Expressions

Meditation - a mode of resting the brain

In the modern world people are very busy with their day-to-day chores.

Therefore they need even a small rest to their brains. Their minds are also not calm due to the pressure of work and stresses of life. So sometimes it can cause severe mental stress. According to Buddhism, meditation is a good way for man to give a rest to the brain and mind. In fact, meditation takes a special place in Buddhism.

A person who meditates has a good memory and his/her mind is basically very calm. If we meditate, we can develop our memory and learn well. We can also sleep well without having bad dreams by calming our minds through meditation.

By following meditation we can gain wisdom too. The Buddha also became enlightened through meditation.

It is also a way to prevent diseases. Today many doctors also accept that diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure can be avoided through meditation. Because when meditating, we let go of all the things that disturb our minds and relax.

Therefore the person who meditates has mental well-being. So, meditation is a good way to prevent mental stress and diseases and improve our health too.

As the mind is very light when meditating, it is a good way of resting the brain. Not only the brain, but also some other organs in the body such as the lungs are purified through meditation. Meditation therefore is the best path that we should follow to a healthy life.

Sameera Harshani Amarakoon, Grade 9F, Mayurapada Central College, Narammala.
 

A real experience

Recently I got an opportunity to go to an orphanage with my family members. There were thirty children in that children’s home.

I was sitting on my father’s lap while he was talking with the sister-in-charge. I noticed a little dark girl of my age looking at me eagerly with, glittering eyes. My mother asked me to mix with the children and be friendly with them. So, I talked with the girl who looked at me when I was sitting on my father’s lap. I listened to her lamenting story with a heavy heart.

“I have no parents nor any brothers and sisters. There is no one to keep me on the lap. No one gives me toffees or sweets. There is no one to stroke my head. The sister-in-charge loves us and feeds us as best as she can. But whom shall I call ‘amma’ or ‘thaththa’? You are very lucky, because you have a father, mother and a brother. The children here call me ‘blackie’.

I hate this. I cannot understand why I’m punished like this. No one loves me because I am dark,” she said.I related everything she said to my mother. She too was sad for her and told me they would take me to the children’s home every month to visit her and the others.

R. Tharuka Dilrangi Fernando, Grade - 6, Holy Family B.M.V., Wennappuwa.
 

All should strive for peace

The world in which we live today is in conflict and is divided. Man is separated from man because of race, colour, money, political ideologies, religion, communism, capitalism and so on. Even in our country people are in conflict with one another. We are divided because of language, religion and unequal distribution of wealth.

There are thousands of people in our country today who do not have even the basic human rights; food, clothing and shelter. The present ethnic war has brought about a lot of destruction in our country. Lots of lives have been lost and people have been displaced. Food items and everything else too are going up in price and life is difficult for the middle class and poor people.

There can be peace and happiness only when people learn to live in harmony and the wealth of the country is shared. The gap between the haves and have nots should be reduced. Happiness cannot be built upon the unhappiness of others. So, the rich should be able to help the poor and improve the quality of their lives.

In a multi-racial country like ours, where many ethnic groups live and practise many religions, we should learn to live together in unity. There should be peace, love and understanding. Barriers should vanish. There should be food, clothing and shelter for all. Hatred has been instilled in us by artificial divisions set up by society. Peace is not only one man’s work. All should strive for it relentlessly in good will.

Aravindi Shermila, Grade 9, Sailan International School, Negombo.
 

It’s healthy to be a vegetarian

Vegetarians or vegans as some call them, are people who do not eat any animal products like fish or meat. It is said by some that meat products are not very necessary for a healthy, well-balanced diet because we can replace the protein we get from meats in various other ways.

There are other forms of foods like cereals, nuts and beans especially soya beans, which are enriched in protein and cost much less than meat. Milk and hard cheese, which also contain a lot of protein, can fulfil the daily requirement of vitamins and minerals in our body.

There are many advantages in resorting to a vegetarian diet. Due to the consumption of more vegetables and also fruits, we could have healthy bowel movements and avoid constipation. The fact that less fat is deposited in our bodies will help us to protect ourselves from getting coronary heart diseases and other health complications.

In Sri Lanka it is not-so-easy to find much nutritious vege dishes in restaurants. But, they can be prepared easily at home. A vege dish could easily be prepared by yourself, especially if you have a home garden. It will cost you very little, but fulfil a day’s nutritional requirement. Home-grown vegetables are not only fresh, but also toxic-free.

Varuni Perera, Grade 11, Sailan International School, Negombo.
 

Honesty is the best policy

To be considered honest, people should be true in their words and deeds.

An honest person always says the truth and never thinks of cheating others. An honest person always keeps the promises he/she makes. We can see a lot of dishonest people in society today.

People who are dishonest are not worried even after doing some dishonest thing, such as telling lies, stealing, cheating or being unjust. However, when their dishonest acts are discovered and they get punished, then they become miserable.

At schools too such things happen. When a boy or a girl steals someone else’s belongings, he or she is very happy. But when a teacher discovers it and he/she is punished, the following day she or he feels miserable at school and is sorry about it.

Being dishonest may make a person happy for only a short period. But after that he or she is afraid of being caught and is worried all the time.

An honest person has nothing to fear. He/she never tells lies so he\she is always respected and loved by the people. Dishonesty always brings unhappiness and loneliness. Honesty is the best policy and we should always be honest and happy in our life time.

Praveenya de Silva, Grade 7, Good Shepherd Convent, Panadura.
 

The different cats

There are different types of big and small animals belonging to the cat family. Some of them are the lion, the tiger, the leopard, the puma, the cheetah, the jaguar and the domestic cat.

All the cats are carnivorous. But the domestic cat eats rice, bread and many other things because of its long association with human beings.

Man tamed the small wild cat thousands of years ago and reared it as a domestic pet. Then it got used to eating the food that man eats.

All the cats have strong and sharp claws on their paws. During fights they spring out these claws to attack the enemy.

All the cats can see clearly in the dark. All of them like warmth.

Manitha Samodya, Grade 3-A, C.S.I. College.
 

If others can do it, we can too!

If we have some work to do and we have the ability to do it, we must do it without delay. We should not keep wondering whether we can do it or not, whether it’s easy or difficult. We should rely on the positive factors and not on the negatives ones.

However, some people are lazy to do any work. They don’t do any work to match their capabilities. Even when they are given some tasks to do, they always think that someone else would do it for them. Some don’t want to do any work unless there’s some advantage for them. Others won’t do any work at all even if there’s an advantage for them. They wait for others to do most of the work and may be just chip in a little.

If there’s any task that others can do easily, we must also try to do it. We must try to do it without anyone else’s assistance. Sometimes we may be entrusted with tasks some others may find difficult to do.

Then, we must try our level best to do them. As students we should try to do all the good work that comes our way. Then only we would become more productive citizens in society. Always keep in mind the saying, “Where there’s a will, there is a way.”

V. Shishani Dileka de Mel, Grade 11, Botale K.V. Ambepussa.
 

My pen-friend in Japan

I have a pen-friend named Mami Fujita Kaldeen in Japan. She lives in the city of Tokyo. She lives in a big house. She says there is a river in front of her house and she likes to bathe in it.

Mami sends me a lot of letters and I reply them. She works in a bank. She has two children, a son and a daughter. She also has a brother and a sister.Her hobby is collecting stickers. Her favourite drink is orange juice. She likes to eat noodles. She eats it with chopsticks.Her favourite colour is white and the clothes she likes to wear most are jeans and t-shirts.

She likes gardening and she has planted roses, jasmines and some vegetables in her garden.I like my pen friend a lot and she too likes me.

Fathima Amra Barshad, Grade 5, Al-Sharia Muslim International School, Colombo 9.
 

My garden

I have a small garden in my home.
It is full of trees, flowers and vegetables.
My garden has many flowers.
Some of them are roses, jasmines and anthurium.
Birds, butterflies and bees visit my garden every day.
There is a pond and fence around my garden.
I like to keep my garden clean and beautiful.
I love my garden very much.

M. I. Amna, Grade-4B,Al-Hamra International School, Matale.