"Yo, Yoda"

 

"Yes my Boy?"

 

I politely as possible remind Yoda Singh, "Sir, You promised to tell me about the Khanda of Naam."

 

Some of us are out on nature hike and have been doing the WAH-walk. We are in this really cool place. It is a beautiful sunny morning, the birds are singing. Looking around at the lush valley we’re standing in, Yoda asks, "Where is sunlight?”

 

Why do all masters answer questions with questions? And why isn't something simple? For example, "What do birds and bees do?" would be, in my humble (yet always correct) opinion, a splendid question (as you might be able to tell, I have studied birds and bees quite a bit as a teenager ... come to think of it, that's all I studied).

 

Before I kin answer, he announces, "Well, sunlight is everywhere. Because of sunlight, we and our planet grow.  Similarly Naam is everywhere too..."

 

Muhammad Saeed al-Sahhaf interrupts insisting: "Naam might be everywhere, but it is most certainly not in Baghdad. And anyone who says differently will get their stomachs roasted in the suburbs of Gian-Khand."

 

(Sheesh, This guy sure seems to be everywhere)

 

Ignoring this untimely disturbance as though it were no more annoying than a buzz of a bee… (oopsies there I go with beez thingy again…) Yoda Singh continues, "Sunlight is everywhere, but to use it for our own good, we need to somehow store it. Stored sunlight can drive our car, heat our home and many other things. Similarly, Naam is everywhere but to use it for our own good, we need to somehow store it inside us. Do you understand?"

 

I have been and am a tubelight.

In fact, I am the mother of all tubelights.

In fact, if you turn me on in the evening, the sun beats me to it “HuH?”

In fact, I don't understand this at all.

In fact, I have no idea “What” I am writing about.

In fact, I am going to stop right here and come up with some more pseudo-profound thoughts for the next issue.

 

But wouldn’t you know it? Just as I let my self off the hook, my know-it-all-big-sister whose studying at the University for Electrical Engineering/Material Science degree and is all proud of herself for recently becoming an Energy Commision Representative, pipes up  “Of course Photovoltaics, also known as light electricity, is the technology that converts sun light to usable electricity. The reason why Solar Energy is important is because the production of solar electricity is environmentally friendly. Solar panels do not release pollutants, greenhouse gases, or cause noise pollution. They make use of the abundant sunlight rather then limited environmental resources. Each hour of sunlight that hits the earth has the potential energy equivalent to the total energy used annually by the global population.”

 

“UM Sis, I think you might be missing the point here. WE are talking about tubelights… you know light sabers, swords that like transmit lethal light rays to slay an opponent!!!” (Sparkle sparkle vrooo000ooom doom)

 

“Can’t you see the similarities?” (She’s not gonna stop- groaaan, I just wanna zapp somebody errr…) “ To harness the suns power, Photovoltaic cells, which are small semiconductor diodes, are used. When light strikes a PV cell the electrons from the n-type (negative impurity) layer, flows into the p-type (positive impurity) layer, producing an electric current.”

 

Ok I’ll bite, cuz like I’ve got no choice if I want to keep her quiet… “OK Sis, so you’re sayin that naam is user friendly, non polluting, and there’s enough for everybody for ever n ever…n when it strikes you, it’s like lightening. Negative becomes positive and all impurity is blassted away by its electrical type current…” (ok I could get into this, n fact I definitely got to get some of this naam…hey maybe learnin stuff isn’t all that bad…where’s my sword…yah! Slash slash zaaaappp sparkle)

 

“You got it kid” she says winking at me, “gotta run, I’m late for my next class & still got to study for my midterm.”

 

“So Yoda Singh ji,” I ask really curious,  “Just how does naam get stored inside of us? I mean Are we like some kinda bionic battery just ready to soak up naam?” And oh oh, herez the cliff-hanger…n just when I get interested in light waves n naam waves n all, n make room in my brain for something besides beez, we are out room on da page…this is for da birdz!

 

Nevertheless, Yoda Singh replies unhesitatingly,  “To store Naam inside us we have to" continue in the next issue.