I have decided to try and help some of the poorer people I used to work with in Bihar! Way back in 1994 I wanted to raise some money to find, and give treatment to, people suffering from leprosy. I decided to cycle the length of the river Ganges ( 3000km) and donate the money raised from friends and neighbours in my village, at my place of work and at my church. I had to learn to ride a bike with gears and several kilograms of luggage. I studied maps and practicing cycling up hills. My ride began on October 4th at Gangotri but first I had to walk to the actual start of the Ganga as it came out of the bottom of a glacier 4000metres up in the Himalayas. The ride ended at Ganga Sagar, where the Ganges meets the ocean, and  took me 12 weeks.   On the way I stopped at a leprosy treatment centre in Bihar for a week, went out to visit patients and learned about the treatment that completely cures a person of leprosy. I gave all the money donated to me to LEPRA, a British N...

  St Valentine’s Day is celebrated on February 14 th This priest of 3 rd century AD became associated with love, when on the way to his execution, he sent a letter to a child ending it ‘from your Valentine’. Judging by the What’s App messages circulation this week. Valentine’s day is being hi-jacked by commerce and has been extended into a week. We are told the week now begins on 7 th February with Rose day, followed by Propose day, Chocolate day, Teddy day, Promise day, Hug day, and Kiss day and culminating in Valentine’s day. Quite a shopping list for the couples of today and a boost for the economy! As we are living under the shadow of the Covid pandemic let us show our love for one another. Your god, whether it is Ram, Sai Baba, Jesus Christ or Allah is the source of Love. Love is a strong and positive, emotional and mental state, from the most sublime good feeling, the deepest interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. Love is found in kindness, compassion, ...

  Bad Balance  Our ability to balance is beginning to fade away . Not just for senior citizens but even in the young. Falls leading to death or serious injury are on the rise, and most of the time people falling over are sober, and doing nothing more complicated than standing or walking. Our balance is part of a complex brain and body interaction. . Humans are the only species on earth that use two legs to walk as their main mode of transport, Our bodies, when standing, are top heavy with a tiny base of support. Our centre of gravity is around our pelvis and slightly forward of our ankles. We have to balance the weight of our heads and  moving chests on this base.   When in good health, we manage to balance by using a vast brain and body network of information from our muscles, eyes, and inner ear. This then informs our legs muscles to make the necessary adjustment to posture and keep us balanced.   Anxiety, depression and other mental health disorders...

Here in the UK the weather is gradually becoming warmer but, with our island position, surrounded by sea, there can be sudden spells of wintery weather. Last week the thermometer reached 24C. This week Scotland had snow and Northern Ireland had minus 5 degrees last night. Last week we had temperatures in the 20's yet yesterday the thermometer here in my town it did not climb above 14 C and I feared that the night would be below freezing. May blossom  In winter and spring we have to wear warm coats and sweaters, and gloves and it is tempting to change to summer clothes when the sun shines and the temperature rises. However, we must remember that sudden cold winds and frosts can come at any time. Hence the proverb of the blog title. 'Clout'  means clothing, 'May' is debateable, as some people think it means the month of May and others think it refers to the blossom of the May tree, which comes in April!.  The climate of this country is very variable and hardly two day...

 One of the most memorable things this year will be the official lockdown to try and contain the spread of the Corona virus that has become a pandemic, affecting every country of the world. It was preceded in India , on a government suggestion, by a subtle  'awareness'  campaign - a banging of plates and thalis by Awaas staff and residents.  Did you see the Pink Moon on the night of Tuesday/Wednesday 7/8 th April? I looked out of my bedroom window at the right time but the moon looked it’s usual bright silver colo ur. There was however, a faint hazy halo around the moon which could, by stretching the imagination possibly be described as a delicate pink!  In many cultures, including Native American tribes, people named the full moons throughout the year as a way to keep track of time..  April's full moon is known as the Pink Moon, we had been told not to expect it to look particularly pink! It's named after little pink flo...

                                                                                                       Wednesday, 01 April 2020 My dear Awaas family It is April Fool’s day in India as well as in the UK and I hear that Ashok has played a trick on you. Living alone I personally don’t bother with it. It is mainly something that children engage in. A little fun, however, is welcome in these uncertain times!  I like quizzes and puzzles and so I have sent some easy questions  to Ashok, your manager, which I am sure most of you will be able to answer. No money prize this time though!  Just answer as many as you can and look up the answers to the questions you don’t know on Google, or get together with...

ब्लॉग पोस्ट मार्च 28 मेरा प्रिय अवास परिवार जब मैंने आपको इंग्लैंड लौटने के लिए 2 मार्च को छोड़ दिया, तो मैंने चीन में भारी संख्या में लोगों के मरने की खबर सुनी और इटली में वायरस फैलते ही हजारों प्रभावित हुए, मैंने कविता मैडम से पूछा कि क्या हम आपकी रक्षा कर सकते हैं, वरिष्ठ नागरिकों के Awaas परिवार । यह निर्णय लिया गया था कि आप, प्रिय लोगों को आपकी सुरक्षा के लिए बंद कर दिया जाना चाहिए । वहां अभी भी खतरा है कि परिसर के बाहर से सफाई और खानपान स्टाफ Awaas में वायरस ला सकता था ।   यह वही था जिसे 'गणना जोखिम' कहा जाता है। आप अब 3 सप्ताह के लिए में बंद कर दिया गया है । जबकि वायरस मुख्य रूप से बड़े कस्बों तक ही सीमित था आप सुरक्षित थे । भारत औद्योगिक विकास और जनसंख्या के आकार में चीन को प्रतिद्वंद्वी मानता है और उसके चीन के साथ घनिष्ठ संबंध नहीं हैं । इटली के विपरीत जहां चीन से सीधी उड़ानें थीं, जिसमें वुहान, प्रकोप के केंद्र में शहर शामिल था । इसका लिंक टेक्सटाइल इंडस्ट्री का था। के रूप में चीनी लोगों को अमीर बन गया वे पर्यटकों और इटली के उत्तर जो कई सुंदर ऐतिहासिक शहर...