Goose Philosophy: A Reflection of Life

May 31, 2012

If you live in a four seasons country, when Autumn comes, you will see a flock of geese that are flying to the South to avoid the Winter season. These geese are flying in form of the letter "V" formation. Below are some scientific facts about why the flock of geese are flying in "V" formation.

Fact:
As each goose flaps its wings, it gives the "extra supporting power" for the other goose that fly directly behind its. This occurs because the geese which are flying in the back don't need to bother to penetrate the air wall in front of its. By flying in "V" formation, the whole flock can fly 71% of the distance farther than if each goose flies alone.

Lesson:
When people in the community are moving in the same direction, purpose, and by sharing to one another, will achieve their goals, faster and easier. Why? Because they are living together by encouraging and supporting to each other.

Fact:
When a goose flies out of the formation of the group, it will feel heavy and difficult to fly alone. It quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of power of the goose in its front.

Lesson:
If we have enough common sense as a goose, we would have stayed in the formation with those who went before. We might have had a willingness to give help to others, and accepting others help. It will be easier for us to do things together, rather than doing it alone.

Fact:
When the goose which are leading the flock gets tired, it will fly around to the back of the formation, and another goose will replace its.

Lesson:
It's just make sense, that to do such demanding and difficult tasks, community needs a turning and sharing leadership. People are relying on one another in terms of capability, capacity and unique arrangements of gifts, talents or other resources.

Fact:
Geese which are flying behind in the formation, are making noises to encourage the geese which are in front, so that the flying speed can be maintained.

Lesson:
We need to make our voices are encouraging to our leader. In a community, where people are encouraging to each other, the achieved results will be larger. The power of encouragement (standing in core values and willingness to encourage one another) is the quality of voices that we all seek. So, we must to make sure that our voices are encouraging, and not discouraging.

Fact:
When a goose gets sick, wounded, or being shot down. 2 other geese will leave the formation with that goose. To follow it down, to give help and protection. They stay with the fallen goose until it dies, or manages to fly again. After that they will fly with their own strength to catch the flock.

Lesson:
If we can learn from the goose, we could have been a better person. What would we do if our best friend got sick? Or, having an accident? Then, we would have done exactly as the goose did. Living in a community, we surely have felt difficult times, just like when we laughed together at good times.

Bread Cancer Trigger

May 28, 2012

Image from recipetineats.com.

I am shock to see these facts while I saw Reportase Investigasi, a TV news program in TransTV, May 27, 2012. 6 out of 10 white bread sold in Indonesia, turned out to be contained with borax. Preservative that should not to be used in food, just like formaldehyde, in which nearly quite known the same as borax.

Borax has known for its wide variety of uses in many manufactures industry, but not for food industry. It is used as component of detergents, cosmetics, and enamel glazes. Indonesian government had prohibited its used for food industry, but what had been shown by TransTV seems to be scarred the face of Indonesian Directorate of Consumer Protection (FDA). The Indonesian FDA had already warned the risk of liver cancer with high consumption over a period of 5–10 years.

6 bread out of 10 samples containing borax was the result on laboratory test by Padjajaran University of Bandung. 2 of them are well-known branded bread, in which one of them can be found in every supermarkets in Indonesia, while the other well-known branded bread is obtained from a mall in Jakarta.

Based on interview by the crew of Reportase Investigasi TransTV with an employee of a baking factory. In the bakery where he worked, used of borax as a preservative for baking bread. Also using margarine that had already expired, artificial sweeteners, as well as using eggs that have been damaged. According to the informant, the use of borax will make longer shelf life, from 4 days normal time of expiring to 2 weeks.

Hygiene is no longer ignored by the factory in pursuit of revenue targets. The TV crew's hidden camera revealed that a bread dough that had been fallen to the dirty floor, picked up again, and mixed into the dough, when he entered the factory. That makes the informant who is also employee of the factory did not want to eat bread anymore.

Rate of 60% of 10 samples of bread made from dangerous cancer trigger preservative should be questioned. Where is the Indonesian FDA during this? I've written about this before. But it is unavoidable to not to eat this healthy labelled food, because my job required shift work and my work began at 6 am. So, I chose white bread with jam for breakfast in a hurry, due to at 5.15 am I must leave the house to go to work. (Breakfast at 5 am. Have you try it before?) But after watching TV yesterday afternoon made me think twice for breakfast with bread again.

Here are tips on choosing a safe to eat bread and free of preservatives, from a Chef who also interviewed:

The Longer The Harder
If it kept for a week, safe to eat bread texture would be harder, but the bad ones will stay soft.

Butter Smell
A safe to eat bread will have more fragrant smell of butter or margarine, while the bad one has no smell at all, or a stinky smell.

Yellowish Color
The color of the white bread that is safe to eat, is a slightly yellowish color. If you usually think of white bread has only white color, you should be more careful. Because the white color comes from bleaching agents that were added during the bread baking.

Try To Twisted The Bread!
The best eaten bread will fall out easily when pinched or torn into small pieces, and if you twisted the bread, it will be back shaped like the bread dough.

Source : Reportase Investigasi, TransTV, May 27, 2012, 5.15 pm (UTC+7).

Child Growth at Golden Age

May 25, 2012

Your child is your most valuable treasure. Every children are born unique, with their own potentials and characters, having no equal that could never be compared to each other. You might then wonder, How does your parenting style? Will it work with your child? How will your child end up in the future? Read this poem to consider on something to think about your parenting style!

The needs of each child is not the same, because the children's needs are different, and every family also has different parenting style. That's why, parent's response to each child is also different. There's a possibility that other families parenting style could be applied to yours. It's all yours to decide whether you use it or not.

Although nowadays it's hard to parenting your child with so many bad influences around your neighbourhood. The basic of child main education is started from the family itself.

Pictures of this!

A year old to 7 years old child's mind is like a glass of water. A bad education or influence is like a spoonful of tea water. See what's the colour of the glass if it filled with water and, let's say, 4 spoonful of tea water! Another glass of water will purify, by dropping it into the 1st glass of water, that already mixed with tea water.

If I would say that, 4 spoonful of tea water is bad educations in a day, and the 2nd glass of water that purified the 1st one, is good educations in a year. How can we purify our child's mind then, if we can't give good educations everyday in a year, with bad educations, side by side filled him everyday too!!

In a talk show with Donna Agnesia, Indonesian famous presenter, titled Child Growth at Golden Age, Donna shared her experiences caring for her three children, Lionel (5), Diego (3), and Sabrina (1), started with characters building, tips on dividing attentions to all her children, to the concept of children's education.

Donna with Lionel & Diego

You may consider the parenting style of Donna and her husband, Darius Sinathrya, Indonesian actor and also TV Show presenter. Donna and Darius are Indonesian famous celebrity couple who love to share their successful marriage and family tips. Below are their tips of parenting guides, in which might suitable to be applied for your child at home.

Become Friends
With her husband, Donna admitted that everyday, she prefered to communicate with her children as a friend. So that the children are to be more open and free to express. We don't talk to our children like a child with his parent, but talked like a child with his friend, by using more simple language. As much as possible to reduce using the word don't, although sometimes it difficult to find the other words instead. If the word don't be said too often, children will become lazy to talk to their parents. Just like when the time we often had prohibited by our parents, then finally we were more open to talk to our friends rather than to our parents, she said.

Just like communicating with friends, when children make mistakes, you can ask him to talk, advice Donna. Instead of being angry with him, better if given obvious reasons when you warned your child about particular mistake. Children are now critical, they will ask back to you. Why did you forbid him? They want to know what was the reason, she said.

Be More Creative
Parents should not be less intelligent and creative with their children, said Donna. Before bed, Lionel always asked her to tell a story. If there was no book, Darius or myself make our own story, added Donna.

You should not always buy expensive toys for your children. You can create a toy yourself from what's available at home. If you can, it doesn't matter anymore, but no need to force yourself to buy expensive toys according to child's age or development. If you have to purchase it, there's a period of time that make your children not always able to play with their toys. What is important that the parents should be more creative, she said.

Family Education
Basic education is within the family itself. Although the child schooled from an early age, family is still be a source of learning indeed. Even so, she was admitted that children in early childhood education is also needed, such as preschool. However, parents have to make sure that they have a clear goal, when register their children to a preschool.

I had to send my children to preschool from the age of two, the goal is more to help him socialize, know with others and learn to share, so that he do not grow into a selfish person, said Donna.

Equal Affection
If the number of children increases, parents need to give love equally. How? Give attention according to the children's needs. At every level age, children have different needs. This is why a different form of attention between the 1st children, 2nd, and so on.

My second child is more demanding, more spoiled. How to handle him is different from my first child. Parent should not be burden with these differences of parenting style. All you need to do is to learn how you can give love emphatically. Just like when we were kids, what were make us happy to be treated like by our parents, she said.

To ensure the children are met their need for affection, it takes a good synergy. According to Donna, when she concentrated on one of her children, her husband played with the others. As much as possible avoid the child of being ignored, and always involve the older brother while you're playing with the younger brother, or vice versa, explains Donna. Parenting is not just a mother's duty, but also need a support from the father, so that children feel loves completely, and didn't feel of treating differently, she added.

Decisive Figure
In the family, a decisive figure is needed for children education. Father is playing important role here, because usually kids are more closer to the mother, so that the father emerged as a respected figure. Children should have a figure that respected but not feared. In my family, My children respected their father, said Donna. By applying her parenting style, Donna hopes that her children will idolize their father, just like she idolized her parent.