Freestyle skiing at this year’s Winter Olympics is set to be one of the most exciting events, with old stars and hungry rookies going head-to-head. From ex-Olympic medal winners to emerging talents, these three skiers are set to make the competition even more thrilling in Milano-Cortina.
We live in a world that values certainty. We are encouraged to have opinions ready, plans mapped out, and answers prepared for questions we may not yet understand. “What do you want to do in the future? Who are you becoming? Where is this all going? Wanting clarity feels sensible – even responsible. But beneath this desire lies a quieter cost that often goes unnoticed.
We’re growing up today in a fast-moving, intensely connected world. One that can feel often overwhelming, as we’re subject to constant streams of information, comparison, and pressure leaving little opportunity to take things in from a wider perspective. Desiderata’s message of reflection and calm is particularly pertinent during our focus on “depth over noise” this fortnight; the poem reflects the values Strong Body Strong Mind is nourishing throughout.
“It’s not just me that’s saying it, the fact is that Sykes-Picot has failed, it’s over,” declared Massoud Barzani in a 2016 BBC interview. As president of Iraq’s Kurdistan Region and a leader of the world’s largest stateless nation, Barzani’s condemnation reflects more than Kurdish grievance. Signed in 1916 by Britain and France, the Sykes-Picot Agreement symbolises the imperial imposition of borders that divided previously fluid populations and produced states with weak national identity and legitimacy. While only one of several wartime agreements, it has come to represent a broader dissatisfaction with externally imposed statehood in the Middle East and the enduring instability those borders helped create.
It always happens at the worst possible moment. A silent exam hall. A quiet bedroom at night. A library so still it feels like noise would be illegal. And then – out of nowhere – a high-pitched ringing appears, as if the brain has decided to test a fire alarm that no one installed. The question is simple, slightly annoying, and surprisingly fascinating: why do our ears ring when everything is quiet?
