Mangoes and cyclones
MANGO trees all over, even here in the cooler and wetter Central and Eastern divisions, are just overwhelmed with mango flowers and young buds, at the moment.
It looks like we will reap the benefit of a golden and bountiful harvest of sweet ripe mangoes this coming season.
It just takes a really torrential downpour of rain and very strong winds to drop these young flowers and buds, to change everything. Luckily –– well at least here in my neighbourhood –– the mango flowers are surviving the brief showers and the current strong winds.
As each day passes, the flowers become buds and the ability to withstand the downpour steadily increases. Delicious sweet mangoes on the horizon! Apart from the rains, there is another damper to this scenario.
Like the old folks say, a good mango season is a sure sign of impeding cyclones. While that is based on generations of observations and occurrences, there is really a simple science behind it.
Prolonged hot and sunny weather with less torrential rains –– after a good wet season –– provide the very conditions to enable flowers to remain on the trees to bud and fruit, resulting in a bountiful harvest or heavenly sweet mangoes.
However, that very same prolonged hot and sunny conditions –– especially if it is the waters to the far north-west of Fiji –– raises seawater temperature to provide the right and necessary conditions for low pressures and cyclones to generate and drift south east towards us.
So our old folks see the visible part of that cycle –– lots of mangoes followed by cyclones.
The science show the intricacies, the delicate balancing involved, and the necessary conditions, to ensure the outcome that we are bound to see. EDWARD BLAKELOCK Admiral Circle Pacific Harbour
Listening tour, representation
THAT much-publicised listening tour of the Opposition parliamentarians may have been almost forgotten but hopefully it will have given those politicians a good insight into the issues and problems facing the people on the ground. The question is Why? Why did they feel the need to do this?
There is a fundamental flaw in our current electoral and parliamentary system. By doing away with constituencies and the individual parliamentarian elected by, and representing the people in a particular religion of the country, the people have been deprived of a representative especially dedicated to serving their needs and bringing their issues to the central government.
Likewise I believe the parliamentarians put more time and effort into promoting the policies of the political party they represent, then in listening on the ground.
When in the past, the parliamentarians were elected by a small group rather than by the whole country they had the onus and the opportunity to listen to the people. Whether they did this faithfully is beside the point. At least we, the people, felt that we had one individual up there in Parliament to whom we could voice our concerns.
Is the current system really working in the best way for the people of this country? TESSA MACKENZIE Suva
No ribbon for victims
I APPLAUD Mr Chang for his acknowledgement of victims of crime (FT 01/11) as we celebrate Yellow Ribbon Day to support prisoners and their families.
While it is a noble gesture indeed to provide counselling, vocational training and other support to prisoners as well as employment opportunities for them extramurally, little if any support is offered to those, as Mr Chang mentioned, left scarred physically and mentally for life after sexual and other assaults. In my case, I was questioned for an hour by police after the offence was committed before being taken to hospital.
The doctor asked the nurse to clean my neck. No one up until that point had pointed out or treated my bleeding neck where the offender had used a knife and of which I wasn’t aware.
There was no full medical examination, no swab taken, no woman present from the women’s assault unit, no prophylaxis given, no counselling or testing for HIV/AIDS despite their being protocols in place both by police and the Ministry of Health in response to victims of sexual assault.
When I was attacked by three men who came into my home with knife, baseball bat and scissors, after they robbed me, threatened to kill my small dog and left me blindfolded, gagged and with tied wrists, what support was offered to me?
When the DPP summoned me to court as principal witness for the aggravated robbery case, my employer did not offer me special leave, instead, made me use my annual leave. While I feel some compassion for the loved ones for perpetrators of such crimes.
I had to get back up on the proverbial alone. I can imagine how some victims of crime would be left broken both physically and mentally.
No one rushed to support me; no one pinned bright ribbons on trees to remember those whose lives have changed forever. Except you, Mr Chang. Thank you for your good heart.
JULIE SUTHERLAND Tamavua, Suva
Breast and prostate cancer
Thank you The Fiji Times for putting up my story about support towards my wife’s breast cancer on your People’s corner.
I will always reiterate the same statement again, my advice to all women in Fiji, especially young women are to please go for an early check –– up at the nearest hospital.
Since the month of November is dedicated to men’s health awareness by the Fiji Cancer Society especially on prostate cancer, I would say the same thing to our men and boys, please go for an early check-up at the nearest hospital. I believe Oceania Hospitals is offering special tests for men on prostate cancer, liver cancer and lung cancer for a certain fee.
That money you could have spent it on liquor/ kava and other social obligation, but health is important to us all. JIOJI MASIVESI CAKACAKA Tadra- Votualevu, Nadi
Thanks Fiji TV
I would like to thank Fiji Televison and Fiji FA for bringing Fiji FACT games live to Fijian homes.
Fiji TV has the best camera, replay angle and the commentator Nadeem Mohammed is just good to listen to after so long. Overall Fiji TV has a better way of presenting games. The experience in the media industry for 26 years is showing during the Fiji FACT. Fiji TV has always been number one when it comes to live game broadcasting.
The camera graphic is also great, clearer audio and cancellation of unnecessary noise during commentary is top notch. Thank you Fiji TV and Fiji FA. I would also like to thank the Rewa team for thumping Labasa 4 nil.
We showed them who the real boss of Fiji football is this year and in style, by ripping their net with the Nabenia goal.
Net faat geh nah. All the best to every team and officials participating in this year’s Fiji FACT. Kind Regards, Amrit Singh Nausori
Informative piece
Well done Dr Romika Lata (FT 21/11) for shedding light on lupus and giving people an understanding of its symptoms including a range of treatment options. When someone close to me was diagnosed with this condition many years ago, very little was known about the disease.
So we tried and tested many different treatments looking for what might work best in managing it as we were told there was no cure. Along the way, we went up and down the east coast of Australia speaking with all kinds of medical health professionals, including a trip to NZ, trying desperately to find something that might work.
In our travels we learned a lot including the many “triggers” that can often times cause flare-ups. One of these was citrus foods such as lemons, lime and grapefruit.
We learned that alfalfa or Lucerne can also cause flare-ups. And what we weren’t aware of was –– a few of the vitamin supplements actually contained citrus and/or alfalfa. So we made sure of using supplements that didn’t have citrus and alfalfa.
As with anything, we found that following the right dietary regimen with more vegetables and fruit in our diet can have amazing benefits in helping manage the condition. During our research we also discovered a book called Bible Health Secrets which was extremely helpful. As we scoured the net we also found another amazing resource called, “Hallelujah Acres”.
The good news is –– the person in question has been in remission for quite some time without the need for using oral medication.
However, we’re ever vigilant and diligent in how we manage the condition. Perhaps one of the biggest pluses has been in the way we manage stress levels –– keeping it to a minimum as it can also cause flare-ups. So we try as best as we can to enjoy life with plenty of fun and laughter for not only keeping stress levels in check but the condition at bay.
Vinaka Dr Lata foryour informative piece. COLIN DEOKI Melbourne, Australia
