My physiotherapist’s News Therapy

As he strapped and fastened the belt, the
physiotherapist told me that he had found a new therapy and now was at peace
with himself and the world.

I have stopped reading newspapers and I don’t watch
the television, he looked at me for my reaction to his new therapy. Newspapers I
do read but not as the first thing in the morning but before I sleep and am
drowsy, I skip the first page without fail jump to the inside pages, he
elaborated, happy that I was not wearing a look of ridiculing his new found key
to happiness.

My introduction to him as a journalist had earned
me free introduction to a new therapy if one wants to be at peace with oneself
and the world.

Frankly, I could not agree more.

On vacation for a week I forgot that my day
begins with reading newspapers. There was no television. I don’t watch the TV much
anyway. The deafening clamour that the so called ‘discussions’ on news channels
are, even the journalist in me tries to look for news and fails to find one. There
are vertical, horizontal scrolls in multiple lines giving something they call
the news. This is in addition to what the news reader says. One is terribly at
loss.

If the all-powerful government can cut off social
media with regular intervals in the Kashmir valley, it can as well try to ban
publication on line and off line of newspapers, order television channels to go
off air for at least two days in a week. Am sure peace will return at least for
four days in the week.

I can then tell my physio friend that I have
improved upon his new discovery.