In My Hands Today…

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The Six: The Untold Story of America’s First Women Astronauts – Loren Grush

When NASA sent astronauts to the moon in the 1960s and 1970s, the agency excluded women from the corps, arguing that only military test pilots—a group then made up exclusively of men—had the right stuff. It was an era in which women were steered away from jobs in science and deemed unqualified for space flight. Eventually, though, NASA recognized its blunder and opened the application process to a wider array of hopefuls, regardless of race or gender. From a candidate pool of 8,000, six elite women were selected in 1978: Sally Ride, Judy Resnik, Anna Fisher, Kathy Sullivan, Shannon Lucid, and Rhea Seddon.

In The Six , acclaimed journalist Loren Grush shows these brilliant and courageous women enduring claustrophobic—and sometimes deeply sexist—media attention, undergoing rigorous survival training, and preparing for years to take multi-million-dollar payloads into orbit. Together, the Six helped build the tools that made the space program run. One of the group, Judy Resnik, sacrificed her life when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded at 46,000 feet. Everyone knows of Sally Ride’s history-making first space ride, but each of the Six would make their mark.

Poem: New Year, New Beginnings

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New Year, New Beginnings

The clock strikes twelve, a year takes flight,
Leaving echoes in the falling night.
Confetti rains, a glittering shroud,
On memories whispered, on dreams avowed.

Then dawn ignites, a canvas bare,
Painted by the hopes that fill the air.
Resolutions bloom like fragile buds.
Visions whispered where doubt once thudded.

Unburdened steps, on frosted streets,
Embrace the chill and the promise it brings.
For yesterday’s scars, though faint they trace,
Hold no dominion in this open space.

Let go of burdens, shed the tears,
With laughter’s light, dispel past fears.
Each page unturned, a chance to soar,
To rewrite stories, mend, and explore.

Embrace the dawn; let the echoes ring.
A melody of hope, like a sparrow’s wing,
New beginnings, a phoenix’s flight,
Rising from ashes to the morning light.

So raise a glass, to chapters turned,
Dreams ignited, lessons learned.
May this new year bring joy and happiness.
Fill every corner with light and zero bias.

Let resolutions soar, like kites on high,
As aspirations blossom, reaching the sky,
The New Year is a canvas, pure and bright.
A masterpiece of chances, bathed in light.

In the New Year, like a blooming flower,
We find the strength, the inner power.
The year lies open, a boundless quest,
It’s a new year and with these new beginnings, everything is blessed.

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In My Hands Today…

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The Bells of Old Tokyo: Meditations on Time and a City – Anna Sherman

From 1632 until 1854, Japan’s rulers restricted contact with foreign countries, a near isolation that fostered a remarkable and unique culture that endures to this day. In hypnotic prose and sensual detail, Anna Sherman describes searching for the great bells by which the inhabitants of Edo, later called Tokyo, kept the hours in the shoguns’ city.

An exploration of Tokyo becomes a meditation not just on time but also on history, memory, and impermanence. Through Sherman’s journeys around the city and her friendship with the owner of a small, exquisite cafe, who elevates the making and drinking of coffee to an art form, The Bells of Old Tokyo follows haunting voices through the labyrinth that is the Japanese an old woman remembers escaping from the American firebombs of World War II. A scientist builds the most accurate clock in the world—a clock that will not lose a second in five billion years. The head of the Tokugawa shogunal house reflects on the destruction of his grandfathers’ “A lost thing is lost. To chase it leads to darkness.”

Recipes: Apple Halwa

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Happy New Year! Here’s wishing every one of you a year that’s filled with love, hope, happiness and positivity!

And to start the new year, here’s a sweet dish that I made some time ago. I had many apples at home, which would all start to go bad at the same time. So instead of requesting everyone to eat them, I decided to make apple halwa with some of them. It was delicious and is something I will make again when I am craving something sweet.

Apple Halwa

Ingredients:

  • 3 medium-sized red apples
  • 1.5 tbsp ghee
  • ¼ cup + 2 tbsp sugar, brown sugar, or jaggery
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp raisins
  • 10–12 almonds and cashew nuts

Method:

  • Peel and grate the apples and set them aside.
  • Finely chop the almonds and cashew nuts.
  • Heat the ghee in a pan over medium heat.
  • Add the chopped nuts and once they are brown, remove them from the pan with a slotted spoon and keep them in a kitchen towel until later.
  • Add the grated apples and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and most of the liquid has evaporated. This should take about 7 to 8 minutes.
  • Add the sugar or jaggery and mix well.
  • Once the sugar or jaggery has melted into the apple, add the cinnamon and continue cooking, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and pulls away from the sides of the pan, which should take about 5–7 minutes more.
  • If the apples are sour, you may need to add more sweetener to taste and adjust the sweetness if needed.
  • Add the raisins, almonds and cashew nuts, keeping some aside to garnish and mix well.
  • Serve warm, garnished with chopped nuts.

Notes:

  • Use any variety of red apples you like, but sweet and crisp apples will work best.
  • For a smoother texture, the apples can be blended after cooking before adding them back to the pan.
  • This halwa can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

2023 Week 52 Update

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Here’s wishing every one of you readers a very happy 2024! I wish you a joyous and prosperous New Year filled with good health, love, and laughter. May all your dreams come true in the year ahead!

2023’s last quote is an unknown Chinese quote. The quote speaks to the profound connection between our mental and physical well-being and suggests that inner peace and emotional tranquility have a significant impact on our physical health. The quote suggests that there is a symbiotic relationship between emotional or mental well-being and physical health. When the heart, or inner state of being, is tranquil and content, it contributes to overall bodily health. Stress and emotional unrest can have a significant impact on physical health. Conversely, a calm and at-ease mindset is seen as conducive to maintaining a healthy body. The quote reflects the understanding that the mind and body are interconnected, and the state of one can influence the state of the other. Mental and emotional well-being can contribute to physical wellness, and vice versa. It aligns with holistic approaches to health that emphasise the importance of addressing both mental and physical aspects for overall well-being. Attaining a sense of ease in the heart is seen as a key component of this holistic perspective. In essence, the Chinese proverb encourages individuals to recognise the impact of emotional well-being on physical health. It emphasizes the value of maintaining a calm and content heart as a pathway to achieving and preserving overall health and wellness.

This year has been a good one for me, especially career-wise and I am at a happy place there. GG started university and BB started his national service, so they are also in a good place. BB does need to think about his future and what he wants to do in life, so that is something he needs to work on, especially before he finishes his basic military training.

All in all, I can’t complain about 2023 and am looking forward to the new year. I hope that this year brings a year of happiness, health, love, positivity, and joy.

Here’s to a blessed 2024!