Ban Shigeru, a Japanese architect, started the Voluntary Architect’s Network (VAN) in the year 1995. It is an NGO that aims to help the victims of natural disasters such as earthquakes. Although relief houses are only temporary, he believes that they should be beautiful as they would be very significant for displaced people because they are also damaged spiritually so it is important for them to see something beautiful.

A survivor of 3/11 was so happy upon moving into Ban’s housing in Miyagi. He said that it was his first time to feel a real sense of relief since the disaster. Many people wanted to stay in Miyagi housing for good.

In 2014, Ban won the Pritzker Architecture Prize which some people call the Nobel Prize of architecture. One of the judges said that it is nice to see a first-rate architect put an effort to help disaster victims. This award encourages him to keep on helping people. Ban promises that he will continuously look for ways to grow both in disaster relief and designing new buildings.

Growing up in America with Japanese parents made a Japanese girl realize the differences in parenting styles between Japanese and American parents. She mentioned that American parents encourage their children by giving praises. They like to give compliments every day by recognizing even their smallest efforts. While Japanese parents praise their children lesser than the Americans. For instance, her American classmate would get a big hug from her parents even if she only got B’s on her report card. Meanwhile, her parents would often say that she should have studied better despite getting an A+. Because of that, it made her realize that she must work harder to achieve greater things in life. But on the other hand, it made her less confident and became reluctant in trying new things.

She believes that constructive criticism is an important tool for children to learn things, however, she could not help but notice how Japanese and American parents give encouragement. Her parent’s way of motivating is by telling her that she will end up jobless if she does not study harder. Meanwhile, her best friend’s mother would motivate her by saying things positively which made her look forward to it.

In the end, she realized that Americans prefer that style to ensure that they establish smooth communication with their children. While the Japanese prefer to praise their children less to make sure that they would not become conceited. In parenting, it is a matter of preference, there is no right or wrong.

The statue of Ashura was first created in 734. It has survived nearly 1,300 years. However, cracks have developed on its faces and the original colors have changed. A replica with its original colors can be seen at the Nara National Museum.

Influenced by ancient Greece, a golden ornament is worn by the replica. It wears a sash which reminds of ancient India. While its red-colored skin suggests its connection to the sun god of ancient Persia. Under the ancient Greek art’s influence, the first Buddhists statues were made. As the Chinese got influenced by the West, it made a great change in Japanese art.

The Ashura has many differences from other Hachibushu. It has six arms, three faces, and a sash on its shoulders while armor is worn by the other statues. Also, the human expressions on its faces make it appear lifelike. An expert named Hirashima Hiroshi explains that Ashura’s eyes in its three faces go up which means it is mature. People always wonder what Ashura’s facial expressions mean. The left face shows anger, its right face shows regret and pain, and its central face expresses repentance.

A Japanese who grew up in the U.S. shared her observation about the difference in parenting style between Japanese and American parents. American parents praise their children more often than Japanese parents. They like to give compliments to their children even for minor achievements. While on the other hand, children who have Japanese parents receive lesser compliments. This somewhat made her feel less confident.

Although she believes that constructive criticism is a way for children to improve themselves, she could not help but compare how American and Japanese parents encourage their children. Her Japanese parents would always tell her things like “if you do not study hard, you will end up jobless and homeless.” Meanwhile, her American best friend’s mother would always give her advice on how she can reach her goals despite them being difficult.

All in all, she realized that Americans do that style of parenting to ensure smooth communication with their children. While Japanese parents do not praise their children too much because they worry that it might make them too confident. So, we can say that it is a matter of preference which they think would work for the best.

Stress is the body’s reaction to new situations that require people to cope with it. It usually starts when people find themselves tired and unable to catch up with the demands. Although this is a normal part of one’s life and cannot be avoided, experiencing frequent stress might lead to health problems such as anxiety disorder and depression. So, it is important for people to manage stress.

There are a lot of ways to manage stress. Some of which are time management, classifying tasks, problem-focused, and emotion-focused. Time management is an important skill that everyone should develop. It is important for people to know the most important things they need to finish. This way, they will know the things that they should focus on. Then, those less important things should be scheduled at a later time. Classifying their tasks based on their importance and urgency could also come in handy. If people were given an important and urgent task, do it right away so they can free their mind from thinking too much about the things they need to accomplish. Being able to solve and find solutions to the problem during difficult situations would help reduce stress. Also, people should learn how to take note of their feelings and handle it well by breathing deeply when dealing with stressful events.

Psychology has become one of the most popular degrees and careers in the U.S. It is the study of the human mind and behavior. Psychological studies aim to understand and explain how people act, think, and feel. Although more and more people have been studying psychology, there are still some people who do not understand psychology.

Some people think that psychologists can use their understanding of human behavior to solve crimes. While others think that psychologists just listen to their client’s stories about their childhood. Yes, there are some psychologists who help solve crimes, while some help people deal with their mental health. But there is a lot more to what we usually hear and see about psychologists. When you ask people a question about what psychologists do, more often than not, they would answer that they help people improve their mental health. That is true, however, it is just the tip of the iceberg. Psychology is a broad field that has many branches. Some of which are abnormal, biological, clinical, developmental, forensic, personality, social, and among others. These branches of psychology deal with different things. For instance, clinical psychology focuses on understanding and improvement of mental health psychology. Meanwhile, the research and ideas of forensic psychology are often used in the criminal justice system. On the other hand, social psychology searches for an understanding of group behavior and how social influences affect individual behavior. Despite having different branches, in psychology, all roads lead to Rome; to understand and explain human behavior.