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Reader s Digest Asia English Edition - June-July 2025

The document features various articles and sections from the June/July 2025 issue of Reader's Digest Asia, including a gender poll, health tips, and personal stories. It highlights themes such as the importance of laughter for stress relief, the rise in adult ADHD diagnoses, and the value of personal narratives in connecting with readers. Additionally, it includes contributions from readers and insights from the editor on the content and purpose of the magazine.

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Pal Kiss
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100% found this document useful (1 vote)
858 views116 pages

Reader s Digest Asia English Edition - June-July 2025

The document features various articles and sections from the June/July 2025 issue of Reader's Digest Asia, including a gender poll, health tips, and personal stories. It highlights themes such as the importance of laughter for stress relief, the rise in adult ADHD diagnoses, and the value of personal narratives in connecting with readers. Additionally, it includes contributions from readers and insights from the editor on the content and purpose of the magazine.

Uploaded by

Pal Kiss
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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58 28 72
gender poll
Part 2 – Men
In the second part of
our gender poll, this
month men share
their honest views on
the women in their
lives.

36
exercise
Giggle The
Gloom Away
Combine laughter
64
health
and yoga for a great Paying Attention
stress-reliever. To Adult ADHD
JUDE ARAIM With diagnoses on

46
the increase globally,
more information
is needed about
PHOTOS: (ELE VATOR) GE T T Y IMAGES/IS TOCKPHOTO, GERMAN RD LICENCE;

art of living
We Found A Fix! the condition to
CONTENTS
ILLUS TR ATIONS: (COVER, ADHD) DAN PAGE; (PRISON) SERGE BLOCH.

From technology to understand it better.


home and money, MELISSA GREER
JUNE/JULY 2025 ways to make life
more simple.
Features CAROLINE FANNING

18 58
drama in real life photo feature
The Race To Save Up And Down
Matilda Forgo confined
metal boxes, these
(YOGA) SHUT TERS TOCK

Attempting to retrieve
her phone, a young elevators will take
woman becomes you places.
wedged upside down DORIS KOCHANEK
between boulders.
ON THE COVER: PAYING ATTENTION TO ADULT ADHD – PAGE 64
HELEN SIGNY

rdasia.com 1
Departments
the digest
14 Health
17 News From
The World Of
Medicine
regulars
4 Have Your Say

84 5 Editor’s Note
8 My Story
12 Smart Animals
72 42 See The World
13 things Differently
Arresting Facts humour
About International
26 Life’s Like That
Inmates
Conditions in prisons 56 Laughter, The
Best Medicine HAVE YOU
vary widely between VISITED THE
countries. 76 All In A Day’s
READER’S

PHOTO: JESS HAND FOR TIME OUT, JUNE 2023; (FACEBOOK) SHUT TERS TOCK
EMILY GOODMAN Work
the genius section
DIGEST
FACEBOOK
78 104 Puzzles
PAGE LATELY?
quiz 108 Puzzle Answers
Magical And 110 Trivia
Our Facebook
Mythical feed offers
111 Word Power
Test your knowledge stories,
of legendary beasts. videos, advice,
KARIN SCHÄTZLE
90 humour,
bonus read quotable quotes,
84 Fresh Starts cartoons, quirky
animal kingdom It’s never too late to photographs
City Gone Wild study. Meet five people and more.
The wildlife boom in who are discovering
urban London. new purpose in their FOLLOW US
ALICE SAVILLE later years. @ReadersDigestAsia
FROM TIME OUT SUSANNAH HICKLING

2 june/july 2025
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

LETTERS
Reader’s Comments And Opinions

Group Therapy
I found ‘The Survivors
Coffee Group’ (My
Story, Feb/Mar 2025)
very touching. It really
struck a chord with
me. I am a Chennai girl
(a city in South East
India), who moved to
Auckland 15 years
back. I have made
many friends of all
ages and nationalities
here, but a few years
ago several of us from my Auckland! For me, it is a quick trip
hometown started meeting to my hometown, as well as to
every couple of months. We call indulge in scones and cappuccino!
ourselves the Chennai Girls in SHOBA

Timely Reminder
relationships with seemingly caring
I was touched by ‘Journey To
men like her ex, only to later discover
Recovery’ (Feb/March 25). I really felt
they are manipulative and abusive. It
for Ines – what she must have been
was a timely reminder for me to get to
going through, especially right before
know a person thoroughly before
her ex-partner threw acid in her face.
getting into a relationship.
PHOTO: SHUT TERS TOCK

I realised many women get into


NASHR A

Let us know if you are moved – or provoked – by any item in the magazine,
share your thoughts. See page 6 for how to join the discussion.

4 june/july 2025
EDITOR’S NOTE
Attention To Detail
Over the years, we’ve brought to life
countless alarming real life dramas,
portraying in careful detail the events
of someone’s disastrous misfortune.
This issue’s drama, ‘The Race To Save
Matilda’ (page 18), depicts the rescue
of a young Australian bushwalker,
which involved a coordinated TA L K S
response of over 30 professional
paramedics and search and rescue
experts. Sit back and listen to some of
Also in this issue, we explore how the most engaging stories to
Londoners are starting to rethink the have appeared in Reader’s
prevalence of foxes and other wildlife Digest magazine.
in their city (‘London Gone Wild’, page
84), and we share the stories of five AROUND 250 PODCASTS FOR YOUR
inspirational people who achieved LISTENING PLEASURE. FREE!
their life’s dream later than most • Real-life unforgettable crime
(‘Fresh Starts’, page 90). investigations
With all the little dilemmas that life • Dramas in real life
brings, it’s always helpful to have • Amazing survival stories
clever hacks and solutions up your • Inspirational and heart-warming
sleeve. In ‘We Found A Fix’ (page 46), moments
we bring you some tech tricks,
Podcasts that will entertain you, stir
kitchen shortcuts and some financial your emotions and have you
suggestions to make life easier. celebrating the courage of
These stories and so much more in extraordinary people.
this issue for your reading pleasure.
TO LISTEN GO TO:
LOUISE WATERSON www.rdasia.com/podcasts/
Editor-in-Chief
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

ASIA

CONTRIBUTE
Vol. 128
No. 737 RE ADERSDIGESTASIA
June/July 2025

EDITORIAL Anecdotes And Jokes


Editor-in-Chief Louise Waterson
Chief Subeditor Melanie Egan $50–$100
Senior Editor Diane Godley Send in your real-life laugh for
Senior Creative Lead Adele Burley Life’s Like That or All In A Day’s Work.
Senior Art Designer/Associate Editor Annie Li
Got a joke? Send it in for Laughter
Head of Digital Content Greg Barton
Is The Best Medicine!
ADVERTISING INQUIRIES
Group Advertising Director, Asia Pacific Smart Animals
Sheron White Up to $100
Email: [email protected]
Graphic Designer – APAC Allan Ha
Share antics of unique pets
Advertising Sales, Malaysia
or wildlife in up to 300 words.
Anna Latif – Regional Sales Executive
Email: [email protected]
My Story $200
Sha Shafinaz – Regional Sales Executive Do you have an inspiring or
Email: [email protected] life-changing tale to tell?
Sheron White
Email: [email protected]
Submissions must be true,
Advertising Sales, Philippines unpublished, original and
Maricarl Garcia 800–1000 words.
Email: [email protected]
Advertising Sales, Singapore
Sheron White Here’s how to reach us:
Email: [email protected]
Advertising Sales, Taipei Email: asiaeditor@readersdigest.
Andrew Tsao com.au
Email [email protected]
Advertising Sales, Hong Kong SAR Write: Reader’s Digest Asia,
Rebecca Zhang
Email: [email protected] Editorial Department,
Direct Publishing Asia Pte Ltd,
CUSTOMER INQUIRIES
Online rdasia.com/customer-care Privy Box No. 920154
Contact Us – Singapore (65) 6955 8633 Singapore 929292
or [email protected]
Contact Us – Malaysia and rest of Asia
+65 6955 8633* or [email protected] Online: rdasia.com/contribute
Administration Office
Direct Publishing Asia Pte Ltd, Include your full name, address,
Privy Box No. 920154, Singapore 929292 phone number and email.
*International call rates apply Letters: We may edit letters and use them in all
print and electronic media.
Published under licence. Submissions: All submissions become our property on
Reader’s Digest publishes 6 issues a year.
PUBLISHED BY DIRECT PUBLISHING ASIA PTE. LTD., COMPANY
payment and subsequent publication in the magazine.
NUMBER: 200607506M © 2025. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED We may edit and fact-check submissions. We cannot
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MCI (P) 053/04/2024. MDDI (P) 036/10/2024. ISSN 0034-0383.
MALAYSIA KDN PPS 1910/08/2019 (026008)

6 june/july 2025
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

MY STORY

Appa’s Crossword
Magic
A writer learns the worth of her work through her
father’s love for word puzzles

BY Mala Kumar

I
have thoughts that shake up When Appa passed away
my simple, straightforward life. peacefully one morning, he left
Questions like, Have I missed the behind a wealth of precious
bus? Should I be more aggressive memories. Part of my priceless
in my career as a writer? Make inheritance from him is a box
my words count for more? Or rather, of yellow pencils. Some barely
should I have earned more for my used, some worn-down, but
work? Not possible, silly, an inner each unfailingly functional, they
voice reminds me, You’re your remind me of his love of solving
father’s daughter. crossword puzzles. Of him sitting
Appa shared a similar feeling by the window, bathed in morning
many years ago. “I wish I had light, carefully filling in their tiny
bought property or invested in boxes. The pencils were always
something that yielded big returns,” sharp, the pens never dry, and the
ILLUS TR ATION BY SIDDHANT JUMDE

my father said wistfully. erasers and sharpeners always


“What makes you say that?” close at hand.
I asked in surprise – it was In his 80s, Appa would read the
uncharacteristic of him to express day’s newspaper, cover to cover,
such regret. “Wouldn’t it have been with a pleasant smile on his face.
nice for you and your brothers to But wasn’t the news full of political
inherit some sizable chunk when mud-slinging, disasters and
I’m gone?” he said with a big smile. advertisements?

8 june/july 2025
My Story

“What are you reading that’s


so funny, Appa?” I would ask.
“Oh, nothing. I don’t pay
much attention to the news.
But reading reminds me of
forgotten words that help me
solve the crossword. Ah, got it!
12-D, CLASH!”
An inexpensive newspaper.
A few minutes of reading with
the sun streaming in through
the bay windows. A spark in his
mind, and bingo! He’d get that
elusive word to complete the
puzzle. Simple rewards. Appa
never bragged, but his wide,
beaming smile made it clear
that all was well across the
world and down his lane.
Appa’s words were ‘profitable’ to pedantic (or ‘sententious’, ‘nit-
us in more ways than one. When picking’, ‘pedagogic’ – Appa, I hope
he read the papers, our dog would you’re proud!)
sidle up to him, confident of a long While my father wielded words
hour or two of back strokes and for love, I did the same for a living.
tummy rubs. This left me free to He understood this, and that may
write without a pup pawing for have been why he never asked me
attention. Appa would gladly put to suggest a word or help him with
his paper down to engage with a puzzle. For him, my words were
curious grandchildren, telling precious; each held value. In my
them stories about language, own mind, it did not matter how
lexicon, people and places. More much I got paid for writing gigs. I
importantly, he would listen. A wrote because I loved word-craft
good life lesson for the little ones, and spinning stories that brought
as they grew to appreciate that ideas to life, often for or about non-
not all grown-ups are pushy or profits – that is until recently.
“You were paid peanuts!”
Mala Kumar has written over 40 children’s said some of my younger, more
stories in her home country of India. She is a worldly-wise friends. Unlike me,
freelance writer and editor. they studied freelance markets,

rdasia.com 9
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

found the best places to publish to be sharing greater triumphs


their work and the best editors and earnings than mine? Would
to work with. I was as astonished ambition or competition cheapen
by their revelations as with their the dignity of my work?
magnanimity in sharing the fruits of I know what my father’s solution
their labour with other writers. would have been. “Why not both?
But I did not heed their advice. But Money isn’t everything, but isn’t it
when an editor surprised me with good to have enough to help yourself
a lower rate of pay for a piece they and those close to you? For your
chose to publish online rather than talents and efforts to be valued?”
in print, as was originally proposed, Appa lived his life quietly helping
I was shocked … and hurt! But like people, never forgetting those who
my father, I saw the bright side – so had lent him a hand. He believed
many people read the piece and that more wealth did not mean
loved it, sharing joyful emoticons greater happiness, but also that no
and praise on social media. It did effort should be undervalued.
wonders for my confidence. Maybe Today, when doubts cloud my
I was short-changed, but I felt mind, I think of Appa’s sharpened
rewarded, too. pencil: its purpose may have been
Many decades ago, I remember to solve a crossword, but it was also
Appa reading aloud to me from a there for anyone who desperately
magazine, or challenging me to a needed it to, say, jot down a life-
Reader’s Digest’s Word Power quiz. changing number.
I remember the way his face would You see, a crossword is complete
light up as he discovered a new – and gives one joy – with only
turn of a phrase, or at the sound of so many words, and only when
a word. If my attention waned, he each word rests on elements from
would say, “Feeling drowsy? Never the others. Couldn’t my words
mind, I’ll keep reading. Some of the hold a duality that completes my
words may stay in your mind. Okay? purpose too? And so, now I take up
By introducing me to the power of assignments, some that pay well,
words, Appa guided my life’s calling, some that don’t, but together, and
a purpose I never questioned or most importantly, they fill me
bothered to navigate cleverly – it with joy.
was only our shared passion that
mattered. But while I was content for Do you have a tale to tell? We’ll pay
many years, a certain anxiety would cash for any original and unpublished
at times creep in. Was it because story we print. See page 6 for details
everyone around me seemed on how to contribute.

10 june/july 2025
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

SMART ANIMALS
Just love to have fun

But that wasn’t the most amusing


part of the morning. Another bird
flew on the Whirlybird and was spun
around until it, too, was flung off to
raucous cheers from the onlookers.
The birds stayed on the roof, waiting
their turn for a spin and laughing
their heads off, until the last bird
had its joy ride.

Cockatoos’ Fun Fair


JANE M.

One quiet morning, a screech from


the sky heralded the arrival of a flock
of cockatoos. The noisy intruders
settled on the roof of my house and
were rather taken by the Whirlybird
ALL ILLUS TR ATIONS: SHUT TERS TOCK/AI

roof vent, which the wind was causing


to spin around.
One curious bird decided to sit on
the Whirlybird and was spun around An Artful Steed
E. TULLY
and around to the cackle of the other
birds watching. When it was finally Horses are flight animals, but Blue
flung off, the flock erupted into hoots – our rescue horse – was a fighter,
and hollering – what could only be unafraid to kick and whine at
interpreted as cockatoo laughter. strangers. He’d also grab anything

12 june/july 2025
Smart Animals

his mouth could reach: hoses,


brooms, lead ropes, clothes.
Since he already picked
everything up with his mouth,
one day I taped a carrot to a
paintbrush to see if he would
spread paint across the canvas
I was holding. He kindly
obliged, and we were off.
Soon he was waving and
bowing his head to paint with
little prompting. When he
finished painting, the carrot was
detached and given as a reward.
He’s completed 14 paintings,
many of which I display in my shop, no problem socialising if it’s with
alongside my own art. Two of his Shelby.
paintings have sold, which I guess We rescued a huge, unadoptable
makes Blue a professional artist. dog, Malachi, who is part wolf and
Usually, he is antsy when taken out of missed critical human interaction
his stall. But when he sees the paint stages as a puppy. He doesn’t take
tray come out, he becomes hushed comfort from people, but Shelby
and still, a totally different horse. managed to win him over – maybe
he just wanted a playmate as big
as he is. Another time, we took in
Shelby, The Great Dane a French bulldog puppy, Levi, who
SHIRLEY ZINDLER wasn’t expected to survive. Levi
When Shelby landed at our rescue eventually got stronger, but for a
shelter, she was nearly blind with while, he weighed only 450 grams,
chronic eye pain. Most of our animals so he and the 56-kilogram Shelby
get adopted, but after nursing her made quite a pair.
through four surgeries, we knew she If that’s not enough, she’s been
was ours for good. an infallible source of comfort to
Shelby has a gift for comforting me through a stressful career as an
our changing menagerie of sick animal control officer and rescuer.
and injured animals. Midnight
bottles for newborn kittens go much You could earn cash by telling us about
smoother with her silky head nearby, the antics of unique pets or wildlife. Turn
and terrified dogs seem to have to page 6 for details on how to contribute.

rdasia.com 13
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

HEALTH

Stressed And
Worn Down
More and more people are
clenching and grinding
their teeth. Here’s
what to do about it

BY Melissa Greer
I L L U S T R AT I O N B Y K AT E T R AY N O R

W
hen my dentist
suggested I get fitted
for a plastic dental
guard, I wasn’t exactly
surprised. I had been waking up with
headaches and jaw pain, symptoms
of teeth clenching and grinding
– a condition officially known as
bruxism. I knew I was holding a lot of
tension in my jaw, but I just took an
analgesic in the morning and moved
on. But when my dentist noted that
I had some gum recession – due to
inflammation caused by grinding
and clenching – I realised how much
damage the habit was causing.
Bruxism is common, especially
sleep bruxism, which affects an

14 june/july 2025
Health

estimated 16.5 per cent of adults. molars. Consistent grinding also


Experts have seen a surge in patients weakens the ligament that holds
with tooth and gum damage from the tooth in place, which can lead to
clenching and grinding in recent tooth loss, says Dr Price.
years, particularly during the stressful For stress-related bruxism, Dr Patel
days of COVID-19 lockdowns. recommends relaxation techniques,
“When you’re really stressed, you such as meditation or yoga. Dr Price
might be putting a lot of tension in suggests chewing gum during stressful
your masseter muscles, which are the situations, which can offset the desire
muscles in the cheek responsible for to grind, or snapping a rubber band
chewing,” explains Dr Pujaa Patel, a bracelet as a reminder to relax the jaw.
UK-based dentist and facial aesthetics If you grind while asleep, your
expert. “Because dentist can fit you for
everything in the head OVER TIME, IT a night guard. “The
and neck is linked, LEADS TO guard takes the pressure
patients come in with
tension headaches,
CRACKED TEETH, instead of your teeth,”
explains Dr Patel.
jaw pain, earache and WORN-DOWN Because it prevents your
shoulder pain.” MOLARS AND jaw from fully clamping
Whether bruxism
occurs while awake
TOOTH LOSS down, it reduces the
activity of the masseter
or during sleep, most muscle, helping it relax.
people don’t realise they’re clenching Guards can be expensive, but
and grinding until they start Dr Price cautions against opting for a
experiencing symptoms. cheaper, over-the-counter product. “If
While the most common factor you get a mouth guard that doesn’t fit
is stress, especially if the patient properly, you can actually worsen the
is doing it while awake, bruxism problem,” she says.
could also be a symptom of an Another treatment involves
underlying medical condition or a injecting botulinum toxin (Botox is
sleep disorder, says Dr Mirissa Price, one brand) into the masseter muscle
a paediatric dentist. on each side of the jaw, temporarily
The movement the jaw makes blocking nerve signals. Meanwhile,
while clenching and grinding is UK researchers are working on a
like chewing, but the force is up to smart headband that trains the wearer
ten times greater. That amounts to to control the grinding impulse.
about 17 kilograms of pressure per Worn at night, the device deploys a
square centimetre. Over time, it gentle vibration to relax clenched jaw
leads to cracked teeth or worn-down muscles.

rdasia.com 15
HEALTH

Walk To Protect Against


Type 2 Diabetes
BY Meaghan Cameron

he popularit y of achiev ing

T 10,000 steps a day indicates


that many of us have embraced
the message: walking is beneficial for
Relationships between walking
speed and the reduction of
type 2 diabetes risk:
Average pace 3-5 km/h
overall health. 15 per cent reduction in risk
This low-impact activity, requir-
ing no special equipment beyond a Fairly brisk pace 5-6.5 km/h
24 per cent reduction in risk
sturdy pair of sneakers, enhances
heart healt h, lung capacit y and Just below jogging pace
6.5 km/h
weight management while helping 39 per cent reduction in risk
prevent several age-related diseases,
including type 2 diabetes. The time spent walking was not a
In 2023, the British Journal of Sports decisive factor; instead, each increase
in speed of one kilometre per hour
Medicine published the results of a
correlated with a nine per cent
data analysis of ten different studies reduction in risk.
that investigated the impact of walk- Speeds exceeding 4 km/h were
ing speed on the risk of type 2 diabe- associated with a lower risk of the
tes. This study, which pooled statistics disease.
ILLUS TR ATION: SHUT TERS TOCK

from over 500,000 people in the US,


Japan, and the UK, revealed that both significant factor, the researchers
‘fairly brisk walking’ and ‘striding suggest that encouraging people to
walking’ were associated with a lower walk at faster speeds could enhance
risk of developing type 2 diabetes, in- the health benefits of walking, be-
dependent of the time spent walking. yond simply increasing total walking
A s t i me d id not emerge as a time or hitting a specific step count.

16 june/july 2025
News From The

WORLD OF MEDICINE
DANCING FOR OSTEOARTHRITIS a maximum of 90 minutes at a time
Dancing might be the last thing is the general rule,” says audiologist
that comes to mind when you think Sharon Sandridge. If someone
about osteoarthritis treatment. standing an arm’s length away can
But US researchers have created a hear your music, or if you have
gooey substance made from special to raise your voice to speak while
molecules, nicknamed ‘dancing listening, the volume is too loud.
molecules’, which could be the key Earbuds can foster bacterial growth,
to boosting cartilage production and with the collection of sweat, skin cells
helping to reverse osteoarthritis. The and sebum, so clean regularly.
researchers designed the molecules to
‘dance’ as the moving molecules were DIABETES DRUGS MAY LESSEN
able to engage with cellular receptors DEMENTIA RISK
and incite the human cells to produce A Korean study reports an oral
more of the protein components diabetes drug called SGLT2-inhibitors
necessary for cartilage regeneration. (Jardiance) – prescribed to lower
So far, the molecules have shown blood sugar in adults with type
promise when tested on human cells 2 diabetes – can lower the risk of
in the lab, and on live sheep. The dementia and Parkinson’s disease.
scientists are hoping that human The researchers looked at data
clinical trials will start soon. from almost 360,000 patients over
five years, and found that SGLT2-
EASY ON THE EARBUDS inhibitors reduced the risks of
While noise-cancelling these neuro-degenerative
earbuds help with disorders by about 20 per
focus and relaxation, cent. SGLT2-inhibitors
ILLUS TR ATION: SHUT TERS TOCK

wearing them for increase the amount


too long at high of sugar excreted in
volumes can strain the urine, raising
your ears and cause the body’s level of
long-term hearing substances called
damage. “Listening at ketones, which benefits
80 per cent volume for the nervous system.

rdasia.com 17
DRAMA IN REAL LIFE

The young hiker was


wedged upside
down between two
boulders.
How could rescuers
pull her free?

THE
RACE
TO SAVE
MATILDA
BY Helen Signy
I L L U S T R AT I O N B Y O W E N F R E E M A N

18 june/july 2025
The Race To Save Matilda

rdasia.com 19
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

It was a pleasant morning on October 12 last year in


Laguna, a village about 100 kilometres north of Sydney.
Matilda Campbell, 23, set off with a friend for a walk
across the field behind the Airbnb cottage where their
group of friends was staying for the weekend.
The pair scrambled up a steep em- Standing up above, her friend
bankment, through tall gum trees and could only see the soles of Camp-
over grey rocks, until they reached a bell’s feet, but she was too far into
ledge where they could look out over the crevice for her friend to reach
the sprawling countryside. down and pull her out. To make
Wanting to capture the moment, matters worse, there was no phone
Campbell pulled out her phone. As she reception. Her friend raced back to
was taking photos, the device slipped the cottage and drove down the road
out of her hand and fell into a crevice until, at last, some bars appeared on
between two boulders. She reached her phone, and it was possible to
down to retrieve her phone, but it had punch in the emergency number.
fallen deep between the rocks.

A
As she stretched her arm further bout half an hour’s drive away,
into the crevice, Campbell lost her in the town of Cessnock, New
balance and tumbled headfirst into South Wales, Jason Sattler was
the gap. Within seconds, she was at home when his pager went off. The
wedged fast between the massive president of the Cessnock District
rocks, unable to move, with her head Rescue Squad, part of the voluntary
three metres below the surface. organisation VRA Rescue NSW, Sat-
The boulders had bent her up- tler had been helping people out of
side-down body into a banana shape. scrapes both big and small for nearly
Her back rested on one of the rocks, 20 years. Back in the day, it was mostly
with her upper body twisted and people injured in the coal mines that
bent forward. The force of the fall operated in the area; more recently,
had trapped her right arm behind the most common injuries were from
her back, and her left hand was now vehicle accidents. Rescue volunteers
jammed in front of her head. Her legs knew they had to be ready to handle
were pointed straight up above her. anything when their pagers went off.
She could see a few spiders through Sattler called the control centre.
the blackness and hoped there were “There’s someone trapped between
no snakes. She could already feel the two rocks at Laguna,” the opera-
blood rushing to her head. tor said, and gave him the location.

20 june/july 2025
The Race To Save Matilda

Sattler pictured someone wedged be- Campbell’s feet. The two boulders
tween rocks above ground. How hard that formed the crevice were stable,
could it be to get them out? but there were also a lot of loose rocks
He quickly drove to the squad’s that, if disturbed, could fall into the
base in Cessnock. There he met res- gap and injure her or slow down her
cue veterans Paul Hampton and Vicki extraction.
West, who had also been alerted by Sattler, who is also a paramedic,
pager. They loaded the equipment asked Campbell a few basic medi-
they’d need into the squad’s truck cal questions. “Can you take a deep
and headed to Laguna. breath?” he called down.
She said she couldn’t; her chest was

V
olunteers from Laguna Rural wedged too tightly between the rocks.
Fire Service (RFS), the closest “Can you move?”
emergency ser v ice, had al- Campbell told him she could wig-
ready arrived, and a fire engine and gle her toes and move her fingers.
police and ambulance vehicles were Her shoulder was hurting because it
pulling into the field as Sattler and was jammed against a jagged rock.
his colleagues got out of their truck.

S
In all, more than 30 rescue person- attler could tell that she wasn’t
nel had gathered at the scene. West seriously injured. “She was
comforted Campbell’s friends while anxious, but there wasn’t any
the RFS volunteers led Sattler and pain in her voice,” he said later.
Hampton up a steep track for more “That was a really big level of reas-
than 200 metres. surance for us. We knew we could
It’s going to be a challenge to get the slow down and do it right.” They
equipment up here, Sattler thought as had to formulate a plan, but first
he climbed. Sattler and Hampton agreed that
When they arrived at the ledge, they needed to get Vicki West on
Campbell had been trapped for more the scene.
than 90 minutes. Sattler peered into West, who is in her early 70s,
the crevice, and all he could see in the is known as the matriarch of the
darkness were the soles of her feet. Cessnock District Rescue Squad.
“Well, that’s not what I was expect- During her 26 years as a volunteer,
ing,” he told Hampton. she has become the person the team
It was going to be one of the most calls on when someone in distress
complicated rescues they had ever needs to be calmed. With her steady
attempted. voice and solid, dependable de-
Numerous rocks needed to be meanour, she can put almost anyone
moved just to get to the level of at ease.

rdasia.com 21
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

Sattler and Hampton returned to that the tree might fall on the team,
the field and helped West climb up to they spent half an hour securing it
the ledge. She couldn’t believe what with ropes.
she saw when she peered into the

A
crevice: Campbell’s feet and her right s time ticked by, Campbell
hand behind her back, with purple started to become more anx-
nail polish on her nails. It seemed ious. “I was like, I’m not get-
impossible that someone could have ting out. I haven’t said goodbye to
fallen into such a narrow gap. anyone. I haven’t said I love you to
“Silly question, but are you OK?” my family,” she later told the New-
West called down to Campbell. castle Herald.
“Yes, I’m OK. But can you get me “But I somehow knew that I would
out?” be OK from the team, so I think that
West reassured her that the team was really good that I didn’t overre-
was working hard to rescue her, then act.”
started chatting to keep her spirits up. Because Campbell was young and
They talked about handbags and fit, paramedics on the scene were
Campbell’s life in nearby Newcastle, not overly worried about her medical
where she lived and worked. “Her condition. Nevertheless, they knew
spirits were quite good, for being the her situation would become more
way she was,” West says. “I was very precarious with each passing hour.
proud of how composed she was.” People who are suspended upside
While they chatted, the rescuers down will eventually die. Blood pools
firmed up a plan: they would widen in the head and the heart struggles
the crevice by clearing away loose to keep circulation f lowing. Pres-
rocks. This would give them enough sure builds on the brain, causing
room to tie ropes around Campbell’s headaches and dizziness. Breathing
lower body and ease her out of the grows more difficult as the force of
gap. It wouldn’t be easy; many of the gravity compresses the diaphragm
rocks, weighing up to half a tonne, and lungs.
would have to be lifted with a series Rescue and special operations par-
of ropes and pulleys. amedic Nicole Priest was aware of
By now, Campbell had been in- these risks as she sat by the crevice,
verted in the crevice for more than looking down at Campbell’s feet. A
two hours. The wind picked up and, paramedic for 12 years, Priest had re-
above the rescuers’ heads, a gum tree ceived special training to assess and
that had been burned out during a treat patients in difficult conditions.
scrub fire several months earlier be- This was by far the most challenging
gan to groan and crack. Concerned predicament she’d seen.

22 june/july 2025
The Race To Save Matilda

Removing rocks one by one, rescuers worked their way down to Campbell
in the painstakingly difficult rescue

She couldn’t even reach Campbell relief, but Campbell said her pain
to take her blood pressure and mon- was bearable. “When people have
PHOTO: COURTESY OF NSW AMBUL ANCE MEDIA UNIT

itor other vital signs. that medication, they can become


“We just couldn’t access her,” says drowsy, and we didn’t want to re-
Priest. duce her level of consciousness,” says
Priest.

C
ampbell asked for water. The West was also getting more con-
team lowered a bottle on a rope, cerned. Campbell was becoming
but she dropped it into the crev- fatigued and wasn’t talking as much.
ice below her. They tried again and After a long period of silence, West
she dropped the second bottle. wondered if she had passed out. “Are
The paramedics considered low- you OK?” she called. “Yes, I’m OK,”
ering a ‘green whistle’, an inhaler Campbell replied. The work of wid-
containing methoxyflurane for pain ening the crevice began.

rdasia.com 23
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

Two weeks after her ordeal, Matilda Campbell (centre) met her rescuers (left to right):
Jason Sattler, Nicole Priest, NSW Ambulance Inspector Howard Russell, Vicki West,
Peter Watts and Kile Nicholas, regional operations manager with VRA Rescue NSW

Working together seamlessly, the around it and manually winched it up.


rescuers carefully removed about Finally, the crevice was wide enough
30 rocks, one by one. Some were small to reach Campbell.
enough to lift by hand and send rolling Peter Watts, an ambulance spe-
down the hill; others were prised out cialist rescue paramedic with years
of the way with crowbars or hydraulic of experience in intensive care
spreaders. Once the rocks were clear and cave rescue, put on a harness
of the crevice, the team lifted them attached to a brake line and climbed PHOTO: COURTESY OF NSW AMBUL ANCE MEDIA UNIT

away using a Tirfor winch, a traction into the opening above her feet.
and lifting device, anchored to the

A
base of a nearby tree. monitor was placed on her fin-
It was slow going. As the rocks ger, which told the paramedics
were moved, fissures would open that she had a good amount of
or boulders would shift. Each time, oxygen in her blood and her heart
the plan had to change to keep the rate was fine. Next, the team lowered
rocks steady. Hours passed; morning a flexible camera into the crevice.
slipped into early afternoon. Its grainy images showed them that
The last rock weighed about Campbell’s right shoulder was bent
500 kilograms. The team put a sling backwards.

24 june/july 2025
The Race To Save Matilda

Pulling her out too quickly could than we would have expected her to
risk dislocating it or breaking her be,” says Priest. “She was a bit sore,
arm. Watts crawled headfirst into but her vital signs were normal.”
t he crev ice a nd slipped a sling Campbell was taken by ambu-
around Campbell’s lower legs. The lance to John Hunter Hospital in
team then attached two ropes to Newcastle, where she stayed for a
the sling – one to haul her up using few days to monitor a small spinal
a pulley, and the second as a brake fracture.
line to prevent her from slipping

T
back down. More than three hours he rescue could have ended
after Campbell had fallen into the very differently. If Campbell
crevice, it was time to pull her out. had been completely vertical,
Very slowly, they eased the rope rather than curved and resting on a
up. Campbell’s body shifted a cou- rock, she might not have survived.
ple of centimetres. Now lying flat on Priest credits Campbell for keep-
his stomach, Watts lowered the sling ing her composure throughout the
a fraction and reset the brake line. ordeal. “She was the perfect patient.
Then they hauled her up some more. She made it so easy for us to do our
Campbell’s legs gradually came into job; whenever we asked her to move
view as she was winched out centi- her body, she just did it.”
metre by centimetre. Sattler lay down The rescuers agree that it was the
by the opening and reached into the most unusual and difficult extraction
crevice. they had ever performed. But Sattler
Grabbing hold of her thighs, he says it was a privilege to have been
helped Campbell wriggle upwards. involved. “She was young and full
“I reached her waist and then her of life; it made all our efforts worth-
shoulders. I’d wiggle her slightly to while.”
get her out with minimal damage,” Matilda Campbell never did get
he says. At around 4pm – more than back her phone – next time, she says,
seven hours after she had fallen – she’ll leave it where it falls.
Campbell was out. As police, am- “It’s safe to say I’m the most acci-
bulance workers and volunteer res- dent-prone person ever,” she later
cuers lifted her onto a stretcher, the posted on Facebook. “No more rock
rest of the team broke into applause. exploration for me for a while!
Campbell was covered in minor “I wanted to give the biggest shout-
scrapes, her face was swollen, and out to my friends, the team who
her legs were pale. When she tried worked so hard to get me out. I’m
to stand, she fell straight back down. forever t hank f ul, as most likely
“But medically she was a lot better I would not be here today.”

rdasia.com 25
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

LIFE’S LIKE THAT


Seeing The Funny Side

Coming To The Fore “Were you in a hurry this


It was my turn to work at the snack morning?” he asked.
stand while our son’s youth hockey Contemplating the worst, I

CARTOON: HARLE Y SCHWADRON. OPPOSITE: SHUT TERS TOCK.


team played. When a player from replied, “No, as a matter of fact, I sat
another team came to buy a snack, quietly in the waiting room, very
I asked what the score was. relaxed and reading. Why? Is my
“Four to three,” he said. blood pressure off the scales?”
“Oh, yeah?” I said. “Who’s ahead?” “No,” replied the doctor. “Your
As he left, he shouted back, vest is on inside out.”
“Four!” GCFL.NET
SUBMITTED BY DAVID FLEMMING
Stinging Response
Pressure Point Me: I have a cut under my fingernail.
The doctor was reviewing some The universe: Excellent, I will send
results from a routine blood test you an unusually high number of
during my checkup, then he took my encounters with citrus fruit.
blood pressure. @MARIANA057

26 june/july 2025
Life’s Like That

PARENTAL GUIDANCE
REQUIRED
Chip Leighton, host of the TikTok series The
Leighton Show, asked parents to share head-
scratching questions their kids asked them THE GREAT TWEET-OFF:
after leaving home for university. These kids GARDENING EDITION
may need more study time.
It’s back to nature for gardeners
“What’s Grandma’s actual name?” who tweet.

“Can I use the bathroom on a plane?” After six weeks, $140 in supplies, and
daily watering, we’re only three to four
“How often is annual?” weeks away from enjoying a single
“Do we live above or below sea level?” 25 cents vegetable from our garden.
@BIZARRELAZAR
“How do I know when water is boiling?” I don’t know who needs to hear this but
“Pork chops are part of a chicken, right?” you’re a great gardener. That plant
should have tried harder.
“Which one makes noise, lightning or @JOHNJAYVANES
thunder?” I watered my garden and then it rained
“What time is noon?” so I’d like a refund please.
@REALLIFEMOMMY3
Procrastiplanting: when you have millions
of things to do but go to the garden
to plant and tend to flowers instead.
@ANYHOOTY
Pulling up weeds by the fistful is all
the meditation I need.
@PEARLS FROM MYRNA
I’ve found the perfect way to keep
my plants healthy. I leave them at the
garden centre as nature intended.
All Keyed Up @JUSTBEINGEMMA
When I dropped off my car at a
repair shop, the mechanic held out
his hand.
Bemused by this young man
blatantly flirting, I jokingly placed
my hand in his and did a fake
swoon.
He smiled sympathetically and
said, “I need the keys.”
SUBMITTED BY SUE PENZEL

rdasia.com 27
GENDER POLL

What Women And


Men Want To Say
28 june/july 2025
What would the sexes like to tell each other?
Reader’s Digest has asked men and women
from around the world.

Part 2 – Men

rdasia.com 29
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

ast issue, we heard women from around the


world speak about what they’ve always wanted
to tell men – and maybe never dared to. They
called for more participation in household
chores, a push for real equality as far as wages

PRE VIOUS PAGE (ILLUS TR ATION): GENERIERT MIT KI-TECHNOLOGIE ADOBE FIREFLY; OPPOSITE (PHOTO) GE T T Y IMAGES/GERMAN RD LICENCE
and day-to-day-life are concerned and less swagger
– not just on first dates. They also acknowledged
the love and support they get from men. This month
it’s the gentlemen’s turn to offer their perspective.
What is it that they’ve been wanting to tell women
all along? Do they, too, feel that something needs to
change or are they content with things as they are?

What I really like about you I wish women would ...


“I like to share with everyone, but “It would be helpful if you under-
with a woman, it goes further. I love stood that men say things as they
the fact that I can let myself go. You are when something is bothering
can let yourself go more completely them. That’s also why we get over
and deeply with someone of the op- things quickly and want to continue
posite sex than with a friend. And where we left off before something
it’s not necessarily about sex, it’s was bothering us! Back to business
about emotions. A man may love his as usual.”
friends, but when he loves a woman, Jelle, 52, in a relationship, The Netherlands
it’s not the same. Loving a woman
makes you grow.” “Women should understand that
Félix, 23, single, France men are still wired for the archaic
activities of hunting and gathering.
“I really like your consideration for That’s why we fill basements and ga-
others and your sense of humour.” rages with stuff – we think it’s useful.”
William Egan, 65, married, Australia Jürgen, 56, married, Germany

“You are a great, solution-oriented, “I’ve always wanted to say, ‘I’ve al-
charming, attractive partner with ways wanted to tell you how much I
whom I am never bored.” appreciate you and care about you.’”
Maximilian, 63, married, Germany Jouni, 63, unclear, Finland

30 june/july 2025
Part 2 - Men

“I know I’m the one to blame for “What I would like to say to women
your departure, for all the lies I told is that we should have experiences as
you, for my hostile demeanour, for actual human beings that are based
my endless drunkenness and for on real life, not on the ideal present-
your messages I ignored. Yet, I still ed in social media. What I like about
wish you would be willing to stand the other sex is that sensibility, affec-
all of this, because I’m a dumbass, tion and care that comes from trust.
because ever y t hing around me, I envy the connection that generally
since I can remember, has told me exists between female friends, the
this is the way it has to be.” warmth and the cuddles.”
Santino Cortés, 21, single, Mexico Venustiano Toledo Mares, 34, single, Mexico

“I wish you weren’t so hypersensi-


tive to perfectly normal snoring.” About those household
Greg Barton, 47, married, New Zealand chores
“I think I do quite a lot around
“When you tell me about your ad- t he house. Of cou rse you do
ventures on the road, like the car more. Unfortunately, this means
that grazed you, I pretend to be in- t hat my cont ribut ion of ten goes
terested, but frankly it bores me.” unnoticed.”
Bruno, 60, in a relationship, France Maximilian, 63, married, Germany

“I REALLY LIKE
YOUR ABILITY
TO LISTEN
AND TO SHOW
COMPASSION.”
TOM, 73, SINGLE, FINLAND

rdasia.com 31
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

“I WOULD
PREFER
THAT YOU LEAVE
THE COOKING TO ME.
I AM BETTER
AT IT.”
FERNANDO, 55, IN A RELATIONSHIP,
SPAIN

“I’m glad that you do it because


I’m bad at it.” “Even if things are changing, I
Martin, 65, married, Finland have the advantage of benefiting
from a society where men are priv-
“I like doing the dishes, my laun- ileged.”
dr y, my bed... I’m all for sharing Bruno, 60, in a relationship, France
tasks, but in reality, fewer and fewer
people live together. For example, “Men have it better because for us
my father has his apartment, his the other sex is women. And they are
partner has hers, and everyone does so appealing.”
their own housework.” Jouni, 63, unclear, Finland
Félix, 23, single, France

... or women?
Who has it better? Men ...
PHOTO: GE T T Y IMAGES/GERMAN RD LICENCE

“There is one advantage of being


“Since I don’t know what it is to be a woman that I envy in particular:
anything other than a man, I can‘t the motherly bond you have with
really say who has it better. The only your children because you brought
advantage that comes to mind is that them into the world. That bond will
I don’t get whistled at when I walk always be different than the one a
down the street. In many situations, father has.”
I’m safer than a woman, which is no Jelle, 52, in a relationship, The Netherlands
mean feat. In fact, it’s horrible that
this should be an advantage.” “There are definitely advantag-
Félix, 23, single, France es to being a woman. W hen they

32 june/july 2025
Part 2 - Men

ma ke a mista ke, people tend to “Emotion, feelings, affection and


treat them w ith k id gloves. Even sex go hand-in-hand and are a sub-
in the military, women are treated tle mix. If one of these ingredients
with more consideration. Because is missing, it won’t work. At least not
of their beauty and youth, women for long.”
have access to financial resourc- Fabien, 39, in a relationship, France
es. It is also usually women who
choose their partners. Women talk
more with their friends and are less What a partner should offer
likely to be lonely.” “For my partner I was quite simply
Martin, 25, in a relationship, Germany looking for a nice person.”
Martin, 65, married, Finland

Would I want to swap? “ W hat I a s k i s t hat not on l y


“Yes! Maybe not permanently, but should she have the openness for
maybe just for a weekend or two a dialogue about different points
I would.” of view, but also a comprehension
Greg Barton, 47, married, New Zealand that we must live our lives as indi-
viduals.”
“No. I wouldn’t want to go through Venustiano Toledo Mares, 34, single, Mexico
menstrual pain every month.”
Jürgen, 56, married, Germany “I was looking for a partner with
whom I can be myself, someone
“No.” with whom I don’t have to be con-
Jouni, 63, unclear, Finland stantly worried about how I come
across. Someone who makes me
feel like I matter, who appreciates
About intimacy me for who I am and what I do.”
“Emotional closeness is very im- Jelle, 52, in a relationship, The Netherlands
portant to me. Sex, too, actually.
Whether you have the opportunity “When choosing a partner, it was
for it depends on many things. Not important to me to find a woman
least on health.” who has similar values. Someone
Maximilian, 63, married, Germany good-look ing, at hlet ic and w it h
high self-esteem. It was also impor-
“On a scale from 0 to 10 this is how tant to me that she have a similar
important emotional closeness and need for harmony. And a supportive
sex are to me: 9.75.” attitude.”
Fernando, 55, in a relationship, Spain Martin, 25, in a relationship, Germany

rdasia.com 33
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

On a first date the system must become much fair-


“I hate that when we started see- er. And the value of so-called family
ing each other everything I thought work – which continues to be done
about women came down. It turns 90 per cent of the time by women –
out you weren’t like in the movies must be more highly valued.”
from the 50s that my grandpa used Jürgen, 56, married, Germany
to watch on the couch. It turns out
you have dimensions I don’t know “Absolutely – I support equality
and have a life beyond me, beyond on the job. I even advocate a dispro-
other men. portion in favour of women.
That made me feel lost, because I Men should stay at home, we have
wanted to feel you close, but the clos- done enough bad things to man-
er I got to you the more dimensions kind.”
of you I discovered.” Fernando, 55, in a relationship, Spain
Santino Cortés, 21, single, Mexico

Gender roles and


Equality on the job? behaviour
“I think gender equality on the “Yes, I do think gender roles influ-
job has to do with the capacity and ence our behaviour. For example, in
attitude of the individual worker. a couple, when both have a driver’s
The evaluation of their contribution licence, it’s more often the man who
should be as pragmatic and objec- drives.”
tive as possible, leaving aside possi- Bruno, 60, in a relationship, France
ble beliefs, ideologies or preferences,
and always considering the person “Gender roles are culture-related
with respect.” and culture dominates everything.
Alejandro Arriaga Sanromán, 61, Married, Mexico Some of them are congenital, others PHOTO: GE T T Y IMAGES/GERMAN RD LICENCE

learned.
“Equality on the job is the correct Each of us works from our own
way of doing things and should be starting point and copies what the
promoted. I have always said women culture expects. In this sense, we
make better bosses.” are coded.”
William Egan, 65, married, Australia Tom, 73, single, Finland

“There is still a great deal that “I think gender roles limit us in


needs to be done when it comes to making free choices to do or become
equalit y in this area. There have what we truly want.”
been isolated improvements, but Jelle, 52, in a relationship, The Netherlands

34 june/july 2025
Part 2 - Men

“I THINK WE SHOULD
TEACH BOYS TO
EXPRESS THEIR
EMOTIONS FREELY
AND WITHOUT
SHAME.”
FABIEN, 39, IN A RELATIONSHIP, FRANCE

make unfair judgements. However,


We should teach children ... without forcing them to do some-
thing. I am one of those people who
“I think we should teach girls and believe that we should let things
boys to look for similarities as hu- f low, but with guidance towards a
mans as opposed to focusing on the common purpose, and respecting
differences between them.” each other’s arguments without gen-
William Egan, 65, married, Australia erating conflict.”
Alejandro Arriaga Sanromán, 61, Married, Mexico
“I think we should teach boys and
girls to have informed conversations “I would like to teach my children
about respect and consent.” gender-specific values. With a boy, I
Greg Barton, 47, married, New Zealand would be a little rougher to toughen
him up, because boys’ arguments
“I don’t think this is easy, because are very physical.
our emotions and beliefs confuse us, Women tend to deal with conflicts
but I think the most important thing more indirectly.”
is to educate children, so they don’t Martin, 25, in a relationship, Germany

A New Antagonistic Ant Species


A new ant species has been found in Australia’s Pilbara region. Its
pale, ghostly and elongated body has inspired researchers from
the University of Western Australia to name it Leptanilla voldemort,
after the villain in the Harry Potter series. ABC.NET.COM

rdasia.com 35
36
june/july 2025
PHOTOS: SHUT TERS TOCK
EXERCISE

THE GLOOM AWAY


Laugh your way to better health and wellbeing with
this appealing physical therapy

BY Jude Araim

M
erv Neal was well known Neal’s condition was so serious that
for his ability to make oth- the diagnosis caused him to reassess
ers laugh, it was what first everything.
attracted his wife to him when they Unbeknown to him, the condition
were 17 and still in high school. had also been working away at his
Laughter and being the ‘fun guy’ brain, causing mini strokes and small
helped him stand out among his bleeds that had, overtime, led him to
friends and colleagues. develop uncontrollable laughter.
So, when at the age of 45, Neal was One week went by, then another
diagnosed with aplastic anaemia – a until seven months after he was di-
blood disorder that occurs when the agnosed, Neal’s specialist reported
body’s bone marrow can’t produce the good news that his brain scans
enough blood cells – the IT entre- and blood biopsies were all clear. His
preneur from Melbourne reacted the medical team viewed the uncontrol-
only way he knew how, he laughed. lable laughter not just as a symptom
The fatigue, bleeding gums, nose of the aplastic anaemia, but also a
bleeds and bruising he’d previous- powerful antidote.
ly brushed off now made sense. But Now a grandfather, Neal turned his

rdasia.com 37
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

personal experience and citizen sci- club. Dr Madan Kataria and Dr Mad-
ence insights into a career by found- huri Kataria started the club with just
ing Laughter Yoga Australia, based four people. Gathering in a Mumbai
on the work of Indian scientists and park, they exchanged jokes to pro-
a growing school of thought on the duce laughter. The club’s success
benefits of laughter therapy in com- quickly grew, increasing to more
plementing the treatment of mental than 50 participants within days, but
and emotional stress. soon dwindled as the tone of some
Laughter yoga combines physical jokes caused offense, and also fake
exercises like stretching and breath- laughter responses.
ing with laughter-evoking exercises While reviewing his observations
to stimulate a response to the im- of the laughter club interactions,
mune system. It’s not about sharing Madan Kataria, a family physician,
jokes, rather the therapy involves noted that the human body appeared
laughter exercises, often in a group unable to differentiate between gen-
setting, that induce a positive phys- uine laughter and false laughter as
ical response in participants. the body reacts the same way – pro-
ducing the same ‘happy chemistry’,
ORIGINS a mix of dopamine, oxytocin, seroto-
The study of the benefits of laughter nin and endorphins.
yoga originated in India in 1995 with He also theorised that fake laugh-
the formation of a small laughter ter had the potential to develop into

38 june/july 2025
Giggle The Gloom Away

genuine laughter. Sure enough, when laugh.” Your diaphragm gets a work-
he tested this theory on the group, out – almost like an ab workout – so
their laughter was indeed contagious maybe we should laugh more instead
– in as little as ten minutes the partic- of going to the gym, she says.
ipants had turned their fake laughter Laughter also regulates our blood
into hearty genuine laughter. pressure, increases oxygen levels,
Inspired by the results, Madan relaxes our muscles, manages pain
Kataria continued his research and through the production of endor-
de veloped laug hter phins, and prevents
t herapy techniques, IT’S STILL cholesterol build-up
and founded Laughing A MYSTERY and hardened arteries.
Club International. He In December 2021,
began incorporating
WHY PEOPLE Merv Neal monitored a
yog ic breat h i ng ex- LAUGH, BUT IT laughter session which
ercises into the prac- DOES RELIEVE was aired in 2022 with
tice, which produced the neurological scien-
stress-relieving results.
STRESS tist Dr Sarah McKay,
He followed up with the founder of Think Brain
book, Laugh for No Reason in 1999, in and director of The Neuroscience
which he explains the importance of Academy. They found that in just half
having laughter as part of a normal an hour of practising laughter yoga,
and healthy daily routine. cortisol levels were decreased by up
Today, there are roughly 100,000 to 65 per cent.
Laughter Yoga Clubs, plus online Laughter also helps the brain focus
laughter clubs, the growth of which on the present, instead of becoming
came about during COVID-19. anxious about what has happened
in the past or might happen in the
HEALTH BENEFITS future. “It shifts our mental perspec-
Scientifically speaking, it’s still a tives,” explains Neal. “If someone is
mystery why people laugh, but one suffering challenges, illnesses and
thing is certain, it gives us relief from diseases, it interrupts their negative
pressure and stress. And as laughter thought processes.”
is usually shared, there’s a “bond- In 2013, Laughter Yoga participat-
ing and sharing capacity that comes ed in a research study to measure
together over laughter,” says social the impact of laughter in treating
science researcher Dr Barbara Plest- depression among long-term kid-
er, an associate professor at the Uni- ney dialysis patients. Under Deakin
versity of Auckland. “Physiologically, University’s Associate Professor Paul
your body does quite a lot when you Bennett’s leadership, Merv Neal and

rdasia.com 39
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

a research team collaborated to test for 30 days. What they discovered


whether laughter and exercise could was that their blood pressure was
assist with kidney dialysis treat- getting higher.
ment. Being hooked up to a machine “We knew that laughter decreased
that removes, cleans and replaces a high blood pressure, but this was the
patient’s blood is extremely testing. first time – medically and scientifi-
Doing this for five hours every sec- cally – that we’d proven that laugh-
ond day is, as Professor Bennett de- ter can increase low blood pressure.
scribes, “mind-numbingly boring”. That was our ‘wow’ moment,” says
“The people are experiencing de- Professor Bennett. “That’s signifi-
pression, even suicidal tendencies,” cant because all of a sudden, there’s
he says. “And often they get second- 15 [fewer] times that people go into
ary illnesses such as cancers because emergency situations, which causes
of the process. It’s a horrible situa- lots of stress in the ward.”
tion. And they never recover from it. The drop in emergency incidents
The people that I was working with was measured by the activity of intra-
were on the non-transplant register dialytic hypertensive episode IDHE
because of their age or circumstance. alarms being set off. An IDHE alarm
So, this was their life.” is triggered when a patient is about to
Together, Professor Bennett, Neal go into cardiac arrest or suffer organ
and the team from Deakin Univer- shutdown. “Four weeks before the
sity, designed a laughter exercise study, 19 alarms went off in the ward,”
programme for patients undergoing explains Professor Bennett. “Dur-
dialysis treatment. The results, pub- ing the study, 19 alarms go off in the
lished in the Seminars in Dialysis ward.” Medically, that was important
journal in 2014, were fascinating. because the research team thought
“They [the patients] just lit up as the laughter exercise may result in
soon as we walked into the room,” more alarms going off. However, four
says Professor Bennett. “They would weeks after the study, only four alarms
go, ‘Oh, here’s the laughter people. went off. “And the only thing that was
We’re going to have some fun.’ That different was laughter.”
was what we’re trying to do. We’re
trying to make them not so depressed LAUGHTER’S POTENTIAL
– and you can’t be depressed when Laughter holds much potential as a
you’re having fun.” form of treatment and management
People undergoing kidney dialysis tool to help navigate the negativity
treatment experience extremely low caused by stress in the workplace.
blood pressure, so during the study “We live in a stressful world,” says
patients checked their blood counts Neal. “Stress doesn’t cause illness,

40 june/july 2025
Giggle The Gloom Away

but it is a catalyst which drives it.” exercises, such as rhythmic clapping


Dr Barbara Plester, a social scientist and body movements, with laughter
and ethnographic researcher at the exercises to stimulate extreme health
University of Auckland, adds “I think benefits. Like meditation, laughter
there is more stress in the workplace focuses on breathing.
today. Work has changed. It’s increas- “W hen we talk about yoga, we
ingly fast-paced. We also work in dif- think of putting our body into funny
ferent modes now… so my latest re- poses,” says Neal. “But there’s about a
search is looking at humour, fun and thousand different types of yoga and
hybrid work, because that’s what a lot all of them are about the unity of the
of offices have gone to.” mind, body and spirit. Laughter ex-
Dr Plester encourages workplaces ercises don’t have to be complicated
to establish warm, inviting and safe or clever.”
environments, where people can So, if you are looking to boost your
prosper “and enjoy a little bit of fun mood, ease your stress or simply
and laughter together”. want a bit of fun, why not give Laugh-
ter Yoga a go? As Merv Neal says, “Get
LAUGHTER IS SIMPLE up in the morning, and just smile.
Neal continues to develop Laughter And once you’ve smiled, why don’t
Yoga and now combines play-based you just laugh?”

Laughter is a drug-free and non- and nose with your hands. Then smile
invasive therapy that sets off a using only your eyes, and hold this
positive response in the body, expression for five to ten seconds.
easing stress and strengthening 3. Laugh and walk. Stand up, laugh
the immune system. Try these gently, and then pace up and down
simple exercises next time the room ten times. Walking and
you’re feeling uncomfortable or laughing can be quite the workout!
depressed.
4. Try flossing out your
concerns. Think of yourself with
1. ‘Ha’ mantra for stress. Evoke a
dental floss wrapped around two
de-stressing response by thinking of
fingers. Try imagining flossing
a stressful situation and responding to
between your ears to clear out
it by saying: ‘ha, ha, ha’ out loud. Start
negative thoughts that have built up,
with saying it slowly, then increase the
back and forth you floss as you laugh
pace.
out loud.
2. Smiling with the eyes. Stand in SOURCES: THEHAPPYDEMIC.COM.AU AND
front of a mirror and cover your mouth WWW.POSITIVEPSYCHOLOGY.COM

rdasia.com 41
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42 june/july 2025
SEE Turn
THEtheWORLD...
page ››

rdasia.com 43
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44 june/july 2025
...DIFFERENTLY
India’s Ancient Steps
The history of the Chand Baori goes back a
long way. The stepwell in the Indian state
of Rajasthan was built during the 8th-9th
centuries, possibly even earlier – according
to legend, by ghosts within a single night.
Over 13 floors on three sides and a total
of 3500 steps lead to the water level at a
depth of about 20 metres. The fourth side
is occupied by a three-storey pavilion with
galleries supported by columns and two
projecting balconies, which was most likely
reserved for the royal family.
The Chand Baori not only provided water all
year round, but also offered the population
a cooler place to stay when temperatures
rose to over 40 degrees Celsius
in the summer.
PHOTOS: GE T T Y IMAGES/GERMAN RD LICENCE

rdasia.com 45
ART OF LIVING

WE
FOUND
Twenty-one creative cures for everyday dilemmas,
from cleaning to cooking to tech and more

BY Caroline Fanning

46 june/july 2025
1 CLEANING
Cast A Sparkling Shower Spell
Keep a dishwashing wand filled with
dishwashing liquid in your shower and
give the tiles a quick scrub while you wait
for your conditioner to set. A 30-second
once-daily buff will keep soap scum from
building up – and keep you from having
to do a full overhaul on cleaning day.
You’ll step away from a cleaning session
smelling fabulous rather than smelling
like a tile cleanser.
SOURCE: CONSUMER REPORTS
IMAGE: EMIKO FR ANZEN

rdasia.com 47
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

2 TECH
Find Out Who’s Selling
Your Personal Info
Let companies tell on themselves by
putting the company name as your
3 HOME
A Sure Tip For A
Smooth Paint Job
Before busting out the
brushes and rollers and
middle name when you purchase or sign applying a new coat of
up for something online. When you Agreeable Grey paint to
receive a message addressed to Jane your foyer, apply a coat of
‘Cheapo Bargains’ Smith, you’ll know lotion to your arms, hands, face and any
who sold your information to other other exposed skin. An oily barrier on
companies that are now spamming your your skin will save you (and your arm
inbox. Then use your discretion when hair) from wayward paint splatters,
dealing with them again. which will wash away with ease.
SOURCE: LIFEHACKER SOURCE: FAMILY HANDYMAN

4 KNOWLEDGE
The Student Becomes The Teacher
Rather than quizzing your kids for their big chemistry exam, have them give you
a lesson. The Feynman Technique, a study method named after Nobel Prize winner
Richard Feynman, hypothesises that you fully grasp a topic once you can successfully
teach it. So, after your child attempts to put the test material into understandable
concepts for you, any lingering questions will reveal which chapters they need to go
back to and study more. If you totally understand everything, then so do they.
SOURCE: COMPUTER SYSTEMS INSTITUTE

IMAGES: (OPPOSITE) EMIKO FR ANZEN. (THIS PAGE) SHUT TERS TOCK


5 TRAVEL
Don’t Lose Your Luggage
(Or Your Mind)
Downloading an airline’s app can spare
you the anxiety of wondering where your
luggage is. As personnel scan its barcode,
many airlines will update the status of
your checked bag: loaded, unloaded,
ready at baggage claim. If you have a
connection, the app will even confirm that
your suitcase made the flight with you.
Plus, it will deliver the quickest and most
up-to-date information about boarding
and gate changes.
SOURCE: NERDWALLET

48 june/july 2025
We Found A Fix!

6 GREEN
A DIY Moisture Meter
Letting the sprinkler spray for hours over a brown patch
won’t necessarily bring back your lush green lawn this summer,
nor does a brown patch mean that the grass is totally dead.
Determine if your yard actually needs a drink by sticking a
screwdriver into the soil. Only water if the ground is so hard that
you can’t push the metal part more than eight centimetres into
the ground. SOURCE: CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS DAILY

rdasia.com 49
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7 WORK
The 3-3-3 Method Ups
Productivity
Try planning each workday around the
3-3-3 model, starting with spending the
8 MONEY
Buy In Bulk To Spend Less
There are lots of ways to trick
yourself into spending less, like deleting
credit card information from your online
first three hours to deep thinking on your accounts for an added obstacle while
most important project. Next, complete impulse shopping, or paying in cash so
three other urgent tasks that don’t need you physically see money leaving your
deep thinking, before moving on and wallet. Scott Rick, a professor at the
completing three ‘maintenance’ tasks, University of Michigan’s Ross School of
like replying to emails or scheduling Business, suggests designating one
other work. Designed by time day of the week to make all your ‘want’
management expert Oliver Burkeman, purchases. Having to buy several in
starting the day with a clear, focused one sitting might just prompt you to
head ready for a three-hour block of reconsider some as not so wanted
deep thinking sets the tone for the rest of after all.
your day, while increasing the quality of SOURCE: WALL STREET JOURNAL
your productivity. The idea is that this
method helps avoid burnout by
alternating between intense focus on a
critical task and completing smaller,
potentially more varied tasks.

IMAGES: (LOCK) EMIKO FR ANZEN. (WINE AND CREDIT CARD) SHUT TERS TOCK
SOURCE: LIFEHACKER

9 GREEN GIFTING
One-Of-A-Kind Tags
You’ve been inundated with
cards around the festive season and
your birthday – we get it, you’re
popular. Rather than stuffing them in
a drawer to collect dust (or worse,
trashing them, as glitter, foil and
lamination aren’t recyclable),
10 CLEANING
The Sun Is On Your Side
You store red sauce in a plastic
container one time, and the container
never lets you forget it. Remove that
separate the cover from the note to orange tint by leaving the container in
make gift tags. Cut the already front of a sunny window for a few hours
festively decorated card stock into (or even a few days) after you wash and
squares, then use a hole punch and dry it. The sun’s rays will work as a
ribbon to attach your one-of-a-kind natural bleach and help lighten the
tags to wrapped presents. stains.
SOURCE: LATHE & QUILL SOURCE: REAL SIMPLE

50 june/july 2025
We Found A Fix!

11 COOKING
Be Kind, Re-Wine
Pour leftover wine (we know,
we know) into a sturdy
resealable plastic bag so it’ll
12 HEALTH
Buy Time In An Emergency
Keep essential health
information (name, date of birth, medical
history, medications and dosages,
keep and you won’t have to allergies, blood type, preexisting
break out the corkscrew next conditions, emergency contacts) on a
time you need a sheet of paper found easily in an
splash for cooking. emergency (laminated in your wallet or
Store it in the freezer, stuck to the fridge). Your list can also be
and don’t hesitate to stored in an iPhone or Android’s Medical
marry remnants of ID feature accessible from your device’s
reds, whites and pinks lockscreen; a paramedic will know to
as you taste-test over look for it. Having these details will avoid
time. Defrost and emergency services wasting crucial
deglaze to flavour minutes pillaging through your
stews and braises. bathroom cabinets instead of saving you.
SOURCE: ALISON ROMAN SOURCE: NEW YORK FIRE DEPARTMENT

13 HOME
A Lock Combination You
Can’t Forget
You thought you knew the combination
of your bike lock, safe or locker ... but
have since discovered that your
memory isn’t quite as secure as your
belongings. Here’s a trick to keep you
from forgetting: pick a number, then
write the combination on the lock’s
underside in permanent marker minus
that number. (For example, if a
combination lock’s code is 06-14-24,
and your lucky number is 4, you’ll write
02-10-20). One number is easier to
remember than three. Maths
challenged? Pick an easy number,
like 1, 2 or 10. SOURCE: FAMILY HANDYMAN

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R E A DER’S DIGE ST

14 MONEY
Stay Afloat With A Sinking Fund
Create a ‘sinking fund’ to avoid
sinking into debt when large expenses like
holidays or home renovations loom, suggests
financial expert Dave Ramsey. Identify your
goal (say, $2000 for a holiday in December) and
how much you’ll need to save to meet it ($167
per month if you start in January; $333 per
month if you start in July). Then auto-transfer the
amount into an account separate from your
savings so you’re not tempted to dip into it.
When it’s time to pay for a vehicle deposit or to
pay a contractor’s invoice, you won’t break a
sweat.
SOURCE: THE RAMSEY SHOW

52 june/july 2025
We Found A Fix!

15 CLEANING
The Fastest Way To Fold?
Don’t.
Laundry is an endless prison sentence,
but folding is one of our own creations.
16 GREEN
Pad Your Bags
If you need to pack or ship an
item and are fresh out of Bubble Wrap
and packing peanuts, look no further
KC Davis, author of How to Keep House than the plastic reusable shopping bags
While Drowning, realised the chore was a spilling out of your kitchen cabinet
time sinker and gave it up. “We don’t fold (produce bags work, too). Fill them with
clothes but rather hang shirts and then air, tie them off at the top and let them
toss everything else into organised buffer your
baskets,” she told Real Simple. For things shopping
like underwear and pyjamas, wrinkles returns or care-
don’t matter. And other things don’t package snacks
wrinkle as much as you’d think, from the tumult
especially if you lay them flat and don’t of a delivery
overcrowd the baskets. truck.
SOURCE: REAL SIMPLE SOURCE: LIFEHACKER
IMAGES: EMIKO FR ANZEN. (TOP RIGHT) SHUT TERS TOCK

17 TRAVEL
Tilt The Turbulence Balance
Turbulence isn’t any real danger to your aircraft – only to your now-blurry
in-flight entertainment experience. Choose a seat near the wing if it really upsets
you: proximity to the plane’s centre of gravity reduces jostling. “Think of it like a
seesaw. If you’re right in the middle, you won’t feel much movement,” says travel
writer Bailey Berg.
SOURCE: AFAR

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18 OUTDOORS
A Mosquito Deterrent That’ll
Blow You Away
A strategically placed outdoor fan on your deck
or patio will keep away mosquitoes, which
generally aren’t very strong fliers. Turns out the
hidden weakness of the summer’s greatest and
most notorious pest is not citronella candles,
tiki torches or insect spray, but a stiff breeze.
SOURCE: AMERICAN MOSQUITO CONTROL ASSOCIATION

54 june/july 2025
We Found A Fix!

20 GREEN/MONEY
Get The Most Out Of Your
Old Devices
Your drawer of abandoned electronics
could be worth bucks. ‘Traded-in
devices’ generally means you can
exchange your old electronic device at a
retailer, like a phone company or

19 TECH
The Kindle Swindler
E-book readers store much
more than your A Song of Ice and Fire
fantasy series – like the billing
electronics store, and receive credit
towards the purchase of a new item from
the same retailer, essentially lowering
the price of your new purchase by the
value of your trade-in.
information used for your e-book Companies offering trade-ins for old
purchase. Hackers know that Kindles electronics include Apple Trade In,
and Nooks are off your cybersecurity Samsung Trade Up, electronics stores,
radar and may try to get you to some service providers and resale
download malicious e-book files. platforms. The value of the traded-in
Marijus Briedis, chief technology officer devices is generally applied to credit
at NordVPN, advises only downloading towards the purchase. Before trading
books from verified sellers and library your device, make sure all your personal
apps, and regularly updating device data is wiped from it. Also remember to
software to repair security unlink all accounts. The original
vulnerabilities. SOURCE: NORDVPN packaging can also help slightly increase
sale value.
IMAGES: (OPPOSITE) EMIKO FR ANZEN. (THIS PAGE) SHUT TERS TOCK

21 HOME
Nail Polish To The Rescue
A bottle of nail polish could be one of the most useful beauty products
you ever buy. We found three uses well beyond adding a little glamour. Ease the
upset of accidently chipping your kitchen or bathroom tile by
colouring-in the chip with a matching nail polish colour. The
small brush and variety of colours available will ensure accuracy.
Then try repairing an unravelling shoelace with clear nail polish.
Carefully dip it in the bottle, twist it back into shape and then
allow it to dry. You can also use a clear nail polish to paint the
bottom of a metal can (think insect repellent or hair spray) to
prevent rust from developing and staining your stone or metal
sink or the shelf inside your cabinet or cupboard.
SOURCE: RD.COM

rdasia.com 55
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LAUGHTER
The Best Medicine

I Am Calm Finder’s Keepers


As he pushes his wailing child People say, “It’s always the last place
through the supermarket, a young you look.”
father repeats softly, “Don’t get Of course it is. Why would you

CARTOON: DOUG GRUNDY; ILLUS TR ATION: SHUT TERS TOCK


excited, Josh … Don’t scream, Josh … keep looking after you’ve found it?
Keep calm, Josh.” BILLY CONNOLLY, COMEDIAN
A fellow shopper, impressed by the
father’s calm demeanour, says, “You Cashing In
should be commended for trying to Three women are gushing about
soothe your son.” their children. The first one says,
The father replies, “I’m Josh.” “My brilliant son graduated first in
CATALOGS.CO his class. He’s now a doctor, making
$450,000 a year.”
A Dog’s Life The second woman says, “My
When a dog licks a stranger’s face on clever daughter graduated first in
a walk, they get adored. When I do her class. She’s now a lawyer, making
the same thing on a walk, all I get is half a million dollars a year.”
‘arrested!’ @CPAJK A The last woman – the proudest of

56 june/july 2025
Laughter

them all – says, “My son never went “If you’re a snail, why do you have a
to university, but he makes a million woman strapped to your back?”
dollars a year working as a sports “Her? That’s Michèle.” IFUNNY.CO
repairman.”
Confused, the other women ask,
“What’s a sports repairman?” GROOVY GAGS
“He fixes things,” says the third Capture the vibe of the 1960s.
mother. “You know, horse races,
football games, cricket matches …”
ON THE INTERNET
Why didn’t the hippies get saved
after the shipwreck? Because they
Punny Books were too far out, man!
Look Younger by Fay Slift
Cliff Jumping by Hugo Furst How can you tell a hippy has been
Allegiance To The King by Neil Downe at your house? He’s still there.
It’s Springtime! by Theresa Green
What did one hippy say to another
Archery by Beau N. Arrow
at the bakery? “I knead some
French Overpopulation by Francis
bread, man!”
Crowded
You might be a hippy if...
• You’ve ever driven a school bus with
Plane And Simple a Volkswagen van welded on top ...
I don’t have a lot of notes for pilots, • Any of your children have
but I do think they should cut their ‘Hummingbird’ or a celestial object
use of the word ‘final’ down to about for a middle name.
zero. ‘Descent’ and ‘destination’ • You can fall asleep in the mud
work fine for our purposes out there while it is pouring rain.
in the main cabin. Why do hippies make good
@JOSHGONDELMAN accountants? Because they’re from
a counter-culture.
Going With The Slow
A man with a woman strapped onto “In my youth, the athletes had crew
his back walks into a fancy dress cuts and the hippies had long hair.
party. The host eyes him quizzically Now the athletes have long hair and
and asks, “What are you dressed up the hippies are bald.” Harley King
as?”
SOURCES: PERMIES.COM; GOSSBY.COM;
“A snail,” the man replies, in a UPJOKE.COM
French accent.
The host is thoroughly confused.

rdasia.com 57
58 june/july 2025
PHOTO FEATURE

If you don’t feel like climbing stairs,


take the elevator. But not all
elevators are designed
for people

UpAnd
Down BY Doris Kochanek

rdasia.com 59
S For more than 100 years,

PHOTOS: (CLOCK WISE FROM LEF T) GET T Y IMAGES/GERMAN RD LICENCE; WIKIMEDIA COMMONS/
ships have been using elevators on
the Canal du Centre in Belgium.
The Strépy-Thieu boat lift went into
operation in 2002. It replaces four
lifts and two locks from the late

K ALLERNA – OWN WORK; PICTURE ALLIANCE/IMAGEBROKER/MAR A BR ANDL


19th and early 20th centuries,
which have been a World Heritage
Site since 1998.

W The elevators of tomorrow


operate in the 12 shafts of the TK-
Elevator test tower in Rottweil in
southern Germany. A ropeless
multi-cabin system, which
provides more speed and greater
transportation capacity, is being
perfected here.

X Anyone riding in one of the


two SkyView glass gondolas has an
unobstructed view of Stockholm.
Clinging to the outer façade of the
Avicii Arena in Sweden’s capital, the
gondolas soar 85 metres into the air.

60 june/july 2025
Photo Feature

W A visit to the Eiffel Tower is a


must for every tourist in Paris. It
was built in just two years for the
Exposition Universelle (World’s
Fair), which took place in 1889.
For the opening on March 31 of
that year, engineer Gustave Eiffel
personally led selected
government and press
representatives to the top: a
sweaty affair because the
elevators that would later
transport visitors to the various
platforms – as they do today –
were not yet in operation.

rdasia.com 61
R E A DER’S DIGE ST W At a height of 326 metres, the
Bailong elevator in the Chinese province
of Hunan is the highest outdoor elevator
in the world. Among other things,
earthquake sensors ensure the safety of
the tourists it transports up and down a
steep cliff in Zhangjiajie National Park

X The Elevador de Santa Justa


connects two parts of Lisbon. Since 1902,
it has ensured that pedestrians can
overcome the 45-metre difference in

PHOTOS: (CLOCK WISE FROM LEF T) GE T T Y IMAGES/IS TOCKPHOTO; GE T T Y IMAGES/IS TOCKPHOTO, BOTH GERMAN RD LICENCE;
altitude between the lower and upper city
without any effort on their part. Initially
powered by steam engines, it was soon
electrified.

T Its constant circulation makes the


‘paternoster’ special. After all, anyone
who wants to go to another floor gets on
and off during the ride. It was developed
in England in the 1860s. Incidentally,
paternoster cabins always remain
upright. So, the fact that downward
travellers hang upside down only exists in
slapstick films.

PICTURE ALLIANCE/JOKER/MARTINA HENGESBACH

62 june/july 2025
Photo Feature

rdasia.com 63
64 june/july 2025
HEALTH

PAYING ATTENTION TO
ADULT ADHD
New awareness and diagnostic tools are helping
more of us understand how our brains work

BY Melissa Greer
ILLUSTRATIONS BY Dan Page

rowing up, Suzanne Smith* describes herself as “disorganised”

G always thought she had some


sort of learning disorder. The
artist says she daydreamed during
and says she finds it hard to focus,
making everyday household tasks
like cooking and cleaning very chal-
class and doodled on her work, even- lenging.
tually falling behind. “It’s an unfair division of labour,
She was clumsy, often breaking and that was resulting in resent-
things or making a mess. Throughout ment,” she says.
her childhood, she was called quirky Smith began doing some research
and eccentric – traits that people online and reached out to the Uni-
would attribute to her creative per- versit y of Mar yland Psycholog y
sonality. Clinic, which offers sliding-fee scale
“I found different ways to cope mental health evaluations. After
and just accepted that this is me,” undergoing an assessment there
she says. But eventually, “it got to the in August 2024, she was diagnosed
point where I was really not function- with attention-deficit/hyperactivi-
ing well, and my relationship with ty disorder (ADHD) at the age of 54.
my husband was taking a hit.” Smith She’s now part of a growing number

*not her real name rdasia.com 65


R E A DER’S DIGE ST

of people who have been diagnosed consequences, both for individuals


with ADHD as adults. and for society.” And those bearing
ADHD among adults is now a the burden of a missed diagnosis are
significant global concern, affecting overwhelmingly women and margin-
a substantial number of adults. Ac- alised groups.
cording to a comprehensive review “Growing up, I was regularly told
of studies involving more than 21 that I had an attitude problem,” says
million participants worldwide by Laura Gallant, a website developer
Perth’s Curtin University, the disor- who struggled throughout school
der affects a staggering three per cent and was eventually diagnosed with
of the global adult population. ADHD in 2021 at the age of 34. “It
ADHD diagnoses among adults wasn’t an attitude problem. I’m just a
have been rising over the last two woman with ADHD,” she says.
decades, but in 2020, T he good new s is
when ma ny of us UNTIL RECENTLY, that millions of people,
were spending more ADHD WAS most ly women, who
time online, the num- once slipped through
ber of adults seeking
LARGELY the cracks are finally
treatment sharply in- CONSIDERED A getting the help they
creased. W hat hap- CHILDHOOD need. A 202 3 st udy
pened, say ex per t s, from Epic Research,
is that adults whose
DISORDER an organisation that
sy mptoms had been analyses medical re-
missed or misdiagnosed in child- cord data, found that the number of
hood were suddenly seeing them- women newly diagnosed with ADHD
selves represented in TikTok videos, nearly doubled from 2020 to 2022.
Facebook memes and Instagram ads.
“Adults with undiagnosed ADHD WHAT IS ADHD?
are more likely to have relation- ADHD is a developmental disorder
ship problems, they’re less likely to that begins in childhood and comes in
achieve the same academic and em- three types: inattentive, hyperactive/
ployment levels, and they’re more impulsive and combined. Symptoms
likely to use substances,” says Dr of the inattentive type include poor
Lenard Adler, professor of psychia- listening skills, avoidance of tasks that
try and director of the adult ADHD require concentration, and being eas-
programme at New York University’s ily sidetracked. Symptoms of the hy-
Grossman School of Medicine. peractive/impulsive type include rest-
“M i s si ng t h i s d iag nosi s a nd lessness, an inability to wait your turn,
not t reat ing A DHD has ser ious and being overly talkative. People can

66 june/july 2025
Paying Attention To Adult ADHD

the University of Washington School


of Medicine. “It’s not something that
most people grow out of.”
Neuroscientists believe that brains
with ADHD have lower levels of do-
pamine and norepinephrine, two
key neurotransmitters that support
executive function – the set of skills
we rely on to manage our emotions,
thoughts and actions. Imaging studies
on ADHD brains have also found dis-
ruptions in the neural networks. These
groups of nerve cells (neurons) form
networks that send signals throughout
the brain, but in an ADHD brain, these
networks are disrupted, making it dif-
ficult for messages to pass through.
Basically, an ADHD brain is wired
differently than a neurotypical brain.
There’s a genetic component as well.
Someone with ADHD often has a fam-
ily history of the disorder, explains
Sibley.
be diagnosed with one type; most Diagnosis involves a thorough as-
have a combination of symptoms of sessment from a professional, which
both types. can include interviews with the pa-
Until recently, ADHD was large- tient and parents or other family
ly considered a childhood disorder members. There needs to be some
most often associated with boys who level of impairment, in that symptoms
couldn’t sit still in class, but experts are interfering with the person’s ability
now know that symptoms don’t just to function.
go away as we grow up. And, because ADHD is a develop-
“The most recent data shows that mental disorder, symptoms must trace
about 90 per cent of children with back to childhood, specifically before
ADHD still have some form of it as the age of 12. In adults, that means
adults,” says Dr Margaret Sibley, a clinicians have to work to establish
clinical psychologist at the Seattle what the person was like as a child,
Children’s Hospital and a professor of says Sibley, which can be challenging
psychiatry and behavioural sciences at if the person is older.

rdasia.com 67
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

Treatment options for ADHD in- BOYS VS. GIRLS


clude cognitive behavioural therapy, ADHD affects both genders equally,
a type of talk-based psychotherapy but boys have historically been diag-
that helps people understand and nosed at three to four times the rate
change their thought and behaviour of girls, says Dr Joshua Langberg, a
patterns, and medications. clinical psychologist, professor of
Stimulant medications, such as psychology and director of the Rut-
Adderall and Ritalin, work by in- gers Center for Youth Social Emo-
creasing levels of dopamine and tional Wellness. “We now know that
norepinephrine in the brain, which this difference is probably due to an
in turn helps improve the ability to identification issue and not an actu-
stay focused. al biological or inheritability issue,”
Non-stimulant medications also he says. That’s because boys tend to
work by increasing levels of norepi- exhibit more hyperactive symptoms,
nephrine and have fewer side effects such as being unable to sit still, talk-
but may take longer to start working ing out and being disruptive.
than stimulants. Girls, on t he ot her ha nd, a re

68 june/july 2025
Paying Attention To Adult ADHD

generally more inattentive, making uncommon for people who have


their symptoms easier to miss. “You gone undiagnosed to have feelings
might see someone who is quiet, dis- of shame or low self-esteem, says
tracted or in their own thoughts, and Dr Judith Joseph, a psychiatrist and
in a classroom with 25 to 30 students, author of High Functioning: Over-
that’s not really a problem,” explains come Hidden Depression and Re-
Langberg. claim Your Joy. “When you go your
Lindsay Crockford and her broth- entire life without getting the sup-
er both have ADHD, but their expe- port that you need, it creates a lot of
rience with the disorder couldn’t be stress,” she says.
more different. Crockford’s brother
was diagnosed decades ago, at the ONLINE INFLUENCE
age of eight, while she All this new attention
was not diagnosed until SYMPTOMS MUST is largely a positive
last year, at the age of TRACE BACK TO thing, but the influx of
32. “In my brother, it’s
very obvious. He’s very
CHILDHOOD, user-generated ADHD
content online is also
hyperactive, while I’m SPECIFICALLY thought to have created
more inattentive,” says BEFORE THE AGE a broader definition of
Crockford. As a child,
Crockford says she felt
OF 12 the disorder than what
is medically accepted.
discouraged when it Essentially, people be-
came to school, and she just couldn’t gan to equate being distracted and
sit down to focus and study when she unable to concentrate with ADHD,
needed to. Once she entered the work- when diagnosis isn’t nearly that sim-
force, she found herself losing chunks ple.
of time, not meeting deadlines and “The messaging that was coming
daydreaming a lot while in the office. through a lot of people’s social me-
Today, Crockford is feeling more dia at that time – a time when stress
conf ident since she now k nows was high, a lot of structure and sup-
what works for her and how to best port had been taken away, and peo-
manage her day. But the diagnosis ple weren’t feeling their best – was
also brought up feelings of disap- this idea that the explanation for
pointment. that could be undiagnosed ADHD,”
“I thought about all the projects says Sibley. The ads were relatable –
I had started and never followed after all, who doesn’t have trouble
through on. If only I knew how my focusing these days?
brain worked, I could have accom- Between 2021 and 2023, #ADHD-
plished more,” she says. It’s not views on TikTok grew from 2 billion

rdasia.com 69
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

to more than 20 billion. Around starts with talking to a trusted med-


the same time, Google searches ical professional about your con-
for ‘ADHD’ and ‘focus with ADHD’ cerns. “A good provider will treat
surged. During that period, there was it like it’s a collaboration with you.
a global shortage of several ADHD They won’t just tell you what you
medications, including Adderall and have; they’ll have a two-way conver-
Vyvanse. The supply challenge con- sation with you about what’s been
tinues today, with shortages affecting going on,” says Sibley.
both adults and children, and a result Your doctor will work with you
of not just increased demand alone, to find the right treatment, which
but also manufacturing problems could be a combination of medi-
and the tight control of the drugs’ cation and cognitive behavioural
active ingredients in some countries. therapy, as well as sleep hygiene
and good nutrition, says Dr Joseph,
COPING WITH ADHD explaining that sleep and nutri-
Ensuring that you or someone you tion are often overlooked in ADHD
love is accurately assessed for ADHD treatment. Both will support brain

70 june/july 2025
Paying Attention To Adult ADHD

health, which may in turn improve f loor plans make it even more dif-
your executive functioning, making ficult for her to focus, so she’ll use
it easier to manage symptoms. noise-cancelling headphones and
Aim for at least eight hours of try to avoid distractions as best she
sleep and try to eat plenty of foods can.
rich in omega-3 fatty acids, such as Dr Joseph is hopeful that, in the
fish and nuts, as well as micronutri- f uture, work places w ill become
ents like zinc, iron and vitamin D. more accommodating for people
Establishing a routine has been with ADHD. She notes that these
an important tool for Crockford. Her accommodations exist for children
psychiatrist recommended cognitive and students but virtually disappear
behavioural therapy as well as some once a person becomes an adult – a
organisational techniques to help time when they’re taking on more
her set a schedule that works for her. responsibilities and need that sup-
After keeping a daily record of how port more than ever.
she was spending her time, Crock- “People in general are now more
ford says she was able to see when aware of these differences in think-
she experienced periods of ‘ADHD ing and behav iours that are not
paralysis’ – the times when she was neurotypical,” says Dr Joseph. “Be-
most overwhelmed, procrastinating cause of that and the stories that
and simply unable to focus. That are shared on social media, it has
knowledge has allowed her to be humanised the differences in indi-
more proactive in planning her days. viduals, and we’re moving towards a
“I rea lised it tends to happen more accepting environment.”
around the same time of day, so now Since getting her ADHD diagnosis,
I make sure that everything I need to Smith is also feeling hopeful about
do that’s important falls within my the future.
productive hours,” she says. “I’m willing to do whatever needs
Crockford is also more aware of to happen,” she says. “I’m 54, but
the types of work environments that that doesn’t mean I’m too old. I want
she performs best in. Open-concept a new life. I’m ready.”

In The Swim
‘SWIMS’ will be ‘SWIMS’ even when turned upside down. This is
an example of an ambigram, a word that retains its meaning when
viewed from a different angle. Similarly, the same goes with ‘suns’
and ‘dollop’. WWW.GRAMMARLY.COM

rdasia.com 71
13 THINGS

Arresting Facts About


International Inmates
BY Emily Goodman

1
There are around 11 million peo-
ple across the world behind bars.
But their circumstances are dif-
ferent depending on which coun-
try they are in. In the Netherlands,
which has the fourth lowest incar-
ceration rate in Europe, prisons are
usually small and have low security,
while in the Republic of Congo in
Central Africa, prisons are at almost
617 per cent capacity.

2
The world’s smallest prison is
on Sark, a self-governing island
in the English Channel. Sark
Prison has just two cells, but crime on
the island is rare. Most of the prison’s
temporary residents are intoxicated
seasonal workers and tourists who
ILLUS TR ATION: SERGE BLOCH

spend the night in one of the cells


until they sober up.

3
As for the biggest prisons (in
terms of population), Marmara
Prison, formerly called Silivri
Penitentiary Campus, in Istanbul,

72 june/july 2025
13 Things

the Republic of Türkiye, holds the centimetres wide. Choi was recap-
official Guinness World Record with tured six days later, his escape earn-
more than 22,000 inmates. However, ing him the name ‘Korean Houdini’
a newly built facility in Tecoluca, El in the press.
Salvador, the Centro de Confinam-

6
iento del Terrorismo (CECOT), has Alcatraz, the famed American
a capacity of 40,000. Of course, one penitentiary in San Francisco,
could argue that Australia was the was one of the first prisons to
world’s largest prison: more than feature hot water. This was security
160,000 convicts were transported disguised as a luxury: hot showers
there from Britain and Ireland be- made it harder for the prisoners to
tween 1788 to 1868 while it served as acclimatise to the cold San Francisco
a British penal colony. Bay water surrounding Alcatraz, the-
oretically deterring them from trying

4
São Pedro de Alcântara peni- to escape by swimming away.
tentiary, located on the coast

7
of the southern state of Santa However, the daring prison
Catarina, Brazil, uses geese instead break depicted in the 1979 film
of guard dogs. Officials switched to Escape f rom Alcatraz, star-
geese about 15 years ago, citing low- ring Clint East wood as criminal
er costs: hounds require training and Frank Morris, really took place. In
visits to the vet, whereas geese don’t. 1962, Morris and two other prison-
“It’s never happened,” says prison of- ers crawled out through a ventila-
ficer Marcos Coronetti, “but if some- tion duct after making many small
one tried to escape, the geese would holes around the duct so they could
go crazy. They would get our atten- remove the vent. Meanwhile, the
tion without a doubt.” dummies the three left in their beds
tricked guards into thinking they

5
One of the most unbelievable were still asleep in their cells. After
prison escapes that ever took years of investigation, the FBI closed
place at a police station was in its case in 1979 and legally declared
Daegu, South Korea, in 2012. The es- the men dead. Still, the US Marshals
capee, Choi Gap-bok, a slender yoga Service continues to investigate – just
master who was being held in a de- in case the trio is still alive.
tention cell on charges of robbery,

8
managed to squeeze himself through Another trio executed an es-
a narrow food slot while the officers cape from HM Prison Parkhurst
on duty were asleep. The opening on the UK’s Isle of Wight in
was just 15 centimetres high by 45 1995. Two of the men worked in the

rdasia.com 73
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

prison’s sheet metal shop, where they prisons in the world. A menities
fashioned a copy of a guard’s master such as a supermarket and houses
key after roughly memorising its for weekend visits with family are in
shape. That key essentially allowed keeping with the prison’s commit-
them to open any door during their ment to ‘normalcy’ for the inmates.
escape. But their plan beyond the A New York Times reporter who visit-
prison walls wasn’t as solid, and they ed the prison in 2014 wrote, “The best
were caught just a few days later. meal I had in Norway was made by
an inmate who had spent almost half

9
A man serving a month-long of his 40 years in prison.”
sentence in 2013 reportedly

12
broke out of Östragård prison Prison Blues, a large gar-
in Sweden the day before he was due ment factor y in Oregon,
to be released. The reason: a tooth- US A , employ s i n mates
ache. He had been complaining serving time at the Eastern Oregon
about it to officials for days and just Correctional Institution to manufac-
couldn’t stand the pain any longer. ture denim work apparel. Inmates
After seeing a dentist, the man vol- earn wages that go towards paying
untarily turned himself in and police their own incarceration costs or, in
returned him to the prison to serve some cases, their child support. The
an extra day to make up the time. company’s slogan: ‘Made on the in-
side to be worn on the outside’.

10
The Clink is an English char-

13
ity that trains prisoners to Don’t know anyone who’s
work in the service industry spent time in prison? You
after their release. As precautions, certainly know of celebrities
the walls of their restaurants are who have: Tim Allen, the actor be-
lined with panic buttons, all their hind Buzz Lightyear in the Toy Story
cutlery is plastic, and patrons can’t movies, served time for drug traf-
bring their phones inside. The food ficking. A teenage Stephen Fry, the
is so good that three of the charity’s Brit ish intellect and comedian,
restaurants have been rated number found himself behind bars for a few
one in their area on Tripadvisor. months for committing credit card
fraud. And former Beatle Paul McCa-

11
Norway’s Halden Prison, lo- rtney did a stint in a Tokyo prison in
cated southeast of Oslo, only 1980. McCartney served a little more
minutes away from the Swed- than a week on drug smuggling
ish border, is considered among the charges, though he was facing a
most humane maximum-security possible seven-year sentence.

74 june/july 2025
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

ALL IN A DAY’S WORK


Humour On The Job

CARTOON: BIZ ARRO BY DAN PIR ARO AND WAYNO. ILLUS TR ATION: SHUT TERS TOCK
Career Choices Dispensing Wisdom
Adults are always asking children The theme of the workshop for
what they want to be when they school administrators was ‘trusting
grow up because they’re looking employees to empower them’. The
for ideas. speakers exhorted us to trust our staff
PAULA POUNDSTONE, COMEDIAN and teachers, thereby allowing them
to better develop as professionals.
Sound Advice Nice sentiment, but I questioned
True story: A co-worker once asked if the education department’s devotion
I’d seen her earphones. Noticing she to it when, during a visit to the toilet,
was wearing them, I said, “I think the I noticed small padlocks installed on
boss said he found a pair. Go and ask the toilet paper roll dispensers.
him.” (I’m evil.) @WILLIAMADER SUBMIT TED BY RICARDO SORIA

76 june/july 2025
All In A Day’s Work

Don’t Bank On It
A head hunter on LinkedIn wanted OUT OF INK
me to apply for a job as a bank
manager. That’s quality recruitment
(AND PATIENCE)
work right there. Get the English Remember when old printers would
graduate to run your bank. I’m not cope with running low on ink? They’d
just work and work, creating ever-fainter
entirely sure what numbers are. images and text, until finally it was white
When I buy something, I just hand on white. Modern printers are like,
over an amount of money and hope “I CANNOT WORK LIKE THIS!” and then
it’s right. @WRITEPOP
they email someone, trying to order their
own ink.
@THELOSTBRIDE
What Exactly Are They Selling?
Can you guess what these business A printer consists of three main parts:
the case, the jammed paper tray and the
signs and ads are trying to say?
blinking red light.
Because we can’t. @AMANDABLAIN
For sale on Facebook:
“Antique mid evil chair” My computer has stopped communicating
A sign on a shop door: with my printer and I’m going to
ask the printer to admit whatever she
“Temporarily closed. Sorry for the did and apologise so we can all move
incontinence.” forward as a team.
Online ad: “I have a monogamy solid @SARAJBENINCASA

wood dresser, nice condition … ” RD


I’m going to be a printer today
and just not work.
Work Insults With A Smile @LMWORTHO
“Working with you is like working
SOURCE: WWW.COBURGBANKS.CO.UK
by myself, but harder.”
“You are so brave to say that.”
“You’re not making the point you
think you are.”
“You’re making that look really
difficult.” REDDIT

Not Making The Cut


While getting my hair cut, I asked
the barber, “When would be the
best time to bring my two year old
for his first haircut?”
The barber answered, “When he’s
four.” COFFEE NEWS

rdasia.com 77
QUIZ

MAGICAL AND ILLUS TR ATION: GE T T Y IMAGES/GERMAN RD LICENCE

Mythical
Ten quiz questions about creatures
sprung from the imagination

BY Karin Schätzle

78 june/july 2025
Quiz

1. The unicorn is extremely rare


and yet remains surprisingly
widespread. This is because the crea-
a) On eucalyptus trees.
b) In Uluru.
c) In the landscape, such as hills,
ture plays a role in the myths and waterholes, and rivers.
legends of many cultures on different d) Only in South Australia.
continents. The characteristics attri-
buted to it vary – sometimes gentle,
sometimes aggressive – but it always
possesses magical powers. Its horn ...
4. According to a Southeast Asian
legend, a long time ago a croco-
dile befriended a boy who had once
a) purifies poisoned water. saved his life. Together they explored
b) stops bleeding. the world and the crocodile carried
c) rejuvenates anyone who the boy across seas and oceans. At
touches it. the end of their journey, the animal
d) slows ageing. turned into a piece of land as a final
thank you, which became the home

2. A vampire sucks the blood from


the veins of the living and can
turn into a wolf, a bat or even mist.
of the human child and his descen-
dants. Which island is said to have
been created in this way?
Probably the most famous undead a) Borneo
human – because that is what a vam- b) Java
pire is – was invented by Bram Stoker c) The Philippines
for his novel Dracula, which was pu- d) East Timor
blished in 1897. The story has since
been made into a movie countless
times. In 1992, director Francis Ford
Coppola delivered his version. What
5. Pegasus is a mythical creature
from Greek mythology. What
is this creature, who was born as the
makes it stand out? It ... child of the sea god Poseidon and the
a) is considered particularly Gorgon Medusa?
faithful to the original. a) A winged horse.
b) won three Academy Awards. b) A talking goose.
c) grossed record box office sales. c) A fish with fur.
d) was filmed entirely at Bran d) A mermaid.
Castle in Romania.

3. The rainbow serpent has a


central role in the Dream
6. The Bible also has mythical
creatures. One of them is the
Behemoth, a monster that lives on
Time, the foundation world of land. The other is the Leviathan,
the Australian Aboriginal culture. which lives in the sea. In 1651,
Where does it live? the philosopher Thomas Hobbes

rdasia.com 79
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

named his most famous work after


this mythological monster. What does
Hobbes’ Leviathan stand for?
a) The war of all against all.
b) The laws of the sea.
c) The rule of the tyrant.
d) The power of the state.
Mystery surrounds the Great Sphinx of Giza
except for one thing – its missing nose

7. Dragons lived all over the


world – if they actually existed.
Many stories, especially from Europe,
sightings seem to point to a plesio-
saur, a species that became extinct
depict them as vicious, fire-breat- around 66 million years ago. Which
hing creatures. In China, dragons saint is said to have spotted the
have a much better reputation. In monster around the year 565 and was
the Middle Kingdom, these mythical the first to put it to flight?
creatures stand for … a) Columban of Iona
a) luck. b) Harold of Gloucester
b) power. c) Odo of Canterbury
c) wealth. d) Saint Augustine
d) all of the above.

8. What happens if you cut off one


of the Hydra’s many heads? The
10. The body of a lion with the
head of a man, ram, hawk or
sparrowhawk is a Sphinx. The most
snake-like creature from Greek myth- famous is the Great Sphinx of Giza.
ology immediately grows two new Created around 4500 years ago in
ones! However, it is not the Hydra’s ancient Egypt, the purpose of the
teeth that pose a deadly threat. How 73-metre long, 20-metre high sculp-
does she hunt down her victims? ture with a human head, remains
PHOTO: GE T T Y IMAGES/GERMAN RD LICENCE

a) She strangles them. unclear. One thing is certain: it is


b) She petrifies them with her missing its nose. Why?
gaze. a) The pharaoh ran out of money
c) She poisons them with her during construction.
breath. b) A Muslim cleric had it cut off
d) She places a curse on them. in the 14th century.
c) Tourists climbed it, and it

9. Nessie fans are convinced that


a sea monster lives in Scotland’s
Loch Ness. Experts believe this is
broke off.
d) It fell off during a series of
dust storms.
impossible. Especially as alleged >> Turn to page 82 for quiz answers

80 june/july 2025
Email: [email protected]ˏ Contact #: +63 917 848 1025

FB & IG: ȲJAVAJ Academy


R E A DER’S DIGE ST

ANSWERS: 6d) According to Hobbes’


Leviathan, the power of the

1a) The mythical creature can


purify poisoned water with
its horn. In art history, it is often
state is similar to that of the biblical
sea monster.

depicted as a white horse with a horn


on its forehead. 7d) In Chinese mythology,
the dragon stands for luck,
power and wealth. It also stands for

2a+b) Francis Ford Cop-


pola’s film Bram
Stoker’s Dracula won three Academy
goodness and intelligence. It is no
coincidence that this mythical crea-
ture was one of the symbols of the
Awards and is considered to be par- Chinese Emperor.
ticularly faithful to the original. The
director did take some liberties
however: in his version, Mina Harker
kills Dracula at his request. Her love
8c) T h e Hyd ra’s b re at h i s
poisonous. This didn’t
frighten the hero Heracles, nor did
and compassion redeem him. her many heads – two of which grew
back every time one was cut off. With

3c) The rainbow serpent moves


from one waterhole to anot-
her, underground or with the help of
the help of his nephew Iolaus, Her-
acles decapitated the regenerating
heads while Iolaus cauterised the
rain clouds. The guardian of the wa- neck stumps to prevent the heads
ter is either female, male or ambigu- growing back.
ous, depending on the region – and
is the master of life and death and
deserves appropriate respect. 9a) Nessie is first mentioned
in an account of the life of
St Columban of Iona. According to

4d) The story is the founding


myth of East Timor.
it, he passed Loch Ness, where the
monster, which had already killed
several people, was about to attack a

5a) In Greek mythology, Pe-


gasus is a winged horse. In
1939, Lila Acheson Wallace, co-foun-
man. The saint ordered it to retreat –
and the creature obeyed.

der of Reader’s Digest, chose it as the


magazine’s logo as it is associated
with inspiration, creativity and artis-
10b) Repor tedly, as early
as the 14th century, a
devout Muslim cleric had the nose of
tic achievement – qualities that fit well the Sphinx cut off because he was dis-
with the magazine. turbed by the large pagan sculpture.

82 june/july 2025
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

Ana Lapaz-Mendez
with Pumpkin the fox

84 june/july 2025
ANIMAL KINGDOM

Can Londoners
and their local
wildlife learn
to live together?

CITY GONE
WILD
BY Alice Saville

FROM TIME OUT

rdasia.com 85
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

“I
’m sorry, but this is really dan- gardens, rodents that navigate your
gerous,” the irate man shouts, kitchen like they’re auditioning for
gesturing to his pet beagles, a live-action version of Ratatouille. It
then to Pumpkin the fox, walking feels like these animals live so close-
peacefully on a lead. We’re in Lon- ly alongside humans that they’re
don’s Hampstead Heath, and I’m almost tame.
bombarding Pumpkin’s companion, I become fixated on a question: is
veterinarian Ana Lapaz-Mendez, it possible to adopt a fox, squirrel or
with questions about what it’s like to pigeon? Is it a responsible thing to
live with a fox. Evidently, I’m not the do? What are the limits of friendship
only one who needs schooling. between humans and urban wild-
Normally, when beagles and fox- life? The best people to answer those
es meet during a fox hunt, it’s in a questions are the rescuers who bring
horrific bloodbath. But this is dif- injured and orphaned animals home.
ferent. With well-practiced polish, Lapaz-Mendez and I sit in a pub
Lapaz-Mendez tells the man that her near Hampstead Heath as she pets
charge is blind and brain damaged Pumpkin, as docile as any lapdog. For
and has met hundreds of beagles a moment, my fox-adoption dreams
without incident: “Pumpkin doesn’t feel tantalisingly possible. But Lap-
smell like a fox to them because she’s az-Mendez stresses that Pumpkin

PHOTOS: (PRE VIOUS SPRE AD AND ABOVE) JESS HAND FOR TIME OUT, JUNE 2023.
clean and she lives with dogs.” The is hard work. “Foxes are like a cross
man still seems disgruntled but con- between a dog, a cat and a ninja,”
tinues on his way. she says. “They are so intelligent,
How did I get here? It started smart, very cheeky. I currently have
months earlier, when a family of fox fox cubs in my house, and they’ll
cubs was born under my neighbour’s drive you mad within a day – they
shed. I’d watch them as puppies jump to incredible heights and chew
playfighting or sunbathing, round everything. They’re cute, but they’re
and fat. One cub liked to come to wild animals.”
my window and look in at the com- Pumpkin is rare: she’s lost her nat-
forts of my living room. For a fleeting ural wariness of humans because she
moment, I felt like I could let him in has toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infec-
and together we’d sit on the sofa and tion that has reduced her level of fear.
watch television. Lapaz-Mendez is singular too: she’s
Living in London makes for con- a vet who’s built expertise in treating
stant encounters with astonishingly wild animals, while most of her col-
bold wildlife: foxes that appear un- leagues confine themselves to do-
der streetlamps at dusk, pigeons that mestic and farm animals. She’s one of
polish off leftover food in pub beer a loyal band of animal rescuers who

86 june/july 2025
City Gone Wild

Unlike most foxes, Pumpkin isn’t wary of humans or dogs

urge people to value urban wildlife as “They’ll be climbing up your curtains


much as they prize their pets. and chewing things they shouldn’t be
“Not many people can keep cats chewing.”
and dogs in London because of Although grey squirrels would
money or their tenancy situation, make nightmare housemates, they
so friendship with squirrels is the started out in the UK as glorified pets,
next best thing,” says Natalia Doran, brought from the US by meddling
whose non-prof it orga n isat ion, Victorian gentlemen such as the 11th
Urban Squirrels, rehabilitates injured Duke of Bedford, who thought they
and orphaned squirrels. made a picturesque addition to his
Doran began rescuing squirrels as country estate.
a way of helping her animal-loving London’s grey pigeons have a sim-
autistic son, but fell in love with them, ilar origin story. “Common city pi-
too. “I admire their intelligence, which geons don’t belong in the wild,” says
means they make friends with people part-time bird rescuer Alberto Lopez.
very quickly,” she says. “They’re descended from birds that
St i l l, ever y f r iendsh ip needs escaped from captivity, so they make
boundaries. “I would never rec- wonderful pets. If you bond with a
ommend t hat someone keeps a pigeon, it’s an amazing experience.
wild squirrel as a pet,” says Doran. It’ll come and sit on your shoulder

rdasia.com 87
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

and preen you. They have the same


complex emotional sentience as a
dog or a cat.”
Lockdown walks during the pan-
demic inspired Lopez and his wife
Inese Strupule to help local wildlife.
Now, their flat hosts an ever-changing
cast of feathered friends. Two pigeons,
Frenchie and Figura, are perma-
nent residents, and they’ve become
doted-upon members of the family.
Still, not all pigeon rescuers feel
this way. Beth Crivelli socialised and
rehabilitated injured or orphaned
pigeons in a converted shipping con-
tainer in the garden of her east Lon- Squirrels can be very friendly, but they
don’t make good pets
don home, keeping 25 pigeons or so
at a time with the aim of creating a differences between wild and tame
flock that she could release together. animals are often surprisingly slight,
“We advocate keeping wild animals too. On an isolated farm in Siberia, re-
wild,” says Crivelli, who now lives in searchers selected the tamest ten per
Portugal. cent of each generation of silver foxes
One pigeon, Mauve, was an excep- and continued to breed them. As a
tion. “She was found as a tiny baby study report describes, within just six
after she fell out of her nest,” she says. generations, “researchers produced
“Most pigeons we took in would lose a subset of foxes that licked the hand
interest in humans, but she always of experimenters, could be picked up
wanted to be with people. We tried and petted, whined when humans de-
to wild her up, but it failed. She loved parted, and wagged their tails when
PHOTO: COURTESY OF URBAN SQUIRREL S

cuddles, and she liked to sit on your humans approached.”


shoulder and preen your hair.” If your human mate was seriously
I’m quickly realising that the ill, you’d rush them to hospital. But
boundaries between wild and tame caring for wildlife can be a lot tough-
animals are more porous than you er. “It’s very difficult to find a vet who
might think. Wild animals are quick cares about helping wildlife,” says
to establish reciprocal relationships Lopez. “I thought that if I don’t do this
with humans when it benefits them: myself, no one’s going to do it.”
crows have been known to bring gifts Things are even worse for sickly
for people who feed them. The genetic squirrels. Doran explains that under

88 june/july 2025
City Gone Wild

UK law giving medical treatment to cousins. But part of the reason for
grey squirrels and re-releasing them the decline of the red squirrel was
into the wild is illegal. She can only the loss of woodland. “We should
rehabilitate them if she takes them in celebrate the resilience of nature
permanently. “It’s heartbreaking,” she rather than trying to turn back the
says. “If your dog or cat was sick, you’d clock,” Doran says.
take them to the vet. But if squirrels It’s a point Emma Marris made
get sick, they’ll only euthanise them.” in her book Rambunctious Garden.
The law, which is tough on ani- She argues that instead of trying to
mals like the grey squirrel defined return nature to an idyllic state that
as invasive non-native species, re- may never have existed, we should
flects decades-old attitudes that the embrace the plant and animal spe-
only wildlife worth bothering with is cies that thrive in the modern world.
the quaint, endangered rural kind, “The despised invaders of today may
like nightingales or pine martens. well be the keystone species of the
And that state of affairs isn’t helped future’s ecosystems, if we give them
by myths about dangerous London the space to adapt and don’t rush in
wildlife, like the headline-grabbing and tear them out,” Marris writes.
‘crack squirrel’ or the fox that appar- My desire to adopt a fox is dim-
ently bit a baby. The wildlife rescuers ming. It sounds like incredibly hard
I spoke with were desperate to cor- work. Plus, my local fox family is
rect misconceptions. reaching ever-higher levels of ex-
“Every year, people die in dog at- travagance and dysfunction, feasting
tacks, and no one’s saying we should on garbage and crushing flowerpots
kill all the dogs,” says Lapaz-Mendez. during their tussles.
“The problem is that more and more Mea nwh i le, L apa z-Mendez
people are trying to feed foxes by opened Pumpkin’s Wildlife Hospi-
hand.” She explains that this famil- tal in November 2023. The medical
iarity erodes the animals’ caution facilit y and rehabilitation centre
around humans. But if foxes are left treated more than 900 wild animals
to their own devices, they offer huge in its first year. Turning a fox into a
benefits: “They hunt a lot of rats.” pet wasn’t what she planned, but it’s
How about pigeons? “Pigeons have worked out well.
a really bad reputation,” says Lopez. “Hopefully there’s a good reason
“People say they carry a lot of diseas- why you came into the world, huh?”
es, but it’s very, very rare for those to L apa z-Mende z t el l s P u mpk i n,
be passed to humans.” squeezing her close.
Grey squirrels get the worst rap of TIME OUT (JUNE 13, 2023), © 2023 TIME OUT
all, accused of wiping out their red ENGLAND LIMITED

rdasia.com 89
BONUS READ

Fresh

Ever dreamed about going back to school even though


you haven’t been in a classroom in years? Meet five
people who are hitting the books, and finding new
purpose later in life

BY Susannah Hickling
I L L U S T R AT I O N B Y D R E W S H A N N O N

90 june/july 2025
rdasia.com 91
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

aged between 50-74 were enrolled in


a course of study in 2024, according
to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
W hy the interest in continuing
with education? Some people want
to gain qualifications they missed out
on when they were younger, others to

If
improve their employment prospects
or to change career. Still others do it
just to prove they can.
Here are five older students who
picked up their backpacks and their
you think only youngsters go to class, courage and went back to school.
write essays and take exams, you
might have a thing or two to learn.
The Best Medicine

PHOTO: AVID GARCIA LOPEZ, THE ROMANCE AND CL A SSICAL INS TITUTION OF S TOCKHOLM UNIVERSIT Y
Australian and New Zealand adults
are keen students, with more than Lisa Österlund was puzzled. Usually
50 per cent between the ages of 25 fit and active, she found herself strug-
and 65 resuming education, accord- gling to swim the length of her local
ing to the Organisation for Economic pool. “I just couldn’t move forward,”
Co-operation and Development. recalls the Stockholm resident, 56.
On the other side of the world in “I had no power in my limbs.” Her
Europe, according to the latest Euro- confusion turned to concern when
pean Union statistics, in 2022 nearly she went to her spinning class – she
half of 25-to-64 year olds had par- didn’t have enough strength to turn
ticipated in education or training in the bike’s wheels.
the previous 12 months. More than a Österlund’s doctor diagnosed her
third were aged 55 to 64, and Sweden with Graves’ disease, an autoim-
had the highest proportion of adult mune condition in which the thyroid
learners in Europe – over 70 per cent. produces too much thyroid hormone.
Online learning makes going back Medication should have put her back
to school easier, while retirement on track in two months, but she was
offers more time to do the things allergic to it. Meanwhile, her condi-
you always wanted. In the 65-74 age tion made her eyes swell, giving her
bracket, three per cent of Europe- double vision. “I thought I was going
ans had been involved in education blind,” she says. She had to undergo
and training in the previous four gruelling treatment normally used in
weeks, 2019 figures show. In a sim- cancer care, including radiotherapy,
ilar vein, 5.3 per cent of Australians immunotherapy and chemotherapy.

92 june/july 2025
Fresh Starts

The chemo made her feel exhausted exhausted. “I needed something that
and nauseous for months. would give me energy,” she explains,
Her illness couldn’t have come at a “so I did what I always do – I went to
worse time. It was 2017 and she had university.”
recently landed her dream job: music Österlund already had a bachelor’s
librarian and researcher for Sweden’s degree in journalism and a master’s
public broadcasting service, Sveriges in library and information science.
Radio Förvaltnings, combining her She also had a gift for languages and
experience as a musician, journalist wanted to pursue her love of French.
and librarian. Finally, I’m here! she She had lived in Paris as a young
had thought. This is the job I’m going woman, working as an au pair and
to end my career with. a waitress, and studying music, but
But Österlund just couldn’t con- now she wanted a formal qualifi-
centrate on her work. The steroids cation in the language. In 2018 she
she took for her distorted vision made enrolled in a four-year French bach-
her hyperactive yet left her feeling elor’s programme at Stockholm Uni-
Lisa Österlund: “I was so interested in versity while continuing to work part
my studies I forgot about my illness” time at Sveriges Radio Förvaltnings.
“No one saw me as
a sick person, no one
asked my age or what
I’d done before,” she
say s. I ndeed, t here
were a lot of older stu-
dents at the universi-
ty, thanks to Sweden’s
policy of encouraging
lifelong lea r ning. “I
was so interested in my
studies; I forgot about
my illness.”
He r e y e s i g ht i m-
proved and, to her doc-
tor’s astonishment, her
condition stabilised.
Returning to university
was “the different treat-
ment I really needed,”
Österlund insists.

rdasia.com 93
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

She knew there was a chance her literature at Stockholm University.


Graves’ disease could flare up again, She hopes to complete it this year.
so when an opportunity came up to “Studying gives you the opportuni-
study for a bachelor’s in French trans- ty to see other perspectives, to meet
lation at Lund University, in parallel other people – passionate people,
with her French degree at Stockholm people who want to do something,”
University, she jumped at it. The de- Österlund adv ises ot her people
grees would allow Österlund to be- thinking about going back to school.
come a freelance translator, giving “You won’t be the same person com-
her the flexibly to work around her ing out of it.”
condition.
Österlund had used up all her enti-
tlement to student loans, so she and I Think,
her husband, Jon, a teacher, remort-
gaged their house in 2021 to fund her Therefore I Study …
two-year translation studies. At the Nick Axten had some unfinished
age of 52 she went on study leave from business. As a young man he had
her job and moved into a hall of resi- studied for a bachelor’s degree in
dence in Lund, 600 kilometres south- sociology and psychology at the Uni-
west of Stockholm, with students versity of Leeds in the UK. It was the
the same age as her three children. swinging ’60s and Axten was a re-
When she saw a notice in the kitchen bellious student who revelled in the
that read “Your mother doesn’t work university town’s lively music scene.
here” – a reminder that people need- “I absolutely loved it,” recalls
ed to clean up after themselves – she Axten, now 78 and living in Wells,
laughed and thought, Actually, I’m a Somerset. “I did quite a lot of party-
mother working here! ing and would sit and talk about the
Now healt hy and holding t wo world.” Clever but an unorthodox
French degrees, Österlund has start- thinker – his professors wrote ques-
ed translating French books into tions especially for him in his final
Swedish while still working in public degree exam. Axten was offered a
radio. That would be enough to keep prestigious Mellon Fellowship and
most people busy, but she has no in- a Fulbright Scholarship in 1970 to
tention of halting her studies. The study for a PhD in mathematical
Swedish government introduced a sociology at the University of Pitts-
plan in 2022 allowing adults to take burgh in Pennsylvania.
study leave for two years on 80 per “It was an offer I couldn’t refuse,”
cent of their salary, so in 2023 she says Axten. But it didn’t work out.
signed up for a master’s in French Once on the other side of the Atlantic,

94 june/july 2025
Fresh Starts

Axten had enjoyed it all, but


the need to resolve the philo-
sophical questions raised by
his studies in Pittsburgh had
never left him. How do people
do things in a given situation?
What do they perceive to be
important? “All this stuff was
running through my head all
the time,” he explains.
Other thoughts niggled at
him, too. He felt guilty about
abandoning his doctorate in
the US and he was beset by
the fear of “being overtaken
by death” like his father, an
Nick Axten: “It’s enriched my life amateur historian who had never
enormously”
finished a cherished project on the
his marriage broke down, he became history of an ancient parish and its
homesick and, crucially, he didn’t church, which he had worked on for
enjoy the course. years. So, in 2016, at the age of 69,
“I regret I didn’t finish,” he says. “I Axten enrolled in a master’s course
was paid all this money, and I felt I’d in philosophy at the nearby Univer-
let everyone down.” sity of Bristol. The following year he
Back in the UK, Axten took on a continued his philosophy studies,
succession of different jobs, from embarking on a new PhD, nearly five
mak ing picture frames to doing decades after beginning his first.
building work to becoming a science The septuagenarian travelled from
coordinator at a local primary school. his home to classes by bus. During
This led to his writing and editing a the 90-minute journey, he would
35-volume science study guide that ponder the philosophical conun-
PHOTO: COURTESY OF NICK A X TEN

teachers could use to make science drums that haunted him. But it was
accessible for children ages four and the animated discussions at a pub
up. It ended up being used world- near the university with the other,
wide. much younger, graduate students
When he retired in 2014, he was that Axten really enjoyed, just as he
working as premises manager for a had 50 years earlier. “We would sit
large primary school and tutoring in the garden and talk and talk and
maths and science students. talk,” he says. “How cool is that?”

rdasia.com 95
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

A New Career
– At 64
W hen Martine Aeschlimann de-
cided to go to university at the age
of 60, she asked her son Cedric for
his thoughts. It was 2016 and the
21 year old was already a student at
the University of Geneva, where she
was about to enrol for a bachelor’s
degree in psychology.
“Would it bother you?” she asked.
“No problem,” Cedric replied.
There was just one caveat: “If you see
me in the corridor when I’m with my
friends, don’t say hello!”
After Aeschlimann started, Cedric
told her how impressed his friends
were with what she was doing. “So,
you told them?” she asked, amazed
and amused at his change of heart.
“Of course,” he replied. He turned
out to be a huge support, calming his
mother’s nerves before exams and
correcting a research project for the
Martine Aeschlimann: “I needed to
master’s she went on to complete,
prove myself”
having passed her first degree with
Axten’s graduation in 2023 was an flying colours. PHOTO: COURTESY OF MARTINE AESCHLIMANN

emotional moment. Watching him Aeschlimann got on well with the


walk up on stage and collect his PhD other students, even though she was
diploma from the university’s vice the oldest in her classes. She was
chancellor were his then-wife, Claire, surprised when a teacher she’d only
and his 11-year-old step-grand- ever seen lecturing in an auditorium
daughter. packed with several hundred students
Now able to call himself Dr Axten, said hello to her on a train. When
he is struck by how much he’s gained Aeschlimann asked her fellow stu-
from his later-in-life studies. “I’ve dents how the professor could possi-
learned so much that I didn’t know. bly have recognised her, they laughed
It’s enriched my life enormously.” and pointed at her white hair.

96 june/july 2025
Fresh Starts

She first resolved to go to univer- sense of achievement. One high


sity when she and her husband sep- school student told Aeschlimann
arated. She was 58 and in need of a how, thanks to her improved con-
confidence boost. “I needed to prove centration, her grades had rocketed.
myself,” she explains. “I needed to And a woman who’d suffered from
prove that I was capable. I hadn’t severe anxiety for years found herself
worked for 18 years.” She also want- relaxed enough after one therapy ses-
ed to keep her brain active as she got sion to be able to sing along to music
older. in her car for the first time and was
Aeschlimann, who lives in Bassins, soon able to manage her stress and
Switzerland, hadn’t exactly been idle. come to terms with her troubled past.
She’d worked as a nurse and then a “I’ve always felt the need to help
social worker but when she married, others,” says Aeschlimann, now 67.
her husband’s job with the Interna- “Now when I see the results of one,
tional Committee of the Red Cross five, ten sessions, it fills me with joy.”
had taken them to countries as far
away as Iraq and Ethiopia. After
Cedric was born, she devoted herself Filling His Daily
to bringing him up.
Her interest in psychology was first Bread
piqued in 1994 when she set up a “I’m an incredibly inquisitive per-
charitable foundation with her moth- son,” says artisan baker Guillaume
er to help children who had difficul- Casaux, 39. “I like to discover things,
ty learning. Then, while studying for and at the same time I don’t like just
her master’s degree 25 years later, she to scratch the surface. I like to master
discovered neurofeedback, a therapy a subject.”
that uses different strategies to modi- Casau x’s innate curiosit y has
fy negative thought patterns. served him well. When he was young-
It led Aeschlimann in a direction er, he studied at the prestigious École
she’d never anticipated – she became Nationale Supérieure des Arts et In-
a qualified neurofeedback therapist. dustries Textiles, a higher education
When she finished her master’s in institute for textile engineers, then
2021 – at 64 – she opened her own earned a master’s degree in fashion
psychology practice using the ther- and design at Lumière University in
apy to help young people improve Lyon. After he graduated, he worked
their capacity to learn and people of as a textile engineer for huge sports
all ages to manage stress and anxiety. clothing brand Decathlon for more
When she sees how well her pa- than a decade. He loved exploring
tients respond, she feels a profound the ways different materials could

rdasia.com 97
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

be used. So, friends and family were with baking sourdough. He decided
puzzled when, at the age of 35, he to leave Decathlon and set up his
gave up his secure job to become a own artisan baking business using
baker. “It was seen as a regression,” his home-produced sourdough and
says Casaux, who lives with his wife, ancient-grain flours. But in France
Chrystelle, and two daughters near that’s not as simple as it sounds. “In
Hendaye in southwest France. But order to make dough, you have to
to him it was entirely logical. He’d have a diploma,” Casaux explains.
grown up in the rural Dordogne He signed up for the Certificat
region in a family that was largely d’aptitude professionnelle (CAP), a
self-sufficient with their food. professional qualification set by the
“Living is about eating and drink- French Ministry of Education and
ing,” he says. “That was a value that usually taken by 17 year olds follow-
had always been instilled in me. I ing a vocational path. While studying
wanted to work in food production.” the theory of breadmaking at home,
The turning point came during he developed recipes and plans for
the COVID-19 lockdown, when Ca- his new enterprise.
saux and two friends experimented That’s how, in the early summer
Carl Allamby: “My kids look up to me, my community looks up to me”

98 june/july 2025
Fresh Starts

of 2023, Casaux found himself at a growing his business even further.


training centre in nearby Bayonne So, at the age of 34, Allamby, from
sitting for a seven-hour exam that in- Cleveland, enrolled in a bachelor’s
cluded writing three papers and bak- degree in business management.
ing scores of loaves and pastries. He’d There was one wrinkle: after tak-
worked hard honing his breadmak- ing classes part-time over the next
ing skills. “It’s not difficult to pass, five years, Allamby was told he had
but if you want a good mark, you have to take a biology course to get his de-
to practise,” says Casaux, who admits gree. What do I need to take biology
that he loves learning and enjoys the for? he thought.
pressure of exams. It was the best thing to have hap-
He earned his qualification and pened. Biolog y class rekindled a
now runs his growing bakery busi- childhood dream. “After the first day,
ness, Mendi Lore, from his home, I remembered wanting to be a doc-
producing three batches of hand- tor when I was younger,” Allamby
crafted, high-quality bread a week. says. “I lost that dream somewhere
He prepares the dough one day and through high school and life. When
bakes it the next, starting at 5am, be- you’re young, you feel you can be
fore delivering the loaves to local gro- anything, and then the world teaches
cery stores and restaurants. All the you differently.”
while, he works as a self-employed Grow ing up in a poor A frican
textile engineer. American neighbourhood, he had
“I feel I’m where I belong,” Casaux faced low expectations and numer-
says. “I’m more tired now, but I’m ous barriers to pursuing his dream.
more fulfilled.” His school hadn’t offered the ad-
vanced science classes that might
have led him to medical school.
From Fixing Cars So, instead, Allamby had set aside
thoughts of becoming a doctor in
To Treating People favour of a more realistic career path
By Andy Simmons – fixing cars.
Carl Allamby had a problem. It was But a d i f ferent Ca rl A l la mby
his auto repair business. He’d started walked into that biology class at age
it at the age of 19, working alone out 39. He was ready to live his dream.
of a friend’s garage. Over the years With the support of his wife and
PHOTO: GUS CHAN

it had grown into two shops with family, he soon decided to skip busi-
11 employees, but Allamby started ness school in favour of the science
yearning for something more. At first, classes he’d need for a new career
he thought it must have to do with as a healthcare worker. Becoming a

rdasia.com 99
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

doctor when he would be approach- Universit y, about 70 k ilomet res


ing 50 was clearly insane. He would southeast of Cleveland.
instead become a nurse, a physician In 2019, at the age of 47, Carl Al-
assistant, or a physical therapist like lamby became Dr Carl Allamby. He
his wife, he reasoned. completed a three-year residency in
But Allamby’s chemistry professor emergency medicine and now works
at Cleveland State University stopped as an emergency medicine doctor at
him after class one day. “Carl,” he Cleveland Clinic Hillcrest Hospital,
said, “you’re like the oldest guy here. as well as being the emergency med-
What’s your endgame?” ical services director of a local fire
Allamby said he’d like to become a department.
doctor, but it would be more practical “How many people can do some-
to aim lower. thing new and have so much stimu-
“Why not a doctor?” the professor lation and responsibility at such a
asked. “You have a great intuition for late stage in their life?” he asks. “My
the work. You will go a long way.” kids look up to me, my community
He was right. “It took someone looks up to me. I fit so many demo-
standing on the outside to tell me graphics that say you shouldn’t be a
what I didn’t even see in myself,” doctor. Whether it’s because of my
Allamby says. age, my race, my upbringing, my
And so, in 2015, A llamby sold past career – these are all good rea-
his two shops and started medical sons why I shouldn’t be here. And
school at Northeast Ohio Medical yet, here I am.”

Playing With Their Food


The world’s one-and-only Vegetable Orchestra, based in Vienna,
Austria, has been delighting audiences for over 27 years with its
unique brand of musical veggies. Formed in 1999, this 11-piece
ensemble carves carrots into recorders, leeks into mandolins, and
other assorted produce into an array of quirky instruments. After
racking up an impressive 344 concerts, the orchestra was awarded
the Guinness World Record for the most concerts by a vegetable
orchestra. The musicians prepare fresh vegetables before each
show, as their edible instruments only last about six hours before
starting to decompose. Any unused produce is turned into a concert-
closing soup, keeping the entire performance eco-friendly. UPI

100 june/july 2025


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CONDURA, ONCE AGAIN A
GOLD! Condura, the proudly
Filipino appliance brand under
Concepcion Industrial Corporation,
has been awarded Gold at the
prestigious 27th Reader’s Digest
Trusted Brands Awards in the Air we’ve built with Filipino families
Conditioners category – affirming through durable products that
its position as a household name empower them to take control of
built on durability, reliability, and their spaces and live confidently
Filipino ingenuity. – free from worries about
For 38 years, Condura has created performance, maintenance or
appliances designed specifically for unexpected costs.”
Filipino homes and businesses. Its Condura’s commitment extends
award-winning High Wall Split Type beyond products. Its Corporate
Air Conditioner reflects the brand’s Social Responsibility programs
promise: durability and long-lasting promote sustainability, energy
performance with ProtecTibay conservation, and entrepreneurship
system – perfectly engineered for in under-served communities –
Philippine conditions. making it not just a brand, but a
partner in Filipino progress.
Condura creates In today’s value-conscious
appliances designed world, Condura offers more than
appliances – it offers dependable
specifically for Filipino support for every bahay and
homes and businesses. negosyo. Trusted by generations,
recognized by experts, and built for
“This award belongs to every Filipinos, Condura has truly earned
team member who contributed its Gold award. www.condura.com
to our legacy of excellence,” says
Robert Hechanova, Vice President
for Marketing. “It reflects the trust

102 100% voted by consumers. View all results at www.trustedbrands.asia


R E A DER’S DIGE ST

PUZZLES
Challenge yourself by solving these puzzles and mind
stretchers, then check your answers on page 108.

Crossword
Test your general
knowledge.

DOWN
1 Australian city famous
for country music (8)

CROSSWORD AND SUDOKU: CROSSWORDSITE.COM. (NUMBER MA ZE) FR A SER SIMPSON


2 Southeast Asian
country (8)
3 Recommendation (8)
4 Predominantly rural
county in the UK (8)
5 Explanatory drawings
(8)
6 Flowering garden tree
(8)
ACROSS 10 An outside door (4)
7 Track performer, 17 Split or indentation (5) 15 Fomenting (8)
perhaps (7) 19 Bridge section (4) 16 In perpetuity (8)
8 Mr Spock-like (7) 23 Assesses (7) 17 Small container (8)
9 Squirmed (8) 24 Posh hotel in Piccadilly, 18 Road accident
11 Power source (6) London (3,4) statistic (8)
12 One responding to a 25 Cricket wicket (6) 20 Easy (8)
stimulus (7) 26 Spherical (8) 21 Jesus’s childhood
13 More often than not (7) 27 Without weapons (7) home (8)
14 Twitcher’s cover (4) 28 Passage (7) 22 Balkan native (7)

104 june/july 2025


A CASE FOR WAGS
We asked you to think up a funny
caption for this photo.
Just in case you’re wondering,
Sudoku I’m packed!
GINETTE BARRY
HOW TO PLAY: To win, you have to put a
number from 1 to 9 in each outlined The ultimate travel Doggy Bag!
section so that: Every horizontal row and PAUL BALIN
vertical column contains all nine numerals
(1-9) without repeating any of them; Each World’s cutest carryon ready for
of the outlined sections has all nine take-off.
numerals, none repeated. ETHAN ROYER

With my good looks I knew I had


won the case.
5 5 4 2 3 4 SHEREE GRELLE

3 3 1 4 1 1 Sorry, this seat is taken.


JASMINE PETER
2 3 2 1 2 2
Congratulations to the issue’s winner,
4 4 4 3 4 2 Ginette Barry.

5 1 2 3 4 5
WIN!
4 5 4 5 2 +
Number Maze
In this maze, start at the 5 in the top left
corner and move horizontally or vertically
(but never diagonally) to reach the star in
the bottom right corner. At each move,
travel the same number of squares as the CAPTION CONTEST
number in the cell you are currently on. Come up with the funniest caption
Since you are starting on a cell containing for the above photo and you could win
a 5, your next move is either 5 squares to $100. To enter, email
the right or 5 squares down. The next [email protected]
move will be based on your new cell’s or see details on page 6.
number. Can you find the correct path?

rdasia.com 105
R E A DER’S DIGE ST
Puzzle
Answers
PAGE 108

Tricky Tiling
The grid to the left was tiled using only the
two tile shapes shown above, with rotations
permitted. The tiles’ dots are all indicated in
the grid. Using these, can you figure out the
configuration of the tiles?

Spot The Difference


There are 15 differences. Can you find them?

TRICK Y TILING (FR A SER SIMPSON); (FISH) SHUT TERS TOCK

106 june/july 2025


R E A DER’S DIGE ST

PUZZLE ANSWERS
From Page 104
Crossword

CROSSWORD AND SUDOKU: CROSSWORDSITE.COM. (FISH): SHUT TERS TOCK; (OPPOSITE) TRICK Y TILING (FR A SER SIMPSON)
Spot The Difference
There are 15 differences.

108 june/july 2025


BRAIN POWER
brought to you by
Sudoku

Tricky Tiling

Number Maze
The correct sequence of moves is: down 5, right 4,
left 2, up 4, left 1, down 3, up 1, right 4, down 2. "Write, Erase, Rewrite"
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

TRIVIA
Test Your General Knowledge

1. Relative to the internet, what does 9. When did Singapore celebrate


‘URL’ stand for? 2 points its 50th anniversary of
2. “There’s a snake in my boot!” independence?
is famously spoken by Woody, a) 2005, b) 2013, or c) 2015. 1 point
a cowboy doll, in which 1995 10. Gardeners need to manage the
animated movie? 1 point levels of which element in their soil
3. Which flower produces the spice – oxygen, nitrogen or hydrogen?
saffron? 2 points 1 point
4. With over 37 million residents, 11. Originating from Malaysia, this
what is the most populous city in colourful fruit is the largest member
the world? 1 point of the citrus family.
5. Who was the first What is it called?
Australian writer to win 1 point
the prestigious Booker 12. What is the name
Prize? 2 points of the veins on each
6. What type of side of the neck which
pasta is shaped like a drain blood from
bowtie? 1 point the head and neck to
7. The Pyrenees larger veins passing to
Mountain range the heart? 1 point
separates which two 13. What was the
European countries? 15. A neon green lake final battle of the
1 point in Wai-O-Tapu, New Napoleonic Wars in
8. Where would you Zealand, is known as 1815? 2 points
find Mons Huygens Devil’s Bath. Its colour 14. Sound travels faster
and the Sea of comes from deposits of in air than in water.
Serenity? 1 point what element? 2 points True or False? 1 point
PHOTO: SHUT TERS TOCK

16-20 Gold medal 11-15 Silver medal 6-10 Bronze medal 0-5 Wooden spoon
about four times faster in water. 15. Sulphur.
9. c) 2015. 10. Nitrogen. 11. Pomelo. 12. Jugular. 13. The Battle of Waterloo. 14. False. Sound travels
(Schindler’s Ark, 1982). 6. Farfelle, which means butterflies in Italian. 7. France and Spain. 8. The moon.
ANSWERS: 1. Uniform Resource Locator. 2. Toy Story. 3. Crocus. 4. Tokyo. 5. Thomas Michael Keneally

110 june/july 2025


The Genius Section

WORD POWER
Breaking The Ice
Wouldn’t it be ice? In case you hadn’t noticed,
this three-letter sequence is all over the English
language. When the weather gets chillier, raise a glass
to the ice hiding in these choice quiz words. If
one or two skate by you, take our advice and check
the answers on the next page.

BY Mary-Liz Shaw

1. viceroy – A: appointed ruler. of grasshopper. C: ornamental


B: winning entry. C: legal document. moulding.
2. surplice – A: crossed at centre. 9. suffice – A: heat up. B: hide.
B: unnecessary. C: airy. C: be adequate.
3. latticework – A: structured 10. sluice – A: flow. B: shoot. C: bury.
payment. B: temporary shelter.
C: decorative grid. 11. artifice – A: pleasure. B: honesty.
C: trickery.
4. licentiously – A: lewdly. B: legally.
C: nervously. 12. epicentre – A: attraction.
B: ultimatum. C: focal point.
5. serviceable – A: likely. B: usable.
C: unique. 13. pumice – A: hand drill.
B: a volcanic rock. C: uneven ground.
6. caprice – A: salad. B: sudden
whim. C: light breeze. 14. coppice – A: interrupt.
B: cut back. C: insert.
7. beneficent – A: rich. B: charitable.
C: religious. 15. avarice – A: insatiable greed.
B: exceptional talent. C: desire for
8. cornice – A: boulevard. B: species approval.

rdasia.com 111
R E A DER’S DIGE ST

Answers
Go with the Floe
1. viceroy – (A) appointed ruler. How many words
British kings installed 20 viceroys for ice are there?
in India alone. Inupiaq speakers
2. surplice – (A) crossed at centre. in Alaska alone
have at least 120,
Though she originally wanted a
including utuqaq for ice that lasts year
strapless gown, Abigail chose one
after year, auniq for ice filled with holes
with a surplice neckline. and siguliaksraq for the layer that
3. latticework – (C) decorative grid. forms as sea ice freezes. Documenting
One mark of a skilled gardener is this diversity has become difficult, as
when vines grow through woven the population of native speakers is
slats of latticework. fading almost as quickly as the polar
ice itself.
4. licentiously – (A) lewdly.
Partygoers disrupted the cruise, water immediately started to
behaving licentiously at the pool sluice down the trough.
and catcalling patrons.
11. artifice – (C) trickery.
5. serviceable – (B) usable. “Sure, Unfortunately, some salespeople
I’d love a new car, but my old one use artifice to get people to spend
is still serviceable,” Elena said. more than they can afford.
6. caprice – (B) sudden whim. Fresh 12. epicentre – (C) focal point.
off her lottery win, Elaine bought a Thanks to the Beatles, 1960s
boat in an act of sheer caprice. Liverpool suddenly became the
7. beneficent – (B) charitable. For epicentre of a musical revolution.
years, the beneficent grocery store 13. pumice – (B) a volcanic rock. Use
owner has donated her excess a pumice stone to exfoliate your feet.
inventory to a food bank.
IMAGE: DIZOL ATOR/GE T T Y IMAGES/TMBI LICENCE

14. coppice – (B) cut back.


8. cornice – (C) ornamental Foresters can coppice overgrown
moulding. The architect admired trees to encourage new growth.
the carved cornice running the
length of the ceiling. 15. avarice – (A) insatiable greed.
Shareholders accused the CEO of
9. suffice – (C) be adequate. Dad unchecked avarice for raiding the
never yells; one stern look from him company coffers.
suffices to get us kids back in line.
10. sluice – (A) flow. Once VOCABULARY RATINGS
5-9: Fair 10–12: Good 13–15: Word
engineers opened the floodgate, Power Wizard

112 june/july 2025

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