[My View - 007] Why do kids fail to achieve their dreams?

You would have probably heard a toddler, or a five-year old once say 'I want to be an astronaut when I grow up', or 'I want to be a doctor when I grow up'. While some children take this to heart, some just say it for fun, and they change their mind over the next couple of years. From the point where a child has decided their future career/s or the stream/s they will pursue, they would have started to work hard to achieve their goal. But not everyone wanting to study at the University of Oxford would really get an offer, would they? And this is where the question sparks to mind.. Why do most children fail to achieve their dreams?

One of the main reasons children fail to achieve their dreams is over-ambition. While some children step into the reality, and understand how much effort, and hard work it would take to reach their goal, some remain in their fictional and magical world, where they think that everything will happen no matter what happens. This is where most students fail - not having a realistic goal. Being ambitious is wonderful, and planning for your future is even better. But when students get over ambitious, that is where the problem starts. Students begin to have high expectations of themselves and expect everything to go to plan. To set a goal, one must first know their real self; their strengths and their weaknesses. Without knowing these, planning your future career is like doing surgery without knowing which areas to incise.

Another fundamental factor that contributes to children failing to achieve their dreams is the 'DREAMING'. If one is aiming to become an astronaut, but comes home from school everyday and watches TV, they would really need to start rethinking their future. Some children 'dream' of getting into an elite, top private school, but take no action on it. Dreaming, and imagining yourself in a business suit in your office in 20 years feels wonderful, and is wonderful. But alongside dreaming, we also must take some action.

Another reason children don't achieve their goals is giving up. Life is never easy, even for the smartest intellectuals on Earth. As people say, 'Life is a roller coaster; there are ups and downs'. When life gets harder, people usually give up, especially children. But the ones who push themselves through the hardest obstacles are the successful people. Due to this, children, in the middle of their up-scaling progress, tend to drop the ball, and give up. In education, it's not only the accuracy, but the consistency also matters.

Another factor that contributes to a child's failure of not achieving their goals is low confidence. This is partly related to the previous factor (giving up when life gets harder). When things get harder, and start to fall out of our hands, we start to lose our confidence. As one's confidence falters, the ambition and commitment to achieve their goal is slowly fading away and is lost. It is indeed very hard to boost your confidence through tough times, but that is the job of a committed student. Commitment and consistency are the keys that open the door to the pathway leading to success.

So, in summary, alongside the fact that inconsistent grades, no determination, and ineffective study methods lead to academic failures and the failure to achieve your dreams, there are many other factors that contribute to this, like over- ambition, low confidence and many more listed in the above paragraphs. It is very important to consider these factors before considering your or your child's future. Because, if tomorrow is not planned well, the day after that will automatically become worse. And that applies to anyone's future...'

Thank you for reading

[My View - 006] Are hot dogs considered a sandwich?

Once, I was munching on a hot dog, and a question sparked to mind. Is this a sandwich, a wrap, a sub or a baguette? Never had I ever thought of such a question... Thinking logically, a hot dog is a sausage placed in between a curved bun. Whereas, on the other hand, a sandwich is a filling or meat placed in between two slices of bread. A wrap is a flatbread rolled around a meat filling or just an ordinary vegetarian filling. And lastly a baguette is a filling sandwiched in between two slices of French Bread. So which one of these does a hot dog come under?

I personally believe that a hot dog should be considered a blend of a wrap and a baguette..A wrap, as mentioned previously is a flatbread rolled around a filling, while a baguette is a filling sandwiched in between two slices of French Bread. And a hot dog is a filling (sausage) placed in between a curved bun. I say it is partly a wrap, because of the fact that half of its surface area is covered by a flatbread - bun in a hot dog. And I consider it a part baguette, because of the fact that the bun is quite thick, like a baguette's bread, and is quite long. However, people have different opinions on this.

Some argue that a hot dog is a sandwich, because it is a filling placed 'between' two slices of bread/a bun. However I disagree with this. Two slices of bread is different from a curved bun. Also a sandwich is cut into squares or triangles, but a hot dog is simply just a curved sausage placed in a curved bun. Therefore, a sandwich is absolutely not a wrap. Also, if a hot dog were to be considered a sandwich, you'd be able to say 'I am so hot dogged!', instead of 'I am so sandwiched' While some think a hot dog is a sandwich, some also think it can be a roll, or a wrap.. Because of the fact that the bun is 'rolled' around a sausage. But this is entirely untrue, because the sausage is not being wrapped/rolled by the bun, but instead it is being placed between the sides of the curved bun.

Can you notice the minor differences between these foods, and how it leads to people forming different opinions? I think that a hot dog is a blend between a wrap and a baguette, as mentioned in one of the previous paragraphs. And after all, it is simply just the way that the bread is positioned, that differentiates all of these food items. So, to answer this question, I 'don't' think a hot dog should be considered a sandwich...

[Book - 005] The Railway Children by E.Nesbit, — Summary & Review

Summary:

The Railway Children is a book authored by E.Nesbit, narrating the adventures of three children, Roberta, Peter and Phyllis. One night, when the three children were getting ready for their bedtime, someone had unexpectedly knocked on their door, and the parents had opened it to witness something terrible. And on that day everyone's lives had changed. Their dad (called Daddy in the book) was no more seen, and no one had known the reason for his disappearance except the mum (called Mother in the book) who returned back into the house with a pale, terrified face. When Mother and the three children get separated from Daddy, and move to Yorkshire, the Railway Station, located in Yorkshire, becomes their second home. While the adventurous children enjoy their time at Yorkshire, their Mother has a constant worry at the back of her mind about her husband.

Mother was a very cheerful person, but when a segment of her heart had faded away, it was hard to be the same person again. Bobbie, the oldest out of the three, could perceive Mother's feelings and did as much as she could to help her. Although Bobbie had not known the reason why Daddy had disappeared that night, she would always be so compassionate and sympathetic to Mother. Meanwhile the other two remained optimistic about Daddy's arrival soon. So the three children began to embark on their adventures, while Mother would write poetry and sometimes recite poems to the children. Life in Yorkshire was different, but they all had adjusted to it quite quickly. When the Railway Station was first discovered by the three children, they were amazed, especially Peter who was a train lover.

As time in Yorkshire passed, the children met many people at the Railway Station, such as The Station Master, Perks the Porter, and the old gentleman. These three people were lovely to the children. IN one of their first adventures, Peter decides to steal the coal from the Railway Station. And when he gets caught by The Station Master, and also when he first sees the Station Master, he gets reprimanded by him for what he has done. But the next day the Station Master would act as if nothing had happened. Perks the Porter was a very kind gentleman. In one of the children's first adventures with Perks, he constantly talks about trains and engines which had always engaged the children in their conversations. Lastly, the old gentleman. Everyday, when the children would see the trains passing by, the old gentleman would wave at them and whenever the four of them met, they would have such jolly conversations.

Time had passed by and the children had a great time in Yorkshire, when one day came and Bobbie had felt an arrow of shock and misery penetrating through her heart. It was a fine day. Bobbie and Peter were fighting over a rake in the garden. It started with a 'normal argument' two siblings would have, but then it became physical and after some shoves and screams, the rake went through Peter's foot, which caused it to bleed. Mother Bobbie had apologized to Peter, for what she had done, and decided to grab some newspapers for Peter to read, who had been lying on a bed and was feeling quite bored. So when Bobbie headed to Mr Perks house, and she grabbed the pile of newspapers, she read the headlines. And the reason why Daddy had disappeared that night had been revealed to her. She found out that her Dad had been imprisoned and been held guilty. But the loyal daughter, Bobbie, knew that her father would not do such a thing, and she was still optimistic that he would return. Bobbie had tried to hide her worry from her two siblings who had been oblivious to this, and almost forgot that Father even existed, but only until...

After a couple of weeks, the three children go to the Railway Station, as usual. But this time, the three of them feel quite weird, and Bobbie's sixth sense had told her that something was going to happen. When the old gentleman gets off the train, and steps onto the platform, he goes around to everyone showing them a newspaper and whispering some words to them. Some people responded with a happy smile, while some responded with a grumpy approval... And when the next train arrives, three people come out of the train - the grocer, a resident of Yorkshire, and before I can tell you who this person is, Bobbie was running and screaming in happiness out loud, 'Daddy! Daddy!'...

Review:

'When three children get separated from their father, the tables have turned around. Their new life had begun in Yorkshire, the Railway Station being their second home. The Railway Children, authored by E.Nesbit is more of a life guide than an ordinary tale. Every page teaches you a small life lesson, while every word brings happiness to mind. As E.Nesbit authors this book, she narrates the adventures of three children, Roberta, Phyllis and Peter. Some books, like 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carol' is a collection of Alice's adventures, and the book narrates her journey through different worlds meeting new people. However, The Railway Children is more than a collection of three children's adventures. This book has a plot that engages the reader. And there are many sad moments throughout the book.

As the three children move to Yorkshire, and begin to settle in their new home, they all begin to experience a mix of emotions. Sometimes they are all having a jolly good time with each other, while sometimes they start to worry and ponder upon the sudden and unexpected disappearance of their father. The three children remain in a state of oblivion to why and how their father disappeared throughout the entire book, except when Bobbie (Roberta) finds out about it in the middle of the book. Keeping the three children aside, their mother (called Mother in the book)knew everything about it, and had to hide it from the children. Despite being a very cheerful and helpful mum, she would always have the constant worry at the back of her mind, about her husband.

The Railway Children has many happy and sad moments. For example, when she finds out about her dad's imprisonment, she first sinks into despair, and feels miserable. However, after a while, she feels optimistic that her dad did not deserve to be held guilty. In life too, optimism always takes over despair. Although it might seem like a cliche, it is very much indeed true, both in fictional books and real life.

I personally think that everyone, of all ages, should read The Railway Children, as the book is all about how a family deals with a tough situation. I also believe that this book emphasizes a tinge of women empowerment, because Mother is the one who manages to take care of her three children, while still hiding her anxiety and thoughts about her husband's imprisonment. In summary, The Railway Children is a great book, teaching many lessons that everyone must learn...'