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"The goal of modern propaganda is not to inform, but to shape perception." – Noam Chomsky

Chomsky critiques how contemporary propaganda doesn't aim to enlighten, but to manipulate. The objective is control through narrative—not knowledge. By framing perception, institutions steer public opinion while appearing objective.

The Missing Golden Locket

In a busy university campus, a young girl named Althea loved spending her afternoons under a large acacia tree. It was her favorite spot to read, draw, and clear her mind after long classes. The tree’s wide branches gave her shade, and the soft breeze always seemed to whisper calming words.

One sunny afternoon, Althea sat beneath the tree, sketchbook in hand. She drew the acacia tree’s twisted branches, adding tiny birds in the background. As she shaded the leaves, something shiny caught her eye near the tree’s roots.

Curious, Althea set her sketchbook aside and brushed the dirt away. She gasped when she uncovered a beautiful golden locket. It looked old, but it still gleamed brightly in the sunlight. Carefully, she opened it and found a picture inside — a young woman with curly hair and bright eyes.

“Wow,” Althea whispered. The face seemed familiar, but she couldn’t place it.

Turning the locket over, she noticed a name engraved on the back: "Myreen."

“This must be important,” Althea thought. “I should find out who this belongs to.”

Later that day, she met up with her best friend, Ramon, in the library. She showed him the locket.

“Do you know anyone named Myreen?” she asked.

Ramon leaned closer to inspect it. “No,” he said, shaking his head. “But maybe we can ask around.”

Over the next few days, Althea and Ramon asked students, professors, and even the campus security guards. No one recognized the name or the locket.

“Maybe you should keep it,” Ramon suggested one afternoon.

“No,” Althea insisted. “Someone’s missing this. I have to keep trying.”

Feeling discouraged, Althea returned to her acacia tree. She sat beneath it, turning the locket over and over in her hand. Just then, she overheard an elderly man speaking with the campus gardener.

“I used to sit here with my wife,” the man said with a sad smile. “She loved this tree. But she's gone now... and my daughter left a long time ago.”

Althea’s heart skipped a beat. She stood and walked toward the man. “Excuse me, sir,” she said softly. “Is this yours?” She held out the golden locket.

The man’s eyes widened, and his hands trembled as he reached for it. “This... this was my wife’s,” he said, his voice breaking. “And this is my daughter, Myreen.”

“What happened to her?” Althea asked gently.

The old man sighed heavily. “I wanted her to become a doctor, but all she wanted was to open a flower shop. We argued... I told her she was wasting her life. She left that night. I haven’t seen her in years.”

Althea felt a deep sadness in his words. “I’ll help you find her,” she promised.

The old man gave her an old address where Myreen had once lived. “I don’t know if she’s still there,” he warned, “but it’s all I have.”

The next morning, Althea and Ramon set off on a bus to a small town outside the city. The town was peaceful, with cobblestone streets and charming little shops. The air smelled like fresh bread and blooming flowers.

“Let’s start asking around,” Althea said.

They visited a bakery first. The baker, a cheerful man with flour on his apron, listened to their story. “Myreen?” he said thoughtfully. “I don’t know her, but you could try the florist down the street. The owner’s really nice.”

Excited, they hurried over to the flower shop, but when they arrived, a sign on the door read: 'Closed for Delivery – Back in an Hour'

“We’ll wait,” Althea said, sitting on a bench nearby.

Minutes turned into an hour, and still no one appeared. Growing restless, Ramon said, “Maybe she’s not coming back today.”

“No,” Althea insisted. “I have a feeling she’s still here.”

Just then, a young boy walked by carrying a bouquet of flowers.

“Excuse me!” Althea called. “Do you know the florist?”

The boy smiled. “That’s Miss Myreen. She’s at the park setting up flowers for a wedding.”

Althea and Ramon hurried to the park and found Myreen carefully arranging flowers around a gazebo. The moment Althea saw her, she knew it was the same woman from the locket.

“Myreen?” Althea called.

Myreen looked up, surprised. “Yes?”

Althea stepped forward and held out the locket. “Your father gave me this,” she explained. “He misses you very much.”

Myreen froze. Her eyes widened as she reached out for the locket. She opened it slowly and stared at the picture inside. “I haven’t seen this in years,” she whispered. “I thought I lost it.”

“Myreen,” Althea said gently, “your father really regrets what happened. He’s lonely... and he misses you.”

Myreen’s expression softened. “I was so angry when I left,” she said quietly. “I just wanted to follow my dream... but now... I miss him too.”

“Maybe it’s time to visit him,” Althea encouraged.

Myreen nodded slowly. “You’re right,” she said. “I should see him.”

The next day, Myreen closed her shop early and traveled back with Althea and Ramon. When they reached her father’s house, Myreen stood frozen at the front gate.

“What if he’s still upset?” she whispered.

“He’s not,” Althea assured her. “He’s been waiting for you.”

Taking a deep breath, Myreen knocked on the door.

Moments later, her father opened it. His eyes widened in disbelief. “Myreen?” he whispered.

“Hi, Dad,” she said softly.

The old man’s face crumpled, and he pulled her into a tight embrace. “I’m so sorry,” he choked out.

“I’m sorry too,” Myreen replied, tears streaming down her face.

They spent the rest of the day talking, laughing, and sharing stories. The old man smiled as Myreen spoke about her flower shop. “I should’ve supported you,” he said regretfully.

“You were just trying to protect me,” Myreen said. “I understand now.” ---

A few weeks later, Myreen’s father visited her flower shop. He watched proudly as she arranged bouquets for her customers.

“This place is beautiful,” he told her.

“It’s my dream,” Myreen said, smiling.

“I’m glad you followed your heart,” her father replied. “And I’m glad you came back.”

When her father passed away peacefully a few years later, Myreen planted a special garden beside her shop — filled with her father’s favorite flowers. At the center, she placed a small stone plaque that read:

“For My Father — Who Taught Me Love is Stronger Than Pride.”

And as for Althea, she often thought about that golden locket. She knew that even the smallest act of kindness — like picking something out of the dirt — could change a life forever.

From that day forward, Althea believed that sometimes, a tiny piece of gold could bring back something far more precious — a family’s love.

Never Ending Running

In a land where dreams roamed free, there was a boy named Aaron. Every night, Aaron found himself in a dream where he was running. It wasn't just any run; it was a never-ending run.

The dream always started the same way. Aaron would stand in the middle of a vast, open field with no end in sight. The grass was soft beneath his feet, swaying gently in the wind. The sky above was a brilliant shade of blue, clear and endless. A cool breeze brushed against his skin, making him feel light and free. But before he could even think, his feet started moving.

As soon as Aaron took his first step, he felt the urge to run. So he did. He ran and ran, his feet pounding against the ground as he sprinted across the field. The wind rushed past his ears, his breath quickened, and his legs burned from the effort. But no matter how fast he ran, the landscape never changed. The field stretched endlessly, and the sky remained the same shade of blue. It was as if he was stuck in place, running in circles.

Aaron, panting heavily, shouted into the emptiness, “Where am I going? I can’t see the end!”

His voice echoed, but no answer came. The silence around him felt heavy.

Then, suddenly, he heard voices. They were distant, almost like whispers in the wind.

“Keep going, Aaron! You can do it!”

He looked around, searching for the people calling him, but saw no one.

“Who’s there?” Aaron shouted.

The voices didn’t answer. Instead, they faded away, leaving him alone again.

Night after night, the same dream repeated. Aaron would wake up feeling exhausted, as if he had been truly running. The dream never changed, and he never found a way out. It made him feel trapped, like a prisoner in his own mind.

One morning, Aaron told his best friend, Leo, about it.

“That sounds scary,” Leo said, frowning. “Maybe your dream is trying to tell you something.”

Aaron sighed. “Tell me what?”

Leo shrugged. “I don’t know. But if it happens again, try doing something different. Maybe stop running.”

Aaron thought about it all day. Could he stop running? Every time he tried, something inside him told him to keep going. But maybe Leo was right.

That night, as he drifted into sleep, he made up his mind.

The dream began as always. The endless field. The soft grass. The blue sky. The strong urge to run.

But this time, Aaron stopped.

He stood still, breathing heavily. For the first time, he resisted the feeling that pulled him forward. The wind around him grew stronger, almost pushing him to move. His heart pounded. He wanted to run. But he didn’t.

Then, something changed.

The ground beneath him trembled. A path appeared ahead, cutting through the endless field. It was narrow but clear. Aaron’s eyes widened.

“This wasn’t here before,” he whispered.

Slowly, he took a step onto the path. Unlike the field, the path had direction. It led somewhere.

Aaron followed it, walking at first. The wind no longer pushed him. The sky above began to shift, turning from blue to a soft orange, like a sunset.

Then, in the distance, he saw a light.

A small, glowing dot. It flickered like a tiny star, far away but calling to him.

Aaron took a deep breath. He started running again—but this time, it felt different. He wasn’t running aimlessly. He had a goal.

The light grew brighter as he got closer. It pulsed warmly, like a heartbeat. Aaron pushed forward, his legs moving faster than ever before.

As he reached out, the light surrounded him, wrapping him in a gentle warmth. His body felt lighter, as if he were floating. The dream blurred around him, fading into nothingness.

And then, in an instant, he woke up.

Aaron blinked. His heart was still racing, but he felt different—free.

He sat up in bed, breathing deeply. Morning sunlight streamed through his window, warm and real. He was back. The never-ending run was over.

That day, Aaron felt lighter than he had in a long time. He told Leo everything.

“I stopped running,” Aaron said. “And that’s when I found a way out.”

Leo grinned. “Maybe that’s the lesson. Sometimes, you need to stop and see the path instead of just running without direction.”

Aaron smiled. He never had the dream again, but he never forgot what he learned. No matter how lost he felt, there was always a way forward—he just had to find it.

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The Lesson of the Story :

The lesson in the story is that sometimes, moving forward is not about running without direction but about stopping to see the right path. When life feels endless and tiring, it is important to pause, think, and choose where to go instead of rushing without purpose. Fear and pressure can push us to keep going, but real progress comes when we understand where we are heading. Listening to advice, trusting ourselves, and being patient can help us find the answers we need. Challenges may seem never-ending, but there is always a way out. We just have to see it. Instead of running in circles, we must find the right road and move forward with purpose and hope.

THE STATE IS THE ENEMY

I mean, you know, nothing works right: the women, the jobs, the no jobs, the weather, the dogs. Finally you just sit in a kind of stricken state and wait like you're on the bus stop bench waiting for death.

~ Charles Bukowski, from the story “No Way to Paradise”

State is the territory occupied by the administrative districts of a nation . advance dictionary

The state has taken now territories that are known as countries to be their own properties and not peoples property. They say it's a democratic country but it's only democratic in words and in action we have dictatorial s and totalitarian, etc working out .

The state become into being after colonization but before that we had societies that ruled it's people. After independence we were handles with state from the white which was just a change of clothes from white to black . Many celebrated the new enemy but we're ignorant of it.

The state continued from the colonial to convert social power to state power because the state had no power and resources and it wanted control and power. They killed the leaders of the society by giving them no position and lowest levels such as chiefs and killing those who were defiant .in that process they killed African visionaries and accommodated dictators who destroyed societies by tribalism , tribal politics, racism, religious difference and difference of educted and uneducated the state started being powerful from the society.

The society was not aware of the happening. They gave all they had and ended up poor as the state was rich . They gave up resources by taxes power by tribalism and it's politics and the state always work day and night to ensure no society is strong

If you look at the fight between some communities who have not yet given their power to state the people who create the enemity is they sate they give out weapons and support some communities and then they appear as angles from heaven by helping with just mere words .