Happiness - Rananjay Rajput

Once upon a time, there was a tomb raider,
Who still was a seventh-grader!

She was a martial arts champ and a pro
trader.

She had skills, by performing, she gave
people thrills.

In the city was spread a piece of news,
That there is a treasure on top of Mount Zeus!

She heard the news and wanted to “RAID!”
As people said,
The mountain Zeus made.

She quickly asked her mom and dad,
By wondering the consequences they were sad.

She said to them, “don’t worry,”
And left her house in a hurry.

She reached the mountain,
Through a beautiful fountain.

But understood it wasn’t going to be fun.
She passed through some thorns.
Heard some battle horns.

She dodged some arrows.
And fought some Pharaohs.

Finally, she saw the treasure.
Her heart filled with pleasure.

She opened the crate.
Her heart was in discontent.
There were just some papers and a silver coin.

She then reached her house in a shock,
She went to her room and put on the lock.

She thought that her adventure was a complete mess.
The next day she was interviewed by the town press.

She was happy, not more, not less.
In her achievement, she found happiness!

Name: Rananjay Rajput

Grade: 5A

Billabong High International School, Thane

Forgiveness - Simar Kaur

My reflection post-reading chapter 18 of the book. I deem forgiveness as an opportunity to look at the situation positively. When someone does something to hurt us, we start hating that person. It often results in adverse changes in our mood and a thirst to take revenge. We don’t get satisfied until and unless we retaliate. Once we maintain this as a habit, people notice behavioural changes, and that is how we enter into a vicious cycle that traps us for life.

My middle school experience is something that I describe as terrible. The reason for that is the bullying I faced as we entered into a wider world. Till fifth grade, our innocent selves don’t let materialistic items affect our judgement. But in sixth grade, as we enter into the world of unavoidable changes, we can’t help judging a person by the way they look, how someone performs in their studies and much more. I was a victim of that and possibly an attacker. I kept that with me for a long time, resulting in my grades and academic life deteriorating.

Eighth grade was a breath of fresh air. Covid pandemic hit, and we were all trapped into lockdown. 

Eighth grade was like an opportunity to escape my struggling social life. I had a chance to get away from all my friends and classmates and be the ones I loved. And that made all the difference. I felt refreshed, and I was a lot more cheerful and happy. But I realised that my happiness was not a by-product of avoiding people. I became happy when I decided to forgive everyone who hurt me in the past in one way or another. I forgot all about my past misery and people who had actively been a part of it. It made me feel a lot better. 

After two years of break from social life, I enjoy school. I may not have a lot of friends, but I have what I need. Going back to school wouldn’t have felt this good if we wouldn’t have been trapped in lockdown, and I wouldn’t have been as forgiving as I am now. But now I know that forgiveness is extraordinary, and I am trying my best to apologise and forgive anyone I hurt or anyone who hurt me.

Simar Kaur Grade X Gyanshree School

Forgiveness - Ananya Bhatia

My reflection on Forgiveness after reading the chapter in Doctor Anupam Sibal's book called Is Your Child Ready to Face the World?

Forgiveness is the key to Happiness.

Happiness and Forgiveness are both connected to each other. If we forgive, we will also feel a sense of Happiness. Bhagavad Gita says that if you want to be brave, look to those who can forgive. It means that a weak person can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of a solid and courageous person. I conclude by saying that we forgive others for being happy ourselves.

My Name is Ananya Bhatia. I study in Ahlcon Public school in class 9th. I like Reading books.

Meeting Sandeep Sir - Rishona Chopra

Today Sandeep, Sir of Learning Forward India Foundation, visited our school,  Gyanshree Noida. It was indeed a pleasure to have him here; it was the first time I saw him in person and met one of my friends too! 

It was great to be in school and meet him. He is one of the best mentors I have had till now. I also met a few other teachers and students. We, along with a few teachers and students, discussed a small marketing plan and how we could motivate people to write in languages other than English to feel comfortable with the language they like.

We plan to read the chapter "The Annual Day At School" from the book My Good School, Where Passion Meets Education by Sandeep Dutt on the 20th of March.

I hope to meet him once again and be back in school physically!

Rishona Chopra
Grade V
Gyanshree School

Forgiveness - Anvesha Rana

' There is no love without forgiveness, and there is no forgiveness without love. '

All of us have had experiences where we were angry at someone. A small mistake, a menial conflict or an accusation can raise our fury in seconds and without thinking of the consequences, we let anger take control of our actions. We are aware that when we yell, scold or blame, we create a vicious cycle, yet we allow our wrath to flow out on the other person. Why should the person who has no connection to our misery be blamed for it, and then how are we supposed to expect him to say it's ok? A simple sorry does not change anything; sorry is not just a word; it is a lesson and a promise that we make to never repeat the same action again. These days sorry is treated nothing more than five letters, and it is almost obvious, as per the new social norms, that the person we are apologizing to has to say it's ok, whether they like it or not. 

Forgiveness is not just a virtue; it is also a sacrifice that the world immensely needs right now. I believe forgiveness is the best form of love because it requires a strong person to say sorry and an even stronger person to forgive. We should forgive others, not for their sake but for our own peace, since as long as we don't accept the apology, we continue to boil our pessimistic emotions to the point that they start overflowing. We suffer due to the deeds of others. Consequently, we should free ourselves of this and instead forgive the person with our whole hearts. When we hold grudges against people, those grudges consume our good deeds, and they probably affect us much more than they affect the person we are holding them against. Grudges seldom hurt anyone except the person bearing them. 

If we don't bend, we break. Forgiveness does not make the person smaller, but it makes him bigger. Revenge is not the only solution; through the means of revenge, we are retaliating to the person who affected us through his own ways. By seeking revenge, we continue the cycle of evil deeds in the world. Instead, if we forgive everyone for whatever they did, we convey the message that goodness is still alive, and we also instil a sense of morality in the person we had to forgive. 

Anvesha Rana, 

Grade 10-B, 

Gyanshree School. 

Happiness - Anish Gaitonde

I wanted to share my experience of coding, which gave me happiness.

After coding on other projects for a long time, I came across Code Better (Master)'. It looked interesting, so I clicked on it and started coding. After coding for a month or so, I finished my project. Its features were: 5 block categories, sprite information, different button to start and stop, etc. I was thrilled to make a coding app that was scratch in another coding platform.

Name: Anish Gaitonde
Grade: 5E
Billabong High International School, Thane

Happiness - Piyush Nishad

I wanted to share my achievement story, which gave me happiness.

I was 8 years old and had to go to a competition. I wanted to give the best in the race. Surprisingly, I came third and got a medal which made me extremely happy, and I will never forget it.

Name: Piyush Nishad
Grade: 5E
Billabong High International School, Thane

Forgiveness - Rishona Chopra

 

The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attitude of the strong.
- Mahatma Gandhi

Forgiveness is to let go of resentment and thoughts of revenge. When we forgive, we are happy. While forgiving, we get this sense of happiness because we are free from all negative emotions.

This quote by Lewis B. Smedes says that To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you. This means that when we have a conflict with someone, they are also bound with negative feelings, and so are we. We both are sad and want to solve the fight, but our ego does not allow us to do that. So if we once set the prisoner as in the person we fought with, not only will he be free from the negative feelings, but so will we.

Sometimes we too are hard on ourselves on the most minor mistakes, so we should forgive ourselves.

We should forgive when it is correct. If someone does something terrible, then we should not forgive and forget. Realizing the situation, we should act accordingly.

Rishona Chopra Grade V Gyanshree School

Happiness - Avni Karmarkar

There was a boy whose family was very wealthy. One day his father took him on a trip to the country, where he aimed to show his son how poor people live. So, they arrived at a farm of an impoverished family, which his father considered poor. There they spent several days.

"Did you notice how poor people live?" Yeah, I did- said the boy.

The father asked his son to tell his impressions of their trip in more detail. 

Well, we have only one dog, and they have four of them. In our garden, there is a pool, while the poor have a river that has no end. We have got expensive lanterns, but they have stars above their heads at night. We have the patio, and they have the whole horizon. We have only a small piece of land, while the poor have endless fields. We buy food, but they grow it. We have a high fence for protection of our property, and they don't need it, as their friends protect them."

The father was stunned. He could not say a word.

Then the boy added: "Thank you, Dad, for letting me see how poor we are."

This story shows that wealth and happiness are not measured by material things. The father asked his son if he liked their trip on return. "It was great, dad!" the boy replied.

Name: Avni Karmarkar

Grade: 5C

Billabong High International School, Thane

Why Go To School ? - Anvesha Rana

All of us go to school, where we learn and grow. Most of us love to go there, some don’t, and others just despise the idea of a school, but do we even know the latent purpose of the place we have been attending since our childhood? Many believe that schools are where students study, but they are beyond that. Schools are abodes of knowledge where students learn under the direction of teachers. Schools are more than academics. They are about encouraging sports, promoting service and initiating skill. The real purpose should ignite lifelong curiosity and make every child a lifelong learner. If any person has the will to learn, the fire to know, and the desire to succeed, they are unstoppable. 

A School should value each child who knocks at the door to seek knowledge. The school should not become a matter of marks, subjects or grades. Instead, it should be a journey for each individual to mould themselves into perfect works of art to discover their true identity and passion. Live as if you were to die tomorrow; learn as if you were to live forever. If we start taking an interest in daily education, not just in school but outside the school boundaries, utilize life as much as we can, we will never miss an opportunity to learn something new. Be it a new dish, a new skill, a new dance, a new craft, etc., the passion for knowing everything will always run in us, which is when passion will meet education.

Schools are not just for students to discover their true self; some teachers can also realize their self-creation at schools. Teaching is one of the most beautiful professions, where students never run out of questions and teachers always have an excellent reply to each one. Happy teachers are one of the most integral aspects of making a Good School. Educators and teachers also launch themselves on a path of self-discovery whilst providing education to many.  

All schools have different visions, missions and philosophies. For instance, Shanti Niketan, a school by Rabindranath Tagore, had a task for education for better concept clarity and understanding of topics. It was a different school and was one of the best in its league. Similarly, schools should stand out with some striking features, making parents choose them for their children. 

To sum it all up, a school is not just a brick-and-mortar structure but a haven of knowledge, safety, friendship, learning, and happiness. School is an environment for improvement, which any individual can create within themselves through ‘ The School Of Life.’

Anvesha Rana, 

Grade 10 - B, 

Gyanshree School