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I wanted to share my journey with covid, GERD, LPR, Hiatal Hernia and H Pylori
Hi all, just wanted to share my journey through a series of events and illnesses in hopes that this helps you and your doctor diagnose the root cause faster. tl;dr at bottom
I've never had GERD in my life ever before, nor was my lifestyle GERD inducing (vegan, high fiber, gap between dinner and sleep time). So when I started feeling GERD like symptoms post covid, I was confused about what exactly I was feeling.
Right after catching covid in Aug 2022 my throat and nostrils went super dry, it was as if I had no mucous left in me. And I started facing this wear throbbing/pulsating sensation in my left ear. These were very bizarre symptoms that I had never observed before.
My first guess was this is something to do with covid and maybe it'll clear out in a month or two. But no, it only got worse. Ear throbbing became more frequent and by now my throat started to burn to the point I would get tears in my eyes. I suspected it was due to talking a lot (too many meetings in the office) but it would still happen on weekends. I also observed this was more pronounced at night. 2 months passed and I thought I should get an appointment with an ENT.
My ENT diagnosed it as an allergic response, she felt my body was overreacting to covid. She gave me anti allergens and antacids, and some nasal sprays to get my mucous back. She said my eustachian tube might be blocked, which is why I was hearing this fluttering.
One month passed and it was as if i was cured, but there would still be some days where these symptoms would come back. 2 weeks after my dosage was complete, the issues came back. She checked again and told me it could be GERD, so avoid coffee and spicy/oily foods, and have a gap between dinner and bedtime. This time she gave a steroid for my ear problem.
Another month passed, all good, 2 weeks after my dosage the GERD symptoms came back. However my ear problem was fully resolved by now. The steroids did their job it seems.
This time she said it definitely is GERD and prescribed me PPI. She also said it could be H Pylori so you may consider an endoscopy if issues persist 4 weeks after taking PPIs. She also asked if was going through stress in life. I mean, who isn't. But it did coincide with tech layoffs back in Dec 2022, my company was impacted by that but I was safe. I thought maybe covid has increased stress levels coz usually I am pretty good with dealing with uncertainty. I thought maybe all of this is long covid as I could see news reports that covid patients end up also getting GERD.
Anyway, I took the PPIs and like clockwork, the GERD symptoms came back on the 6th week. I felt that we're not really solving the root cause but only trying to treat it symptomatically. I was also afraid that the longer I get GERD the higher the risk of cancer. This made me anxious.
I started eliminating ingredients from my diet, coffee, sugar, ketchup, sourdough bread, pineapple, fizzy drinks etc. I also started raising my bed by putting an extra pillow underneath my mattress. These made slight changes, but I'd get relief only for a day or two. I also started taking antacids on top of PPI whenever I needed instant relief. Then I removed tomatoes from my diet and I went through one week without needing any PPI or antacid. Then I tried to have a very small portion of tomato in my oats (22g tomato) and GERD was back.
I met the ENT doctor and asked for a consultation with a Gastroenterologist as well. ENT said my tonsils are enlarged and it seems there's still some allergic response, while gastro said this is typical GERD, take PPIs for another month and schedule an endoscopy. It could also be a hernia, so we'll need to check.
I was already frustrated and was basically having oats, boiled pasta with some veggies and lentil rice with just salt daily, but my symptoms kept coming back, despite taking PPIs and antacids. And I also started feeling LPR like symptoms where my throat seemed to choke me from inside.
Endoscopy was done, damn I couldn't stop my gag reflex at all. Anyway, he collected the sample and observed a small hiatal hernia. I've already had two inguinal hernias so getting my body operated to treat another hernia was pretty disappointing. It felt like my body cavity is just full of flaws, and if not for modern medicine I would've had a very bad life. It feels both fortunate and unfortunate at the same time.
He also asked me to call him if and when the sample turns pink in 24 hours. Pink = H Pylori. Well, it surely turned pink in 4 hours. This relieved me a bit because treating H Pylori was ideally as simple as taking antibiotics, and treating hernia would've meant surgery.
I went through 2 weeks of antibiotics course (Tab LEVOFLOX 250 MG BD ,Tab METROGYL 400MG BD). The first 2 days were usual, but on the 3rd day I got insane levels of nausea. You know that sickly feeling you get that makes you panic. I rushed to the doctor and he told me it's normal with Metrogyl, try to tolerate, 10 more days to go, but if you can't then there are other antibiotics. Knowing that it's expected I thought I could soldier through for 10 more days, which I did. By the 5th day it was all normal, and my GERD was completely healed, or it seemed so. Note, by now even PPIs and antacids couldn't give me relief, so whatever these antibiotics were doing was definitely working.
My course was over and now I just had bloating. The doctor prescribed probiotics and 6 weeks of PPIs. I also met another doctor, one who has operated on me in my previous inguinal hernia, just to take a second opinion. He listened to be patiently, asked questions about lifestyle, diet, stress, and told me that the hiatal hernia based on my endoscopy doesn't warrant surgery. This is a very small hernia which you shouldn't worry about. He told me this is largely to do with stress and lifestyle (I felt a bit gaslit coz at this point I was having only 6-7 ingredients daily and doing everything I could to not trigger GERD). He suggested that I try some deep breathing exercises, to strengthen my diaphragm, and carry on with recommended lifestyle changes.
Fast forward to today, and I basically feel fit. No more GERD, no more LPR. Just bloating. I even have tomato, coffee, sourdough and other trigger foods carefully and it all seems fine now. This is the fittest I feel in the last 10 months. I wish I had gone for endoscopy sooner as I could've prevented months of illness. But I'm happy I didn't delay it any further.
tl;dr. Caught covid, then GERD, thought it was long covid, had several consultations and medications, finally got endoscopy done and it turned out to be H Pylori and Hiatal Hernia. Antibiotics worked and now I feel as good as normal except for some bloating.

Hi all, just wanted to share my journey through a series of events and illnesses in hopes that this helps you and your doctor diagnose the root cause faster. tl;dr at bottom
I've never had GERD in my life ever before, nor was my lifestyle GERD inducing (vegan, high fiber, gap between dinner and sleep time). So when I started feeling GERD like symptoms post covid, I was confused about what exactly I was feeling.
Right after catching covid in Aug 2022 my throat and nostrils went super dry, it was as if I had no mucous left in me. And I started facing this wear throbbing/pulsating sensation in my left ear. These were very bizarre symptoms that I had never observed before.
My first guess was this is something to do with covid and maybe it'll clear out in a month or two. But no, it only got worse. Ear throbbing became more frequent and by now my throat started to burn to the point I would get tears in my eyes. I suspected it was due to talking a lot (too many meetings in the office) but it would still happen on weekends. I also observed this was more pronounced at night. 2 months passed and I thought I should get an appointment with an ENT.
My ENT diagnosed it as an allergic response, she felt my body was overreacting to covid. She gave me anti allergens and antacids, and some nasal sprays to get my mucous back. She said my eustachian tube might be blocked, which is why I was hearing this fluttering.
One month passed and it was as if i was cured, but there would still be some days where these symptoms would come back. 2 weeks after my dosage was complete, the issues came back. She checked again and told me it could be GERD, so avoid coffee and spicy/oily foods, and have a gap between dinner and bedtime. This time she gave a steroid for my ear problem.
Another month passed, all good, 2 weeks after my dosage the GERD symptoms came back. However my ear problem was fully resolved by now. The steroids did their job it seems.
This time she said it definitely is GERD and prescribed me PPI. She also said it could be H Pylori so you may consider an endoscopy if issues persist 4 weeks after taking PPIs. She also asked if was going through stress in life. I mean, who isn't. But it did coincide with tech layoffs back in Dec 2022, my company was impacted by that but I was safe. I thought maybe covid has increased stress levels coz usually I am pretty good with dealing with uncertainty. I thought maybe all of this is long covid as I could see news reports that covid patients end up also getting GERD.
Anyway, I took the PPIs and like clockwork, the GERD symptoms came back on the 6th week. I felt that we're not really solving the root cause but only trying to treat it symptomatically. I was also afraid that the longer I get GERD the higher the risk of cancer. This made me anxious.
I started eliminating ingredients from my diet, coffee, sugar, ketchup, sourdough bread, pineapple, fizzy drinks etc. I also started raising my bed by putting an extra pillow underneath my mattress. These made slight changes, but I'd get relief only for a day or two. I also started taking antacids on top of PPI whenever I needed instant relief. Then I removed tomatoes from my diet and I went through one week without needing any PPI or antacid. Then I tried to have a very small portion of tomato in my oats (22g tomato) and GERD was back.
I met the ENT doctor and asked for a consultation with a Gastroenterologist as well. ENT said my tonsils are enlarged and it seems there's still some allergic response, while gastro said this is typical GERD, take PPIs for another month and schedule an endoscopy. It could also be a hernia, so we'll need to check.
I was already frustrated and was basically having oats, boiled pasta with some veggies and lentil rice with just salt daily, but my symptoms kept coming back, despite taking PPIs and antacids. And I also started feeling LPR like symptoms where my throat seemed to choke me from inside.
Endoscopy was done, damn I couldn't stop my gag reflex at all. Anyway, he collected the sample and observed a small hiatal hernia. I've already had two inguinal hernias so getting my body operated to treat another hernia was pretty disappointing. It felt like my body cavity is just full of flaws, and if not for modern medicine I would've had a very bad life. It feels both fortunate and unfortunate at the same time.
He also asked me to call him if and when the sample turns pink in 24 hours. Pink = H Pylori. Well, it surely turned pink in 4 hours. This relieved me a bit because treating H Pylori was ideally as simple as taking antibiotics, and treating hernia would've meant surgery.
I went through 2 weeks of antibiotics course (Tab LEVOFLOX 250 MG BD ,Tab METROGYL 400MG BD). The first 2 days were usual, but on the 3rd day I got insane levels of nausea. You know that sickly feeling you get that makes you panic. I rushed to the doctor and he told me it's normal with Metrogyl, try to tolerate, 10 more days to go, but if you can't then there are other antibiotics. Knowing that it's expected I thought I could soldier through for 10 more days, which I did. By the 5th day it was all normal, and my GERD was completely healed, or it seemed so. Note, by now even PPIs and antacids couldn't give me relief, so whatever these antibiotics were doing was definitely working.
My course was over and now I just had bloating. The doctor prescribed probiotics and 6 weeks of PPIs. I also met another doctor, one who has operated on me in my previous inguinal hernia, just to take a second opinion. He listened to be patiently, asked questions about lifestyle, diet, stress, and told me that the hiatal hernia based on my endoscopy doesn't warrant surgery. This is a very small hernia which you shouldn't worry about. He told me this is largely to do with stress and lifestyle (I felt a bit gaslit coz at this point I was having only 6-7 ingredients daily and doing everything I could to not trigger GERD). He suggested that I try some deep breathing exercises, to strengthen my diaphragm, and carry on with recommended lifestyle changes.
Fast forward to today, and I basically feel fit. No more GERD, no more LPR. Just bloating. I even have tomato, coffee, sourdough and other trigger foods carefully and it all seems fine now. This is the fittest I feel in the last 10 months. I wish I had gone for endoscopy sooner as I could've prevented months of illness. But I'm happy I didn't delay it any further.
tl;dr. Caught covid, then GERD, thought it was long covid, had several consultations and medications, finally got endoscopy done and it turned out to be H Pylori and Hiatal Hernia. Antibiotics worked and now I feel as good as normal except for some bloating.

In the case of commercial properties in Delhi, the importance of architectural design and style can't be understated. Delhi is the capital of India and is a bustling center for business, commerce as well as trade. Delhi is filled with a diverse variety of commercial buildings which offer distinct design and architectural facets. In this piece, we will examine the importance of architecture and design in the commercial properties of Delhi and focus on a few notable designs.
Omaxe Chandni Chowk:
The most recognizable commercial building in Delhi is Omaxe Chandni Chowk. The location is in the middle of the city, the project is the perfect mix of modern designs and classic architectural style. Omaxe Chandni Chowk offers an exciting mix of shops for retail, commercial areas, and a food court. The design of the project captures the spirit of the historical Chandni Chowk area while providing modern facilities and amenities.
The Delhi Mall:
Another notable commercial property in Delhi is The Delhi Mall. It was developed by the Raheja Group, this project is situated in Karol Bagh, a major retail and commercial center. Its Delhi Mall stands out with its modern design and cutting-edge construction. It offers many stores, entertainment areas as well a food court, serving the varied demands of both shoppers and businesses.
Omaxe Karol Bagh:
Omaxe Karol Bagh is a commercial development that offers the ideal location for business in New Delhi. Its concept is focused on providing a contemporary and effective workspace to accommodate commercial enterprises and offices. Omaxe Karol Bagh is well-known for its modern architectural design and original features which makes it a desirable option for people looking to buy commercial space in the bustling city.
Best Field NSP:
Best Field NSP is a commercial building located in Delhi in Delhi. It offers an array of offices and commercial spaces. The design of the project is focused on design and function, allowing firms with the perfect environment to expand and flourish. Best Field NSP is well-connected and conveniently located, which makes it an ideal choice for buyers looking to purchase commercial properties in Delhi.
DLF Prime Towers:
DLF Prime Towers is a commercial property situated in Okhla, South Delhi. The project is awe-inspiring in its sleek style and stunning architectural design. The towers offer large and spacious offices that meet business needs as well as professionals. DLF Prime Towers is one of the famous DLF builders and is known for its dedication to excellence in design and high-end quality.
Conclusion:
Architecture and design have a significant role to play in improving the appeal and value of commercial property in Delhi. The Omaxe Chandni Chowk, The Delhi Mall, Omaxe Karol Bagh, Best Field NSP, and DLF Prime Towers exemplify the city's dedication to creating contemporary well-designed, and practical workplaces. These commercial buildings offer many choices for business owners, which include offices, retail stores as well as food courts. If you are searching for a commercial property in Delhi take into consideration the importance of architectural design and style in the projects you are considering to take a shrewd choice.
For further information about these projects, you can call +91 909009728.

I(23F) have graduated college and I am soon about to move out and join a new job as a fresher. My mother, who has physically, mentally and emotionally abused me since childhood had my Instagram account logged in on her phone. I logged in my Instagram on her phone about 3 years ago because my phone wasn't working at that time and fast forward to 3 years down the lane, forgot that my Insta was logged in on her phone.
Recently, I was chatting to a guy on Instagram and planning to meet him. Now, as you might have already predicted, my mother found out about that, took a screenshot and is blackmailing me now. She has already shown that ss to my dad, and is threatening by telling that she will show it to all my neighbors and relatives and hence tell them that how bad my character is. As a conservative parent, she thinks that talking to boys and meeting them is a 'slutty' thing to do. And I am afraid she will tell about all this to my relatives and neighbours and I will never be able to make eye contact with them.
For context, my mother has completely abandoned and disowned me. I don't talk to her at all, but she always enters my room and engages in a fight with me. She cooks food for herself but not for me even if I stay hungry. Everytime she is blabbering to her so called 'friends', neighbours and relatives that what a bad daughter I am, just because I want to live life my own way. Last week, I fell horribly ill and got diarrhea and she didn't even come to my room to ask me how I was or gave me food even when I was bedridden. When I was younger, she was about to beat me to death once, though it was a daily routine for her to beat me until I was about to get unconscious. Even though, when I was young, I was academically very good, but still I was tortured like hell.
Now my mother has manipulated all our relatives and all neighbours to believe how good of a lady she is, while I am a very bad daughter. I got into a good college, got a good job but never received appreciation or a pat on the back from her. Instead, when I got to know that I have got a job and told her about it, she called me a 'slut' and told me go and dance in a club like a prostitute as she was upset with me because a day before I have went clubbing with my friends and she again, had not liked it. My family is a nuclear family where only me, my dad and my mother lives. My dad is mostly away due to office work, but my mother has made life hell for him too. She doesn't cook food for him either. After doing all this, she tells all our neighbours and relatives that me and my dad have made her life hell.
Everytime I do something against her will (which is mostly, living my life the way I want to), she starts threatening to tell the world about how loose my character is and how I am torturing her. Since she has caught hold of this screenshot, she is telling me that it is a 'proof' of how I talk to boys and how she will soon tell the world about all this.
Can I do something so that all this can be prevented? Are there any laws through which I can sue her for breach of privacy? All this may sound weird but her blackmailing has reached it's peak and I can't bear it any longer now. What should I do? Should I sort the matter out on my own by talking to my relatives and telling about it to them in my own way, where I will give them a logical explanation of how I am 18+, how I have a job and I have got full rights to live my life the way I want to live?

I(23F) have graduated college and I am soon about to move out and join a new job as a fresher. My mother, who has physically, mentally and emotionally abused me since childhood had my Instagram account logged in on her phone. I logged in my Instagram on her phone about 3 years ago because my phone wasn't working at that time and fast forward to 3 years down the lane, forgot that my Insta was logged in on her phone.
Recently, I was chatting to a guy on Instagram and planning to meet him. Now, as you might have already predicted, my mother found out about that, took a screenshot and is blackmailing me now. She has already shown that ss to my dad, and is threatening by telling that she will show it to all my neighbors and relatives and hence tell them that how bad my character is. As a conservative parent, she thinks that talking to boys and meeting them is a 'slutty' thing to do. And I am afraid she will tell about all this to my relatives and neighbours and I will never be able to make eye contact with them.
For context, my mother has completely abandoned and disowned me. I don't talk to her at all, but she always enters my room and engages in a fight with me. She cooks food for herself but not for me even if I stay hungry. Everytime she is blabbering to her so called 'friends', neighbours and relatives that what a bad daughter I am, just because I want to live life my own way. Last week, I fell horribly ill and got diarrhea and she didn't even come to my room to ask me how I was or gave me food even when I was bedridden. When I was younger, she was about to beat me to death once, though it was a daily routine for her to beat me until I was about to get unconscious. Even though, when I was young, I was academically very good, but still I was tortured like hell.
Now my mother has manipulated all our relatives and all neighbours to believe how good of a lady she is, while I am a very bad daughter. I got into a good college, got a good job but never received appreciation or a pat on the back from her. Instead, when I got to know that I have got a job and told her about it, she called me a 'slut' and told me go and dance in a club like a prostitute as she was upset with me because a day before I have went clubbing with my friends and she again, had not liked it. My family is a nuclear family where only me, my dad and my mother lives. My dad is mostly away due to office work, but my mother has made life hell for him too. She doesn't cook food for him either. After doing all this, she tells all our neighbours and relatives that me and my dad have made her life hell.
Everytime I do something against her will (which is mostly, living my life the way I want to), she starts threatening to tell the world about how loose my character is and how I am torturing her. Since she has caught hold of this screenshot, she is telling me that it is a 'proof' of how I talk to boys and how she will soon tell the world about all this.
Can I do something so that all this can be prevented? Are there any laws through which I can sue her for breach of privacy? All this may sound weird but her blackmailing has reached it's peak and I can't bear it any longer now. What should I do? Should I sort the matter out on my own by talking to my relatives and telling about it to them in my own way, where I will give them a logical explanation of how I am 18+, how I have a job and I have got full rights to live my life the way I want to live?

5 years had past since the formation of the New Republic and the SkywalkeKenobi Academy, a new Squadron had been formed with the veteran General Hera Syndulla leading the very vessel they had become a part of. This group was known as the New Republic Rangers. This force had composed of ground troops, pilots, and others with exceptional skills. Leading this group in Syndylla's absence were Carson Teva, and Cara Dune. Hera trusted this team not only because of their reputations, but also due to her personal accounts of their advisor, Zeb Orrelios.
When the Jedi had arrived, the new Republic soldiers stood at attention in respect for the Grandmaster who saved the galaxy from the Imperial regime. Luke reunited with his old friend Wedge Antilles, X2 reunited with Grey Squadron and his wife Shara, Ezra reunited with Zeb and met the new team as well as Hera, who embraced him along with the still-so-devious astromech droid Chopper. The 3 Ghost crew members almost teared up when they found out Ezra and Sabine married.
Hera: [Through tears of joy] Ezra, Sabine, I'm... I'm... so proud of you both. I had a feeling this would happen.
Zeb: I'm proud of you too, kid. You two have grown up so much. Bet you didn't miss this bucket of bolts.
Chopper gave his version of a nudge to the Lasat and the old friends and Bridger couple said their goodbyes as they moved to their military posts.
Back at the Temple, Rex and Ahsoka had been teaching their son, Anakin Tano many aspects of their expertise, but this particular lesson was from his father who had realized that his age caught up with him.
Rex: Son, Your mother and I served with your namesake for years, and You have been made aware of my aging. This won't happen to you, but I have things I wish to leave behind. The shrine has been entrusted to Luke's apprentice, but my armor, when you get old enough, as well as my blasters will be yours. Add my helmet to the shrine, give it to Grey. Learn the ways of the Force, like your mother, and her master before you. My mission is over. Continue with yours, and protect all that you love.
With those words, the mother and son embraced in grief. With a heavy heart, Anakin tried to bring himself to give his father's helmet to the Grandmaster's padawan.
Grey: Hello, little guy. What's your name?
Anakin: My name is Anakin Tano. My father told me to give you this.
X2 had then realized who his father and mother were. He then took the helmet and remembered what to do with it. He then asked the child if he wanted to accompany him.
Grey: Do you want to see what your father had referred to?
Anakin: Sure. What is it he wanted to put his helmet for?
Grey: Your father told you of the adventures he had with your mother?
Anakin: Yes.
Grey: After the Clone Wars ended, Your father started collecting helmets of fallen brothers, essentially your millions of uncles, who he was close with. He wanted his helmet on this shrine so he could continue being with them, in spirit.
Anakin: So my father has now joined my uncles in the Force?
Grey: Yes. Like your mother and many Jedi like her believe. When we see the shrine, you can ask anyone who knew your uncles about them, any time you like.
Anakin: Thank you. For everything.
Back at the Temple, Cal Kestis had been teaching the younglings Luke's 3 forms of combat. Form 8 included the use of a primary lightsaber and shoto secondary as needed much like Niman. Luke had been training in this style after making his red shoto from Ahsoka. Form 9 included the use of saber staves, crossguard sabers, and heavy strikes. Ben Solo had been training in this form as his base for when he would create a suitable saber in the future. Form 10 included using the lightsaber as a offensive shield in tandem with a blaster. Kata Akuna, Jacen Syndulla, and Ezra Bridger were the beat students with this form, since Kata saw her father use this form, and Ezra's first blade merged the two types of weapons. As the younglings and older students continued practicing, Kestis had begun having a vision.
Figure: Your family is unprotected. Only your hatred can keep them safe. The Dark Side that you have tasted before has been your savior time and time again. There is much to learn. All you need to do is embrace it! Remember those you've lost, your masters, your best friend, the Jedi Order. Give yourself to it!!
As Cal jolted out of the vision, Merrin came rushing over to comfort the Jedi Battlemaster.
When Luke and the other Jedi returned, he began to organize a meeting of the most powerful and wisest Jedi. Ahsoka, Starkiller, Luke, Cal, and Quinlan Vos had met in a round holotable that was reminiscent of the rebel base. X2, Merrin, and Jacen Syndulla kept watch over the rest of the youngling's training.
Luke: Thank you all for attending this inaugural meeting of the Jedi Council.
Quinlan: I never sat on the council of old before, feels a little weird sitting on one now.
Ahsoka: This is a first for me as well. I remember my master and Master Kenobi being on the council, but I never got the chance.
Luke: We are the wisest that remain of the Jedi, hence why I had chosen you all to serve on the council. Those from the order of old for advisory roles, some who are powerful in many aspects, and those who are willing to provide insight to how the Jedi can be reformed?
Cal: Reformed how exactly?
Luke: Master Kestis, what was the rule on attachment in the order of old?
Cal: That it was forbidden. When I was on Jeddha, I realized that I couldn't let it hold me back. I allowed myself to love unconditionally and now I have not only the child I adopted, but my own with my wife.
Ahsoka: I also had a husband after the battle of Endor, my son and I recently lost him to his accelerated aging.
Quinlan: You had a kid with a clone?
Ahsoka: Remember Captain Rex?
Quinlan: Skywalker's clone leader? Yes. Oh, oh, ooooohhhh.
Starkiller: I also married a pilot. She has been by my side, and we have two children.
Cal: How many of us are there supposed to be, if you don't mind me asking?
Luke: We would start with 6.
Starkiller: There's 5 of us here.
Luke: I understand. We were hoping to put allowing Ezra Bridger to the council.
Ahsoka: I believe that he would make an excellent addition to the council. He has a great tie to our Mandalorian Allies, being married to one.
Starkiller: His combat prowess has not changed since he was lost for years.
Quinlan: Alright. We survived the Empire due to our bending of the rules of the old Jedi Code. This can be more my speed.
Luke: Let's bring the decision to a vote. Those in favor of appointing Ezra Bridger to this council?
Ahsoka: Aye.
Starkiller: Aye.
Luke: Aye. Opposed?
Cal: Nay.
Quinlan: Nay.
Luke: Very well. Majority has decided to welcome Ezra Bridger to the council. Motion passed.
Quinlan: Alright. Guess we can throw away the old code.
Luke: All part of reformation, Master Vos.
Cal: I understand that my family and I have been away from the galaxy for quite some time. We can learn from him as well he learns from us.
Luke: Excellent, everyone. Council adjourned.
As Ezra arrived to the council chambers in his beskar armor, he had seen 3 familiar faces which only comforted him slightly.
Ezra: Council, you have requested my presence here.
Luke: Yes, Bridger. You know Ahsoka Tano, Galen Marek, but allow me to introduce Master Quinlan Vos, and Battlemaster Cal Kestis.
Ezra: A pleasure to meet you both.
Quinlan: Likewise.
Ahsoka: You have been brought before us due to your wisdom and ties to Mandalore, as well as your ability to maintain your dedication to the light.
Starkiller: Your confidence under pressure is commendable and your composure is inspiring for the other students.
Ezra: I understand.
Luke: We invite you to join this council and we grant you the rank of Master.
Ezra was shocked to hear this news from Luke, especially when he knew he had yet to train someone to use the Force.
Ezra: Thank you for this invitation, but I have yet to be a teacher.
Ahsoka: Kanan taught you really well. You have a great ability to bond with others.
Ezra: I see. I accept the seat on the Jedi Council.
As Ezra took his seat, the remaining Jedi had begun thinking of who to train out of the students they have.
Luke: Out of our oldest students here, it seems that even though most of them are our own children, they may need to learn to have different teachers other than parents.
Cal: What about allowing attachment in the Order?
Luke: Attachment can be good, if the attachments are healthy. Some separation can be good for some of the students.
Quinlan: Like how the Jedi of old used to do?
Luke: No, Master Vos. Most of the attachments already formed have been between some Jedi and their children.
Ahsoka: We can discuss this in another meeting.
Starkiller: She's right. Let's move on.
Luke: Thank you, Master Marek. Since I already have a padawan, we have 5 students that need a teacher.
Cal: 4. Kata Akuna is well trained enough by my wife in basic combat tactics, but since her father was a Jedi, I feel it's my duty to train her in the Force and lightsaber techniques. We have been Way from the galaxy for quite some time, and I don't want to overwhelm her with so much at once.
Luke: I see. We can remove her from the list. First, we must discuss who is to train Satine Kenobi Kryze.
Ezra: I will train her.
Luke: What case do you make for the daughter of my Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi?
Ezra: She is also the daughter of Bo-Katan Kryze, leader of Mandalore. With my ties to Mandalore and wisdom previously mentioned by Master Tano, she can learn to marry the ways of the Jedi and the ways of Mandalore in a healthy and coherent way.
Luke: Master Tano, any opposing statements?
Ahsoka: No, Grandmaster. Ezra's connections to Mandalore run deeper than mine.
Luke: It's settled then. Satine Kryze will be trained by Master Ezra Bridger. Next, we have Jacen Syndulla-Dume.
Ahsoka: I will train him.
Luke: What case do you make for young Syndulla-Dume?
Ahsoka: He is the grandson of a famous freedom fighter named Cham Syndulla. Like his grandfather and mother before him, he will be one of the greatest heroes in the galaxy.
Luke: Any opposing statements?
The room had looked around for any opposition to the scenario at hand, with nothing but silence.
Luke: Very well. Master Ahsoka Tano will take Jacen Syndulla-Dume as her apprentice. Master Marek, Master Vos, would you like to teach a student?
Quinlan: I've had enough adventure for a lifetime. I'll keep the records and preserve what Jocasta Nu had attempted to maintain. She had sent many pieces of information through The Path, hopefully most of it was preserved.
Cal: I actually have some left from a holdout on Jeddha that Vader burnt to the ground a few years back.
Starkiller: I believe that in order for me to be a teacher, my personal demons must be conquered first.
Luke: We respect your decision.
As the council adjourned on Yavin 4, another Force-sensitive being has been imprisoned by a group of pirates on Nevarro. As he used his cradle pod to hide from the danger, he had heard blaster fire in the distance. A bounty hunter clad in Mandalorian style armor, by the name of Din Djarin, and a long forgotten IG assassin droid, IG-11, had eliminated the pirates guarding their bounty. The droid had orders to execute the child, but the Mandalorian had orders to bring it to a client who would pay rather handsomely for the job. After the droid fell to a blaster shot to the chest, The beskar clad hunter brought the pod to the Empire. When the hunter got there, he was paid in beskar stamped with the Imperial seal. When the hunter took his payment, he began to feel a weight slowly growing heavier on his shoulders.
After the mandalorian got paid in beskar, he returned to the undercity lair of the Armourer to Forge the pieces he needed.
Armourer: How much do you have for me?
Djarin: How much will this do?
Armorer: Whatever work you found paid you handsomely. I'll send for you when it is ready.
Djarin: Thank you.
Armourer: This is the way.
Djarin: This is the way.
As the two separated, Djarin had collected his single shot disintegrator rifle and IB-94 pistol and began to plan on rescuing the child. When he got a message from his contractor, it was to meet him at the cantina, but he made another stop to the Armourer to inspect his new armor. When he arrived there was a new complete set of armor from the shoulders down.
Armourer: You have brought a great amount to work with. What do you plan to do?
Djarin: Correct a mistake. One that if left as is, will besmirch my honor.
Armourer: This is The Way.
Djarin: This is The Way.
When Djarin arrived at the cantina, the room began to quiet down in astonishment and intimidation. The baskar clad hunter then met with the contractor, Greef Karga. To discuss the job that had gone down.
Greef: Wow, Mando. I take it the client paid you well. All that armor definitely doesn't come cheap.
Djarin: The payout was a handsome one, but I've made a mistake, one I must correct before my honor is worthless.
Greef: Why? Who was your client?
Djarin: The beskar that the client paid me with had Imperial symbols on it.
Greef: Isn't the Empire gone? What would they need- We shouldn't even ask those questions, cause that's not our job.
Djarin: I'm getting him back. This is The Way.
Karga thought that Djarin had gone crazy taking on the Empire. He then kept his head down and put away the bounty puck, saving it for another hunter who wasn't as susceptible to any hokey religions and ancient weapons, as a smuggler turned Alliance hero once said, but only susceptible to credits.
In the New Republic, Generals Solo and Syndulla had sat down discussing some military tactics for defending the new territories and liberating others, and even giving her a piece of information that he could no longer bear his portion of.
Hera: I heard that you joined us moments before Yavin and rescued the Princess of Alderaan. Your kid is studying alongside mine at Skywalker's temple.
Han: Yeah. As much as I tried with her, eventually I succeeded, little did I know that the family drama would be mine to carry along with the Skywalker twins.
Hera: The princess isn't a Skywalker.
Han: She is. Luke is her brother. I'm the only one besides Chewie, Ahsoka, and those ghosts he sometimes talks to.
Hera: Her position in the senate will be up for grabs if that information gets out.
Han: Then you will keep that secret just as I have, that Chewie and Ahsoka have, before she loses potential power in the Senate. Anyways, have we found any more Imperials?
As the conversation continued, Sabine had begun talking to Zeb about joining the team of New Republic Rangers.
Sabine: Hey, Zeb! You got an extra spot on the team?
Zeb: Sabine! Glad to see ya. Well, it ain't me you gotta talk to Marshal Dune over there. From the looks of it, we're fixing to load up. Talk to her when we get back. I'll put in a good word for ya.
Sabine: Thanks Zeb! Tell her I'm great with explosives!
She told the Lasat the last part as the ships roared to life and then as the Lasat gave her a thumbs up, a quick goodbye before they left for the mission.
On the ship, Colonel Kallus had begun talking with Hera about the plan involving the Rangers encountering an Imperial presence on Kashyyyk.
Kallus: General. What are these reports of a couple Jedi joining our group to our mission?
Hera: Since the Jedi have agreed to serve the New Republic on occasional missions, they can decide to help us or not. 2 of them have decided to help us.
Kallus: Can they be trusted? Last time the Jedi helped the Republic of old, they were massacred by the clones who were the first troops of the Empire.
Hera: I have complete faith in these Jedi. My son is one of them. Has your trip to reinvigorate the Lasat population been for naught?
Kallus: No, General. I am just airing on the side of caution. While continuing to do so, I request that I join the ground assault so I can see for myself that these Jedi can be trusted and serve as servants of the Galaxy, not just us.
Hera: Granted, Colonel. These Jedi know the planet a d will be your best bet in navigating the environment and the wookiees.
Kallus: What makes them such experts?
Hera: They were born on the planet.
As Kallus continued to don his armor, blaster, and join Dune and her forces, he began imagining two wookiee jedi, something he thought was both absurd and frightening. When he got to the hangar bay, he was met by half of his expectations.
Kallus: You two must be the Jedi accompanying us I heard so much about.
Starkiller: We are, Colonel. I am Master Marek, and this is Jedi Knight Gungi.
Gungi roared a greeting to the Former Imperial agent turned Rebel Colonel.
Kallus: You two were born on Kashyyyk?
Starkiller: Yes. Gungi you expected since he was a youngling during the Clone Wars, but my parents hid on the world and had me, until they were killed by Vader. Vader took me as his own, trained me to be his weapon, and when the Rebel Alliance was formed, they used my family crest.
Kallus was shocked to hear this information and immediately cast whatever doubt he had aside and introduced the Jedi to the rest of the team of Rangers.
In orbit above Kashyyyk, Lord Cain had been discussing a battle plan with Thrawn, hoping to keep the wookiees in chains for his cloning experiments.
Thrawn: My Emperor, We have detected a rebel fleet that has just exited hyperspace. I suggest that we send the Imperial Army troopers, with the stormtroopers in reserve.
Cain: We have enough power with the garrisons of stormtroopers coming in to relieve the last one. The army troopers are ineffective with maintaining their loyalty to the Empire.
Thrawn: With all due respect, my lord, The wookiees would believe that they would be calmer if they see human faces help them, or they would see any human face as an enemy and attack any other humans on sight.
Cain: So that's your play? Excellent idea. Send the Army troops to maintain the security of the labs and have the stormtroopers guard everywhere else.
Thrawn: At once, my lord.
Cain: My apprentice, once all the necessary vessels are left to join the battle, you must board another destroyer, so the New Republic dogs think they destroyed a command vessel. If Skywalker is not with them, You will engage the less powerful if there are more. If Maul's forces arrive, deal with the silver skinned slimo.
Lumiya: Yes, my master.
Back on Dathomir, Maul and his apprentice have been meditating on Sith teachings until Maul sensed something stirring within his apprentice.
Maul: You have slowed down your rate of study. What is troubling you?
Relicta: It's that Jedi. The one who looked like the one we killed when he tried to hunt us. When I fought him on Mandalore, he said that he and the one we fought were clones of him.
Maul: Since the one you executed wielded red blades, and the one you've encountered on Mandalore had blue blades, what he has told you is true. Vader and my late former master killed him above Naboo, when their first superweapon was under construction.
Relicta: He still has to die. I will not gain certain closure for as long as he lives.
Maul: Then the decision to hunt him down will be solely placed in your hands. Take a ship and find him, if you must. We have an army to maintain and no assured method of recruitment.
Relicta: Yes, Master.
After meditating on her decision to find Starkiller, she finally made the choice and began planning on turning many Imperial troops into her own.
As the Rangers touched down along with the Rogue Shadow, they were greeted by the hiding wookiee chieftain flanked by 3 of his guards. As Gungi communicated with them about the situation, Marek translated for the group.
In the labs, the Imperial army troopers had been watching the wookiees get poked and prodded when a couple had seen a robed figure just vanish. As the soldiers pursued the figure, Relicta knew her plan was working, she was going to lure each soldier away from their posts to defect to her side. As every Army soldier continued to maintain their post, they knew their loyalties were no longer with the Empire.
Back on Nevarro, Djarin had returned to the client with intent to kill. When the 4 stormtroopers guarding him raised their blasters, he drew his pistol and aimed his free arm at another.
Stormtrooper: There's 4 of us. No way you walk put of here alive.
Djarin: I like those odds.
As the client was frozen in fear, he saw 2 blasts bounce off the armor as the hunter fired his pistol into one trooper, and the whistle rockets from his gauntlet fired in multiple directions killing the rest, sending the client running until Djarin fired a shot into the back of his head.
As the child cooed after opening the pram canopy, the beskar clad warrior tried to assure the infant that they were safe.
Djarin: Don't worry. I'll bring you back to your kind. You can trust me.
When the beskar clad warrior returned to his ship, he made sure that the pram was protected and prepared for more Imperial Forces.
As the Rangers, Kallus, Starkiller, and Gungi arrived at the Imperial base, the former ISB Agent saw a long highway leading up to the labs, much like the Imperial checkpoint on Lothal.
In the labs, Relicta finished her work moving the army troopers to position themselves ready to attack the stormtroopers. As she evacuated the labs, she contacted her master and began hunting the Jedi that were going to rescue the wookiees.
Relicta: Master, I have increased our odds against the Empire and I'm about to destroy the Jedi.
Maul: Excellent. Happy Hunting. When you destroy the Jedi, meet me on Oba Diah. We have an old alliance to rekindle.
As the female Zabrak ordered the Imperial army troops to fight against the stormtroopers, the New Republic squad and wookiee liberators joined in the battle and fought both sides. Kallus had ordered the troops and the chieftain to surround the lab entrance while the Jedi attempted to hunt whoever made the confusing move of turning the army against the stormtroopers.
Kallus: Where are you going, Marek?
Starkiller: Gungi and I are hunting whoever forced these army troops against the stormtroopers. Call Juno if you need any air support.
Kallus: Thank you, Master Jedi! Rogue Shadow, this is Colonel Kallus, we need you to lead an airstrike against any Imperial support that my come to reinforce the labs!
Juno: On my way, Colonel! I'll evacuate the prisoners if I have no other orders.
Kallus: Duly noted, Captain!
As Gungi and Starkiller found a cloaked figure, Gungi leapt in for a strike, but as the figure teleported away, Gungi was severely wounded with a stab to his ribcage, incapacitating the wookiee.
Relicta: I know who you are, Jedi. You don't fool me for a second.
Starkiller: A clone of the one you seek, yes.
Relicta: No! You are the one who took my masters away from me!!
Starkiller: You claimed to have fought and killed me, until you saw me on Mandalore.
Relicta: You will still die for Felucia!!
Starkiller then remembered what Kota told him about his vision of this woman was. As he steeled himself for a fight against the girl that his progenitor go and activated his two sapphire blades.
Gungi was crawling away to heal his wounds and as he saw the other Jedi Master fight with such raw potential compared to the Lady of the Sith. As Relicta threw her sabers after cloaking, Starkiller then balled himself up for a lightning infused Force repulse. As the energy blasted out of the Clone, Relicta had felt her robes be singed while she was thrown back against a tree. Starkiller then saw the figure disappear again and activated his unleashed state, sending Force lightning to his sabers. As Maris attempted to block each strike that looked like a blurr to anyone unable to touch the Force, but as Maris's arms continued to be singed, her defenses fell and Starkiller delivered a saber slam infused with Force lightning, further crimping her silver skin.
As Relicta used the last of her anger, what brushed it away was the last words that she may have heard from the Jedi.
Starkiller: You should've listened to me on Felucia years ago, Maris.
Relicta: That name is dead!
Starkiller: Your misery will end, Brood.
Relicta: I have a son! You can't make him an orphan!
Starkiller realized that since she was a mother, he had to reassure her that he won't come for her family.
Starkiller: I know what it is like to care for others like a family. They will be spared if they mean that much to you.
As Starkiller stepped closer to the fear-stricken zabrak, Relicta realized that she would join her former masters soon. Starkiller spun his right blade and stabbed her heart with a reverse grip, and stabbed her trachea with the left blade. The Marek clone then tended to Gungi and made their way back to the victorious alliance.
Aboard the Razor Crest, Djarin had begun searching for answers as to where the child he had in his care belonged. When he landed on Tatooine, he landed in a city where another job was about to take place that required multiple members. One member was a former Imperial Marksman by the name of Migs Mayfeld, and the others were a rather legendary pair; one was a Gand bounty hunter with a very keen talent for psychometry named Zuckuss, and a protocol droid like partner in crime by the designation 4-LOM.
Their job entailed taking some highly classified Imperial information that was about to be declassified aboard a star destroyer above Kuat. The veteran pair were very eager to get the job done efficiently and quickly. The other two, who had less experience were very dubious about what the intel was and who should possess it.
Mayfeld: So, Mando. You ever met those two?
Djarin: No. I haven't heard if them.
Mayfeld: My former CO told me that they wre tasked by Darth Vader to find a Corellian Freighter containing rebel officers and leadership. I never liked bounty hunters, but it's better than The Empire I can say that much.
Djarin: What do you plan to do once we get the information?
Mayfeld: From what I understood from those two, they're the kind to kill any partners to grow their share. How about we turn the tables on them, you and me? Huh?
Djarin: If those two are as legendary and skilled as you say they are, killing them would serve a tactical advantage and a good monetary step up in this line of work.
Mayfeld: Good. Thanks. We'll be rich and famous, well, infamous, for taking down those two.
When Mayfeld entered an Imperial encryption that checked out the crew entered the decommissioned destroyer and extracted the information needed from two different sections of computers. 4-LOM and Zuckuss had one half of the intel and Djarin held onto the other. As their clocks ran down, Mayfeld saw information about Operation Cinder and found that his CO was a field officer in the near destruction of his post on Burnin Konn.
As the bounty hunter crew split into two pairs and eventually spread themselves out, they were on the hunt to eliminate those they believed to be loose ends. Throughout the vacant destroyer, Djarin had used his cycler rifle to move from cover to cover as he searched for the droid. Mayfeld drew his DT-12 pistols and SE-14r pistol on the hunt for the gas breathing insectoid hunter.
Aboard the Razor Crest, The child had grown worried that he was left on his own, but remembered everything he had experienced during the purge almost 30 years ago.
As Zuckuss had turned a corner near the reactor room, Mayfeld had found the perfect shot with his trio of pistols, but a slip of one of his legs let out a screech causing Mayfeld to fire on the hunter, landing 3 precise shots to his right eye, heart, and his left thigh. A stray blast from Zuckuss's blaster left a hile through the rafters of the room as Mayfeld let himself fall to the walkways and make his way to take Zuckuss's information.
As 4-LOM continued to hunt one of the lesser hunters, he slowly began turning his head to see Beskar through a corner slot before seeing the cycler round fire through the corners of the halls, missing the droid's head, causing the droid to slowly approach approach him, blasting with the DLT-19 he had stolen from an Imperial outpost on Mimban.
Djarin knew that he had time to load another shot, and as he flanked the slow moving droid, he snuck around behind him and used another cycler round to the back of the hunter's head. As the brain-like head flew off the body, the protocol droid body collapsed forward, and Djarin switched to his pistol as he thought he had to fight his way back to his ship. When he saw his ship in the hangar, he tried contacting Mayfeld about his location.
Djarin: Mayfeld? Where are you?
Mayfeld: I'm not going with you. I'm taking a TIE to the rendezvous point. Meet me back at Mos Pelgo so we can get our credits.
Djarin: Fine. I'll meet you there.
As the two landed in different ports on Tatooine, they returned to their contractor, Ranzar Malk, they were each paid 32,570 credits, due to 4-LOM and Zuckuss perishing on the job.
When the Mandalorian and Former Imperial parted ways, Djarin had continued his quest to find the child's kind.
On Dathomir, Maul had recently learned that his apprentice perished on Kashyyyk, but her passing had a massive effect on his ability to maintain his own Sith Triumvirate. He had recently taken another apprentice in case Relicta decided that the way of the Sith was no longer important to her.
Maul: As you can feel, my new apprentice, Lady Relicta has been destroyed by the Jedi. Even though both of us had agreed to train you, it seems that you will learn the traditional ways of the Sith. This begins another chapter, Lady... Talon.
Talon: Yes, my master. We will conquer our enemies and usurp galactic power on a massive scale.
End of Part 13

I've been holding on to shitty markers for 3 years because it was a gift from my sister (she never gives me gifts). Today I saw the price on amazon was $12. And I tossed them!
I gave a ton to her- even when I was broke (food stamps) lol (and she's making 6 figures). I got rid of this! It's not a reminder of love, but a reminder of ickyness.
Think Icky Vicky.
And stuff like that has made my life icky. I love how in fairly odd parents, it's kind of like a minimalist show. Because everytime Timmy got something he thought he wanted it always ended up being shitty.
The only value were the fact that Wanda and Cosmo looked after him like god parents and spent time with him and heard him out. And no material item can compensate for that.
Anyway, goodbye markers!

Ich war letztens auf 2 Street-Food-Festivals. Man rechnet natürlich mit einem etwas höheren Preis, alles nachvollziehbar und verständlich.
Aber 8€ für einen Wrap der ungefähr 1/3 der Größe eines Handelsüblichen Wraps (Referenzgröße Mci) hat, und dabei noch nichtmal teure Produkte enthält wie Biofleisch etc. Wollt ihr mich komplett hamstern?
Da der Frust groß war dann nimmt man halt den Burger vom Stand der auch in der Umgebung ein sehr guten Burgerladen hat. 14€ für einen vegetarischen (!) Burger OHNE Beilage und das ganze um 30% kleiner als bei ihm im Lokal. Damit hat er mich auch als Kunde dort verloren.
Außerdem versteh ich denn Sinn dahinter nicht, wieso bietet man nicht für 3-4€ ganz kleine Portionen an und dafür kann ich 3-4 Sachen probieren und unterm Strich geb ich erst recht wieder das gleiche aus wenn nicht mehr.
Kotzt mich an.

Hi guys,
Wanted to see if anyone could help me out here. Six odd months ago, I lost my passport a week prior to my trip. I filed a police complaint substantiated with an affidavit a couple of days after failing to find it in my house. It got submitted, then they transferred it to a police station closer to my home. They rang me up, I went there, and then they asked me questions which I answered. They said "iska FIR nahi file hota", stamped my copy of the complaint with a signature, and told me this will work at the passport office.
I filed my appointment with passport seva, went there, was told that this won't work and they need original FIR copy. They gave me more time to furnish the same, roundabout 20 odd days. Needless to say, despite all my trips to the police station, they didn't file the FIR saying "they need to enquire with the airport etc etc to ascertain my past trips with that particular passport" etc etc and this will take 3 odd months. It's been more than 3 odd months, and they apparently sent a letter to some passport department to enquire about me, but they haven't replied. Hence, I remain firmly rooted in a limbo.
Somedays, I wonder if I should take two gallons of bleach with me to the police station and threaten to kill myself, but knowing how the police works, they'd probably lathi charge me or something to death anyway so it'd be a more "pick your poison" sorta situation. So yeah, no go.
I live in Ahmedabad btw, so if anyone can provide any sort of guidance or help, I'd be eternally thankful.

Bing chat always shows "Bing AI" as the first message for me when I reload (refresh) the webpage. Why?
Hi,
No matter what link I use to access Bing chat, I always see "Bing AI" as the first message. It doesn't happen to my friend who uses the same links. Here are some examples of the links I tried:
bing.com/chat
https://www.bing.com/chat?form=MY0291&OCID=MY0291
https://www.bing.com/search?form=MY0291&OCID=MY0291&q=Bing+AI&showconv=1
https://www.bing.com/search?form=WSBSH2&cvid=57bb81df3a23470eb1930b33fe34ad3a&nclid=B8DDAFF8ADC636DEE6E10A8F6ACD9C4A&ts=1685464088607&q=Bing+AI&showconv=1
​
Image showing the error.
Image Showing The error: https://i.imgur.com/fxiUwyE.png
Does anyone know why this happens and how to fix it?

Thanks to "Sithking Zero" on the NoP Discord for editing help.
Memory transcription subject: Tellek , Farmer
Date [standardized human time]: January 19th, 2137
Has it really come to this, am I really this desperate?
I was, for all intents and purposes, broke. The last harvest had been terrible, in addition to the one before that, which was practically a deathblow for my new farmstead. The debts and missed payments had started to pile up, and I was one more bad harvest away from going completely bankrupt.
Like so many farmers before me, I was becoming another victim of the 5 harvest curse.
I told you that starting a new farm was a bad idea.
What was I supposed to do, brain, keep working in the office until I died?
I sat on my chair, surrounded by other farmers who were presumably in similar states of desperation, the room we were in akin to the schoolrooms I had been in as a pup; a desk and whiteboard up front sitting in front of the rows of chairs. Most of the twenty or so figures around me were fellow Venlil, except for a handful of Gojid and even a single Yotul who was sitting in the back, all of us awaiting the start of the ‘lesson’.
They claimed they had a solution to our problem, that they knew how to increase our yields. How could a predator know how to fix our farming issues?.
Human. Human Human Human Human. Not a predator.
Yes yes I know, I’m trying to be better about that.
I stopped my train of thought and corrected myself. Ever since the revelations about many of our allies being former predators, I had been making an effort to stop thinking of the world in terms of predator and prey. It was difficult at times, but given that I was working against a lifetimes worth of lies, I thought I was making good progress..
But even if “Predator” wasn’t the curse it used to be, how could a human claim to know how to fix our farming issues? Even if we ignored the differences between our diets, for all their advantages, humans were still far below our technological advancements.
Almost on cue, the door to the room opened up, and the figure of the human who had invited us here entered with an enthusiastic bounce, caring two large cases covered with black cloth
Unlike most, this human was unmasked, its piercing eyes and beaming teeth filled smile visible for all to see. I could feel the room start to fill with panic. Sure, logically I knew I was probably safe, but seeing the unmasked features of an apex predator caused fear to grip the edge of my heart.
I could proudly say I can walk past and interact with masked humans without wanting to flee anymore, but seeing those forward-facing eyes boring a hole into my soul was another task altogether.
Come on, you should be better than this.
I’m trying, ok!
"Hello everyone. My name is Joseph. I'm an ecology student, and I'm here to provide a solution to your farming yields." The human spoke with an unbridled joy, seeming to wait a moment while our translators attempted to explain what Ecology was, stopping half way through and seemingly giving up.
“You might be wondering why I’m unmasked, well we’re going to be covering a lot of ‘predatory’ concepts today, so if you can’t handle this? We’re gonna have bigger problems.” Joseph took a moment to broadly gesture to himself, leaving a feeling of dread to start in the pit of my stomach.
If this was just the start, what exactly was going to happen here?
Silence! Wait and see, knowing humans it’s probably interesting at the very least.
“I’ve finally been given authorization to start a trial of this program. Both the UN and Venlil governments are very interested in increasing food supply for both our people. As you might know we’re kinda at war, and logistics wins wars.”
The human paused for a moment, a shiver running around most of the room as he gave a large beaming smile.
“So to start: paws, claws, or tails up if you know about the ‘5 harvest curse.’”
The room immediately was filled with Federation species all raising their prospective limbs in affirmation. Of course we all knew what it was, that was why most of us were here.
How would the human know about that?
Basic research, simple reading, asking literally any farmer?
“Fantastic! I’m still going to explain it so we’re all on the same page. The ‘5 harvest curse’ is a phenomenon where new farms on Venlil prime often fail within the first five harvests. On a side note, the coincidental fact that five has a religious contention in Venlil culture is neat.”
I could feel an annoyance start to course through me, that the affliction currently driving me to destitution was being described as ‘neat’ by the callous predator. I mean human.
Stupid human.
Joseph either didn’t pick up or ignored my annoyance as he pressed a button, a graph appearing on the whiteboard showing expected yields over time, continuing on in his seemingly endless enthusiasm.
“So in general the five harvest curse follows a standard pattern of yields, with the first two harvests being up to 52% larger than even more established farms, plummeting after that until the business is non-viable and collapses. Officially the reason for this is unknown, with some vague religious stupidity about new farms being too far away from the center of the habitable strip.”
This was nothing new to me, I remembered feeling the joy of the sheer output from my first harvest, of wondering if I could finally make something of myself, a joy that had been whittled down as my last two harvests had been pitiful.
“However there’s an interesting thing, if you also plot the number of predator sightings during this time against the yields, you can see a direct correlation between number of predators and the success of each harvest.”
Wait, what? Is this human trying to say that predators… increase harvest? That can’t be right, that can’t be right at all. That would be insanity.
The data is literally there in front of you.
Yet it was there on the screen, a second graph had appeared on the whiteboard, tracking predator sightings over time in each of the farms afflicted by the curse.
“This tracks with most farms' general lifecycle. You buy a plot of untamed land on the edge of the habitable zone but you don’t have enough money to go full anti-predator. As the harvests come in you end up spending more and inadvertently messing it up.”
This caused a small amount of murmuring and energetic rejection by myself and the other members of the room, wiping away the previous undercurrent of fear. It was insanity, it went against everything I had ever known or been taught about farming and how the world worked. How could a predator of all things be beneficial?
Didn’t the introduction of humans also go against everything I had ever known or been taught about?
“If this effect is so obvious, how has nobody found this before?”
The sound of a Venlil challenging Joseph was greeted by murmurs of agreement from the group, causing the human to give a different kind of smile. Not a smile of joy or excitement as had been seen before, but the smile of someone who had something for this.
“Because you have. 150 years ago, a Venlil named Slavek wrote a paper regarding this. 119 years ago, Vicktal did the same. As well as Traval, Stralan, and Vilkin in between then and now. Those are just the ones I’ve found. Who can guess what happened to them?”
There was a pause, before the uplift in the back spoke up for the first time, a surety in the Yotul’s voice.
“They were diagnosed with predator disease.”
Joseph pointed at the Yotul in the back with both hands, the joy radiating from him.
“Based Space Kangaroo gets 10 points for being correct! Yep the federation has been actively suppressing anything that suggests that predators are more than some kind of eldritch evil, that and your surprising lack of hydroponics causes most planets to be dependent on the core worlds for food imports. Probably by design for control.”
Wait… that’s a good point, why aren’t we using hydroponics?
The human took a moment to switch to the next slide, showing a simple three part cycle.
“Most healthy ecological systems are made up of three parts: Plants, which are eaten by herbivores, which are in turn eaten by carnivores. In reality actual systems are far more complex than these, but as a basic understanding this will suffice. These three parts keep each other in check, each part dependent on the other, which-”
“Are you trying to say that predator attacks are a good thing? Are you suffering from predator disease?! ”
The Venlil interrupted once again to more murmured agreement, causing Joseph to give a sigh of clear annoyance in response. I wished the Venlil would shut up and just let the human talk.
“No, I’m not suggesting we airdrop a bunch of Nissa into the Capital, I'm explaining how natural systems work. Sapience obviously breaks this cycle, which if you deviate too far, you end up with something called trophic cascade."
The human seemed to wait a moment for the translator to once again fail to explain the meaning of the phrase.
I wonder how many basic concepts the federation lacks words for…
"Rather simply, the removal of one of these pieces has wider effects, reducing biodiversity and in many cases causing a complete ecological collapse. An example of this is the dust bowl effect, something the federation is well acquainted with."
There was a moment before the whiteboard changed before showing pictures of desolate barren worlds. Without any explanation I knew exactly what I was looking at. It was one of the… lesser talked about aspects of the federation.
"The Skivit grand herd are a species who go from planet to planet stripping ecosystems bare, devouring everything down to the smallest sapling. This removes important root systems that act as drainage, causing flooding and deserts to form as new plantlife lacks the structure to grow. In many cases these ecosystems are permanently destroyed, turning once lush planets into lifeless husks”.
I couldn’t help but feel sorrow for those planets. It was well known the impact the Skivit had on planets, once thriving planets of beauty. Although if I was following this human’s logic correctly did that mean…
“Now I’m not suggesting that the Skivit need a predator, that would be immoral.” Joseph cut off the thought I was about to have, seemingly understanding the logical thought many of us had picked up on. “But instead this is a real life example of damage an unchecked herbivore can have on ecosystems. If the Skivit didn’t have FTL travel they would have long ago driven themselves to starvation under their current society. It’s also not the only form of this trophic cascade.”
“Surely this doesn’t just apply to prey? Or are you saying prey are somehow inferior?”
The sound of the Gojid cutting in was filled with an unspoken challenge against the idea, inciting general sounds of agreement from those around him. Surprisingly however, Joseph seemed to respond positively.
“That is entirely correct, an overabundance of carnivorous species can also cause their own issues. Keep in mind what I’m describing here is an extremely simplified version, just the addition or removal of a single species can cause untold damage and harm to the diversity of ecological systems as the impacts are felt in the most seemingly unlikely cases.”
With that the human reached under the desk, taking one of the two covered containers he had brought with him and placing it into view.
“In Venlil Prime’s case, while the impact of Federation thinking has been reduced due to the day and night sides being mostly untouched, you still have the problem of overpopulation of certain species, and a lack of reasonable fear response from certain prey species. This has accumulated into the problem you all face.”
With that he removed the cover, causing a surge of fear to ripple through the participants around me until we all calmed down at what was underneath: A small cage, containing a single red bird busily eating seeds.
All farmer’s arch nemesis.
“This is a Flowerbird, a seed eating avian often coming in solid red, blue, or green. They are adorable, dumb as a sack of bricks and food motivated to a fault. They are also one of the biggest causes of farm yield destruction, with these birds alone being responsible for around about 41% of all losses. If we include Voidpins and other similar wildlife, farms can have up to 94% of their yield destroyed before they even get to harvest.”
Everyone in this room was familiar with the cursed avians. While your average city dweller would enjoy the sight of a flock of Flowerbirds, the farming community knew of them as a blight that devastated crops.
Joseph took a moment to open the cage, reaching inside and grabbing the bird. A small part of me wondered if he was about to devour it in front of us, before I tamped down on such an illogical idea. Of course the humans wouldn’t, we knew they didn’t do that. The Flowerbird also seemed completely unfazed about being in the meaty grasp of a predator, simply continuing to eat.
“Even worse, these things have basically zero fear response to noises and large beasts, probably due to all major predators having been removed. As you can see this specimen doesn’t mind a ‘scary predator’ grabbing it. As long as it has food, it couldn’t care less. This makes pest control tricky, as scaring them away is no longer an option. Poisons would be used in such a case, but they can have wider ranging effects, and poisoning prey is considered ‘Predatory’, not that many of you haven’t tried ‘accidentally’ leaving potential pesticides out.”
This caused a sway of discomfort to sweep through the room, tails switching in guilty movements as everyone tried to hide the truth of this human’s words. I knew I personally had considered such actions in desperation.
I mean, would ‘accidently’ leaving out a known poisonous chemical really be a sign of predator disease?
“Ha! I know enough tail language to know I’m right, that’s guilt isn’t it? I’ve read your internet, I know your discussions on loopholes about what is and isn’t predatory!” Joseph cried out in triumph as many of the Venlil of the room reached out to grab their traitorous appendages. “Now normally I would just tell people to stop being idiots, but in this case we can’t do that. Ironically because predators are actually dangerous. Because of your slaughter the only species left are ones aggressive and smart enough to survive. Shadestalkers are legitimately dangerous and can’t be left to interact with the farming community because people will die.”
The words from Joseph all sounded so… reasonable at this point. However, I, along with the rest of the room, were all desperately waiting for the other paw to drop. Because there would be, humans always had something they were about to do.
Almost in response to our thoughts the human placed the second container on the desk, covering up the first in response.
“Humans have dealt with this problem in a simple way, a way that our Yotul friend over there will know of. I need all of you to please remain calm and orderly, and to remember that you’re perfectly safe and there’s no need to overreact or panic. Humans dealt with this pest problem, through the use of safe predators.”
Before anyone could properly react to those words, the cover of the second container was removed, showing… a predator. An actual one, not a human but an actual real threat. Small piercing front facing yellow eyes attached to a brown feline form, sulking from the cage it was being held in.
Speh speh speh speh that’s a PREDATOR, A FERAL PREDATOR
If it was a danger the human wouldn't have-
NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO DO NOT LIKE NO NO NO NO NO NO NO.
The panic in the room was immediate. Sapient human predators we had gotten used to, but none sapient ones were another deal entirely. Chaos started to spread as the 7 in the front row got up, pushing themselves up against the back wall as everyone else in the room did the same. Three Venlil made the choice to bolt out of the room, rushing past the human and his tiny devourer, while another clean fainted, hitting the floor with a thud. One even decided to take things further, jumping out of the singular window attached to the far wall in a frantic motion.
I could feel fear overwhelm me, desperately staring at the feline and waiting for it to make its move. What was the human thinking, it was going to attack at any moment, it was going to-
“STOP, Stop this stupidity. Right. NOW!”
The stern commanding voice of Joseph caused everyone in the room to freeze. The calm enthusiastic demeanor of the predator was gone, replaced with an emotion I’d never actually seen a human show before: anger.
“It has been six months! Do you really still believe that the UN or the Venlil government would put you in actual danger? You’re still thinking based on your stupid fascist Federation propaganda. Thinking that tells you that the Yotul are primitive, or the Venlil are weak. Propaganda that says genetically modifying people against their will is morally OK”
I knew that humans normally bared their teeth in joy, as a sign of happiness and friendship. This wasn’t the case right now, as everything in Joseph’s body language screamed of rage, of pain, of words spoken through gritted teeth. Nobody in the room was focused on the predator in the cage at this point, instead all eyes staring at the human. Suddenly the feline mattered a lot less than the anger of the human.
“That sort of thinking leads to the belief that killing over a billion innocent people is somehow the right thing to do. You are all presumably intelligent sapient adults able to think things through logically. Could you all please act that way?”
I could see the swishes of shame from the other Venlil’s tails, everyone in the room avoiding eye contact guiltily. Well, apart from the Yotul, who had remained seated and calm this entire time, staring almost joyfully at the feline predator. The human, of course, was completely right. Taking a moment to force myself to think, the predator was safely behind metal bars and was making no move to attack, seemingly content to stare lazily at us.
You finished overreacting?
Shut up, brain.
“Also, at the risk of ruining the angry vibe I’m giving off, is the guy who jumped out the window OK? Jesus Christ, we are two stories up, do we have to call someone or….”
Joseph had relaxed a little in response to the group calming down, allowing the normal empathetic nature of humans to come through once more. Slowly I made my way to the window, looking down to see a singular Venlil running off into the distance.
“I-I think he’s fine.” I responded, causing the human to give a sigh of relief in response.
“Good. Note to self, do this in a room without windows next time… or maybe just the ground floor. So, to continue where I left off, humans have used tame predators as a natural non-invasive form of pest control since we started farming. This is a cat, completely harmless unless you’re a small rodent or bird. They also have this effect.”
With a flourish Joseph removed the covering for the cage containing the Flowerbird once more, the red little avian had been busily eating during the entire presentation so far. However upon spotting the Feline predator did something none of us had ever seen before.
It stopped eating. Wait, the human managed to get a Flowerbird to stop eating! I didn’t even know that was possible…
Giving repeated alarmed chirps it moved as far away as it could from the predator, still trapped inside the small cage, a frantic fear obvious on the poor little thing. Joseph let this go on for a few moments more, before dropping the cover back on and silencing the Flowerbird once more.
Everyone in the room was shocked. You could literally scream and shout all you wanted at the dumb little birds and they would ignore you and continue to devour crops. The fact that the feral predator had managed to stop the bird from doing that simply with its presence… was huge. Was more than huge.
“As you can see, the instincts of the ‘prey’ animal still remain. Presumably, whatever predator used to hunt these Flowerbirds has a resemblance to our cats. Normally it would be sacrilege to suggest introducing cats to an ecosystem, but in this case your ecosystems are so messed up that’s exactly what we want to do: Provide any farmer who wants one with a kitten, in order to quickly reduce yield lost to pests.”
I would be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t interested. On the one hand having a vicious predator in my house, where my pups would visit seemed like something a predator diseased individual would only consider. On the other hand, nothing else I had ever tried had even come close to the simple effectiveness shown here.
Would I be this desperate and in debt if I had one of these “cats” already?
“So I can see you’re all still a little worried, so we’re going to have a little discussion, for which I need a volunteer-'' The Yotul in the back practically fell over with excitement, with his arm raised immediately as he interrupted, causing Joseph to give a small smile. “One who isn’t a Yotul. I know your history with similar pets, and we are totally going to hook you up with a cat, but for this I could do with a Venlil please.”
The Yotul sat back down, a look of disappointment plastered over his face as the rest of the room shifted uncomfortably. Nobody wanted to be the person to step up and presumably get closer to the predator. Until I found myself raising my hand.
Brain, what the hell are you doing?
You said you wanted to be better, and we’re desperate.
NOT LIKE THIS BRAIN!
In a blur I found myself being introduced to the room and being told to sit at a chair next to the desk in front of the rest of the members here. Then, to my horror, Joseph opened the cage and took the feline predator out of its holding cell. The human took a few moments to fuss over the beast before turning to the rest of us.
“So now that we have our volunteer, let's logically look at our ‘dangerous predator’. The first thing to notice is simply the size. Regardless of anything else, size matters, size matters a lot. It’s hard to feel threatened by something that you can literally throw across the room.”
Joseph took a moment to hold the small creature next to me for context, highlighting just how small the predator actually was: barely the size of a Skivit, like a furry little pup. Logically if it wasn't for the forward facing eyes, I might consider it… cute?
“But what about its teeth and claws? It’s a predator that will tear people apart!”
The voice of the Gojid sounded out, a shrill fearful voice filled with barely contained panic and fear, the source of the sound looking ready to flee even though they weren’t the one sitting next to the predator
“Let's compare these. Tellek can you please extend your paws and show your claws to the group.”
I did as asked, my four black claws visible for all to see as Joseph moved the predator close. He stretched out one of its paws and pressed on a knuckle, a singular sharp claw protruding as he did so, causing a fresh burst of fear to erupt in my heart from being so close to such a thing.
Although if I was to be fully honest, if I was comparing the two, the predator’s claw were…
“As you can see, the cat’s claw, while sharper, is far smaller and more brittle. A Venlil can do some serious damage with their claws, while the worst this cat’s claw could do is break the skin. The teeth are similar, if you could show the group your pearly whites please.”
I again did as asked, feeling embarrassed and weird just having my mouth wide open in front of everyone. I hoped that there was nothing stuck in my teeth. While I did Joseph manhandled the cat again, taking a moment to move the lips and display the sharp needle point teeth, doing so for a moment before the small predator gave a small lazy growl of annoyance, clearly reaching the end of its acceptability.
“Once again we have similar results: Notice the small size of the cat's teeth compared with the Venlil’s. These would pierce skin, the Venlil’s would pulverize bone. Gojid aren’t much better with your literal claws and a back full of knives. Ironically enough the two ‘predators’ in the room are probably the least physically imposing.”
There was a moment as the room seemed to ponder this statement, allowing Joseph enough time to place the cat on the desk next to me, the predator promptly giving a stretch then curling up into a ball. The human was right, even humans themselves were physically… underwhelming, apart from their endurance. No claws, small teeth, no defensive armor or spines.
It’s kinda sad to think the only reason we’re all so scared of humans is their eye placement.
“Now the UN and Venlil government are looking for people to use cats as pest control to increase farming yield, with an initial trial size of about 100 participants. We’re offering a stipend for food, instructional care of your kitten, and as much support as needed. There are risks, for instance you’re going to need warning signs near your property and a containment system, as cats are actually dangerous to the Dossur.”
I could hardly hear Joseph speak, my entire concentration focused on the predator right next to me. I knew logically that the human wouldn’t do something to bring me to harm, but it was difficult to think that with a potentially feral predator right next to me. I saw its eyes fixate onto mine and I quickly looked away.
Maybe if I don’t look at it, it won’t take it as a challenge.
However much to both mine and the rest of the room's shock, slowly and carefully the cat stood up, stretched once before walking purposefully towards me, the room erupting into cries of worry as it leapt off the desk and onto my lap, curling into a ball with me trapped underneath.
“H-h-help…. Help…..!”
The human turned to look at me, breaking into a smile seemingly at my misfortune and giving a small chuckle.
“Awwww, she likes you. As you all can see cats share a lot of characteristics with ‘prey’. They will often seek companionship from others, and have a lot of prey characteristics, being at times skittish due to having many natural predators.”
That was good and all, but didn’t stop me from being trapped under the beast.
I don’t want to think about what could cause a predator to become prey.
“W-What d-do I do?”
Joseph gave a small shrug in response, clearly amused by my reaction.
“You could try petting her. Her name is Sprinkles and I can confirm she likes pets.”
You see brain, this is what happens when I let you do things! Now I'm trapped by a predator and I'm gonna die!
Stop being such a pup, the thing is tiny. Besides, don't humans claim petting stuff is nice?
Slowly I reached out a paw, gingerly approaching the predator, those yellow slitted eyes regarding my exposed arm as I gently placed it on the "cat", running my paw across its back.
I felt my held breath release as the predator did nothing, some of the tension of the room releasing in the instant.
"So interesting thing about cats: they 'chose' to be domesticated."
Joseph had gone back to talking, seemingly happy that I wasn't about to be torn apart. I had stopped listening, entirely focused on keeping the predator satisfied by running my paws across its fur.
Isn't this nice? I gotta admit I understand why humans like doing this.
Fine. I'll admit that this isn't unpleasant, the cat is rather soft.
"When humans originally started farming, that also attracted pests. Cats just turned up, following their food source. They stuck around because humans would feed them and provide companionship."
I was entirely focused on the cat at this point, running my claws through the fur, feeling the predator press itself against my paw, seeming to be enjoying itself. Gently I moved my claw to the back of one of its tiny little ears, scratching behind it like you might do to comfort a young pup. It started to emanate a low vibrating noise in response, causing another wave of tension to emit from the rest of the room.
For some reason, even though this feral predator was sitting on my lap, the sound seemed to vibrate through my heart in a calming motion.
Maybe this is some kind of predatory hypnosis?
Really? Just shush and enjoy this. Being scared of everything all the time is so tiring.
"Nobody needs to worry. That is just the sound a happy cat makes, it's called purring. Although I do need to take Sprinkles back now."
Joseph motioned towards the cat on my lap, a motion I decided to ignore, enjoying petting the purring cat for a few moments more. Eventually the human reached down and removed Sprinkles from my grasp as I momentarily resisted before letting the feline go.
See, that wasn't so bad.
Brain, I will admit- reluctantly- that I would have preferred to keep doing that.
With a small amount of resentment I watched as Joseph placed the cat back inside the cage, before turning back to the rest of the room.
"So anyone who is interested, stick around and we can get the paperwork completed."
—-------------
In the end eight of us remained, 5 Venlil, 2 Gojid, and obviously the Yotul. We had spent the last half a claw having instructions and paper work thrust upon us. Many of the group had immediately left, with others dropping out as various facts of cat ownership became apparent.
Still, those of us who were left behind were now heading to our respective farms, each with a single carry case. Mine was currently containing a gray and black “kitten,” which had been “meowing” loudly during the entire journey.
I looked simply at the little bundle of fur and eyes that peered out from inside the cage I had been given. Part of my mind still screamed danger, but it was a part that was getting quieter and quieter as I continued to look at what was a small fragile bundle of fur that I was now ultimately in charge of.
How could you look at something that’s hardly bigger than your paw, and think it’s a danger?
As I reached my farm, I finally opened up the container and pulled out the tiny predator. My tiny predator. There would be work to do, fences to erect and warning signs to place, but for now I just held the tiny thing in my paws, supporting it in the way I’d been told to. I now knew why humans spent all their time trying to pet things: with the troubles on the farm I hadn’t felt this calm in several cycles.
He was more energetic then Sprinkles had been, but in a way the more skittish nature pulled at my heartstrings, as if it was a small innocent Venlil pup. I sat there stroking it, realizing I still needed to give him a name. He was fluffy, Tiny, innocent, fragile. Yet with an underlying spice as it continued to meow loudly as I held in my paws
“I will call you Fireberry. My little predator.”

I’ve been living with my inlaws for over 9 months now and just hate it. My husband (then bf) and I had been living together for about 6 months before his mom moved in with us for her cancer treatment.
His mom is very difficult to deal with and everyday I live in constant stress of facing her. It all started even before we started living together. It started when he told her that we were dating and wanted to get married. She started calling him at odd hours and crying to him about her insecurities concerning me. Then expected me to call her everyday. I am very introverted and never liked calling anyone. Somehow, after a lot of fights with my bf, she was okay with me calling once a week.
Then, there were issues relating to her moodiness. She kept feeling hungry all the time and got annoyed at weird things. Things got worse when she would randomly give me silent treatment and then I would stop talking to her. My mom also came over to take care of her sometimes, but I felt that would result in frequent episodes of MIL disrespecting her. She would bear it, but I couldn’t and I requested her to stop visiting her. MIL would keep my house dirty (still does, but it’s better now, thanks to DH), demand that things be cooked for her even before us (who would go to office and had to get lunch packed for ourselves), run the washing machine to wash just 2-3 clothes, leave the lights and fans on wherever she goes, leave the boiled milk outside the fridge all day and stop me also from doing so, waste a lot of food and leave the geyser on without any use. And I started to complain to my bf because I wasn’t used to all these habits. I agree the timing may have been wrong but these habits really got to me. But I was the one who ended up apologising to her for all this.
Then there was so much drama over our marriage. It was first supposed to happen at his native place (in UP) and as per his traditions, but due to his mother’s sickness, we had to do it at mine. My parents were more than willing to arrange for everything. Then happened the drama over the date of the wedding. Was supposed to happen on Dec 5 initially, but later due to her sickness and less time for prep here (they only said in the last min that they were incapable of doing it at their native), all decided it would be on Jan 27th. Now, again a few weeks before the wedding, they requested to postpone by another 10 days because his mom was immunocompromised due to her chemotherapy. There was no guarantee that she would be able to attend the reception even after 10 days. Also, in their tradition, the groom’s mother does not attend the pheras. My parents very politely explained to them that rescheduling again and again would be very difficult. And they didn’t understand that till date. My parents suggested a court marriage, they disagreed. They suggested having just the pheras on 27th and a reception later, they didn’t agree to that as well. Till date they are mad at my parents and they are not on talking terms. So the wedding still happened on Jan 27th and after that they called my parents and disrespectfully stopped them from visiting me at my house in their presence (they want to live with us in the future and that means my parents can never visit me). I’m so mad at them and will be till they apologise to my parents. They’ve blocked them everywhere and don’t want to be in touch. In a way, it’s a good thing for me cuz of all the drama they do and things my parents get to hear from them.
Now, after our marriage, inlaws have been mostly nice with me, but it really annoys me that all my freedom has been snatched away. I’m under constant stress. They ask me to touch their feet EVERYDAY, pray EVERYDAY, wear sindoor, bichiya and a glass bangle in each hand EVERYDAY. It’s really uncomfortable and I don’t like wearing all these symbols of patriarchy. I don’t mind on occasions or whenever I want to wear them, but hate to do it everyday. My husband does these things in solidarity with me, but we both face discomfort. Initially they expected me to wear a bindi everyday. I wore, but slowly stopped. But one day my FIL again reminded me to wear a bindi on western outfits. The problem with me is I can’t be assertive, I can’t say no, but that one day I just said it doesn’t go well with western. He told me I had to wear these things as I was married. MIL took my side that day and asked him not to force me for this. But I cried all day. I hate people asking me to do things I don’t like. Now, the treatment is done and I can’t wait for them to go away to their native. FIL is retiring this year and I’m afraid they’ll move in with us. I don’t want them to. I want my space and my freedom. Right now, I just want them gone to their house and I want my house back with me. I hate that they have hijacked it. I want to get rid of the sindoor, those glass bangles and all signs that display patriarchy. If I had it my way, I would not want to live with them ever. I’m fine taking care of them, they could live nearby and occasionally visit us, but I don’t see myself living with them permanently. I have had panic attacks, my heart rate goes up very very frequently and my mental health ruined because of them. My husband is trying to help me, do things with me, calmly handling his parents, but he can’t keep them in a separate house. Parents in their culture live with their sons, and he being the only son has to keep them. I can’t live with them like this but don’t know how else to deal with this. Everytime I visit my parents house, I feel so free. I feel I can live my life on my terms. Then I’m reminded that I need to call MIL everyday even from here or she’ll start complaining and annoy us even more. I don’t like calling her as she gives me stress and makes me feel guilty for coming here. Then I get even more frustrated and it leads to fights between me and my husband.
My husband is the absolute opposite of them. Values logic and reasoning. Doesn’t believe in imposing things on anyone. Believes in ‘live and let live’. Whatever progress we have made on this topic, is mostly because of him. But he too has become frustrated. I’m afraid if this goes on for long, it’ll cause the end of our relationship and I don’t want this. Please help!

Digital technology in the early years: The importance of everyday learning opportunities to build young children’s digital technology skills

This factsheet will support early childhood professionals to:

• broaden their understanding of the inclusion of digital technology in the early years
• explore effective strategies to embed play-based digital practices
• support children’s concept development of digital technologies

As a co-author of the Early Childhood Australia (ECA) Statement on young children and digital technologies, can you explain the rationale for creating this statement? How can it support educator practice with regards to building children’s digital technology skills?

The ECA Statement on young children and digital technologies was created to support adults to make decisions about technology use ‘with, by and for’ young children. Increased recognition in the sector that young children use a range of technologies at home and in their communities, for playing, communicating and accessing online content, suggested that digital learning in early childhood settings was timely. The statement highlights four main areas of children’s learning and development: relationships, health and wellbeing, citizenship, and play and pedagogy. It also invites educators to think about how they understand technologies and the role of technologies in the lives of children and families.
This includes thinking about what is known as ‘philosophy of technology’ (Gibbons 2010). Philosophy of technology is a body of knowledge that proposes different ways of thinking about the relationship between people and technologies. Just as there are theories of play and learning that educators can refer to, there are philosophies of technology educators can draw on to think about using technologies with children. Three of the main philosophies of technology are technological determinism, substantivism and critical constructivism. Technological determinism is the most commonly held view. This view suggests that technologies cause or determine what happens to people. Some people hold a negative view of determinism: for example, thinking that technologies reduce the quality of children’s imaginative play. Other people hold a positive view of determinism, believing that technologies support children to communicate with others. Substantivism considers how technologies shape practices, or what people do in their daily lives over time. Critical constructivism posits that technologies are always designed and used by people according to human values. This view suggests that people can make active choices about how and why they use technologies that are relevant to their lives, such as people using videoconferencing during the pandemic to connect with family and friends.

The Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF) refers to five Learning and Development Outcomes for children. Outcomes 4 and 5 explicitly mention the inclusion of digital technologies in children’s learning. What are some effective learning experiences that explore everyday opportunities to build children’s understanding and use of digital technologies?

Technologies are part of children’s lives; however, not all educators are comfortable with using technologies in children’s learning. Rather than focusing only on the technology in digital learning, think instead about the ways in which technology creates opportunities for meaning-making. For example, making meaning using technologies may involve taking photographs, creating videos or slideshows, co-sharing digital content, or coding with robotics. Meaning-making can also be about understanding how we live with and use technologies in our daily lives. Meaning-making for understanding does not have to involve using working technologies. Children can create their own non-working technologies from available materials (such as boxes, blocks or paper) to participate in sociodramatic play that provides opportunities for talking about how and why technologies are used. For example, children might make their own mobile phones and use these in their play to send messages to each other and take calls. Educators can help children in this play by inviting children to use technologies in ways that are respectful of relationships. Are the children having a pretend meal together? Can educators invite children to put their phones away while they eat? Or if children are taking pretend photographs of each other, educators can be sure to model asking for consent. Educators can also create representations of technologies that help children learn about the internet and how information and data are shared over a network: for example, using string to ‘connect’ non-working devices in a home or office corner to help children learn about the internet as a network of connected technologies. Children can ‘send’ messages, emails or content to each other as paper notes attached to the string. Educators can invite children to consider if they know who is sending them messages or where the content has come from. This provides children with an everyday opportunity to learn about the internet and safe online behaviours.

The VEYLDF states ‘Assessment is designed to discover what children know, understand, and can do’. What does this look like in terms of children’s trajectory of learning around digital technology? How might educators connect their observations of children engaging with digital technology to children’s learning and development across other domains?

Children are likely to follow a developmental trajectory when using technologies due to their experiences using technologies at home and in the community, with their family, friends and peers. Children’s experiences with technologies are variable and so they will come to early childhood education and care settings with a range of technological knowledge and skills. This can depend on the access children have to devices, reliable internet and opportunities for adult engagement during technological activity. Educators can observe how children build their capacity to use devices over time. This is important because some basic operational knowledge with technologies is required of children as they enter formal schooling. For example, do children know how to turn technologies on and off? Can children point, touch, swipe and resize using a tablet? Pre-school aged children may also exhibit technological language, such as download, upload, click and save, and will probably know the difference between still and moving images. This language helps children communicate and share information with other people, including family members and peers. When children use technologies, educators can also support connections with digital media or content that supports children’s identity. For example, which programs or games do children enjoy at home and how are these recognised in the classroom? This can be achieved by providing children with access to pretend technologies and apps, such as a cardboard box representing a touchscreen device, with cut-outs of their favourite applications. Other examples include learning about digital media interests alongside children, examining and sharing storylines, or providing opportunities for children to express digital media interests through more traditional play, such as box construction, drawing or painting. Using internet-connected technologies also provides opportunities for children and educators to access information to resource play and learning, such as through video content, or well-curated resources from reputable early learning providers in topic areas including science, mathematical thinking, history, music and visual or performing arts.

The VEYLDF identifies eight Practice Principles that illustrate the most effective ways for all early childhood professionals to support children's learning and development. One of these Practice Principles is ‘Partnerships with Families’. What are some effective strategies to engage families in discussions about digital technologies and young children?

Families are central to children’s learning and development. When educators engage in discussion about technologies with families, they can help adult caregivers facilitate positive digital learning opportunities for children at home. The VEYLDF states ‘Early childhood professionals … actively engage families and children in planning for ongoing learning and development in the service, at home and in the local community’ (VEYLDF, p. 9). Many organisations in Australia are involved in promoting and supporting young children’s safe and productive engagement with technologies, with tip sheets, videos, infographics and games. Educators can invite families to use these materials with children to explore topics such as staying safe online, being active with technologies, using technologies to support social relationships, and fostering children’s digital play.

What would be some final key messages for educators who want to support children’s digital skills and understanding?

Two key messages are important for educators thinking about supporting children’s digital skills and understandings. The first message is to start involving children in digital opportunities that feel achievable within the service. Not all services have access to technologies and not all educators feel comfortable using technologies with children. Programming can involve using non-working technologies in children’s play, such as using a block in pretend play as a mobile phone, or teachers creating representational technologies for children to use in the home corner (for example, printed life-size copies of tablet devices). Working technologies do not need to be complicated. While coding, robotics, digital microscopes and augmented reality provide highly engaging learning opportunities, children can also learn from educators modelling appropriate technology use on more accessible technologies, such as touchscreen: for example, by asking permission to take photographs or fact-checking information online. It may also be helpful for services to complete a technology audit – such as the eSafety checklist for early learning services – to see which technologies are available for children and where these might be integrated with ongoing learning opportunities in the service. For example, digital music can be incorporated into rest times, or children can be provided with opportunities to create digital drawings alongside traditional mark making.
The second message is to understand that young children today are part of a digital world. At any one time there are more than 8000 satellites around the earth that are sending and communicating information and data. It is becoming harder and harder to isolate children from technologies because so much of the world is now digital. It may be more helpful to think intentionally about supporting children to live within a digital world. The VEYLDF states ‘Early childhood professionals … use intentional teaching strategies that are always purposeful and may be pre-planned or spontaneous, to support achievement of well-considered and identified goals’ (VEYLDF, p. 15). This shifts the pedagogical focus from trying to keep children away from technologies to thinking about the purposeful use of technologies with children, allowing children to develop the knowledge and skills they require to participate in a digital world.

Questioning and listening

Asking questions and then listening to the answers can propel children’s learning, and it is this approach that is at the heart of an inquiry model. Questioning and listening are essential in any learning relationship, and they are both part of an active process where you do not just listen and question children but also interpret, respond to and make meaning of their thinking and learning processes.
The pedagogical strategy of listening can provide educators with a new framework in which to consider their role in children’s learning and development. When educators look deeply at what holds children’s attention, the result is that children and adults are able to recognise capabilities and qualities in each other.
Do not always rely on asking questions and trying to provoke answers as a way of engaging with children. Educators who give children the time, space and resources to think long and deeply are often rewarded with rich responses.

‘The right question at the right time can move children to peaks in their thinking that result in significant steps forward and real intellectual excitement. Although it is almost impossible for an adult to know exactly the right time to ask a specific question of a specific child – especially for a teacher who is concerned with 30 or more children – children can raise the right question for themselves if the setting is right.’ (Millikan, et al 2014, p. 69)

The value of questioning cannot be overstated, particularly when working with a pedagogy of inquiry. You need to consider what directions you are leading children with your questions, as well as what type of questions you ask children. Are they ‘thick’ questions or ‘thin’ questions? That is, are they questions that are open ended and encourage children to think broadly or do they close off children’s thinking?

Wonder and uncertainty

Wonder and uncertainty are necessary dispositions for learning. Both of these dispositions are considered important when working with a pedagogy of inquiry. As Moss says, ‘Such learning is also more likely to happen and be welcomed when wonder or amazement are valued’ (Moss 2019, p. 74).
Rich learning opportunities can happen when you include these dispositions in your daily practice. This is not a closed-off, linear way of working but rather one that allows you to remain open to the ideas of children, their families and your colleagues.
When you work with dispositions of wonder and uncertainty, it encourages a flexible way of thinking and working in which hypotheses might be made but are also subject to change. This is not an approach that has pre-determined outcomes.

Top tips for working with a pedagogy of inquiry

• Read, listen or watch something that might shift your thinking or that supports you to develop a growth mindset. Learn something new to bring back into your work with children. This does not need to be related to early learning. Learn something that fires up your neural pathways. An educator’s area of interest or enthusiasm can have an inherent trickle-down positive impact on children.
• Adults can often anticipate difficulties and resolve them for children, and this does not give children the opportunity to think for themselves and provide solutions. Educators should aim to create a culture of ideas rather than a culture that provides all of the answers.
• Design your environments carefully, with attention paid to the intentional use of resources, materials and provocations, and provide children with extended periods of time to re-visit these.
• Educators need to follow children’s footprints – that is, the directions of their learning. This is only possible through a process of reviewing and reflecting on your documentation materials. It can be useful to consider what you know, what you don’t yet know and what you would like to find out more about. Gathering clues about children and then asking rich, deep questions adds great value to the development of any inquiry project.
• Give children time to be curious, to wonder, and to discuss and adjust or change their opinions.

This fact sheet was developed by the Early Years Unit at VCAA

This fact sheet was developed by the Early Years Unit at the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) and supports information presented in the VCAA on-demand webinar ‘A pedagogy of inquiry to support integrated teaching and learning approaches’. Watch A pedagogy of inquiry to support integrated teaching and learning approaches webinar video.

References

Duckworth, E 1996, The having of wonderful ideas and other essays on teaching and learning, Teachers College Press, New York
Edwards, C, Gandini, L and Forman, G (eds.) 2012, The Hundred Languages of Children: The Reggio Emilia Experience in Transformation, 3rd edn, Praeger, Santa Barbera
Moss, P 2019, Alternative Narratives in Early Childhood, Routledge, Oxfordshire
Touhill, L 2012, ‘Inquiry-based Learning’, NQS PLP e-Newsletter, No. 45

Using the VEYLDF to inform your practice

As part of the Education and Care Services National Law (National Law) and the National Quality Standards, the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF) is an approved learning framework. As an approved learning framework, it has the potential to make you a better educator and your practice more contemporary.
The VEYLDF allows us to reflect on learning and development outcomes for children. As educators, we can reflect on our own practice in supporting all children by considering if our work aligns with the Practice Principles. The VEYLDF provides us opportunities to inform our pedagogical decisions and to critique or challenge our existing practices.
The VEYLDF also provides a shared language and understanding for all early childhood professionals and can inform conversations with families, colleagues and other professionals working with young children.

Additional resources that might be useful

Download copies of VCAA early years resources.
Keep up to date with new resources and professional learning opportunities by subscribing to the VCAA Early Years Alert.
A pedagogy of inquiry to support integrated teaching and learning approaches
Download the fact sheet

‘The hands lead us to learning’: Enhancing and extending children’s fine motor development through playful learning experiences

This fact sheet is for educators who want to better understand:

• how educators can think more broadly and deeply about fine motor development in infants and children
• the interplay between fine motor development occurring in play and in relationships with adults, caregivers and peers
• the importance of routines as learning experiences with embedded fine motor learning opportunities.

Introduction

Children’s fine motor skill development – that is, their ability to use their hands – is strongly connected to their play.
Infants’ efforts at motor control commence early. An example of this is the infant who actively reaches towards the face of a person who is physically close to them and engaged in a responsive and attuned relationship with them; the adult, carer or older sibling is perhaps smiling and ‘cooing’ while they are focusing their gaze on the face of the child, who reaches out towards their face.
We understand, in general terms, that the progression of motor development occurs from the centre of the body to the periphery, known as proximodistal progression, or from larger motor control to finer movements. However, over time we have gained a more balanced and nuanced understanding of motor development and we can now see early fine motor development before trunk control is consolidated. Gross motor development leading to core stability and support remains foundational, but earlier attention is now given to fine motor endeavours of infants, with an appreciation that ‘the hands lead us to to learning’.
We understand that gross motor development and fine motor development occur simultaneously and in the context of responsive relationships and purposeful learning spaces. Adults engaging in contingent and attuned interactions with infants provide ‘serve and return’ opportunities and rich responsive learning experiences. Children actively engage, using their growing fine motor dexterity and strength alongside their learning in other developmental domains such as language and cognitive capabilities. It is the interplay between these supportive relationships and children’s growing capabilities that fosters children’s wellbeing. This is now understood to increase the likelihood that infants will confidently explore their world and this exploration is in large part through their hands.

Can you explain the relationship between gross motor skill development and fine motor skill development? How does one support the other?

When we consider that gross motor skill development and fine motor skill development occur simultaneously, we can see the importance of early childhood professionals providing positive and responsive interactions and relationships throughout the day. The way the early childhood professional engages with the infant or young child provides opportunities to progress development.
The early childhood professional who ensures regular ‘tummy time’ is providing opportunity for infants to strengthen muscles, leading to greater core stability. This core stability is foundational to the later skills of sitting up, crawling and walking. These are important skills indeed, however, there is a need to balance this ‘tummy time’ with opportunities for the infant to be positioned on their back, or in a supported sitting position, where they are freely able to explore with their hands.
Thinking of fine motor development at its beginning stages helps us to actively create opportunities for children to explore with their hands. This in turn promotes children’s sense of agency and wellbeing, which is often associated with using their hands. The more children actively do, the more they feel that they can build, create, explore and express themselves.
We are often quite mindful of assessing children’s physical skills progression. Learning experiences, including playful routine times, provide golden opportunities to assess children’s sequential fine motor development from reaching and releasing, from palmer grasping to pincer gripping and so on. Progression along trajectories of learning (including motor skill learning) becomes apparent and provides the basis for tailored learning experiences.
It is important to consider children who require additional support with gross and fine motor skills. Thoughtful planning ensures we set up environments in which all children can feel confident in developing their gross and fine motor skills and feel a sense of agency and control. As we delight in their endeavours, with thoughtful planning we can build children’s sense of wellbeing, identity and connection to their world. Children become able to confidently explore and engage with social and physical environments through relationships and play.

What kind of playful fine motor learning experiences should educators consider when setting up early learning environments for children three to five years old? What are some effective playful strategies for supporting fine motor development?

Three to five years is a fabulous age for more complex play scenarios, with children using multiple learning domains simultaneously and in increasingly sophisticated ways. Again, ‘the hands lead us to learning’ and this is expressed in so much more than just writing and drawing. Indeed, children are extending and consolidating an increasing range of skills at this age.
The work of researchers Susan Knox (2008), and Karen Stagnitti and Louise Jellie (2006), can be used here to consider planning for play in reference to four elements: Space management, Materials management, Pretend play and Participation. This research, while based in occupational therapy, aligns well with the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF) and places children’s wellbeing at the centre of play. Practitioners are encouraged to consider how to promote participation by all children, inclusive of all abilities, through careful consideration of the environment, materials and pretend-play opportunities. This research provides a thorough and holistic view of children’s learning, recognising that children bring increasing cognition, language, social skills, fine motor development, creativity and agency to their play. Child-led play is key, but the educator must also consider how to promote play opportunities that take children beyond their most frequented play spaces. This requires a more creative use of learning environments, inviting children to participate in spaces and skills they may not have previously sought out independently.
One example is to set up a restaurant, where children are invited to navigate the space and engage with a variety of fine motor skills during a complex pretend-play scenario. This embeds learning in meaningful ways, with multiple learning areas at play. Children can take on various characters while engaging, negotiating and problem-solving. Fine motor skills are practised purposefully as children take written orders, write or draw a menu, cut up paper to make money, set up a cash register, dress up as waiters, pour drinks, prepare food and set up tables. The opportunities are endless and can be tailored to children’s interest and skills to provide challenge, practice and delight. For example, bi-manual skills are promoted in this scenario when opening containers and stirring bowls of food, where hands undertake different tasks at once – one hand holding and stabilising while the other hand turns or stirs.
Educators need only a creative mind in planning for all four elements, and the learning opportunities are endless (‘Early childhood professionals … use intentional teaching strategies that are always purposeful and may be pre-planned or spontaneous, to support achievement of well considered and identified goals’ [VEYLDF p. 15]). Inclusive thinking may see this play space provided outdoors, inviting in children who may be less likely to engage indoors (intentional support strategies also promote equitable participation in play for all children and meaningful ways to demonstrate learning [VEYLDF p. 12]).
A creative and inclusive approach asks us to consider the environment in numerous ways, offering a wide variety of materials, setting up play spaces that invite self-management and challenge, and following the increasingly complex play scripts or pretend-play scenarios of young children.

What are some everyday routines for children that might provide opportunities for supporting fine motor development?

Routines and transition times offer a wealth of fine motor experience and abundant opportunities for promoting children’s agency and self-responsibility. Additionally, they are highly repetitive daily experiences – treasures for practising fine motor skills. Encouraging independent skill development during these times, with warmth and high expectations for children, can turn a range of daily tasks into important learning rituals.
These rituals connect children to their peers and to their space, building confidence, connection and wellbeing. Children’s active participation provides many and varied fine motor movements at different times, such as taking care of their belongings at entry and departure times, dressing and undressing, setting up for meals, toileting and setting up play or rest areas.
Regular communication with families allows the progression in children’s skills to be shared between educators and families. This can reveal collaborative opportunities across home and the early years setting, and align our expectations for children. Playful and routine practice opportunities abound, with partnership between educators and families building children’s confidence and capacities (VEYLDF p. 9).

‘To play or not to play’: The role of the adult in understanding and collaborating in children’s play

This fact sheet is for educators who want to better understand:

• the role of the adult in supporting children’s learning and development through play
• how to build reciprocal relationships where children and adults are co-contributors to the creative process.

When we think about play within the early learning context, we often think of it as being ‘fun’ and occurring naturally – it is often referred to as being universally understood. Is this the case, or is it more complicated than that?

Children’s play encompasses many ways of being and becoming. Play is linked to fun, but this is just one way of being and does not speak to the complexity of play. Fun is fleeting. Parts of play can be joyful, frustrating, exciting, annoying, challenging, hilarious and, at times, uncomfortable. Play includes many emotions and experiences. Sometimes children are excluded from other children’s play – is this fun? What children are doing in play is complex – navigating limbs, expressing ideas, listening to others, creating novel worlds and negotiating with peers. Therefore, the emotions and feelings that children experience are varied.
Children are experimenting with and expressing their worlds, and the collaborative activity of play requires many skills. Ebbeck and Waniganayake (2016) tell us that in play ‘children are constructing an identity – who they are, what they know and what their joys and fears are, as well as their sense of belonging to a family and a community’ (p. 3). This understanding captures the richness of play, which is not limited to one way of being. Seeing children’s play as multifaceted allows educators to holistically understand children in the early childhood context.
Play is a universal activity that children engage in, as reflected in the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child (UNCRC, 1989). But while there are similarities that occur in children’s play across the world, when we look at and hear what children are doing and expressing in their play, we see that it is also informed by their culture. For example, in dramatic play, being ‘Bluey’ or making cakes in the sand pit are activities that are directly taken from the child’s day-to-day culture. The people, places, objects, practices and rituals in the child’s culture fuel their play, and play is thus an expression that reflects the culture the play is taking place within.
Children bring into the early childhood setting individual, family and community experiences that reflect their culture, giving educators a rich tapestry to understand the child’s perspective of their world. Roopnarine’s (2011) quote is helpful to understand the links between play and culture: ‘A fundamental problem with universal claims about play is that they basically ignore contrasting realities of childhood experiences and cultural forces that may help shape caregivers ideas about play and early learning, and children’s role in their own play.’ (p. 20)

Given that there are many different theories that inform our approaches to children’s learning and development, does the role of the adult vary in supporting children’s development in play?

Theories can inform teaching practice, as being able to hold other ideas and perspectives allows us to see things differently. Theory is helpful for understanding the world around us, and in the early childhood education and care (ECEC) context, theories can inform and change our practice.
Developmental theories are varied and vast, and contemporary framings have become quite different from the more foundational knowledge, reflecting the diversity of our societies. The field is not stuck on linear and fixed stages. Practitioners work with the children in their care, taking into consideration their contexts, environments and families, and using various theories and research to inform their practice.
Teaching practice varies, and theory and research can assist educators’ practice. For example, contemporary theories remind us that children’s play is not simply something that happens naturally; these theories consider group dynamics, equity, social justice, advantage and disadvantage, and the way power moves between the players. They also explore the ways that understanding children’s lives outside the early childhood setting can inform teaching and program planning. Contemporary theories can open us up to other views, and while many of these have existed for a very long time, they haven’t always been prioritised to think about children, context, difference and learning.

How can we ensure that the play opportunities we create for children help build collaborative and reciprocal relationships between adult and child?

The following diagram from page 15 of the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF) shows the three aspects of integrated teaching and learning, and holds great clues about the educator’s role in children’s play.
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This diagram can be used by educators and teams to reflect on their practice. Guided play and learning prioritise the educator responding to spontaneous learning opportunities. Reciprocal two-way exchanges create a balance of children guiding adults, and adults guiding children in dialogue and action. This becomes an improvisation that follows unknown paths, opening up opportunities to collaborate by creating something that did not exist before. When adults are playful with children, multiple perspectives are valued in the collaborative space.
Thinking of educators as co-contributors to the creative process of play speaks to the notion of responding to children’s interests. However, it is useful to adapt this slightly to instead think about responding to the child’s learning. Interests can be transient and surface-level; focusing on children’s learning is more expansive and process-orientated, as learning involves both thinking and enacting through play. This way of working asks educators to respond to spontaneous opportunities that arise, and play affords this responsive practice. Play is a relational activity between children and place, children and objects, children and children, and between children and adults.
Educators are respectfully cognisant of not wanting to take over too much control of children’s play, and when they improvise with children, finding a balance of following and leading, they can incorporate multiple children’s ideas and wonderings in the embodied play narratives. When teachers make use of children’s expertise, it supports children’s agency as their decisions influence the current events within the play. The playful interactions between the educator and children are fluid and unpredictable, mirroring drama pedagogue’s use of an improvised inquiry. Of course, we would not advocate that the educator enters children’s play all the time; this does not align philosophically with play and the ECEC context. However, at times, being a co-player with children speaks to a responsive pedagogy where creative collaborations can occur in play.

What is the relationship between play and learning?

When adults engage in play with children, they can incorporate formative assessment to develop their understandings of the children and inform their planning. Socio-dramatic play is one way children express their imagination. When educators are with children, they are hearing and seeing children’s imaginations enacted, giving rich information about their learning. In play, children are also blocking out other distractions to problem-solve in the moment, and taking on other perspectives, both from other players and in their own role-play. These are all skills that are linked to our executive function, which is the ‘process of how we learn’ (Yogman et al. 2018, p. 6).
When educators are respectfully engaging with children in play, they are part of the collaboration, co-creating something that is novel and only exists between the people in this activity. If educators are only observing from the outside, how can they understand this process? When educators are part of children’s play, they are in the heart of the learning, and it can open up opportunities for understanding children’s working theories and learning processes. What the educator notes when they engage in the play can be documented as part of the planning cycle, and analysed so that understanding the child’s learning within play is extended through planning.

1. Sydney Sweeney faced backlash for telling Variety that she had to "fight" for her role in Reality like other actors. She said, "I had to audition for it. I had to put myself on tape and send in my audition just like everybody else."
2. Bryce Dallas Howard was criticized for sharing entertainment career advice without mentioning the leg up she got from her dad, director Ron Howard, who cast her in most of her early roles. On Instagram, she wrote, "My peers and I were fortunate to attend one of the best drama schools, but there was a massive gap. While school gave us an amazing foundation, we finished our formal training and still felt stuck because we were told our only option was to wait for someone else to hire us."
3. On his podcast Let's Go! with Tom Brady, Larry Fitzgerald, and Jim Gray, Tom Brady said, "I almost look at, like, a football season like you're going away on deployment in the military, and it's like, 'Man, here I go again.'"
4. Discussing the challenges of having a public-facing career, Alicia Vikander told the Sunday Times, "Sometimes, you go through things that are tough in life, and if you have an office job, you can step away for a bit."
5. On the topic of being a working single mother, Gwyneth Paltrow told E! News, "I think to have a regular job and be a mom is not as, of course there are challenges, but it's not like being on set."
6. On fellow nepo baby Hailey Bieber's YouTube show Who’s in My Bathroom?, Gwyneth Paltrow said, "As the child of someone, you get access other people don't have, so the playing field is not level in that way. However, I really do feel that once your foot is in the door, which you unfairly got in, then you almost have to work twice as hard and be twice as good."
7. Ariana Grande's fans called her out over a since-deleted Instagram post, which she captioned, "When you're cute but you're also the hardest working 23-year-old human being on earth."
8. Popular vloggers the ACE Family faced backlash for their video "WORKING AT A RESTAURANT FOR 24 HOURS." In a Snapchat video that Catherine Paiz, the mom of the family, shared while filming, she said, "Guys, we are literally working right now, at a restaurant. Austin [McBroom, her partner] has been making food for the past hour, and I've been taking orders."
9. While accepting her Best Director award for her work on The Power of the Dog at the 2022 Critics Choice Award, Jane Campion said, "I'd also just like to give my love out to my fellow — the guys. The nominees. And you know, Serena and Venus [Williams, whose biopic King Richard was nominated for several awards], you are such marvels. However, you do not play against the guys — like I have to."
10. On an episode of her podcast Anything Goes, Emma Chamberlain described why she thought having a 9-5 would be easier than being a self-employed influencer. She said, "Because you're an employee of somebody else, mentally, it's easier for you to disconnect after work so that you can enjoy all of your free time to the fullest without having to think about your job. Whereas, when you're self-employed...you never stop thinking about it.."
11. Discussing her modeling career, Kendall Jenner told Love Magazine, "Since the beginning, we’ve been super selective about what shows I would do. I was never one of those girls who would do, like, 30 shows a season or whatever the fuck those girls do."
12. In her episode of Variety's Actors on Actors, Jennifer Aniston said, "I feel so lucky that we got a little taste of the industry before it became what it is today. More streaming services — you’re famous from TikTok, you're famous from YouTube, you're famous from Instagram. It's almost, like, it's diluting the actor's job."
13. After facing backlash for accepting the role of Tex Gill, a trans man, in Rub & Tug, Scarlett Johansson told As If magazine, "You know, as an actor, I should be allowed to play any person, or any tree, or any animal because that is my job and the requirements of my job."
14. Discussing being an actor during the pandemic, Saif Ali Khan told the Quint, "During the lockdown, we quietly sat at home for six months, wasted our lives and lost our time. But now, when the government is saying go out and work to support the economy, we are in the frontline again. It's a high-risk profession, almost like working at a hospital."
15. On Twitter, Addison Rae joked about landing a job as a UFC correspondent despite dropping out of Louisiana State University's sports journalism program to become an influencer. She said, "I studied broadcast journalism in college for three whole months to prepare for this moment."
16. And finally, Elizabeth Hurley once called non-famous people "civilians." In 2000, she told Larry King Live, "I think for a civilian to go out with somebody in the public eye is a pretty awful proposition, to be quite honest."

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I’m located in California and was renting a room in a family home. On May 31st (the last day of my lease) at around 9:40 pm, I arrived at the house with my boyfriend and his brother to retrieve the last of my boxes/items. The family is often still awake at that time and I did not think it would be an issue, but when we got there my landlord said it was too late. I said that I had to get my things, and she started to yell and demand that we leave - she even threatened to “defend her home” if we didn’t go. She had not stipulated which guests I could have when I moved in, but she was especially irate about my bf’s brother. He’s 19, quiet, and wouldn’t hurt a fly, but he is a tall, big young man. He and my bf grabbed as much as they could and then got off her property. I finished getting my things and moved them outside while she and her husband blocked the doorway. They would not permit me to check that I had not left anything. Unfortunately, my boyfriend realized that in the stress of it all he had left my suitcase packed with clothes, my journal, family heirlooms, and fine jewelry that would cost at least $1300 to replace, on the porch. I did not see it when I was moving my things as I was only focused on getting out as quickly as possible. Her porch is not very visible from the street and she lives in a relatively nice area.
The next day I politely texted her and asked if she had my suitcase to which she responded that anything I left last night was abandoned and in the trash. She didn’t mention the suitcase but said she had thrown out my food. She also said that she had cameras everywhere (I was not aware of any) and I asked if I could see the footage of the porch but she refused. I told the police that my belongings were left on her property and after speaking with her the officer said that we would choose a time convenient for both of us and do a walkthrough of the house with an officer. Nevertheless, when I tried to set up a time with her she said she could only do today at a specific time and refused to pick another date. Despite how important this is to me, I had an appointment at that time which was even more important. Is it illegal for her to refuse to be flexible, and what should I do if it is? Does the other information incriminate her as well, or are my rights in these areas less clear because I’m a lodger? I have no interest in doing her any harm but I am a struggling college student with no money.

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Investing in commercial property in Gurgaon can provide a reliable source of rental income. The city's growing demand for commercial property for sale in gurgaon ensures a steady stream of tenants, offering an opportunity for long-term rental returns. With Elan Developers' reputation for delivering high-quality commercial projects in gurgaon, investors can benefit from professional management and maximize their rental income potential.
This Article is also published on medium.com
https://medium.com/@pranilshah053/the-future-of-commercial-real-estate-in-gurgaon-elan-groups-projects-leading-the-way-41aec600275c

My job are asking us to come back one day a week after working fully remotely for the last 3 years. There is absolutely no aspect of the job that can't be done working from home and our production has improved year-on year since COVID with people working from home so it doesn't even make sense from a business perspective.
Whenever it was discussed with management it was suggested that a return to blended working would take into account people's preferences and needs in terms of childcare and time spent to traveling etc
There's a housing crisis in Ireland, where I live and it was impossible to move out of my parents house in Dublin so I finally took the opportunity after 2 years of working fully remote to move to a different county where I could afford to rent. I am living here now with my boyfriend and we've just bought a house. And suddenly the job want us back One day a week non-negotiable no flexibility no consideration given. I had been told (although it wasn't a definite) that we were going to be given the option of 4 days in one week per month rather than one day a week which would have cost me significantly less money on train tickets and travel time per month as I could have stayed with my parents.
It's causing me significant stress on anxiety it's going to cost me a lot of money it's going to take a lot of time and energy out of me every week and it's not even needed for me to be able to carry out my job. There's a cost of living crisis which it's only contributing towards through cost of travelling and the foods and coffees and all those things that will come along with it. All the additional travel required is contributing to global warming on emissions. There's going to be a reduced workout put because people are going to be making conversation in the office which I personally I'm not interested in but obviously have to participate in when I'm in there. My current team are all temporary stuff you are planning on leaving in September to return to college etc on our not interested in building working relationships. There is zero benefits to forcing us to do this on its causing me a huge amount of stress and I'm so pissed off because when I raised it with them they totally disregarded it and don't give a s***.
I'm so angry they can just do this I'm at the government haven't done something to legislate for people's rights around this. It literally helps to reduce so many of the issues we're having in this country to allow people to work remotely; climate change, the housing crisis, cost of living crisis, mental health, GP shortages, decentralisation. It's so obvious!!!! Wtf is going on.