LOCKDOWN HAS ACTUALLY OPENED UP US – WHAT SAY?

From March 16 to April 3, 2020 Belgium is under lockdown. And now extended till 19th April which will be reviewed at the end of the period bringing the lockdown period to 5 weeks in total.  First reaction “Oh crap! Oh China what have you gifted to the world! My kids losing out on school and vacations.  Kids at home + Husband working from home = more hours in kitchen with additional cups of tea. Headaches, panic attacks concerning how things would shape up, constant fear for the family here and overseas are definite bonuses of this quarantine period and pandemic Coronavirus.  And it’s the same picture everywhere irrespective of the country we live in.

But gloom brings negativity, so thought of wearing those witty glasses on to just lighten up the mood and since everything thing under the sun has a flip side so does this quarantine period.  Why not assess them once 😁:

• No “alarm”ing mornings for a while. Getting up at 8 AM is also a bliss.
• You can be you, no need to doll up. Pyjamas and flip flops would do and the comfort they provide is the ultimate.
• Since restaurants, malls and other non essential shops are closed surely you would save a lot. Don’t believe me? Check your bank statements from the time of lockdown 😁.
• You can surely dedicate few hours revisiting the forgotten shelves of wardrobe. Our old favourites do motivate us to work out to fit in them again.
• Sitting at home do make us hungry perhaps a little more often but then the free work out sessions in absense of the domestic help will surely make a difference. Trust me it works😁.
• Marriage albums and CDs bring the nostalgia moments back and never underestimate their entertainment value, mind you! Why the fourth cousin to your twice removed uncle was sulking throughout the marriage, why the cameraman was obsessed with people dining in the marriage, the over excited friends of the bride and groom, the repeated plastic smiles on the dias when the guests come and say Congratulations but they actually meant “Abhi toh party shuru hui hai” (The party has just begun, just wait and watch) – to recall those moments and stare at your partner and going back to your chores is superb fun.

Oh I am witty at it’s best 😁😎. And here comes the flying pan and BANG!!!! Bringing me down to the earth😁😁.   Let’s talk some serious stuff. No I am not going to  repeat what our news portals  and WhatsApp universities are churning out day in and day out since the outbreak of this pandemic. I am not here to present the skewed graph of economic activity during this period or the economic impact of this inactivity.  Neither I am talking about the soaring numbers of people affected directly by the virus nor I am discussing how the governments of different countries coping up with this situation etc. That anyways need deeper introspection which I am not capable of.  This lockdown period has actually opended up different viewpoints to look and tackle a situation  at the hand:

• At the end of this period (hopefully soon) many of us would be a better person who understands the concept of Dignity Of Labour. Our domestic helps, drivers, security guards – they are working to feed their families with the utmost respect.  Poverty hasn’t made them take up wrong ways. This is what we should respect. They do work for wages but they do help us make our lives little more comfortable. Isn’t it? Treat them with respect, they aren’t our slaves.  And no words of praise are sufficient to hail the great work our frontline workers – doctors, nurses, sanitation workers, police and army. A big salute to them.
• We would be a better managers.  With services and supplies limited to essentials during this lockdown period the sense of responsible spending is something which I see getting imbedded and inculcated. Leftovers can be turned into a new recipe but not wasted. While people are facing cuts in salaries due to many reasons wise spending is definitely on cards. And as they any thing repeated for 21 days becomes a habit, some positives are in offering.
• For people who are during the normal days far away from the kitchen and just fire away orders will now come to know how much hard work it takes for ingredients to be turned into an sumptuous meals which they dismiss without blinking an eyelid.
• Bringing us back to the roots.  As we moved to the cities and got acquainted to the fast moving lifestyle we are accustomed to the words like “automatic”, “instant”, “readymade” and gradually alienated ourselves from our roots that required patience and preparation. This lockdown period has surely stopped us to give us sometime to ponder over many questions pertaining to our lifestyles. We are gobbling up and stopped eating; gulping down but stopped drinking; showing off and stopped celebrating. Have you ever thought why our previous generations (especially our grandparents and even earlier) were happy despite of meagre comforts at their disposal? Why we are raising up our kids with supplements to boost immunity which we never heard of as kids? Our education (read mere literacy) in the wake of being logical and questioning everything has actually made us mock everything we didn’t get a hold of. We mocked our culture, age old traditions (not all traditions are primitive and illogical), simple lifestyle of limiting the needs because scooping out more is our mantra. And this race has actually put us in the line of fire of mother nature who surely has her ways of setting the spoilt brats straight. Her warning to us this time : “Slow Down A Bit, Go Back To Your Roots”. This lockdown period is bringing out positives as now we have family meals together, cooking and eating healthy instead of buying in a jiffy, bonding between generations is building up, the importance of our traditional practices (one petty example : every house in southern India have turmeric laden doorsteps, started decades ago to check various infections from entering the house) is being realised. Surely it’s time to realise the difference between price and value!
• When we would step out of this confinement period clear skies and waters would greet us. Ozone layer is self healing. Our race to earn has hurt the heels of mother nature really bad. She is cooling her heels now, please wait inside.
• And yes this would actually open up new avenues of opportunities to those who can think differently. New business ideas are surely going to mark their arrival. Mark my words.

I can come up with numerous ways how this critical moment is working the right ways for us. The prism through which we look at an issue at hand matters.  Human race has witnessed many more crucial and defining moments in the past as well – world wars, famines, catastrophes, viral outbreaks like the current one. This isn’t new and isolated. And everytime human bounces back strongly , this shall pass too. For that we need to be selfishly responsible for ourselves and our family, in that way we are serving multiple number of people and the country. And when this time passes we need to strive to bring out the better version of ourselves – compassionate, empathetic, considerate, rejuvenated!

Amidst all this chaotic tense atmosphere the irony of human nature that has come forth is : when people were supposed to go to their works they strongly wished to stay back home and relax. Now when they are supposed and obligated to stay at home for a greater cause they want to loiter outside. Not to abide, not content define us pretty much. On contrary we must be thankful that we have a roof over our head, we are safe in our haven and with people who care for us.

A Request: Wait for sometime to quench your thirst for adventure. This is not the time for all you would buy is pain and suffering in wholesale. And for the rest this quarantine period is no less than a challenge.

Are You Ready To Take Up This Challenge Thrown At You?

LOCKED-DOWN: CAGED OR AN OPPORTUNITY IN DISGUISE?

So what is the first thing that comes to your mind, when you hear the word “Locked”? Loss of freedom, Imprisonment, a safety tool or a precautionary weapon? You see, it is all about perception.

The world is in chaos right now. Thousands have been shot across the globe, not with guns or roses but with an outbreak of the very famous “Coronavirus”. Spreading rapidly, it’s on its way and with no destination, it seems arrived. It has rooted its seed, leaving no traces behind. Precaution by staying home seems to be the only drug that can stop giving life to Corona.

Now, are we cribbing to be locked in our respective homes? Well, let me assume the answer depends on how well one is actually aware of the consequences of stepping out at times like these. How about utilizing this given opportunity to the optimum use by staying indoors. Some may be working from home, some may have found a new hobby or some maybe bored to death. Again, perception, you see!

So, while we are sitting at home and battling against corona, allow me to bring to you kind notice that the air is fresh, waters are clean and the roads are pollution-free. In short, Mother Nature is healing. Are we?

This Lockdown has proved, no amount of money can keep you safe from this virus. No piece of expensive clothing, shape of body, color, caste or religion can make this virus surpass you. 

I hope this lockdown is opening doors to various realizations and teaching us to spend our time on things or people, which didn’t matter then. 

• Spending Quality Time with your family. 

(Image Credit: Google Inc.)

So, when was the last time, you went on a vacation for more than a week with your family, to a destination called “Home”. Agreed, we were all surrounded with so much stress, negativity and work pressure, we thought happiness is only outdoors. This is the time wherein one can fill the communication gaps, clear the air of misunderstandings, have healthy conversations, get to know each other well and mutually work on bringing back the lost spark in relationships. 

• Being contented with what we have and that is enough.

(Image Credit: Google Inc.)

Now, let’s be honest, no Swiggy or Zomato can replace the warmth of love in food cooked in our very own kitchen, which is way healthier and good for our pocket too. How about, taking this as an opportunity to try few recipes for those who don’t know to cook or maybe even jolt them down for future. I hope we have come in terms with the fact that, this Lockdown is teaching us to appreciate and be satisfied with what we have by practicing Minimalism.

• Patience level put to test. 

(Image Credit: Google Inc.)

For introverts, this lockdown may be a boon, but for extroverts, it may not be so. Imagine, if it was not a lockdown due to a virus but an actual WAR? Would you still crib about not able to go out? Would you still crib about nothing to do at home? Then why crib now? At the end of the day, the moral of the story is to embrace the situation, learn to survive and acknowledge that we are privileged and not rant about it. Learn to be patient, in the process.

• Building Values.

(Image Credit: Google Inc.)

Teach our children resilience, the art of survival, life skills and gratitude. Respect each other, overcome greed and motivate sharing. Learn what humanity is all about. No profession is small. I hope we make sense of things and I hope we get to live them very soon. Let us look forward to continue carrying the lessons learned in the coming days and hope it won’t wither away with this lockdown.

What is Isolation for me?  “A destination, one should frequently travel to, to rejuvenate oneself.” I hope and I pray, we all are rejuvenating ourselves, knowingly or unknowingly. So, stop cribbing, slow down and live the moment.

We are soldiers battling for our Nation and our family. 

Stay Safe and Remain Healthy.

Take good care of yourself.

(Visit Ms. Archana Dipu’s personal blog at INKEDTREATS )

REEVALUATING WHILE LOCKED-DOWN

I have heard from my elders how they went into a situation like this, ‘Lockdown’ during the war against Pakistan and during the World Wars. But this time, it’s bit different. We don’t have to switch off the lights, stay hiding inside our rooms, stop looking outside popping our heads out through the window, wonder if the bombs fall on us and so on… But sometimes, we so underestimate the gravity and severity of a situation that we behave so funny and childish. When deaths are constantly rising every moment and  there are 100% chances of financial crash-down worldwide we are worrying about just a lockdown. 

It was so funny to see how people so quickly reacted when the announcement was made by our PM about a complete lockdown situation:

• “How boring it will be staying at home for so long?”
• “We can’t go out to meet our friends…”
• “We have to do all the household works as maids won’t be available…”
• “How will we spend our times all day?”
• “I have planned to watch Netflix all day long…”
• “It’s nothing more than imprisonment…”
• “What will we eat? Same food again and again?”

All these we could update on our Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram statuses, expressing our irritation and worries because we are still not hit by Covid19 directly. We are still on listening and reading the news mode. God forbid, once one of our family members gets infected, we will surely forget how to express or react. 

Am I out of these lot? No way… I am part of the same crowd who tends to get bored and irritated. Although my answer was different when someone asked me seeing me loitering outside my room, “Bored???”

I shook my head and said, “NO!! I am quite habituated with this lockdown situation from the very beginning of life.”

The person who asked me, understood what I meant and walked away acknowledging my response.

YET!!!

I was wondering – ‘What lockdown means to me?’

1. Retrieving what I have lost: Suddenly when I have a lot of time at my disposal, I was happily scrolling away the pages of Pinterest on my phone and I came across an image of a beautiful paper-art. I felt an urge rekindled to let my fingers create something similar to what I saw. I cursed myself for not foreseeing this situation and buy colours, brushes and marble papers for paper-arts and paintings. I remember, how much I used to paint and draw pictures when I was a student. I had lost everything with an excuse of being busy in life.

I have made up my mind, that I am going to retrieve everything that I have lost and this lockdown will help me to give a kick start till I live on this earth.

2. Recreating what I have left unfinished and undone: I am known as a motivator and a person who initiates. But sadly, I want to confess that I am not good at continuing things or finishing it. I started to write a book, I started to plan for studying a Biblical Counseling Course, paid for it as well… I started to plan for a music album… Urgh! I have kept everything pending, unfinished and undone.

I just pray, “God, give me that enthusiasm to recreate all that I have left unfinished and undone utilizing these period of lockdown”.

3. Reinstating what I have kept detached: Yesterday, my cousin sister requested me to give her time so that she can connect with four of our families to see, talk and pray with each other considering the situation we have been facing now. The time was fixed and we had little problem with network but finally we could gather to have a video chat with each other, laugh, smile and ultimately pray for all the people suffering around the globe. And in the night while on my bed, resting my head on the pillow I was thinking, “Why I am so detached with all? I am not a person like this… why I stay away from people for a year or so?”

Everyone knows how I build relationships. And that’s what I love to do – investing my time in people’s life. Even I was feeling so uncomfortable when I was passive about this favourite thing that I love to do… But I did start connecting with people again, building new relationships and restoring the older ones during this lockdown period.

Trust me, I am going to reinstate every friendship, relationship that I have kept myself detached from.

4. Rearranging what I have left messy: Indiscipline, distractions and waywardness bring down someone into utter chaos and mess. I allowed it somehow to be in a mess for last two or three years.

Reasons? I can’t explain.

I might justify my life being not as bad as others, not as much in the mess as others but my heart knows it should not be like this anyway.

Okay! So, I have a lot of time to repair, rearrange, reorganize my mess and bring it back on the track by re-surrendering myself in His divine care. Surrendering life to God doesn’t mean resting peacefully…but to rework all the more and strive for making my mess, mesmerizing.

5. Reprioritizing what I have ignored: God and the purpose He has in and through my life is my priority. I confess, I have kind of ignored it for last couple of years. I don’t want to give excuses by blaming my illness or life situations. I understand, I might be faltering yet God does and will pull me back every time I go astray but I am desperately seeking His strength to help me reprioritize and stay focus on Him and the purpose that He has for me while I am alive in this world.

This lockdown gives me enough time to pray and gain strength from Him to see the people and their needs through His eyes, His perspective. My heart moves with compassion when I look at those people suffering and dying without fulfilling life’s eternal purpose. My heart cries. This lockdown made me kneel down on my knees and pray for them and feel for them which I could not have done it if I would have been in a Covid19-less normal situation.    

Lockdown means, a lot of time for me to work on all the above 5 RE’s along with whatever emergency work that I could do from home or by going to the office as I live in the same campus where my office is located. You might think these points are not relatable to you, especially the last RE, but I know they are. You never know, how devastating the post Covid19 period will be than the present state of affairs due to Corona-virus.

So, let this ‘Lockdown Period’ be the most important period of your life apart from all the enjoyment and entertainment that you have planned, assuming you and I would survive and beat Covid19… Uhhmmm 😛  

Stay at home and keep pondering on 5 RE’s…

Stay Blessed!

BE TRUTHFUL WHEN YOU CLICK

ARE YOU A TARGET OF GOSSIP AND RUMOUR?

The synonyms of the word ‘Rumour’ are comment, news, fabrication, report, falsehood, scandal, gossip, story, hearsay, suggestion, hoax, tale, whisper, word, lie, innuendo.

There were 16 such words above that were quite relevant to the word ‘Rumour’, but out of those 16 words, 10 are extremely negative. All the previously published articles have explained about this topic in detail. But we all agree that rumour never does any good to the gossip mongers or the victim of the same.

I was wondering about the person who becomes the topic of discussion among many, about whom the rumour is being spread, who is blamed and accused indirectly instead of being talked or addressed in person or face to face. Just imagine how hurtful it is to be the topic of discussion for no reason. Just imagine how the person must be leading his or her life when he or she knows that there’re people talking behind him or her falsely.

A rumour about someone who is innocent can cause majorly four damages to that person:

1. It destroys his/her REPUTATION
2. It pushes him/her into NEEDLESS MENTAL STRESS
3. It makes him/her to SELF-ALIENATE from own people even
4. It stops his/her PROGRESS for SOMETIME or for LIFETIME

But I want to focus on the part where we can get out of this phase of being the target of rumours and gossips and live out our life as we, our family and our God intended for us.

I am very much aware of the rumours and gossips that have been spreading around in our community concerning my inability, my sickness and the assumptions they cook out of them.

Am I affected by it?

Yes, of course! I feel my reputation is spoiled, I avoid to face certain people in my life, even I avoid to talk to people over the phone, I suffer from regrets and mental stress… BUT I never allowed them to stop me going ahead…

Why and How?

‘How to handle rumours when we are the target?’ – I have FIVE solid steps that I follow and can help all of us dealing with rumours and gossips when we are the victims of it.

1. Step back: Stepping back from the situation and the negative emotions surrounding us, temporarily help us big time. When the fire flares in front of us, we step back reflexively before we plan to control it. It is the same way that we need to follow when we face the flares of rumours and gossips trying to burn our reputation. Acting on our negative emotions like revenge and anger can cause more problems to us, so it is wise for us to step back for some time, till our negative emotions towards the person or the whole situation dies down.

This stepping back has always helped me to reorganize my emotions and reacting impulsively has always put me into shame and disgust. Take my words… I have gone through it.

2. Forgive and forget: When we step back, we plan to deal with the situation. We struggle to be at peace at the memory, the hurts haunt us. We might feel that avenging the person who wronged us or seeing them punished would give us peace of mind. But that’s not the truth. A negative feeling won’t be eradicated with another negative act. Only forgiving and forgetting the person who had done wrong to us with the help from above divinely can actually calms our hearts and minds down.

Today, I was talking to someone who wants to see her perpetrators to be punished in front of her eyes so that she can have peace. But I lovingly made her understand that’s not how someone can attain peace. It is only forgiving the person who wronged us, can allow God to work within us and we can have peace that is beyond human understanding.

3. De-identifying from the situation: We have a habit of identifying ourselves or relate to the situation very quickly or quite impulsively. That pulls us behind always. A rumour is an act of a person who is flawed. Though we are not perfect, yet we need to remember that someone else’s remark or the remarks of people don’t certify our characters. So why to identify or recognize the situation as a reflection of us or our characters? De-identifying from the situation is absolutely fantastic to deal well with the rumours and gossips against us.

4. Refocus and Look at the bigger picture: I always try to apply this step in my life. My future doesn’t depend on what people think or say of me. I am solely responsible for my life, no one else. It is only God who can make me or break me. I know this truth yet at times I struggle because of what people talk behind me, close ones spread rumours about me. I falter yet, try to shift my focus ahead instead of looking here and there.

Looking at the bigger picture of our life is important instead of dwelling in the mess created by some gossip and rumour mongers.

5. Respond to the person who wronged us: This step is optional. This step can be taken when we have come out of the mess completely and have built ourselves to help others going through such difficulties. We can go up to the person who wronged us or spread rumours about us and explain how hurtful what he or she did to us. It is always good to let the person know how it feels. But this step can be avoided if we are not confident enough to face the man or woman caused us so much pain.

Are you a target of gossip and rumour, today? I want to encourage all of you to follow the above mentioned steps and what Rajnandini suggested in her article on this topic – “I would urge you to take your hurts and scars to God who would heal you and fill your heart with His peace.”

While closing this article, I want to address to the people who knowingly or unknowingly become the medium of a rumour or lie about someone who is innocent. I will just quote a verse from the Bible for them where it instructs to think and understand about a few attributes that are very essential for our as well as the welfare of others… And in that list ‘following what is true’ is mentioned first.

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

Friends! Let’s choose TRUTH over LIES. Let’s turn away our ears from rumours and strive to search and research the Truth about everything and everyone. Let’s not heed a rumour and participate in a gossip journey which can be hurtful to someone who’s innocent.

Stay watchful and careful of rumour and gossips…

Stay Blessed!

KICK AWAY THE RUMOURS

For years together it was believed that the earth was flat. Someone somewhere on the basis of some assumptions would have come to this conclusion which would then have been ‘proven’ on the basis of a few known facts and vehemently supported by well-meaning intellectuals of the time. With the spread of this information/ misinformation from ear to ear, people worldwide assumed the earth to be flat until a Portugese explorer Ferdinand Magellan circumnavigated the earth and proved otherwise, substantiating the claims of others with beliefs similar to his own. How many wrong notions would have been prevented only if people did not spread unverified information in those early days!

Just a month back, reports announced discovery of 3,500 tonnes of gold valued at 12 lakh crore in an eastern Uttar Pradesh district in India. What soon followed was elation by the district administration along with speculative preparations as to how the gold could be used. The raging rumours were put to rest in a matter of few days by the Geological Survey of India (GSI) which stated that the quantity of gold that had been discovered was 160 kilograms and not 3,500 as had been clearly exaggerated. That was the end of the rumour.

Rumour and gossip – are both same?

Though the two words are at times used interchangeably, there is a fine line between the two. Gossip is unrestricted conversation about people or events. What is being gossiped about may not necessarily be false or exaggerated. The purview of gossip is generally within a social circle or a limited sphere. Rumours, on the other hand involve circulation of unverified or doubtful information. They seem to be true but may not essentially be true. The scope of the spread of rumours is without bounds. Japanese American sociologist Tamotsu Shibutani describes rumours as “improvised news” which tends to spread when the demand for information exceeds supply. In other words, people need something or the other to talk about all the time.

Which types of people generally create and/ or spread rumours?

Though all people are instrumental in creating and spreading rumours (even if unintentionally), there are certain types of people who are more active in this area.

• People of talkative nature
• People of suspicious attitude
• Attention-seeking people
• Hedonistic people
• Sadistic people

Why and how are rumours spread?

What is very interesting to note is that some rumours are absolutely baseless. They might have been started by attention-seeking hedonistic people but thrive by the constant transmission by unsuspecting others who do not bother to double-check on the facts. To give an example, in the present days of the pandemic Covid-19 there is a picture of a teary-eyed man doing the rounds in social media circles with the caption stating – it wrenches the heart to see the Italian Head of state shedding tears on the present state of affairs. Well, the fact is that the picture is not of the Italian PM but that of the Brazilian President and has no connection whatsoever with the current world situation. How many thousands would have forwarded that post (and still continue to) can be reserved for speculation!

Though some rumours are momentarily entertaining, not all are harmless. Think of the bloody communal/ racist riots and hatred that spread because of one igniting rumour. Thousands of people end up losing their lives, amiable relationships become constrained, property is damaged and peace is lost. At times, generations continue to be victimized for one rumour which caused certain uproar years before.

Rumours cause way more damage than can be repaired. They can leave people emotionally scarred for life. Many relationships have broken because of rumours questioning the fidelity one of the partners by mere outsiders. Rumours, especially those that are personal in nature reduce self-esteem of individuals and cause a decline in overall performance efficiency. Grapevine communications in most organizations pass on opinions and suspicions that are way too damaging.

What do you and I need to do?

We live in times when rumours are plentiful, spread at galloping speed, are made viral for commercial gains and take violent turns too. How can we respond responsibly?

Speak less – This is the all-purpose antidote to the many ills caused by the jingle of our vocal cords. Hence, refrain from unwanted gossip. 

Use leisure time productively – Rather than catching up with similar minded gossip mongers or picking up the mobile and calling up people one after the other in free time to feast on juicy stories, its wise not to fall victim to such idle time indulgences.

Beware of the ‘forwarding addiction’ – Some of us can’t help but forward texts, posts, videos and any content that we feel ‘others ought to know’. But, it is imperative to remember that at times we do more disservice than service to others and ourselves by such of our actions.

Do your research – Whether you desire to share information or not, always verify information received from others before you choose to believe them. Verify information before you can call them ‘facts’.

Share only authentic information – Before you share information, make sure what you share is authentic and necessary/ beneficial for the other person/ others.

Break the chain of rumours – Just as you need to exercise caution not to create or believe in rumours, you need to take a stand against relishing, propagating and seeing rumours spread. Stay away from rumour mongers!

Apologize if you have in some way spread a rumour or created one – At times, we become a part of the chain of spread of rumours either because of ignorance or because of a failure to verify facts. In such times, it is pertinent to issue a word of apology as soon as the truth meets the eye.

If you have been victimised by a rumour

If you are a person who has been victimised by rumours either at an individual or societal level, take time to deal with it. No, I won’t suggest you to laugh it away – because not all rumours can be laughed away. Neither, would I suggest that you wait for an opportunity to avenge. But, I would urge you to take your hurts and scars to God who would heal you and fill your heart with His peace.

Final Words

Each of us is accountable before God for all that we say and do. There can be no blame-shifting before Him. So it would be wise to verify all that we believe in before propagating the same, lest it would result in some irreparable damage to self or others.

RUMOR – A LIE

19^th May 2012 evening, it was raining like cats and dogs with thunderstorm and lightning, more than two feet height water was flooding in almost all the parts of the city. Drainage systems were blocked, people and street dogs were searching to shelter under the flyovers, bus stops and at the vendor shops veranda. In the midst of this chaotic situation, the undeniable challenge before me was to board the train from Bhubaneswar railway station at 19:30 hrs for my monthly staff meeting. Somehow, a known Auto-rickshaw driver was convinced to drop me to the railway station. Half-wet trying to save my laptop bag in one hand and my travel bag in another hand, I managed the roller-coaster ride at the backseat but as I reached the railway station I get to know many trains were canceled and like mine one all the rest of the trains were rescheduled to depart after 3 hr since the railway tracks were underwater. Finally, my search operation for a seat in the crowded platform was successful. After an hour, my phone rang, it was one of my field staff who went to his village somewhere in Bihar and got locked due to flood. Frightened and in a mumbling tone he said, “Sir, there is news everywhere on the city billboards, television, F.M and local newspaper that ‘tomorrow the world is going to destroy’ what will happen to us tomorrow!” In a fraction of second, a bolt of huge lightning falls on the train electric wire above the platform and there was a rain of fire. After a minute of silence, I asked, did God told you that He will destroy the world tomorrow? He replied, ‘No Sir’. I said, Alright! Switch off your phone, have a good dinner and sleep. We will talk the day after tomorrow morning.

Spreading a rumor to a thousand ears is making it believable.

We have turned believers of the majority. We talk, a majority must be granted! I think, often we overlook a simple truth ‘in our world the majority are liars’. It’s profound, the spreading of a rumor is easy and is carried ear-to-ear at a good speed. Alongside, among the thousand voices and ears of rumor mongers, the voice of reasoning will appear a bit or more of less strength and before the brain pauses to reason another voice of rumor monger knocks to repeat what is heard. The Bible says,

For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work, but it will be exposed when the believer of the Truth will hold it back and will continue to do till he is taken out of the way. Then the lawlessness (liar or rumor monger), who had not believed the truth but had delighted in the wickedness will be revealed and condemned. 

Self-isolating from rumor-mongers is breaking the chain of spreading rumors.

Self-isolating from the majority is prior to exposing a rumor. Thinking unlike the rumor monger requires the attitude of reasoning. E.g.: Monger: “He is a corrupt professional.” Reasoner: Just a minute, is it real? What is your reference point? What made him soil his hands in corruption? I haven’t experienced him in any of my transactions with him! Can we take some time to analyze the reality and then counsel him to renew the attitude of his mind?” The God of the Bible says,

Call to me, I will give you wisdom and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.

The reasoning is the timely implementation of knowledge in reference to the Truth resulting in the exposure of rumors. 

Rumors cannot be exposed unless the knowledge to discern the lie in the appearance of truth is done within due time. Timely implementation of knowledge is wisdom and it paints the picture of a wise attitude. The wise attitude to anything that has been presented is reasoning. Reasoning always looks for the reference of the truth. Because it is the truth alone imputes justice. Justice is all that we expect at the end of every statement. In the Bible,

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” 

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