Each time you laugh,

Someone in the world is crying.

Each time you wake up,

Somebody else is dying.

Each time you hug someone,

Another is up and fighting.

Every moment you say the truth,

Somebody else is lying.

Each time you make love,

Another is being raped.

And every time you make a plan,

For some it is really late.

Alcoholism in India

            In today’s India along with the other social problems the alcoholism is the most effective and influential problem. The existing problem of alcoholism depends to a great extent on certain social definitions held within a given society at a given time. This reflects through our agreement or disagreement over the appropriate use of alcohol. For medical purposes, use of alcohol on a moderate scale may be approved. But for non medical purposes, for pleasure or other personal reasons use of narcotic drinks is considered harmful not only for the individual but also for his family and the society at large.

          You cannot look at a stranger and say with confidence from his appearance that he is an alcoholic. It is easy to tell that a man is drunk but not that he is a habitual drinker. Yet continued excessive drinking does produce bodily change and these in turn result in illness both physical and mental.

            Alcoholism is not necessarily harmful either to the individuals or to the social system. But excessive drinking and alcoholism involve significant social costs in terms of loss of employment, family break-up and social disorder.

When it is used on a moderate scale, alcohol is said to have certain beneficial effect.

1. It makes life in a highly tensioned world more bearable.
2. It is a valuable social lubricant.
3. It unlocks the door to a more vivid inner life.
4. As a drug, it can relieve one of pain and produce a pleasant feeling.
5. It is also used in treatment of the sick.

 Why do men do drink?

Men drink to share their joy and happiness.

They drink during the celebration or parties.

They drink when they are depressed or sad.

They drink to avoid tension.

They drink to gain confidence.

They drink to keep themselves warm.

They drink because they are tired.

They drink just for fun sake.

They drink to be accepted by their friend.

They drink when they go through some crisis like break-up, family problem etc.

They drink to keep themselves healthy… drink as medicine.

They drink because they are addicted to it.

            The misery of a dreary and unending round of toil in life leads many to take drinks as the only blessed palliative medicine.

Occupational exhaustion, is another factor that makes the people working the extreme heat of the blast furnace, in the extremely noisy factory to look forward eagerly to the respite which intoxication affords them.

            Bad housing and lack of adequate recreational facilities also lead men to resort to drinking. Their houses being cold, dark, dismal and sordid do not provide for satisfaction of their emotions, in a sane and healthy manner.

            Ignorance and false notions also make men indulge in drinking.

Men doing heavy manual labour believe that alcohol gives them added strength and vigor with which they can pursue their work.

In India some are born drunkards whose neurological heritage is such that they are unable to face reality. In their desperate effort to escape the reality, they become of drunkenness.

In order to establish rapport with one’s fellow beings, an individual may take his first drink, just because every one else does it, and gradually repeated performance leads to ‘perversion of the hard instinct.’

Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse

            Alcohol plays an important role in the life of human person. It brings joy during the time of celebration, it helps two friends come together, it can also destroy the health of a person, and it can also create fight among family. Sometimes it is good for health because it is used as medicine. But taking too much of it may create a problem for the health. It also plays an important role during the times of wedding ceremony or some traditional ceremony.

            You cannot look at a stranger and say with confidence from his appearance that he is an alcoholic. It is easy to tell that a man is drunk but not that he is a habitual drinker. Yet continued excessive drinking does produce bodily change and these in turn result in illness both physical and mental.

            People who drink regularly in a group in a bar, with the same bunch of friends are a well-recognized variant. They compensate in this way for deficiencies in their social relationships. Every where else they feel inferior; only here, surrounded by trusted and uncritical companions, increasingly so as the evening proceeds, are they able to feel at ease, inspired by the each other, round after round; each drinker orders in his turn, not only for the satisfaction of his own drink but also for the pleasure he gets from treating the friends he holds in such regard. Here, at least, he is somebody’s peer.

            Some who drink in this way are basically isolate, friendless people. Passive, good-nurtured, they have never learned to form mature relationship and in the undemanding, casual camaraderie of the bar they are never taxed intellectually or emotionally; they are in their element

            Alcoholism and alcohol abuse are due to many interconnected factor, including genetics, how you were raised, your social environment, and your emotional health. Some racial groups, such as American Indians and Native Alaskans, are more at risk than others of developing alcohol addiction. People who have a family history of alcoholism or who associate closely with heavy drinkers are more likely to develop drinking problems. Finally, those who suffer from a mental health problem such as anxiety, depression, or bipolar are also particularly at risk, because alcohol may be used to self-medicate.

.           Not all alcohol abusers become full-blown alcoholics, but it is a big risk factor. Sometimes alcoholism develops suddenly in response to a stressful change, such as a breakup, retirement, or another loss. Other times, it gradually creeps up on you as your tolerance to alcohol increases. If you’re a binge drinker or you drink every day, the risks of developing alcoholism are greater.

            Denial is one of the biggest obstacles to getting help for alcohol abuse and alcoholism. The desire to drink is so strong that the mind finds many ways to rationalize drinking, even when the consequences are obvious. By keeping you from looking honestly at your behavior and its negative effects, denial also exacerbates alcohol-related problems with work, finances, and relationships.

            Alcoholism and alcohol abuse can affect all aspects of your life. Long-term alcohol use can cause serious health complications, affecting virtually every organ in your body, including your brain. Problem drinking can also damage your emotional stability, finances, career, and your ability to build and sustain satisfying relationship

           

            Alcoholism and alcohol abuse can also have and impact on your family, friend and the people you work with.

             Despite the potentially lethal damage that heavy drinking does to the body-including cancer, heart problems, and liver disease-the social consequences can be just as devastating. Alcoholics and alcohol abusers are much more likely to get divorced, have problems with domestic violence, struggle with unemployment, and live in poverty.

By Cl. Vinay Ganawa

Why do men drink?

Men drink to share their joy and happiness.

They drink during the celebration or parties.

They drink when they are depressed or sad.

They drink to avoid tension.

They drink to gain confidence.

They drink to keep themselves warm.

They drink because they are tired.

They drink just for fun sake.

They drink to be accepted by their friend.

They drink when they go through some crisis like break-up, family problem etc.

They drink to keep themselves healthy… drink as medicine.

They drink because they are addicted to it.

USE OF INTERNET

In today’s world most of us use internet. But how do we use it is important.

There are positive and negative impact of it.

Positive: internet is used for many good purposes like to get information , to communicate in a large scale, to get your work done fast and easily, to find some answers, and to keep in touch with each other. In this way internet is very useful.

Negative: people are also misusing the internet, they are using for their own selfish purposes like: using it to insult someone through means of communication, to watch porn movies, to hijack someone’s account, to get every thing ready made and becomes lazy, etc.

So in this way internet is helpful for us and also harmful for us.

It depends on us how do we use the internet.

Use of Cell Phone

 In today’s world the cell phone has become a common thing.

Most of the people have got the phone.

It is being used for the good purposes.

It has made the communication style very easy and comfortable.

The communication happens very fast.

It can communicate in any place and any time.

Therefore the use of cell phone is very helpful.

T.V.

T.V. is a kind of teacher.

It may teach us good things or evil things.

There are some good programme on T.V. like about family, value based, general knowledge et.

But some programme may give us wrong information like: evil, immorality, sexuality in negative way, killing, murder etc.

So in this way T.V. may teach us good as well as bad values.

It’s depends on each one of us what kind of programme we watch.

Sharing

Sharing is the most beautiful thing in the world.

When we share something with someone it increases our joy.

If we share our knowledge with other and others share with us all of us grow in our knowledge.

Our sharing brings happiness into people’s life.

Not only that but after that they also start sharing with others.

And that’s lead to make our world a beautiful place.

SALESIAN SPIRITUALITY

            Don Bosco considered this earthly life as a road to happiness: and along this road the highest possible degree of holiness leads to personal happiness. Man finds himself on his way with all his natural and supernatural resources. In following this road, man finds joy and peace as directions given by the Church. His world includes God, Christ, and the Immaculate Virgin Mary who is the Helper of Christian, the angels, the saints, the Pope and his brothers in the faith.

            In his spiritual journey, the Christian is guided and sustained by God. The word of the Lord which he finds in the Church shows him the goals which he has to seek, puts before him the essential truths he is to believe and gives him a moral code he is to practice. The Sacrament of Penance rises up those who fall and the Sacrament of the Eucharist pillars of the religious life, which is enriched equally by good “examples” and by pious practices which should, as far as possible, be very simple and available to all Christians.

            But this is not enough. The Christian life consists in practicing virtue, and its development is quite difficult. God is the author of life and all living things have to turn to him. There is no holiness except in carrying out his will-often a difficult thing. Prayer, simple and continuous, to which he is devoted, keeps him in contact with God.

            Characteristics of the Spiritual Thought of Don Bosco

            Every spiritual thought which claims kinship with Christ supposes a certain understanding of man, a method of asceticism and of prayer and some preference for one of the two types of Christian life which are represented traditionally by Martha and Mary.

            Don Bosco was an optimist. Let us recall one of his favorite expressions, transcribed on a bookmark for his breviary: “I have known that there was no better thing than to rejoice and to do well in this life”.

            His asceticism was demanding, although it has escaped the attention of more than one of his superficial observers. The motto “work and temperance,” which he gave to his followers, obligated the followers to a constant surveillance over themselves.

            His style of devotion which he favored was sacramental-I would not dare call it liturgical. He certainly recommended and promoted the pious devotions which were in use in his environment and no others, with the exception of the Exercise for a Happy Death, but he never allowed them to impede the sacramental life.

Exercise for a Happy Death.

            He gave great importance to this exercise. It taught him to direct all his life towards its final purpose.

At the time of Exercise for a Happy Death. We do everything that will have to do on the last days of our lives. Examination of conscience, Fervent Communion with the acts of devotion which are customary during the reception of Holy Viaticum. Reading the prayers for Extreme Unction. Finally we would imagine ourselves before the tribunal of God.

            He recommended with insistence the practice of going to confession and Communion.

Those who practice this devotion will attain salvation and will adjust their consciences.

Do the Exercise for Happy Death so that you might be a good soldier of Christ.

Religious Concepts.

            Don Bosco based his spirituality on the religious concepts available for in his time. We have to study them because the contemporary Christians may find difficulties in accepting them.

Don Bosco’s idea of God.

            In his infancy Don Bosco believed in a severe God. His mother ha d inculcated in him the universal presence of God and of his rigorous justice, tempered somewhat by his benevolent Providence. The seminary of Chieri strengthened these ideas. The God of Comollo was a judge. Don Joseph Cafasso gave him the idea of God as love. The God of the Liguorian School. God’s fatherliness and his goodness were keys of Don Cafasso. Don Bosco understood this idea and wrote on of his first booklet “devotion to the Mercy of God.”

Don Bosco’s trust in Divine Providence.

            According to Don Bosco the two attributes of justice and goodness were united in the Person of a provident God in whom he saw both father and judge. Through his providence God rewards the good and punishes the bad. Providence watches over us. Often it allows the same evil which men do or wish to do others to fall upon their own heads.

The role of Mother Mary in his life.

            Mary was around him everywhere. He discovered her name on the lips of his mother. She made him recite the Angelus and the Rosary. In his hamlet there was atmosphere of Marian devotion. Whenever he spoke about Madona he appeared to be overcome with tenderness. Before Communion and on Saturdays of each week he would fast in honor of Mary. For Don Bosco Mary was always a most holy mother, very loving and powerful he promoted her devotion.

            The unrivaled Beauty of the Immaculate Conception.

            The definition of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of Mary by Pius XI in 1854 encouraged him to consider her as the symbol of purity and of holiness. On December 8, 1854 Dominic Savio gave his heart to Mary and begged her to allow him to die rather than commit a venial sin against modesty.

            Don Bosco’s veneration of the Immaculate Conception rendered him and his imitators uncompromising with their won weaknesses and eager for heroic holiness. This demanding spirit is found in the last article of the regulations of the Sodality of the Immaculate Conception.

Mary, Mother and Helper.

            Mary is the Mother of God and therefore our mother. Even up to about 1862 Don Bosco did not speak about Mary Help of Christians. 

Negative impact of Cell Phone

Cell phone can be used negatively.

And today youngsters are using cell phone for the wrong purposes.

They are using it to take videos which not to be taken.

They are taking the images of their friends and without their permission uploading on the internet.

They tell lie on the phone to their parents.

In that way the cell phones are being misused.

Money

Money is the most important thing in today’s world.

Without money a person cannot do anything.

If you have money you can buy what you want.

If you don’t have money you can’t buy things even necessary for your daily living.

Money makes people made, crazy, impossibilities to possibilities, it might lead you to take away someone’s life, might lead you to do wrong act.

Rich person can have a lot of money but still he cannot sleep peacefully.

His mind is not at peace because its keep on thinking from where to get more money.

It never satisfies his needs.

He also becomes selfish.

A poor person might not have all the money in his hand.

But he is at peace, no worry of tomorrow, strong trust in God.

He is always ready to share what he has.

Even sometimes he does not think for himself.

This is what money means.

It’s up to us how do we use money.

Mary in my life

Mother Mary plays an important role in my life.

After my mother passed away I took Mary as my mother.

She knows me very well.

She knows the way I live my life.

Still she is there beside me to help me, guide me, love me, protect me, and always cares for me.

I love her very much.

I believe that she also loves me very much.

I have experienced her helping hand in my life.

Whenever I was in trouble, she was there to help me.

Many a times I went away from her.

But she never left me alone.

I love my Mary.

How money helps

Money can helps a person in many ways.

To help poor in need.

To build a house for those who do not have a house.

To help someone buy the medicine.

To help a poor boy/girl to pay the school fees.

To buy food to those who have not.

To help a beggar to buy some bread.

To get your ticket to travel fast.

To buy water to drink.

God’s Little Secret

Eve called out to God to come down to talk to her.

“What’s the problem, Eve?” “Well, I know you created me and provided this beautiful garden and all of these wonderful animals, but I’m just not happy”.

“Why is that, Eve?” came the reply from above.

“I am lonely,” said Eve.

“Well, Eve, in that case, I have a solution. I shall create a man for you” “What’s a man, God” asked Eve.

“This man will be an imperfect creature, with many bad traits. H e will, cheat, and be vainglorious; overall, he will generally give you a hard time. However… he’ll be bigger and faster, and can help you and protect you, and will like to hunt and kill things to eat. He will be foolish and he won’t be too smart, so he’ll also need your advice sometimes to think properly.”

“Sounds great.” Said Eve. She raised an eyebrow ironically. “How can I have him?”

“Well… you can have him on one condition.”

“What’s that God?”

“As I said, he’ll be proud, arrogant, and self-admiring … Therefore, you will have to let him believe that I made him first. Just remember, it is our little secret.

*****

God’s Coolie

At the feet of a medical missionary a grateful father and mother knelt, to worship her as a god, for she had restored their child to health.

Hastily the missionary cried out to them, “We are not gods! Worship the true God.”

“You must be a god,” they said; “no one but a god could have saved our beloved child from death.” 

“Suppose,” said the missionary, “that I wished to bestow a valuable gift upon you and sent it by the hand of one of my cookies; whom would you thank, the coolie or me?”

“We would thank you, of course; the coolie is your servant.”

“And so I am God’s coolie, by whose hand God has been pleased to send you this gift of healing, and it is to Him you must now give thanks.’

*****

God’s way of answering our prayer.

We always pray to God.

And we expect God to answer our prayer immediately.

If it delays we think that God is not listening to our prayers.

But

It is not that God always listens to our prayer.

But he answers it in his own time.

Before we could ask him for anything,

He already knows about it.

He only waits for us to ask.

And he answers it in his own time,

Because he knows the best time when to grant it.

Therefore never think that God does not answer our prayer,

He answers it but in his own time.   

GOD SAYS

“If you never felt pain

Then how would you know that

I’m a healer?”

“If you never felt sadness

How would you know that

I’m a comforter?”

“If you never made a mistake

How would you know that

I’m forgiving ?”

“If you never in trouble

How would you know

I will come to your

Rescues?”

“If you never had a problem

How would you know that

I can solve it?”

“If your life is perfect

Than what would you need

Me for?”

“If I never corrected you

How would you know that

I LOVE YOU”

Freedom

I believe in this word called freedom.

Freedom if something that all of us like to have it.

I believe in freedom because it helps me to take responsibilities for my own growth.

If I am free I will be able to grow well.

If someone keeps on telling me what I am suppose to do all the time.

Then given a chance where I am alone and have to deal with the situation by myself then I will not be able to do it and I might create a big mess for me.

Like if you not allow your child to go out and play with the friends and always keeps on telling this is wrong and that is wrong but child doesn’t know anything about it.

And one day he/she go out and faces the same problem then he/she will fail and may create a big mess of his/her life.

Therefore we need to be open minded and learn form our mistakes.

It is rightly said that “with freedom comes the responsibilities”.  

Forgiveness

How many times do I forgive?

Our God is loving and forgiving.

He always loves us and forgives us.

But what about me?

How many times do I forgive.

Do I forgive like God?

 Our God forgives us from his heart.

He never keep anything in his mind and heart.

Do I forgive my enemies from the heart.

Or still do I keep grudges against them?

Therefore if our God is loving and forgiving God then we too are call to love and forgive. 

Football

I like to play football.

I love the game of football because, I get many thing to learn form it.

Thing like: work as team, sportsmanship, generously pass, not to be selfish,

 Give other chance to score, coordination, combination, different player playing as one team, listening, encouraging, etc.

All these qualities we need in our daily life.

And all these I can learn from this game of football.

Therefore I like the game of football and I love to play football.