Published:Sunday | September 8, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
This phenomenon is from the world of make-believe, encased in fables, special effects, action, intrigue, and certainly a product of the flight of human imagination that has not known any boundaries or been conformed by any pre-defined and set...
Published:Sunday | September 1, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
There is an air of intrigue, a sense of awe, the fear of the unknown and epics that attain mythical proportions – the imposing structures of the Mayan civilisation nestled in the forests of Mexico are the earliest habitats of human civilisation...
Published:Monday | August 5, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
“I am pleasantly surprised, or should I say I might be speechless, too,” said Alkesei Sazonov, head of consular section, Embassy of the Russian Federation in Jamaica. His reaction was not centred around any geopolitical discussion or debating on...
Published:Sunday | May 26, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
Life, they say, is all about finding that equilibrium, work and pleasure being one key component in the grand scheme of it … and when there happens to be a union of both, it’s like finding one’s Zen on a rock and roll … and in Peter Wright’s case...
Published:Sunday | May 12, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
“I subscribe to the sayings of great leaders who maintain that all children are our children,” said Paul Sully, country director of Peace Corps Jamaica. “My years in the Peace Corps have taught me the tremendous value of engaging young people in...
Published:Sunday | April 21, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
Life is a canvas in many ways. Its blankness inspires numerous creative minds to ip their brushes into the palette, swirl to mix colour, and express their inner thoughts with a stroke of swift movements. But the key is, as summarised by Thomas Alva...
Published:Sunday | April 7, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
“It has been 10 years since I left my home, but my mother still puts out Hina dolls every year and sends us a picture of the dolls,” said Haruna Higa, cultural officer at the Embassy of Japan in Jamaica. Dolls, in Japan and many other countries,...
Published:Sunday | March 24, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
India – the mere mention of the name exudes a myriad of emotions – a riot of sights, sounds, aroma and humanity, there is not a single sensory perception that will not go on an overdrive. This is a country albeit where paradoxes co-exist side by...
Published:Sunday | March 3, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
One is often told – “You don’t look Indian,” to which the 1.2-billion dollar question is: “How do Indians look?”…What, one might ask, is the context of this statement? It stems from the fact that some notions are just that, notions and pre-...
Published:Friday | January 11, 2019 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
An animated set of students started playing rhythms on their desks while others clapped and swayed. Now comes the trick question: What were they doing? The obvious answers could be"They are in a music class"; or "It is free time, so they are having...
Published:Friday | December 14, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"How one shapes their life is always very interesting to me," says Paul Sully, country director of Peace Corps Jamaica. It is a simple yet deep-rooted statement because every one of us has as story to tell, a chapter to write, possibilities to...
Published:Friday | December 7, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"I met so many Jamaican people, and I felt their kindness during my stay in Jamaica," said Yukino Tsubokura, a 17-year-old student from Yonago High School in Tottori prefecture in Japan. She and her nine classmates had a chance to visit the island...
Published:Friday | December 7, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
There are seldom occasions and there are rarely people to describe that put one at a loss for words - where similes and attributes seem to lose their sheen. Perhaps, in essence it would be akin to trying to match the intensity of sunlight with a...
Published:Friday | November 23, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"Farming can be very creative," said Aika Nakakomi, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) volunteer, as she scooped up a handful of compost and sifted it in a plastic barrel cut vertically in half.Creativity began just there, with innovative...
Published:Friday | October 12, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"We should not forget the sacrifices made the by brave men in the World Wars," said Major (Retd.) Johanna Lewin. Somewhere in the vast expanse of serene blue skies, in an era before dependency on artificial intelligence, human instincts ruled the...
Published:Friday | September 14, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
Being literate, for all of us who are reading these two words, it is basic, simple, and often not a difficult task, but for 750 million adults in this world, these words, or any letter in any language in the world, would be curved and abstract lines...
Published:Friday | June 1, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"Sift the flour carefully, make a cavity, fold in icing sugar, whisk and add eggs, add simmering milk ... ," instructed Asa Kitawaki as she meticulously combined the dry and wet ingredients.The task at hand was to make Tart au Fruit Frais (fresh...
"This is fun, a lot of fun," said a group of 10 students in unison as they gathered around a table with artefacts.What is the fun element, one might ponder. These students from The Salvation Army School for the Blind and Visually Impaired were about...
Published:Friday | April 6, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
Ability - it is a short and a sweet word, but it has a deeper meaning, and, when translated to application, this word becomes the marked difference between leading a 'normal' life and leading one that isn't so normal.In the grand scheme of life, the...
Published:Friday | March 30, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"Corporates don't create jobs, start-ups do," said Devin Collins, associate director, Ventureprise business accelerator and incubator at UNC Charlotte.Redefining the way we perceive academia and how it can integrate seamlessly into the contemporary...
Published:Friday | March 16, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"Gender is not just about women. Men are under social pressure to be masculine," said Mio Akita, community liaison associate and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) volunteer at the Bureau of Gender Affairs.The audience was third-form...
Published:Friday | March 2, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"I don't understand," said Conrad Harris, executive director of Jamaica Society for the Blind (JSB), "Why do people have to keep low expectations from us?"This is a profound statement, which needs to get the notion and perception that, for people...
Published:Friday | February 16, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
When lights come on, cameras roll, and the action unfolds learning becomes fun. Michelle Serieux, the newly appointed Filmmaker in Residence at The Department of Literatures in English, at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, plans to...
Published:Friday | February 9, 2018 | 12:00 AMAmitabh Sharma
"Do you know what this is?" asked Evan Adams, Peace Corps volunteer, as he raised a plastic soda bottle to a group of grade three Wilmor Prep School students standing in a circle with him under a tree.Some curious stares, some plausible perceptions...
