When is the last time that you called upon a clown for assistance? For many children a clown represents fun, happiness, and laughter. This is probably due to the fact that some people hire clowns for children’s birthdays and and parties. But in difficult environments such as a hospital, clowns are crucial in the comfort, well-being and in some cases clowns help decrease the recovery time for ill children. The family of the children also benefit from the presence of a clown in the hospital this is due to many reasons. For example the families feel better if they see their children laughing and in some cases the people who need cheering up are the other family members.
The documentary below is about Angus, a clown who works in the children’s oncology department at a teaching hospital in Denmark. And his relationship with Tobias, a cancer patient at the hospital. The documentary covers their relationship over a period of one year and a half. In the documentary it states that Tobias has a deadly type of cancer, people with this cancer have a 30% survival rate. This documentary forces me to cherish life more and more. The complete documentary is found on Al Jazeera English under the program called Witness, link to documentary found here.
Meet Tobias and Angus
Our blessings go out to anyone who is suffering in every way, shape or form.
Peace
“Love is the most powerful force in the universe.”-Mumia
Today is Mumia Abu-Jamal’s birthday he is turning 59 years old; Happy Birthday Mumia. Mumia is a political prisoner since 1982, he was sentenced to death row for the killing of Philadelphia police department officer named Daniel Faulkner; Mumia denies the accusation.”I never confessed to anything because I had nothing to confess to. I never said I shot the policeman. I did not shoot the policeman. I never said I hoped he died. I would never say something like that,” quote from Mumia. Mumia since his incarceration has had popular support from all over the world. A big turning point in Mumia’s life came forth, as recently as January 27, 2012, the day Mumia was allowed to join the general population after 29 years in death row. Mumia Abu-Jamal has written a number of books, has worked as a journalist, reporter and most of all he is a freedom fighter. More on Mumia’s life can be found here and here. Below is a video from Democracy Now, it features Mumia.
The next video is about a new documentary about Mumia called, “Long Distance Revolutionary.”
“We have made the unthinkable normal in this world, and the normal unthinkable.”-John Pilger.
“Mumia, how are you dealing with all of this darkness and despair and despondency and so forth? He said, ‘Let me write about it. I’ll tell the truth about it.’ It is a living hell, it’s a NIGHTMMAAARRRRRE.”-Cornel West
Love the way Dr. West talks.
“They have moved Heaven and Earth to stop his voice from being heard here in the United States.”-Tariq Ali
Peace
“Love is the most powerful force in the universe.”-Mumia
We did not experience a major world changing event on December 21, 2012. March 11, 2013 was Japan’s second year anniversary for the 9.0 magnitude earthquake that devastated the country. More and More often nature is reminding us that we should be prepared for anything. The most recent was the meteorite that exploded above Russia. Recorded footage(found below) shows what looks like a huge fire ball flying over Russia. Fortunately the meteorite exploded above Russia, which reduced the damage that resulted.
Of course there is little that you can do if a meteorite came down on your home, but there are simple steps that you can take to prepare you for something that you are more inclined face. For example as you can see from the video there was energy that was released, which resulted in shattering of windows and what seemed like explosion related events. What might have been helpful for people caught in this situation would be to know where the nearest exist is, where the medical kit is, fire extinguisher, and what local radio station will have useful information about what happened.
Since this is the first post on survival, it will be sort of broad and relatively simple. This post will go over some rules that are crucial for any survival situation and it will go over some general materials that one should have on hand.
Rule 1: Have a Plan and Practice it
This is one that can be stressed enough. You have to have a plan and practice it, without practice the plan is almost useless. The reason for the practice is because in a disaster situation our body freezes up and we hesitate but if you practice your brain which is the control box for body, receives feedback from each practice which then results in the syncing of the bodies reactions. The practice allows the body to learn what it might have to do in a given situation. If you live with your family, having a plan becomes even more necessary. Teaching family members what do do in various disaster situations makes an enormous amount of difference in survival rate; especially if you can teach your children. So have designated
The question you might be asking is what should I be practicing? Well, that depends on where in the world you live. This might take a little research for some people, the rest should know what are the top local natural disaster threats. For example if you live in a flood zone or in a part of the world that experience drought then you should be already doing things to prepare for difficult times. But there is always more that can be learned, one of the possible outcomes of a earthquake are fires, so being knowledgeable what type of fires start, since there are different types of fires, why the start and how to stop it if possible.
Rule 2: Stay Calm
This rule relates to the brain just like practice does. This is because we need to keep our stress level to a certain limit in order for us to perform at our ultimate level. One of the worst things that you can do in a disaster situation is to panic and freeze. According to John Galvin, “In a disaster roughly 10 percent of people panic, 80 percent essentially do nothing. The remaining jump into action.” This has been proven over and over again, there are various suspected reason to why people freeze such as social dynamics. This is why when you go through CPR training they teach you to designate someone to call 9-11 because when someone collapses people freeze or expect someone else to do it.
Rule 3: Plan for the Worst
Will you be stranded for 5 days or 4 weeks? It is ingenious to be prepared as much as possible. Being aware of your surroundings and figuring out what will or not will be available to you. In disaster situations it is obvious that things like power and clean water will be in short supply or non-existent. So if you can get you hands on a generator,a fuel less lighter, or fishing equipment, stock up on anything you can.
Rule 4: Come Together
This is one that is important now but undoubtedly important in the aftermath of a disaster. Some people will naturally come together to provide their community and neighborhood. But in a disaster situation it is instinctive to try to get the upper hand over the people around you, especially when resources are scarce. But it is proven that teaming up with other organizers or volunteers is the best thing that you can do during the aftermath.
So now we will highlight a couple of basic but essential things that everyone should have available if needed. These are things that can be used in many different situations. The list is below:
Water
Food(canned, dried, fermented, anything that does not spoil quickly)
Batteries
Medication
Map
Flashlight
Whistle
Books
Compass
First aid kit
Hand Lighters
Fire Extinguisher
Toiletries
Extra pair of sturdy shoes, clean clothes and a blanket
A pocket knife
A durable bag
Things such as the fire extinguisher, whistle, first aid kit, and compass you probably have to go out and buy. This is a good list because the items there are versatile.
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