Reflection on I am the master of my fate - Shristi Khulal

When I consider the word fate, I think of luck and fortune. The above line talks about controlling our fate. A person born into a royal family becomes king even though he doesn't deserve it because of fate. He is not loved by the people of his kingdom. On the other hand, a person born as a common person who has all the qualities of becoming a king becomes a king by fighting and winning the throne, is loved by all, and is the real king.

We can see in the above story that the person who was born into the royal family got the position by fate and was not a true king by virtue. On the other hand, the person who was not born into the royal family was a real king who was loved by all; this shows that fate is not as powerful as hard work and qualities.

We can either be the first king or the second; it all depends on us. Whenever a person gets success by chance, the person never knows the meaning of hard work and cannot taste the real success in life. The other person knows that he and his actions are responsible for whatever happens in his life.

At last, I want to say that mastering our fate is important, as it gives us confidence and improves our way towards life.

Shristi Khulal
Pestalozzi Children Village Society
Image Courtesy- Story Planets

The Heart or The Mind ? - Anvesha Rana

The battle between the heart and the mind never really comes to an end. It is just like a tennis match. The ball goes back and forth, back and forth, until finally, the eyes give away, and we doze off. We talk about listening to the heart or mind, but most of the time, during crucial decisions, we are not even consciously aware of whether our heart or mind made this decision. Staying conscious about our inner voice, along with the doubts that it offers, is a part of being human. 

We often do not heed the voice within, but our best advisor is our own voice rather than family, friends or anyone. Whenever you find yourself running at a tremendous speed, you are running so fast that the faces of your loved ones have blurred away, then stop, pause and observe yourself. Being aware of who we are is life. 

Once we learn to listen to ourselves, the question of the heart or the mind arises. The mind always resonates with what makes sense, but the heart believes in the power of intuition, going with the flow and love; it complies with whatever feels right. The difference between the two is that the mind tells us what is wise, whereas the heart tells us what we will do anyway. 

It is up to us to decide whether we follow our heart or our mind. After all, we alone hold power to decide who we wish to follow. However, we can only find peace of mind once we listen to our hearts. The heart opens up doors of ecstasy, imagination and joyfulness, but the mind keeps us rooted in this material world where practicality implies the cornerstone of each decision. 

The key to mastering the heart and the mind is to strike a chord between the two. The heart and the mind play on a see-saw, but to muster up the courage to sit at the fulcrum of it is winning both. 

Anvesha Rana

Grade 11

Gyanshree School

When It All Began - Anvesha Rana

We don’t have to be great to start, but we need to start to be great. All of us must have been a beginner at some point in our lives, on the sports field or on the dance stage. Every person who has achieved success today would have been a beginner once, so allow yourself to be a beginner, for no one starts off being excellent, and it is the critiques that shape our character, not the praise. 

In school life, co-curricular activities are just as important as academics. I loved to dance in the cultural arts but was not really good at it. However, during the pandemic, I tried different forms of dance and today, dancing is something that occurs naturally to me. Another activity that I was a beginner at once was writing, but after joining the reading club program, my thoughts changed direction, and I just couldn’t contain them anymore, so I had to write! Practice makes a man perfect; the more I wrote, the better I became!

When I was a new student at school, I found it hard to follow the rules - standing in line, not talking, asking for permission - it was all different. I learnt very early in life that the golden rule everyone should follow is Equality. 

Equality in mind and body; Equality in harmony with the soul; Equality in speech and action; and Equality in life are what we should aim for. Just like the students of Tomoe treated their janitor wonderfully, we should respect everyone for whatever they do, be it small or big, be it quick or slow, and we should treat others the way we wish to be treated. 

Live by the Golden Rule, for it is not stringent but only robust, 

It is Equality. 

Anvesha Rana,

Grade 10-B,

Gyanshree School