Kids say the "honestest" things

“Your nose hair is sticking out, meester.”
Kids are like this, you know. They would say stuff without a moment's hesitation. They would point out the obvious oddity in the surroundings: something the adults (older persons) would think twice before not saying. The adults would rather suppress a small burst of laughter, the tiniest snicker and a few straight jabs and whisper a joke to the person next to them. Because people, after all, are bound by some social norms and they can't help maintaining them unless they want to be shunned. Well... not “shunned” exactly, but others would avoid him for his outspoken nature and he will be crowded by the wrong kind of individuals. That is undesirable for a healthy social life.

“I don't wanna sit next to you, uncle. You smell bad.”
But it doesn't necessarily mean that the kids don't have a social life. They do and in fact, it is no less action-packed than our own. Toys replace money as the unit for social hierarchy; the one with the most number of toys gets to be the hero in some role-playing game. Politics is also present as many a kid with lesser number of toys tries to earn the favour of the topmost in the ladder through whispers in the back, strategic bribery, promise of loans and so on. But this amazing social life of the kids is not the main focus today; we talk about their bluntness and abrupt honesty.

“Bhaiya, bhaiya. Do you love this apu? Will you marry her?”
This reporter was enjoying sunshine and soothing winds when he came upon this incident. A couple was chatting merrily to their heart's content. A flower-selling kid came up to them and “popped the question”. Just like that. The guy fended it off expertly with a “Yes, I do and yes, I will,” but anyone could feel the measuring, watchful, scrutinising and slightly shrewd eyes of his girlfriend on him.

There are many who would complain how complex the world is. Maybe it is indeed. But only to us, who made it so. To the kids, however, the world is as simple as throwing their dad's cell phone out of the window. Everyone is their 'uncle' or 'aunty' (even someone as young as yours truly *wipes tears*) and everyone loves them.

“They are fighting. Just like Mom and Dad.”
This won't be elaborated any further but know this, the incident is fairly common in many a household. The kids may not understand the concept as a whole, but they do have a general idea. That's why experts opine that it is bad fighting in front of kids.

Ah! Sweet honesty!
“Childhood is measured out by sounds and smells
And sights before the dark of reason grows.”
-John Betjeman, Summoned by Bells

Heaven only knows what the world looks like to the kids, watching through their tiny eyes (fun fact: experts would tell you that our eyes don't grow at all, so the expression 'tiny eyes' is obsolete). We disregard them, we say they forget; but only because they don't have enough words to express them. By the time they learn the words, they forget the details of their experience. And they lose the honesty. Because society moulds them to be like any other: bound by the chains of etiquettes and manners. We are being educated so that we are accepted. But along the way, we have lost our honesty and simplicity. Try imagining yourself speaking the bolded lines: notice how your subconscious mind scolds you. This is all for the better though. There are things that are only suitable for a child to say.

By Jawad

Why So Many Fads?

Of all the creatures crawling upon this planet, humans are indisputably the strangest of the lot. No offence meant, of course, considering that we at RS are also humans (most of us, at any rate). Anyway, one clear giveaway of our freakish tendencies are the fads that appear every now and then and just refuse to disappear. Just ask yourself - how many fads are there in this world that you wish would just get lost? Way too many, eh? Thought so. Here are some points that we brood over.

Why dress like a deprived individual?

Low waisted pants on guys: Oh, we've heard a lot of complaints about this trend and have seen way more than we would have liked. During the height of this trend, there have been many instances of victims attempting to gouge their eyes out. It seems, though, that the lovers of this fad are starting to realise that the point of wearing pants is to, well, cover your posterior regions. So instead, we now have…

Super tight pants on guys: Now, if the dude has the, um… physique to pull it off, then it's acceptable - but to chicks only. The other half of the dude population (meaning the ones who don't wear them for special reasons) are against this fad. But at least, its way better than the previous hiney revealing trend. Or the chest hair revealing trend, for that matter.

Why write like an idiot?

Short forms of everything: Texting in shorthand is acceptable, because there is a limit to the number of characters in this case. But there is also a limit to how short the messages can get. Besides, how the hell are we supposed to know that when you type 'nyc' on my wall, it means 'nice'? And not 'New York City'? Also, is it absolutely necessary to sprinkle these random half-words in conversations as well? Fortunately, people are getting tired of this fad, and this is being replaced by…

Long sentences with multiple spelling errors, seriously flawed grammar and zero punctuation: Sadly, it seems that fewer people hate this fad more than its predecessor. BECAUSE WE DO.

Why reveal the colour of your boxers to the world?

Twitter: Seriously, why? There's a limit to sharing. Trust us; we don't give a damn about your breakfast menu.

Narcissistic pictures: It's nice to see that people love themselves so much, but how many pouty face pictures of yourself can you take? It makes us miss the days when you had to PAY to buy film rolls. God knows when this fad will disappear; it's been around for way too long as it is.

Facebook: Connecting with friends and family is one thing, but Facebook just takes online hooliganism to a whole new level. It's like the ultimate bickering zone. But, thanks to the annoying upgrades, Facebook is not so hot anymore. Enter…

Google+ : But, but, but… how is this any better than Facebook? Damn if we know.

Why so stereotyped?

Emo, Goth, Punk, Gangsta, et cetera, et cetera: In short, labelling yourself by donning stereotyped looks, which is oh-so-hot. NOT. And most people are realizing this, which is why we now have people in the streets being totally…

Bling: And boy do they take it seriously. Shiny shirts, glittery pants, metallic shoes - their dedication to bling makes you miss the wannabe emos. That is, until you spot that dude in the corner with re-bonded hair.

Why so many teen stars?

Baby, baby, baby, OOOOOOHHHH: Teen stars/singing sensations are an annoying fad which has been lingering for way to long. Really, don't these kids have school to go to? And if teens weren't bad enough, we had a pre-adolescent bachcha, aka Justin Bieber spread the beaver fever. What? Oh, it's the Bieber Fever, you say? My bad.

IT'S FRIDAY! FRIDAY! : He might be an annoying little brat, but at least Bieber can actually SING. The latest fad in this department (who totally snatched away Bieber's spotlight) is the ever-so-delusional Rebecca Black. Who thinks she can sing. And to make matters worse, Katie Perry gave her a cameo in her music video for the song - you guessed it - Last Friday Night. *Sigh*

By Sarwat Yunus