Among the beautiful who will be vying for the title of Fem Miss India TnT are Ameerah Aziz who is from Champs Fleurs, Nadia Deonarine from Princes Town, Rianna Kavita Persad from D’Abadie, and Geeta Beepath from Tarouba. The organisers of this event have chosen to explore the history of India by giving the girls assignments researching the various rivers so that they can give a brief background on the respective rivers. The four beauties will represent the rivers, Indus, Yamuna, Govadari, and Betwa. Each girl has already compiled notes about these water courses to be read on the night of the competition. Ameerah Aziz, 18, is presently pursuing her goal of becoming a mechanical engineer.

While many may think that this is a job for a man, Ameera thinks that with the rise in technology and computers, she’s heading in the right direction. “The whole concept of understanding the way machinery operates is very interesting. “Being able to repair or invent a part that can make it work better is another topic that one can consider in this field,” she said. Apart from studying hard to get her diploma in mechanical engineering Ameerah also loves to get all dressed up in the East Indian fashion for special occasions. This shows the soft side of the girl who wants to handle the tough machines. The charming beauty, Nadia Deonarine, 21, is an employee of TOSL. She is head of the inventory department. Having taken the titles of Miss Princes Town and also first runners up to Miss St Stephen College, this ambitious young lady is now aiming for the Miss India title.

She spends her spare time learning kick boxing, Latin dancing, cooking and swimming. Nadia is well respected in her community for her efforts to educate the youths on the dreaded AIDS disease. She noted that the best advice she ever got was: ‘Failure is success in disguise’.Rianna Kavita Persad, 19, is into beauty culture. She is presently pursuing a number of courses dealing with skin, hair, nails and make-up. She noted that everyone should strive to maintain a good appearance. “The way you look on the outside really says a lot about what you think about yourself on the inside. “If you can’t love your body and your soul then you are in for a lot of mishaps in life,” she said with an air of authority about her.

Already, she is learning how to speak to crowds so that she can educate those interesting on the topic of beauty culture. Rianna always seems to have an advice for her friends and relatives on the issue. She is quick to admit that she would like everyone to look beautiful and healthy. Geeta Beepath, 24, is also employed with TOSL in the engineering department. This intelligent young lady loves children. Spending a day at the Kindergarten reading stories and singing rhymes to the kids is very fulfilling for the lovely Geeta. She told People that her heart goes out to the children who are victims of physical abuse and those who are homeless. She noted that the government should put special plans in place to deal with these problems. “While a lot is done, there is still a lot more that can be done to help the innocent ones,” she said.

The Fem Miss India TnT pageant comes off at the Centre of Excellence, Macoya, on May 31 at 8pm. Among those carded to perform are Raymond Ramnarine, Nadia Madoo, Indar Kanhai, Andy Singh, Nazimool Khan, Ruby Khan Gupta, Nisah and Ravi Bissembhar ‘D’ Ma Pau’s Vikash Dancers and Molly Bridgelalsingh.The show is being sponsored by, The Island Club, Newsday, Sital, MTV, Mega Insurance, Radio 90.5, and Universal Jewellers.

“Meh greatest desire is to be able to see, but meh greatest fear is de day ah wake up with vision, ah might die from shock!”  That is the declaration of Calypsonian and Extempo personality Joseph Vautor-Laplaceliere ‘Lingo’, who has been visually impaired all his life.  ‘Lingo’ revealed that his mother had contracted Measles (Rubella) and this affected the development of his eyes.

“I ent know what colour looks like, or what light looks like…man I doh even know what I look like! (laughing).  In an interview with People, the 32-year-old artiste proved to have such a positive outlook on life.  ‘Lingo’ joked about almost everything, even in relating circumstances in which he was unjustly treated, he would find a laugh or two. He admits “sometimes I does really vex I blind!”  ‘Lingo’ claims that he tries not to become frustrated by the discrimination he faces on a daily basis.  “I get it from taxi drivers to vendors to the man on the street.” He revealed that drivers are often reluctant to take him in their vehicles because of his impairment, but admits that he is quite capable of getting in and out of a vehicle without assistance.  Some vendors have refused to sell him which he claims still has him confused because he knows that his money has the same value as anybody else’s.  An employee at the Blind Welfare Association for the past 13 years, ‘Lingo’ has been trained in handicraft.

Many visually impaired persons master the art of handicraft.  His stories of traveling to Port of Spain from his hometown Sangre Grande are nothing short of incredible, but these are still no match for those of his trips abroad and alone. ‘Lingo’ spoke of the many times he travelled with only the company of his cane.  “My biggest enemy was dem poles all over town…and we ent make friends yet.”  He expressed his dissatisfaction with the way these poles are placed all over Port-of-Spain with no sense of order.  “I will get away from one pole on de side of de pavement and bump straight into one in the middle a few steps after”.  As a child ‘Lingo’ confessed to having a constant swollen forehead, “I would bounce into any and everything, but as ah grew older ah became a lil more familiar with meh surroundings”. He expressed his concern for the open trenches that are so prevalent on sidewalks.  He claims to have friends who have actually fallen into them.  Some simple tasks that we may take for granted could be such a burden ‘Lingo’ informed.  The purchasing of clothing and not to mention paying for things, can be an absolute bother.  While some of us may go for certain colours, ‘Lingo’ is generally limited to fabric texture and symbolic differences like one pocket or two.  He claims that he tries to purchase clothes with different features so that he can identify them easily. People have given him tips on dressing as in what colours blend well together, but the easiest thing for him to remember is ‘black goes with everything!’  ‘Lingo admits that dealing with money can be tedious at times.  He identifies his bills by the way in which he folds them, as each is folded in a different manner.  “I try to walk with exact change so as to avoid de tiefing ting, but sometimes yuh could run out ah change and dat is when dey could ketch meh.” 

Relating how insensitive some people could be, ‘Lingo’ told of an incident on Duke Street in which a passerby stumbled over his cane and broke it.  ‘Lingo’ explained that he would not be able to go anywhere without his cane but the man very sternly informed “I have a meeting with meh lawyer and ah late” and left him stranded on the street.  “I does go through all kinda thing yes,” ‘Lingo’ said laughing, “he lucky I ent see he face, (still laughing) but all that is life, my life at least.”  He has a new cane now, and a better one at that, it glows in the dark.  Lingo claims that his grandmother was a great sense of support both in his singing and life in general.  So too is Reigning Extempo Monarch Sheldon John.  “Sheldon is meh horse, we real good!”  He admits that John and himself share a close relationship and they are very supportive of each other.  Asked about what he thinks his chances are, warring against John, ‘Lingo’ commented, “it would be a fight to the finish.”  So, in terms of dreams and aspirations, “I dream of flying a plane…not to transport people eh!  Just for the experience.”  He continued “I would like to get married and have children, but I doh know what  is wrong with Trinidadian women…they just doh like blind men.”  Asked what are some of the things he wishes he could change, ‘Lingo’ responded “People’s attitude toward those with disabilities.  We are human too and some folks just need to educate themselves more because many times they react out of ignorance.  I would also like people to involve us more so that we may feel a part of, organise activities whereby we can also participate.”

Dr Gillian Henry isn’t a sound sleeper. When the two telephones, her cellular and the handset for her residential line kept on her bed at nights begin ringing, she’s almost 100 percent sure that she’s being summoned to work — a child is in need of her help. As if acting by instinct, the paediatric cardiologist jumps off her bed, gets dressed and already is in her car.

Never mind the time, 12 midnight or 4 am, Dr Henry will be there at the Mt Hope Medical Sciences Complex in a hurry. Life on call, 24-hour call is not as Dr Henry interpreted it when she entered the field four years ago, but she has learned to juggle all her pursuits around her career.Dr Henry is one of two paediatric cardiologists in Trinidad. Apart from working an 8-4 job, she’s also on constant call. Her profession entails evaluating the condition of a patient’s heart “to determine if something is wrong” and then recommend for surgery.After 13 years of study at the University of the West Indies and NYU, USA, Dr Henry was ready to return home, anxious to apply all the knowledge she acquired. “In my last year at NYU I was impatient to come back,” and when she did, “I think I was on a huge honeymoon period,” she said. But there were the “frustrations” of the job, like not being able to access “rudimentary” things. “A patient of mine may need something (tests done) and I can’t get it. The Health service is not where it should be,” Dr Henry said. But her dealings with her patients far outweigh any looming “frustrations” of the job. “Children for the most part are great. You feel humbled that they are allowing you to take care of them. There are patients that keep me up at nights and I don’t mean on the phone… I’m thinking what are we going to do with that child.”

When the last child is discharged from the hospital, there’s that feeling of instant joy, “everybody is flushed,” she said. In her short time at Mt Hope, she noted some progress in her area where some 218 children have had open heart surgeries between the period September 1998 and April 2003.Her patients’ cases vary from congenital (children born with abnormal hearts) to acquired heart diseases and “dealing with heart diseases means you’re dealing with death.” She observed the difference in behavioural patterns of children when compared to adults who suffered a similar illness. While the adults would have numerous complaints, the countenance of ailing children never betray their anxieties. Their mannerisms and comments, though naive and comical, are uplifting. Dr Henry recalled a few examples: “There was this four-year-old boy who had a rash on his back and according to the books, we needed to look at his legs as well. So, while we were there taking off his clothing, he whispered to his mother ‘Is a good thing I wore my Superman underwear’,” and Dr Henry couldn’t help but laugh. She recalled another while doing her internship at NYU Medical Centre: “There was this two-year-old who stuck something in his ear and when we took it out we discovered it was a blue bead. So I’m sitting in front of the parent and the child and I’m showing the mother the blue bead in the palm of my hand and right there and then the child takes it and puts it into his mouth.”
Her most “public” case was the conjoined twins Gita and Sita, born to the Sookoos of South Trinidad, last year. The twins shared a single heart and after their condition deteriorated and their heart weakened, they died.

In just one week, Dr Henry sees over 45 children at the weekly clinic, few of whom are brand new cases. Her week is also spent reading echos, ultrasounds of the heart, and teaching university students. For a six to eight week period she teaches groups of students numbering 20-30 on rotation at the hospital. “But the whole job blossoms with the teaching and the students. It’s worth it… You feel like you’re doing something or making some kind of positive change to the medical profession. When I was in medical school I actually admired the lecturers. It’s probably the best part of the job,” said Dr Henry. Of importance, she said, is teaching them “to treat each child as if they’re their own.” Single, with no children of her own, Dr Henry, 38, is sometimes teased when “I pick up a child and say he’s so cute, or he’s a darling and people tell me it’s time to have my own. I give the child back right away.”

In 1999, Dr Henry worked a three-month stint in general paediatrics under the RHAs (Regional Health Authorities) at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital and later was invited to join the team at UWI. It’s an interesting switch of career paths, since she wanted to be an astronomer while at St Joseph’s Convent, St Joseph. “My mother would borrow books from the library on astronomy, but at some point while at school it didn’t seem practical. It was somewhere in sixth form that I decided I’d do medicine. I remember reading about medicine in one of those Timelife books on careers,” she said, and that’s when Dr Henry began envisioning herself in the white coats and scrubs. You wouldn’t find her wearing the white coat, though, since “putting on one is just enough to scare the children.” When she told her parents of her desire to study medicine, which would mean going to Jamaica (UWI, Mona Campus) their reaction to her words were not as enthusiastic as she expected, since she had not been away from home for any lengthy periods and her parents didn’t “warm up” to the idea of their daughter leaving them.

Nevertheless, the Henrys — her mother a retired librarian and father (deceased) a musician — supported their daughter in her career choice. She was all for the move except that her biggest fear was “being able to do it (medicine) and I was thinking will I be able to keep up with the students there.” But the numerous years of studying that lay before her was not a deterrent in her pursuits. “I like studying and the studying environment, that’s probably why I gravitated to UWI.” But there were drawbacks and the feeling that life was passing her by “when you see friends moving on, buying their house and you’re still begging your parents for book money.” Dr Henry soon realised it was a natural progression and had made the resolve to finish what she started. That’s the attitude she’s adopted when it comes to social activities and “obsessions” she’s embraced.

She loved music at school and played the piano and guitar. “I still play the guitar, but my most consistent obsession is photography. I take pictures of everything. I read a lot of fiction,” particularly the writings of Salman Rushdie, she said. “He has this crazy way of writing, with flights of ideas that connect with a thought of the previous chapter,” she said. Yes, she’s read Rushdie’s “Satanic Verses” and many other works of his. “I like to listen to poetry but I can’t write it,” she laughed. When she can, she catches a reading by the group Circle of Poets. She tries not to miss Russell Simmons’ Def Poetry on cable television. “I’m in the process of psyching myself up to go back to karate,” Dr Henry informed. Though she’s missed out on some karate lessons “I refuse to give up in learning karate” even if it means learning to tie the obi (belt) all over again. She’s also found time to include playing lawn tennis at the National Hockey Centre, though intermittently. And when you think it all ends there, Dr Henry added: “I learned to snorkel, too. It was a natural progression after learning to scuba dive in Tobago and I think this is something they should teach us in school.”