The Power of Positive Thinking and Reading - Sunbeam School Ballia

The students of Sunbeam School Ballia, beautifully reflected on their book-reading habit on a peaceful Sunday morning. For them, reading is not just an activity—it is a wonderful way to utilise their Sunday meaningfully. As they immersed themselves in stories, ideas, and imagination, their minds felt calmer, clearer, and more inspired. This thoughtful practice helped them begin their day with positivity, curiosity, and a sense of quiet joy, turning an ordinary Sunday into a refreshing and enriching experience.

 

Positive Attitude In Life - Sulochana Rana

Positive people can maintain a broader perspective and see the big picture, which helps them find solutions.  

We will get the following things if we have a positive attitude in our life:-

• Happiness
• Self-confidence
• Strong Immune System
• More focus

We can get a positive attitude by loving ourselves, giving time to ourselves, practising meditation, Listening to music and looking at the bright side after getting laid off.

Sulochana Rana

sr@learningforward.org.in

Spreading the joy of learning at My Good School.

Image source: https://possibilitiesunlimited.com/how-to-feel-more-positive-and-energized/

What success means to me - Tenzin Jambey

Reflecting on the Art Of Focus session on Sunday, the 5th of March 2023

The term success means achieving your dreams and your goal. To achieve success one must follow the path of happiness which means that we should do the things which makes us happy. One can only achieve success when you do work that makes you happy.

For me being successful at something means achieving happiness. I always try to do the things which make me feel happy and I enjoy doing what I have an interest in. Then we never get bored doing it therefore to gainthe success we must follow the path of happiness.

Tenzin Jambey

Pestalozzi India Children's Village 

Why do we need Determination in our lives? - Reflections 26th Feb 2023

Yes, Determination is essential in our lives because the word determination itself says the essence of increasing the same chances to be successful in what you want to achieve. It could be an aim of your life or a particular thing you want to achieve. For me, Determination means being motivated and only losing hope once unless you reach what you want and have faith in yourself.

Once you are determined and have faith in yourself, hundreds of obstacles may come your way and can't stop you from achieving your goal. So at last, I say that, according to my having, a determination is essential; otherwise, we can give up things quickly, but once you are determined, you will try your best to achieve that.

Mishu Gupta

When I think of determination I see it as the strong desire or will to do something or accomplish a thing which someone wishes to do. A dream or goal of a person is only fulfilled and hard work comes when one is determined towards one's goal or dream. Determination makes a person more interested and focus towards achieving his goal. Nothing would distract or obstruct a determined person from achieving his dream. 

All successful people have achieved success as determination has played a huge role in their lives. No one can stop a determined person and can never put them down. Even the motivational speakers have always mentioned that determination is very important to achieve something. Determination is something which comes from within and it never comes through forcing or punishing someone. No dream is fulfilled in life without determination , it is the most important part for achieving or doing something.

Shristi Khulal

By having a determination one can achieve anything in life but , one must also have a intrest on what you are doing. If we forcefully try to put our determination on the work in which we are not interested then it will ruin our life and if we put our determination on the work in which we are really interested then it will surely lead to sucess 

In life we need to have determination as without the willing of doing something one can never achieve success. Determination helps us to keep moving forward in life. Are determined to do something, then the way to success is automatically created. It is very important to have determination in life to reach success and to achieve anything in life.

Tenzin Jambey

All reflections are from

Pestalozzi Children's Village India

Poll commissioned at The Sunday School by Jugjiv Sir.

"I was foolish when..." - Reflections from The Sunday School 23rd Jan 2023

"Before sharing my experience, I would like to apologise to all the readers who might or can feel wrong about this statement. 

I am a big fan of k-pop and would explain to my family about each member from different Bands and entertainment. I used to feel very bad when someone I was close with fought with me about all this. My family would tell me that no matter how much I watched their videos, they would not know me. I didn't realise how badly it affected my studies until I did horribly in my exams. After I showed the result to my grandparents, they worried about me being inspired by the k-pop idols after I had sincerely thought about myself on the roof. I wondered why my family would tell me not to see the things I like unless and until that would make me enter the world of fantasy instead of where I belong. I also wondered, Why am I not like the old mini-me, the real me. The extroverted and funny part of me was all I missed. That was the last time I promised my family that I would listen to k-pop songs, but a little less, I mean a lot lesser than before & to score well in my academics the way I did back then.

PS: I would like to apologise if anyone in the readers felt terrible about it. After all, it is my life experience..."

Tenzing Dhekyong N

"There is a saying that no one, no one in this world, is perfect. Counting from rich to poor, young to old, and from man to man, no one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes but,
There are also some foolish mistakes which you make. I have made countless mistakes in my life from my childhood till now. But those were the mistakes which I made unintentionally. I made a foolish mistake; childhood was fun, and I  liked playing. I often used to go to play without informing my parents. My mother would tell me to inform her before going anywhere. Even after I knew I had to seek permission before going anywhere, I never did that. Once, I got a nice beating from mom for being like this. I don't know whether I should say it was my foolish mistake or my young mind." 

Tenzin Jambey

"Mostly, I didn't study every day. I used to look at the last moment when the examination is almost started. When I told myself to study, I always told myself that I had enough time to sleep and play, and I always felt lazy to study. It was my loss, I knew, but I always told myself I would start studying tomorrow, but I never did that. Tomorrow never came, so when the examination came, I could not complete my syllabus and even once got fewer Marks in history. After that, I finally realised that I was marking a fool of myself only. Now I do study whenever I got the free time. I feel energised to study". - Nirusha Limbu  

"I make a fool of myself by trusting someone who is not trustable, believes them and tells me all secrets and also shares my personal things without knowing it is right to trust them or not, and without thinking, if the person is trustable or I should share that person my secrets or not..." - Soniya Mishra. 

"Foolish means I think it is showing a lack of good sense. I think we can be fooled by anyone, so in my option, we shouldn't trust everyone very fast. We should take time to know that person, his or her habit, nature, and personality. Only then should we trust them. I think foolishness can be both negative and positive; for example, some people fool their friends or relatives as a joke or to see the reaction of the person being a fool. This is positive. But negatively, foolish is kind of brainless, senseless, rash, dumb etc., like, e.g., "She is foolish," shows like that person is insulting another person. 

I have also been fooled by my friends and brother so many times, but that day I still remember when I was fooled by my brother. During summer vacation, we all were together and having lunch. Then my brother started talking about me and making fun of me by saying that yesterday night when I was sleeping, I kicked off the blanket, and it fell. Then I woke up in a deep sleep; after that, I picked up the blanket and again fell back to sleep. He told me I did the same thing more than 5 times, and then my parents started laughing at me and making fun of me, and even I laughed at myself. I felt embarrassed. And I got angry, but after a few minutes, he said he was just making me foolish to see my reaction. But it was funny and also a kind of amusement. I was stupid to believe him".  - Smriti Rai.

"Hiding a mistake from someone older than us, even after knowing about it,  is bigger than it is. Once when I was about 5 to 6 years old, I went on a morning walk with my youngest brother, who was about 2 years old, and some friends. I was so busy with my friends that I forgot about my brother. When I went back home, my mother asked me about my brother. I was so scared that I lied to my mother and never took him out with me. That was my foolish mistake because anything would have happened to my brother, and I would be guilty and sad about my life." - Monika Singh Pundir. 

“The only thing we can do is better…no one is perfect. We all come with mistakes and have done foolish things, and it makes for a better story too. Be humbled by your past and learn to be better from there on”. - Januka Basnet. 

"It is rightly said that "No one in this world is perfect except for the Almighty." We all have made many mistakes and will continue to make many more. Mistakes not only allow us to improve but also help in making a version better of ourselves. We try to overcome them, learn from them and move on with our lives. Many of the mistakes we make in our daily life are neither intentional nor deliberate. It happens naturally or accidentally since we all are imperfect, and it is human nature to make mistakes. I have conducted plenty of mistakes, most of them rather too silly. Therefore, it is tough for me to think of a fault which was not at all foolish or brainless. 

In the end, I would like to quote a line from an unknown author who said, "Once you realise there is life after mistakes. You gain self-confidence that never goes away." With this, I come to the end of my piece of work. Hope you enjoyed it?" - Tenzin Norsang.

"Like everyone makes mistakes, I have also made many many which were foolish in my life. Those mistakes taught me many things, and I learned from them. Those mistakes also include my childhood memories.

I would like to share one of the incidents from my childhood. When I was 6 to 7 years old. My parents always told me not to touch the lighter that was kept in the kitchen. I was inquisitive about using it because whenever my parents used to light the fire, I found it fascinating. One day when my parents were busy with work, I took the lighter from the kitchen and tried to use it on the dry hay kept near our house. I was so happy that I could also light a fire with the lighter. I didn't realise that the fire grew big as it was dry hay. Somehow my father saw smoke and came running. He hurriedly put water from the tap which was nearby. He was furious. I got terrified. He scolded me, and I started crying. I never tried to disobey my parents from that day." - Shristi Khulal.

"For me, foolish means to believe whatever other people tell me. Back then, I was so silly that I always thought of them. Once upon a time, when I was young, my friends and I played in our school. We played a game named hide and seek, which we used to play every day. But once it was my turn to search for them, they all went towards a very dense forest, and I went to search for them there, but they were not there because they all were hiding in a big tree and I could not find them.

Once, they fooled me into thinking that there was a ghost who eats human beings. I was searching for them, but suddenly I remembered what they had told me; I started running from there and they made terrifying voices simultaneously. Later on, when I was unable to run, I started crying, and then they all came out and took me from there and later told me that they all made me a fool. There was no ghost at all. Later, I laughed while writing this." -  Manisha Rana.

Pestalozzi Children's Village India

What I fear the most... Tenzing Dhekyong N

Reading Chapter 32 - Human Quality: Preparedness

"What I fear the most is the scare of the darkness. So generally, many people are scared of the dark. I have been wondering about those creepy things repeatedly during my childhood, so that's why I had a fear inside me of ghosts. I still am scared of a ghost, but I try to overcome them by thinking of funny movements which have happened today". 

Tenzing Dhekyong N
Pestalozzi World Children's Village

What I Fear The Most... Gaurangi Rastogi

 

At The Sunday School, we read the book The Art Of Focus by Gauranga Das on the 1st of Jan, 2023. Reading Chapter 32 - Human Quality: Preparedness, we set out to discover the fears within. Gaurangi Rastogi shares her reflections in her maiden podcast. You must listen to her and prepare to overcome your fears. She studies at The Doon Girls' School Dehradun and works as an Intern at My Good School. We meet her often at The Sunday School - reading, writing and speaking. #JoyOfLearning

When I see a glass half full... - Rishona Chopra

When I see a glass half full, at first, I think the glass is half empty. Instead of looking at the positive side, I look at the negative side by saying that the glass is half empty. It's very catchy, isn't it? Always look at the negative side of every situation.  

Little things in life make a difference. When I see a glass half full, I always try to change my thoughts by thinking that the glass is half full, not half empty. Little exercises prepare you for big ones. Slowly by slowing when we learn to control our negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones, we attain mindfulness. Whenever you think of something negative, try to change it to the opposite. Slowly you will get used to it, and the positive side of every situation will be pretty straightforward. 

The most important part of this glass is that it is refillable, whether half full or empty.

Rishona Chopra 
Grade VI
Gyanshree School

Cause and Effect - Priya Gupta

My pencil puppet gives me #joyoflearning

Reading The Art Of Focus at The Sunday School. Chapter 27, Humility and finding God, the Creator. #God #Humility by Gauranga Das.

Cause and Effect: Rationalists will concur that there needs to be a cause for an effect.

Puppet: Another example is a puppet show. When we see puppets dance (the effect) beautifully in the story narrated, we deduce that there is a puppeteer (the cause) entertaining us from behind the curtain and running the show. It’s foolish for the audience to think that the puppets are dancing on their own. It’s equally foolish for the puppets to think that they are independent and that they are the source of entertainment. In fact, they are instruments of entertainment. Just like puppets, we are instruments of God, aided by a body with its five senses and the subtle elements (the mind, ego and intelligence).

Priya Gupta
Pestalozzi Childrens' Village
Dehradun, India

The Value Of Integrity - Anvesha Rana

Reading Chapter 18, The Art Of Focus
Honesty Wins
Human Quality: Integrity

Honesty is a value, but integrity is practice.

We can be honest without having integrity, but we can never have integrity without being completely honest. Being truthful to others is honesty and being truthful to yourself is integrity. A lot of people are honest, but hardly a handful possesses integrity. Honesty is visible to others, but integrity is the amount of transparency between the world and us. 

Trust is a vital factor for integrity. If we have confidence and belief in ourselves, we can only do what we deem right, but if we don't trust our instincts, we may end up being wrong. Faith in oneself should be the maximum, and it should be such that even if we are wrong for the entire world, we will still do what we think is right. 

The king gave seeds to everyone for planting, and the one who grew the best plant would be rewarded, but no one had the ingenuity to arrive with an empty pot. None of the people trusted themselves because the prospect of the award made them blind to any sign of failure. Still, only the young boy was truthful, confident, honest and humble enough to accept his defeat and admit that the plant hadn't grown even though he had tried his best. 

We all need to be like the boy. We need to be transparent enough in this world of opaque people, learn to absorb the rays of happiness and hope and let them penetrate through to others, and be solace to others in times of hardship. 

Anvesha Rana, 

Grade 10-B, 

Gyanshree School 

The Art Of Focus - Rishona Chopra

 

The Art Of Focus, is a skill to be in the present in the moment. It is quite important because our mind is a universe of thoughts, while doing something another thought pops up into our mind and we start pondering over it and forget about what we were doing. The ability to control our thoughts and be present from our mind is the Art Of Focus.In school, when the teacher is teaching, and we have a doubt, we stop listening to the teacher and start thinking about only our doubt and don't realize that our doubt was already explained! 

Apart from that, the book focuses on positive thinking...In today's chapter we read about how accepting death helps us overcome challenges in life. Of course it is difficult but it is a section of life and that is why we should always keep doing good deeds because what we do for ourselves dies with us but what we do for others continues and lives on forever. 

It is better to accept death happily because being sad won't change it.

Rishona Chopra

Grade VI

Gyanshree School

The Art Of Focus - Rishona Chopra

 
A book with stories that will take you miles,

It will bring you a smile,

With stories that display values and fun,

To them, I would say thanks a ton!
A piece of advice,
That will make you think twice,
Trust me, it is truly so nice!
With values like compassion,
I could never forget my passion,
Stories filled with love and care,
Stories to be shared.
Teaching us about the meaning of spirituality,
Bringing us to reality.
The Art Of Focus is worth a read,
These stories will fulfil your need.
Come here at the Sunday Session,
This book will calm your aggression!

Rishona Chopra
Grade VI
Gyanshree School