|
PRESIDENTS
MESSAGE
January is Rotary Awareness Month
THE OBJECT OF ROTARY Is to encourage and foster
the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular,
to encourage and foster:
FIRST The development of acquaintance as an
opportunity for service
SECOND High ethical standards in business and
professions: the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations:
and the dignifying of each Rotarian's occupation as an opportunity
to serve society.
THIRD The application of the ideal of service
in each Rotarian's personal, business and community life.
FOURTH The advancement of international understanding,
goodwill and peace, through a world fellowship of business and professional
persons united in the ideal of service.
Our guest speaker this Friday is Ted Elliot,
talking to the club about his trip away with the two students he
is hosting at present.
Paul Harris dinner is on February 23rd at Brothers
Leagues Club. Our club is hoping to have a table. Anyone wanting
to go please let me know and I will advise time etc. later.
A lot of the Clubs have all ready set dates for their
change over dinners. Cairns Earlville is on 5th July, Cairns
Marlin Coast is on 19th June. Cairns West is having their change
over on 12th June, this is also their 50th birthday gala event at
the Cairns Colonial Club.
Relay for Life is on 5-6th June this year.
Anyone wanting to enter a team or be involved they can contact Mr.
Paul Beesley on 40570400, it is his work number.
The Rotary International Convention is on in Japan
May 23 to 26, 2004. I have forms if any members wish to attend.
Our District Conference is on in Darwin in May,
I also have registration forms for members for that as well The
dates are May 1-2, 2004.
There is a Directors meeting at the Hilton
in the Boardroom next Tuesday February 3rd at 5pm. PRESIDENT ROBYN
President Robyn
|
Rotary 4-Way Test
1.
Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
|
Tale
Of A Polio Survivor:
From Rotary International
http://www.rotary.org/centennial/lookback/your_stories/polio_survivor.html
Alakananda Mohanty, Delhi, India
It was the end of the summer of 1960
and my family and I had just returned from a rather tedious vacation
from my ancestral village. I was getting ready to start school and
I was extremely excited about wearing new clothes and meeting new
friends. I was out in front of my home when I first experienced
what seemed like flu symptoms. What bad timing — school starting
and I was getting sick.
The next couple of days were a blur
— our doctor visiting me at the house, family and medical personnel
whispering in hushed tones. It was extremely difficult to sit up
and I couldn't turn or bend my neck without a great deal of pain.
Unimaginable pain began to take over my back. Polio never entered
my mind. As a precaution, my mother informed me, I was to have a
spinal tap. And there it was — not even a margin-lined diagnosis.
Polio.
I must tell you, this was not a sympathetic
disease in any sense of the word. The next few days were a nightmare
and I don't mind telling you that when somebody from Rotary asked
me to participate here with my story, it brought back a flood of
memories that I had suppressed. Once the word was out, our neighborhood
went into immediate panic. Pools were drained. My family was shunned.
Quarantine signs went up around my house and my brother was not
allowed to go to school.
When I arrived at the city's largest
hospital with hundreds of others, I was strapped to a gurney and
lined up in the queue, as there were no beds available. My parents
were literally dragged away to avoid any contact with me.As I recall,
when I was lifted into a bed, it was by medical staff clothed in
long smocks, masks and gloves — again no contact.
If you asked me what was my worst
experience while battling this disease, I would have to say the
pain — constant, intensified, and horrific physical pain. There
was a nurse who had worked with polio patients and developed a treatment
procedure that involved massage, exercises, and wrapping affected
limbs to reduce muscle spasms and the resultant pain. When I tell
you I counted the hours in between these treatments, it is not an
exaggeration — my entire torso was wrapped.
As a result of these treatments, I
was left with blisters, but the submission of pain temporarily was
worth it. After the first few days, I had visitors. First to see
me were my parents. You could tell by their eyes they were horrified
to see what I looked like. So went my days — sobbing parents and
the constant pain. My best recollection is that perhaps two weeks
after I entered the hospital, the pain subsided, and I was to be
released to go home.
My disabilities not yet compiled, nonetheless,
I was deemed not contagious and, with many stipulations, set free.
Keep in mind, I had not had the opportunity to try and walk during
my stay and the doctors told my parents that I might never walk
again without crutches. How I must have looked as I was curled up
in a wheelchair while being pushed to my parents. As I approached
my parents, I asked the nurse to stop. I stood up and took a few
steps into the arms of my father.
My follow up visits were at the hospital
for physical therapy and regular visits to the orthopedic department.
My residual disabilities were limited to the left side of my body.
One leg was shorter and my spine had a curvature. I also had a muscle
weakness in my lower back, which has stayed with me. The road back
is never easy, but with the love and support of family and friends,
the stigma of polio affliction was soon forgotten.
I now approach the over 40 time of
my life, and some of the old aches and pain occur once again. The
bottom line is that polio survivors are just that — survivors. We
did what we had to do then and we have to make the best of what
comes along now. We live with polio everyday of our lives, be it
a bad memory, a nagging pain or a fear of a limb that may decide
to give up. But we go on.
Being a part of the Rotary PolioPlus
program seems right to me. If my involvement can spare just one
child from the agonies of this dreadful disease, then it will be
worth recounting the past.
A
Jewish Buddhist
My daughter is actually engaged to
a bal t'shuvah, a returnee to Judaism, somebody who’s off the track
and now is returning. And this guy’s a very nice young man. He was
studying Buddhism, he was into Buddhism, he was a little bit lost.
In fact he was so deep into Buddhism he was already on his way to
Nepal to study to become a Buddhist monk.
And I don’t know if you’ve ever met
a Jew who’s becoming a Buddhist, but he was a very interesting character.
In the true Buddhist tradition he renounced all his material possessions,
but he kept the receipts.
Rabbi Mordy Katz:
SMOKERS
... Time to Bag The Fag
From Barfly
Like to start the New Year with a
bang on life? Many smokers feel this is the best time for them to
quit. ut life’s pressures, as well as the added stresses at this
time of the year, can make the task a little daunting, says Philip
Feinstein, National Co-ordinator of Smokenders Australia, the international
stop smoking help group.
"Some smokers will prepare for
the stroke of midnight whilst others will just take the plunge.
Either way smokers should be aware of t he many pitfalls they may
encounter. And this is because smoking has played such a major part
of their life, whether it be smoking when sad, angry, lonely, frustrated,
bored or stressed. It’s almost like losing a close friend,” commented
Feinstein, a former 30-a-day smoker.
“Smoking is, therefore, much more
than just an addiction. Then there are also triggers like smoking
with a coffee/tea or beer, after a meal, on the phone, before starting
car, after sex, etc. Many people now realise that it is har der
to get off cigarettes than it is to get off heroin.?
Smokenders Australia, having helped
over 30,000 Australians, is offering smokers who want to quit over
New Year a few handy tips and hints:
- Drink lots of water to help in the
weaning process of getting nicotine out of the system. This will
help in cutting down on withdrawals.
If you’re thinking of using the patch,
work out your current nicotine level by multiplying how many you
normally smoke per day by the nicotine level printed on the side
of your pack. Make sure you only look at the nicotine level, as
that is the only addictive substance in cigarettes. For example,
a 20 per day smoker on a nicotine level of 0.8mg will be taking
in 16mg of nicotine into their system per day (20 x 0.8mg = 16mg).
In this case no need to use the top level of a nicotine patch.
Because cigarettes gave you a lift
(albeit artificial) start drinking orange or apple juice for a pick-me-up.
The natural sugars and vitamin C will do wonders! Coffee and tea
drinkers should be aware that caffeine also gives an artificial
lift. Try not to increase your intake. Nicotine-caffeine and nicotine-alcohol
cycles need to be addressed.
When nicotine leaves the system fatigue
often creeps in. Try getting extra rest. Do some deep breathing.
Begin to enjoy the clean fresh air in your lungs.
If you want to avoid weight-gain, take
this simple test:- Multiply the number of cigarettes you have per
day by 10 (this is the average number of puffs a smoker takes per
cigarette). For example, a 20-per-day smoker will have 200 puffs
per day. This means that they are touching their mouth 200 times
per day. When they stop smoking their mouth and hands will therefore
be looking for attention.
Many cold turkey quitters then start
to substitute food, resulting in weight gain. Be aware of breaking
this hand-to-mouth routine by not substituting mints, sweets, chocolates
and other food.
Although nicotine is not known to be
a diuretic, it often has similar characteristics and can sometimes
lead to fluid retention. If you find your rings are feeling tight
or your ankles feel bloated, you could be retaining fluid. Consider
selecting foods that tend to be natural diuretics such as strawberries,
asparagus, parsley, rhubarb and rockmelon/cantaloupe. Avoid high
sodium foods. And see your doctor if it persists.
your metabolic rate could change it
is also important to start exercising more. If you suddenly develop
a new cough it could be part of the body healing itself. The cilia
in the bronchial tubes will be clearing up, hence coughing up any
yucky stuff. There are many symptoms of recovery that can occur
and, although inconvenient at the time, they are proof that the
body is beginning to heal itself.
Some other symptoms may include headaches,
muddle headedness, bleeding gums, diarrhoea, leg pains, nausea,
vision changes and acid indigestion.
Don't go it alone ? it's always easier
when you have assistance or at least a quitting partner. If you’re
going to get advice from specialists, make sure they have been smokers
who understand how it feels. But watch out for 'reformed smokers'
who can sometimes be a pain!
When quitting smoking, watch out for
self-pity. Try to focus on what you are gaining out of the process
and not what you are losing. Make a list of all the good things
you’ll be gaining by quitting. It’s always better to go for the
positive! Think how you will reward yourself when you stop smoking.
In the past, you would have smoked often as a reward to yourself.
Base your reward on your cost of smoking:- If you spend $10 per
day on smoking that amounts to $70 per week or over $300 per month.
Over a year that becomes more $3,600 going up in smoke!
If you are quitting while on holiday,
remember that life will return back to normal when you’re back at
work and in your normal environment. This means that the old triggers
will still be there. Be aware of those situations.
Quit smoking for yourself and not for
anyone else. If you quit to please someone else, that person may
not continually pat you on the back and that can be disappointing
for some former smokers. Learn to pat yourself on the back.
One will hurt - although there are
some people out there who might only have one or two cigarettes
a month, most smokers are not like that. So if you’re going to stop
smoking, don’t think you can become one of those ‘once a month’
smokers. You’ll be hooked again very quickly. You either stop or
you don’t.
Because smoking is not just a physical
addiction, there are no magic wands. People smoke in psychological,
emotional, stress and social situations. This is why quick-fixes
and band-aid solutions do not work.
In addressing these situations, smokers
need to become introspective and look at their lifestyles. Many
people find getting professional advice is the best answer. Smokers
should never give up trying. If they've been unsuccessful so far,
it's probably because they never broke their habit. But it's n ever
too late, no matter how long a person has been smoking.
A free-call help-line number is available
for smokers wanting a helping hand. The number is available from
anywhere in Australia and a trained Smokenders counsellor will help
smokers on the spot. The free-call number is 1800-02-1000. Callers
can request a (free) pack-strap kit to identify their smoking triggers.
WEBSITE: www.smokenders.com.au
|
Home
Page