Why do you keep books in the bathroom?
Our 9-year-old grandson TeghVir Singh came to spend time with us. Emerging from the bathroom, he asked me, “Dadu, why do you keep books in the bathroom?” I replied, “Because I like to read when I sit on the pot.” “Did you not teach us that we should respect knowledge and our books?” “Yes” “Do you think that keeping books in the same place where you go to do poopoo, is respectful?” Tegh queried. That caught me off guard. I thought for a moment how to justify my actions, but in the face of such a simple yet powerful truth, I grudgingly agreed. Indeed it was disrespectful. I went into all the bathrooms in the house and removed all the books. It is amazing, the power of the truth. We are often so oblivious to the obvious. Children and the innocent can see things with fresh perspectives that we adults, ‘experts’ and ‘professionals’ seem to have lost. I thought about the question, ‘Why is it that men spend so much time in the bathroom?’ It seems to be a practical getaway where we can withdraw to find solitude. The need to get away from everyone else and have quiet moments without the likelyhood of being disturbed. There are physiological and psychological explanations for this phenomenon. As per Dr. Harminder Paul Singh Ahluwalia when we poop 2 major nerves act up the Vagus nerve and the pudendal nerve. The Vagus nerve can lower a person’s blood pressure and heart rate, which relaxes us. The Pudendal nerve is the nerve that is active during orgasms, thus during bowel movement, it gets stimulated and relaxes us. The relaxed mind can focus better on the assimilation and processing of thoughts. Brisk walks, a cold shower and sitting on the pot, all have similar effects of providing excellent places for thinking and decision-making. We all need to be alone for some time during the day. We need not have a reason for this desire to be alone. It is important to take time off to think nothing nor to do anything, in fact ‘to just be’. Males enter into this ‘think nothing, do nothing’ mode, more often than females. Women find this as with other behavioural characteristics of males. strange and unfathomable. Inexplicable it may be but that is the reality. This time alone or what some call ‘me-time’ is essential to refresh and recharge us. But one thing is for sure, I am not going to keep books in the bathroom. #AloneTime #bathroom #children #perspective #knowledge #books #respect
Simple ways for changing habits in Kids
Habit is an action that we repeatedly do until it becomes effortless. A very important part of grooming or raising kids is developing the right kid of discipline and good habits from their childhood, so that such routine or instances can continue and support them throughout their life. The book “ Atomic Habit “ is written by James Clear and he mentions about 4 laws for habit change in adults. And in this video link below, I have spoken about how this can be applied in kids. When kids have a certain routine or follow a certain set of habits, […]
The Twist in my Reading
Chapter 15 over and book Finish ! Oops but i hardly remember chapter one . Have you felt the same, ever ? I was reading so many books but hardly remembered anything from them . Infact at one point in my life, I was collecting every recommended book by anyone and just feeling good about the quick read accomplished. Few months ago when I realised that the pile of books had exceeded my shelf space , my loft space and had started to encroach upon my bedside space which I like to be clearer and emptier , I […]
Introspection
Recently I got intrigued into the self-help genre of books. It was a dive in the vast ocean. Each book took me deeper within. The deeper, the calmer, the subtler and thus I felt lighter. Experiences in the days following the reads are difficult to pen down. All I can say is I am blessed and blissed. One major learning is the self-awareness that arose as a result of routinely self-introspections. Introspection is accessing my internal self or own perceptions or judgements by asking myself “what is it that I am feeling in the moment?” Then allowing myself to access […]