Gamel SanKarl

IIt's 7:30 am in Accra, Ghana.  I am done with my 45 minutes of cycling and I am currently on a brief break at a nearby town park.  Today, I have the pleasure of witnessing a match between two teams this early morning.  Most mornings, I see them training but today is a match day. It is exciting seeing them play.  The consistency of these players and sportsmen in general is admirable and inspiring for me. I am encouraged to be more consistent whenever I see them each morning I pass by.   Alright, it's time to go get ready for my own daily hustle.  May today bring the best we all look forward to.  Stay consistent and persistent!

PROGRESS NoT PERFECTION. By temperament, I am a melancholic. I am a perfectionist both by nature and by nurture. And I have for the most part of my few years on earth been given that space to run my life as such. Over the years, I have come to realize that not only is my being a perfectionist my greatest strength but it is also my greatest weakness. By being my greatest strength, I mean I almost always try my best to do every task assigned to me to the best of my ability and ensure it is done in the most excellent or perfect way possible. And by being my weakness, I mean I almost always have to finish every task assigned to me barely before the deadlines or a few hours or days after the deadlines.  That is to say, in order to get the best or present a 'supposed' perfect work, I often work slowly or delay doing the task until the very last minute only to do what I could have done with ease under so much pressure. And trust me, it has always not been a good feeling when I am in t

Some mornings, I do some walking. Some mornings, I do cycling. Some mornings, I swim. And some other mornings, I play tennis.  This morning, I decided to take a double dose. Because, why not? So, I went for cycling and I am going for swimming.  These are exercise routines I have come to love and made an essential part of my life to stay healthy. Which of these do you do? Or would you love to begin this year?

A couple of weeks ago, I returned to the court after a short break. I had some trips to make and was also nursing an ankle sprain.  But while on break, I chanced on some relevant information about the game I have come to love so much. And yea, I thought to share same with you.  A recent study conducted on over 8500 participants has shown that playing tennis can save or prolong your life by (9.7yrs) approximately ten years. Also according to this same research, cycling and swimming, which are two other sporting activities I engage in, respectively have life expectancy gains of 3.7yrs and 3.4yrs. I'll share my experiences on these some other time.  This study, conducted over 25 years has shown that playing the game actively engages your cardiovascular system and trains your heart to function optimally and efficiently.   As it improves your heart health, it also helps you prevent the risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes and hypertension among others. Of course, there are o

I am elated to have one of my poems published in a Chinese Anthology, World Poetry Yearbook, 2022.     Each edition of the World Poetry Yearbook is usually a bilingual publication.  The original poems are usually submitted in English and subsequently translated into Chinese by the Sophy Chen Translation team.  Congratulations to Sophy  Chen and her team for making such a huge project possible.  This edition of the publication is a compilation of 631 poems by 631 poets from 75 nations across the world. It is a privilege to be a part of this project as one of two Ghanaians whose works were considered for this publication.  Many thanks to the Sophy Chen Team!

Last year, I had the pleasure of being a reviewer for a handbook titled, Transdisciplinary Learning.  Earlier this month, I received my copy of the book from Transcript Publishing, Germany.  The parcel arrived while I was out of town. But given that I was anticipating its arrival, I really looked forward to holding and having a feel of the book.  Well, I finally got to open the parcel. And I love the publication.  It's a great privilege to have participated in this project.   Thanks to TU Berlin Professor, Thorsten Philipp and the team for making me a part of this project.