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Last month, Abu Sitta reported that he had been banned from Germany 'for the month of April', and accused the authorities there of stifling freedom of expression
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POINTS OF VIEW
A space to share your feedback. Over to you.
Best Letter
Bringing Hope
It was heartening to read the article Movement is their Mantra in wknd. (Apr 10). The magazine’s efforts to spread awareness of this disease by introducing Dubai’s PD sufferers to this wonderful support group deserve great appreciation.
Slowing down seems criminal in a world obsessed with speed. From fast food to Facebook, we seem to have it all. Maybe PD is one of God’s ways of slowing us down so that we become better human beings.
I believe they are closest to God because they have experienced suffering. We should learn from them because they have taught us how to embrace life and never let the spirit die in spite of all the physical, psychological, financial and social struggles involved.
Movement Mantra’s efforts to help them deal with their illness by regaining a sense of control over their lives and improving the quality of their lives is far beyond what any medication or complex surgery can achieve right now. This is something everybody deserves and that will hopefully benefit more patients in future.
To quote the late actor Robin Williams, who was probably suffering from early stage PD: “I used to think that the worst thing in life was to end up alone. It’s not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel alone.” My prayers to all those who are suffering silently. Keep going. You inspire the world!
Congratulations on your winning entry, Dr Ashi Soman! We will be in touch shortly.
Living It Up
‘Live, don’t exist’ (It’s My Life, Apr 10) — the column on Samineh Shameem — made for an engaging read. Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you are going to get. Many of us lead a life that is filled with tedium, monotony and drudgery. We fret and fume and whinge and whine when we have to face challenges and crises. Many a time, trivial matters appear grave to us and we utterly fail to savour the small pleasures of life.
One wonders how one can live life to the fullest when there are numerous issues that insist on chasing us. We can live, if we resolve not to merely exist but relish every moment of life to the hilt. Ups and downs, highs and lows — all of them make us stronger and teach us valuable lessons. The purpose of life is to live and experience it to the utmost with optimism, positivity, determination and focus.
Life is transient. Enjoy it when it sparkles like a star, for you never know when it will melt away like snow. Steve Jobs once said — aptly, I may add — “Have the courage to &follow your heart and intuition. They somehow know what you truly want to do. Lead a life full of joy, passion and rigour. Everything else is secondary.”
Thank you, wknd., for publishing such motivational features.
Jayashree Kulkarni, Abu Dhabi
The Best Kind Of Therapy
Movement is their Mantra (Apr 10) brought back some painful memories. My father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1983, two years after he started displaying the symptoms of shuffling gait and tremors in his hands.
Initially, doctors surmised that it was due to old age, but subsequently we were told what it really was. It was particularly hard on him because he had been travelling all over the world as a successful businessman. To be confined to the house was quite painful. It was even harder for my mother, who had to care for him day in and out.
I was working in Dubai at the time and decided to relocate to India in 1984 to help look after him. There is no cure to date for Parkinson’s disease and all we could do, at the time, was provide him with dopamine. But his symptoms continued to grow steadily worse over time; he had difficulty swallowing and his memory gradually deserted him. In the end, he lived for another ten years before he passed away at the age of 71. The entire family was around him in those last days — and the wknd. article on the Parkinson’s support group in Dubai brought those memories back quite vividly. It is heartening to know that someone in Dubai is using Kathak as therapy for Parkinsons’ patients. Godspeed.
Rasheed M, Chennai
Oh, Snap!
The feature on Daniel Cheong’s photography (Dazzling Cityscapes, Apr 3) was a treat to the eyes. It always fascinates me to see the world from a bird’s-eye view. I could Google such pictures for hours and not be tired; they fill me with pride to be part of the great Almighty’s creation. Cheong’s photos are breathtaking indeed, especially the one that shows a few skyscrapers sticking their head out through the clouds — proof of the heights humans have reached.
Geetha M Hegde, by email
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