Wellness

A conversation about imagi­ning our future planet raised a jumble of issues for me. I could grasp the substantive points being made by the 30-year-old, but many of them had not occurred to me before. It seemed that it might be a world where basic survival would define all activities. …

We tend to centre the Easter weekend observances on the Resurrection in our modern-day society. We skip past Good Friday—but there would be no Easter without Good Friday. We must face Good Friday’s trials and darkness before we can appreciate the dawn of the Resurrection. The events of Good Friday …

Who said posting about what you had for breakfast is so banal? I did. In my last column. I am not ­retracting it as a general observation, but there was an anomaly. An exceptional ­exception. His name? Razif Khan, a man who shared photos on Facebook of his meals—breakfast, lunch …

Obtaining blood when persons need it can be a harrowing experience.  Very recently, I felt it vicariously while a comrade urgently required blood. Eighteen months ago, on 30 August 2022, the Minister of Health, Terrence Deyalsingh MP issued a message concerning blood donation, which created misgivings in some of those …

This week, we witnessed the funeral of Ezekiel Paria, who was shot while riding a bicycle in his village. It was tragic. His dreams and his mother’s hopes were snuffed out through indiscriminate shooting on a main road. But have we thought for a moment about the young woman, 15 …

“In a great country like ours, we should aspire for every child to grow up to achieve his or her full potential. Anything less is a waste of talent and a blemish on human dignity and flourishing.” Mike Petrilli (Fordham Institute), 2023. In April 2009, our country hosted President Barack …

“Hybristophilia is a phenomenon, where individuals, often women, develop strong affectionate or romantic feelings towards individuals incarcerated for serious crimes [or notorious for] criminal behaviour. “[…] Initially defined within a sexual context, recent explorations reveal that the attraction often transcends sexual desire. Experts highlight the role of psychological factors like …

When was the last time you looked at a map of our planet? After reading Gwynne Dyer’s column in last Wednesday’s Express, Routine Rockets, I pulled out an old printed atlas to get a good look at the groupings of the countries. Somehow Google maps did not feel appropriate. Dyer …

I’d wanted to return to the relationship between marketing and the choices we make, a subject I’ve often visited. This column of five years ago contained the points I wanted to make; worth repeating as a reminder. Many of us are trying to adopt a healthier lifestyle. You know, incorporating …

Trinidad and Tobago recorded its first case of new Covid-19 variant, JN.1, according to Carpha today. At present, global health bodies consider JN.1 to be more transmissible than its predecessors but not more severe, while there are no known new symptoms. On 22 December 2023, the World Health Organisation (WHO) …

One of the characters in a tele­vision series I looked at recently is going through one of those existential crises, questioning his meaning and relevance to the world he inhabits. As he lowers himself into the abyss of despair, he asks: “Who am I to my history?” Examining his life …

“No arts; no letters; no society: and which is worse of all, continual fear, and the danger of violent death, are the life of men, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.” Hobbes, 1651. As I approached Christmas this year, I felt the world had become darker. I was thinking about …