The single greatest power we can acquire throughout adolescence and young adulthood is the ability to maintain a positive attitude and envision success regardless of the countless failures we face. At university, the words “mental health” are two words which have taken on a completely different meaning and a much greater weight. Our reactions to the disappointments we receive play a crucial role in having a healthy mental state. One surefire step to achieving success borrowed from Napoleon Hill’...

"Just because you see a black man driving in a nice car, does not mean it’s stolen. Ok, I stole that, but not because I’m black." If you’ve ever watched Men in black 3, you’re probably familiar with this quote. It is from a scene were Agent J, a character interpreted by Will Smith, is accused by a police officer of stealing a car. This is a clear example of stereotyping turned into discrimination.According to some psychologists, stereotypes can develop based on a cognitive mechanism kn...

Hey, there, old woman! Wanna hear your story?Wanna know you are? Here you go then.Your whole life, is basically a possession of different men in your life.From the day you're born to the day you die.A man, names you.From your father hitting you while you save your motherTo your brother scolding you for being late at serving him dinnerFrom the man sexually abusing youTo the same man threatening you not to tell anyone or he'll kill youFrom the man you love telling you how you deserve better and le...

She never feared it. Every day she woke up to it. Every new day was greeted by the smell. Every time she stepped out, she could only see the dump. It was almost 300 feet tall. For years, it kept growing. Tons of garbage piled up. The “Meethotamulla” garbage dump, a name unheard of for most even in the city, was a problem not considered important- an issue all politicos turned their heads away from. It smelled so bad no one would chose to travel on those roads. The landfill brought in so many fl...

The greenhouse.That’s my fondest memory with you, spending afternoons spraying tomatoes with water in the greenhouse under your watchful eye. That’s my only memory with you that I know for certain is my own, and I cherish it.The rest however, I am not sure are memories. It’s become hard to distinguish between what I remember and what’s been told to me, or what I saw in a picture.I know that you were always kind and gentle. You were a gentle giant to me, always moving so slowly and peacefully in...

“What do you want to be when you grow up? What do you want to study in university?” I asked my cousin who is in her senior year of high school.“I don’t know,” she said.“That’s alright. Most of us don’t know what we want to do with the rest of our lives at this age. So is there any school subject you particularly enjoy?,” I asked.“No,” she replied.“Any activities that interest you?” I inquired.“None I can think of,” she answered nonchalantly.I was baffled. Here was my cousin who didn’t have much...

Happy Birthday To MeI just celebrated my 19th birthday! Woo happy birthday me! It was an amazing day, thanks for asking. I slept in till eleven in the morning, went to lunch, and watched Netflix. Very productive. Very awe-inspiring. The best thing about my birthday, however, is that I share it with my mum. Yup my mum gave birth to me on her birthday, poor woman. Worst. Birthday present. Ever. Fortunately for me though I’m honoured to share the same birthday with such an amazing, strong, inspirin...

Bullying is a problem in most schools; unavoidable maybe, as people try to climb social ladders and to be at the top of the hierarchy. But it is not something we can ignore and pretend that it does not exist. Perhaps it may not sound as important or as crucial as solving the problem of climate change or advocating for women's rights, but it is an equally disturbing problem in today's world.I am sure many of you have heard of bullying cases before, or have even been the victim of bullying. Mostly...

We live in a world where, like robots we have been trained to practice hate, discrimination, and stereotype people. It is either stereotyping or discrimination against a particular gender, or religion, sexual preferences, or race. If all these were to be settled, we would probably still find something to hate each other about, maybe height or fingers.I am from Nigeria in West Africa, where we don’t have racial issues or racial discrimination. While I was growing up we were taught to believe that...