages. The masterminds of ‘Folk Living’ do not take large groups to these exclusive location as they believe in striking a balance between maintaining the serenity of villagers and giving memorable experiences to tourists.

Mansi & Shreyash

‘Folk Living’ specializes in experiences where tourists will be spending their days living the life of a villager. Along with an aesthetically rich website called ‘Folkliving.in’ they also have a series called ‘Folk Stories’ on YouTube. Running it efficiently is Apurva Sawant who has done her masters in education with a focus in history. Hence she has developed a passion for documenting the heritage of ‘Folk Living’. Such initiatives require tremendous support which is provided by Mansi’s mentors professor Prajal Sakhardande and Sharmila Rao.

Gaining insights into the life of a villager

I came across a meme a while ago which ran on the lines of ‘if all religions advocated peace why don’t they practice it?’ The answer to that is very simple; it’s mankind that has used religion to create strife. In the 21st century it exists too, in the form of laws that dictate what should be consumed, and who to marry. The examples depicted above are just few of the ironies that dictate societies. Let’s all use our ‘brains’ to figure out which ironies should matter to us. While progressive candidates emerge victorious in one section of the globe, ordinary farmers and their supporters are perceived as terrorists in the other.   

Beginning Anew

Unforeseen contingencies dictate the lives of people globally, and 2020 has been anything but predictable. From a virus wreaking havoc throughout the world to the Indian government continuing its insensitivity in the times of the pandemic, we have been living in times of constant uncertainty. 2020 was not all bad, as the U.S presidential elections offered good news for the whole world. Even amidst the diverse issues which lead to widespread protests, several factors continue to offer a ray of hope. Though a few of the recent protests took the name of Save Mollem campaign, and the farmer protests, India is no stranger to destruction arising from selfish interests.

The project that resulted in Aarey protests was another recent example of selfishness rearing its ugly head. While news channels like NDTV continue to be excellent sources of information, in modern times technological innovations too have emerged as alternative sources of news. Though the issues itself are disheartening, the sheer amount of people that continue to be involved in these protests are the light at end of a dark tunnel.  As diverse sections of Goans unleash their creativity in the ongoing protests to save Mollem, these are a glimpse of what we can achieve when we stand united. Eventually this movement garnered support from several parts of the world, as well as India.

 This blog was created about a year ago out of love for Goa, but people have been continuously exploring methods to portray their selflessness. ‘Cecille Lee Rodrigues’ has come up with several initiatives including a Youtube channel under her name to highlight her efforts to clean up Goa. Despite having a son of 10 years named ‘Jake’, she isn’t afraid to travel the extra mile for Goa. In addition to raising issues, her videos did an excellent job of informing Goans about two budding female footballers of Goa who made it into the national squad.  Making a mark in the community by the ‘Rostogoa’ campaign which involves road safety initiatives like painting the speed breakers, she got inspired by an unfortunate accident due to which she has a metal plate in her back.

Rostogoa volunteers

She later began a Google search about previous accidents arising from unpainted speed breakers in Goa. The campaign kicked off with a song after multiple complaints were ignored. During the pandemic too she and a group of brave volunteers have carefully chalked out a plan where a few would be involved in painting the speed breakers, while others would be involved with the distribution of groceries to the needy. She and her team of volunteers have submitted accurate pictures of the locations of roads with the help of Google Earth that need to be fixed. Technological innovations can be used by people to either destroy or make lives. ‘Pinit’ is an application that enables greater participation levels for improving road safety conditions in Goa. Using Pinit, Cecille and the volunteers of the ‘Rostogoa’ campaign marked the bad roads, and linked it with the data of Google Earth, making the task of the Panchayat easier to get the accurate location of the potholes.

 

A glimpse of the 'Pinit' application

As much as protests are required to generate awareness, we also can get creative about it, and Cecille brilliantly portrayed it. Along with spending some quality time with her son, it was also a learning process for the future generation. While Jake and his friends enjoyed the beautiful sceneries of the flora and fauna in Mollem, they also had a personal experience of what Mollem meant for Goa. 

Jake and Cecille at Mollem

While convential thinking restricted change to merely political parties and activists, modern society can go beyond it, as is portrayed by Myra D’Costa. Encouraged by her supportive parents, she currently thrives as an Emcee for several events and weddings. Apart from a satisfying career she also garners sufficient time to upload videos which has diverse values, on her Youtube channel ‘Emcee Myra D’Costa’.

Emcee Myra D'Costa

 
The world which we live in is certainly not ideal and at times we may feel a sense of despair creeping in but people like these have been the cause for inspirations. When an issue starts gaining momentum owing to a united display, it has the power to make governments afraid. History has taught us that constantly. The ongoing farmer’s protests are reminiscent of this, as not only prominent Indian personalities but several representatives of various countries including Canada’s PM Justin Trudeau expressed their solidarity with the farmers.  It’s highly possible the momentum behind these protests have fueled the ongoing talks between the centre and the farmers.

Such unity is mandatory in modern times especially as the government is redefining the constitution by imposing the dietary habits of a few on the public, in a scenario where multiple religions exist in India.   If this sounds strange to my readers I encourage people to Google the atrocities carried out on Dalits in Madhya Pradesh. Though I don’t trust AAP because of shady tactics like ridiculing Rahul Gandhi on his New Year greeting, I strongly believe in their candidate Cecille because of her devotion towards Goa. We need such people who are capable of going beyond party lines. May we go beyond protesting, and fully comprehend the importance of our votes in the new year, as we have the potential of restoring democracy.