The Secret Behind Her Productivity - Shambhavi Nautiyal

Surabhi was a 14-year-old straight-A student who always tried to make the most out of her time. She didn’t make friends, or maybe it’s just that her friends didn’t stick with her. She had been moving through her day, keeping much to herself and studying as much as possible. Then, a new transfer student ‘Kavita’ entered her life.

She was smart, confident, uninhibited and open about her feelings. She always looked so happy and ‘perfect’ in Surabhi’s eyes. It made her wish that she could be like her. Then, one day, Kavita came up to her and said “Hi!” She complimented Surabhi’s hair and how pretty she looked, which made her drop a tear or two.

Kavita kept probing her until Surabhi confessed how her mother never let her sleep, how she could not study ‘enough’ and just couldn’t make time, and then Kavita told her how the same things happened to her, and so she tried a new timetable which helped her.

Kavita asked Surabhi how she felt then, but she said "Nothing can ever help me". Then Kavita suddenly got all serious and said “If you don’t let yourself be helped, you won’t be helped”. Surabhi ran to the girl’s restroom, looked in the mirror, and realised that she had been betraying herself by telling herself that she could never succeed and everyone else was ahead of her not making any mistakes.

She told this to Kavita, when she confirmed to her that everyone including herself always went through times when they simply couldn’t achieve their goals overnight and had to do the job bit by bit. Surabhi was hit by a wave of discernment, how she had been gatekeeping a lot from her friends without actually knowing. When she was with them not much came out of her mouth and she just tried pushing her fears and problems under the rug because why would she trouble them with her problems, wouldn’t that just make her ‘uninteresting’, ‘cry-baby’ or ‘too sensitive and uncool’.

Kavita told her that it’s always okay to feel your feelings and first sort her things out before approaching a friend. Surabhi felt renewed and comforted for the first time in weeks and just decided to be grateful.

------------------------------------------- The End ---------------------------------------------------------------------

Shambhavi Nautiyal 

Class- 10

Ahlcon Public School

Sylvan Reverie: A Soul’s Unveiling

I came across a forest;
Which was full of green, 
With the colossal trees-
They were so tall they couldn’t be seen.
With animals so enigmatic, 
The mist was so dramatic.

I came across a forest-
Where lay the river’s poetic grace.
I saw a reflection that seemed honest, 
The reflection told me what was seen but unknown,
Heard but ignored.

I came across a forest-
Where the water showed me a reflection true, 
A tale untold that became a mystery to pursue.
The one I saw in the reflection-
Was it me or a girl in the past? 
At thirteen, a memory that couldn’t last.

I came across a forest-
It was just another forest,
But it was the place where I found myself. 
I came across a forest, 
But the forest was just my dream. 

-Aarika Banka 
Grade IX, Gyanshree School, Noida 

My Experiments with Self-Awareness - Anvesha Rana

From daily news to new trends, the weather forecast to the match score, we know so many things just because they are happening around us; we love to be up to date. However, amidst gathering this information, we get so distracted that we must remember to collect ourselves or ask ourselves what is happening within us? 

Self-awareness is to know, share, ask, or be aware of oneself. Strangely, the person we have been since time immemorial is also the person we know the least about; most of the time, other people know more about us than we do about ourselves! Yes, and as an exercise, ask your friends about what you like; I am sure they will get it right. 

So, self-awareness is vital as you need to know who you are and be clear about what you like or dislike. Self-awareness is a gradual process, though it is believed to be an innate ability that vanishes growing up. Thus, we need to constantly experiment to regain ours. 

Whenever we get lost in a discussion, we should ask ourselves, is this really important? Would I like to be a part of this? Moreover, we must decide about numerous things daily and sometimes need help with choices. Consequently, we should learn to recognise and observe our choices and decipher the pattern. This code or pattern is our approach to problem-solving that sums up the kind of person we are. 

To be more self-aware, we should spend time alone with our thoughts in our head; it’s good to head out, but sometimes, to seek answers to deep questions, it’s okay to run in. Being the observer of our lives also means observing or influencing our thoughts. Being the observer is being in the position of power, i.e. we are not guided by the current flow in the ocean, but we decide where the current shall flow. It may be difficult initially, but once we start to love our own company, that is the self-awareness threshold.
Anvesha Rana
Grade 11
Gyanshree School

No Discover Like Self Discovery! - Oshi Singh

We all wanted superpowers as children!

We want to be like Iron Man and Spiderman. Accept it or not but we all tried the levitating spell like Hermione taught us "Wingardium Leviosa". We all used household items like props. Spatula used to be the weapon and your bathing towel, your drape and our most memorable memory was saving the world. It sure seems like a lot of fun having a superpower like if you could read minds you could  be the best person around for everyone or time travel would enable you to have a perfect life because you could just use your power and not make any mistake. This sure seems perfect and it might be if someday we could experience it right? But the show must go on because as always I differ. Not because this doesn't seem tempting enough but because we all already have superpowers and I am not talking about a power to stop time or something like that but the one inside us like MS Dhoni has for cricket, Da Vinci for Painting and Robert Downey Jr. for acting. If you think you have to be famous to find your superpower you're wrong. It can simply be anything beatboxing for someone and modelling for someone. Now some of you might be under the impression that I am just saying this cliché stuff like everyone else but I differ again.

Hypothetically if I ask you a question that would you rather have a superpower or push a mysterious button and wait for the mystery to unravel. You would probably go with superpower right? Many of us would and with this ladies and gentlemen, I prove my point. When we have something that others don't, we start feeling special and unique. In time we let that thing define ourselves. Instead of taking risks and finding our personality, we play safe and stick on to that thing. It doesn't matter if you are a great athlete or a musician what YOU will see of yourself would be just one thing that is the superpower. If you were born and brought up in a family of dancers when you grow up, you would feel that your interest is dance, but the inner truth is that it's not. Take some time alone and whatever fascinates you is YOUR interest.

If you are thinking that this is just an aimless paragraph you are reading, cooperate a little more because the paragraph is really important. It is about finding your self-worth and self-discovery. So do you really know yourself? Why should you know yourself? Are the questions you might be wondering. Well knowing yourself is what will make you unique. It will help you find yours and a if you don't know yourself how can you except people to know you and respect you? 

Knowing yourself is no else than a superpower. 

Find your values, and your interests, your temperaments. Focus on yourself, and your strengths while making your weaknesses stronger than ever and if you don't know where to start, spend some time with yourself and you shall get all the answers. After all, there's no discovery like self-discovery! 

Oshi Singh
VIII D 
Gyanshree School