The Fate Of Drugs And Drug Development Essay Example for Free

The Fate Of Drugs And Drug Development Essay The most appropriate dosage form for administering drugs to pediatric patients is the low-dose liquid format, computed through the patient’s kilogram body weight.   Pediatric patients are generally small in body size and thus a very low dose is sufficient in attaining the desired clinical outcome.   For adults, the maximum dose in tablet or capsule form can be administered. (2)   A drug in tablet or capsule form easily disintegrates in the stomach and the contents are further dissolved as it passes through into the small intestines, where absorption takes place. (3)   Pharmacokinetics pertains to the action of drugs in terms of absorption, as well as metabolism within the human body (Sharan et al., 2009).   This field also deals with the distribution of the drug and its eventual excretion. (4)   Pharmacokinetics involves a specific order of activities with regards to a drug because it describes the actual steps that occur during drug intake.   Before the actual effect of a drug takes place, the active ingredient needs to be absorbed through the intestinal lining and further distributed to the target areas of the body.   Metabolism then occurs which is the incorporation of the drug to the target areas.   Any excess or used drugs are then removed from the body through the process of excretion. (5)   The chemical nature of the drug determines the absorption ability of a drug.   Lipophilic drugs generally enter the cells quickly, due to its similarity in composition to the plasma membrane.   High dosages can also increase the absorption of a drug into cells. (6)   Pharmacodynamics pertains to the effect of a drug in terms of its biochemistry and physiological action in the human body. (7)   One main action of a drug is to stimulate the human body to perform a specific action (Kang and Lee, 2009).   Another type of drugs is the depressant, which slows down specific activities in the body.   There are also cytotoxic drugs that kill specific cells in the body.   Other drugs are aimed to replace certain substances that are lacking or at very low levels in the body. (8)   The general relationship observed is that when a drug response is attained, the serum concentration of that same drug is found to be at its highest dose.   Drug manufacturing is mainly based on the preparation of capsules or tablets that contain the minimum amount of the drug that can exert a response in the human body (Najib, 2009). (9)  Ã‚   An adverse effect of a drug occurs when there are more than enough amounts that are circulating in the body of a patient.   The excess amount can cause damage to the liver of an individual (Marin et al., 2009).   Drug-drug interactions pertain to the effect of one drug on another, if they are administered at the same time.   The presence of another drug may either interfere or enhance the effect of another drug and thus it is important for a physician to know all the drugs that a patient takes before prescribing or administering any new drugs. References Kang, J.S. and Lee, M.H.   (2009).   Overview of therapeutic drug monitoring.   Korean Journal of Internal Medicine, 24, 1-10. Marin, J.J., Briz, O., Perez, M.J., Romero, M.R. and Monte, M.J.   (2009).   Hepatobiliary transporters in the pharmacology and toxicology of anticancer drugs.   Frontiers in Bioscience, 14, 4257-4280. Najib, J.   (2009).   The efficacy and safety profile of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate, a prodrug of d-amphetamine, for the treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in children and adults.   Clinical Therapeutics, 31, 142-176. Sharan, K., Siddiqui, J.A., Swarnkar, G., Maurya, R. and Chattopadhyay, N.   (2009).   Role of phytochemicals in the prevention of menopausal bone loss: Evidence from in vitro and in vivo, human interventional and pharma-cokinetic studies.   Current Topics in Medical Chemistry, 16, 1138-1157.

Analysing Of The Postponed Barangay Election Politics Essay

Analysing Of The Postponed Barangay Election Politics Essay A Barangay is the smallest unit of government in our country. Under Republic Act 7160 otherwise known as the Local Government Code, the Barangay, as the basic political unit, serves as the primary planning and implementing unit of government policies, plans, programs, projects, and activities in the community, and as a forum wherein the collective views of the people may be expressed, crystallized and considered, and where disputes may be amicably settled (Section 384, R.A. 7160). A Barangay is headed by the Punong Barangay and seven (7) members of Sangguniang Barangay (Section 387, R.A 7160). Their term of office is three (3) years. The next Barangay Election is scheduled to be held on the 25th day of October 2010. The Philippines held its last Barangay Election on the 29th of October 2007. The postponement of the Barangay Election has been a hot issue in congress lately. Since the schedule for the conduct of Barangay Election is fast approaching, congress is currently debating whether to pass a law postponing the upcoming Barangay Election. Should the Barangay Election push through; candidates would be competing for position of Barangay chairman and seven Sangguniang Barangay members. The leaders in congress are proposing to postpone the Barangay Election primarily on the ground of financial constraints. Vice President Jejomar Binay also expresses support for the postponement of the Barangay Election. He is of the opinion that the local government units cannot afford to contribute at least 25% of their annual budget for election expenditures. Under the law, the local government units may be compelled by the Commission on Election (COMELEC) to contribute to fund the Barangay Election expenditures. Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile also proposes to postpone the Barangay Election and have it held simultaneously on May 2013 elections. (Enrile pabor ding ipagpaliban ang Barangay, SK Elections, GMA NEWS. 2010) The Philippines held its first automated election during the 2010 National Election. While survey shows that it was the most peaceful election, nevertheless, there were unavoidable election violence that took place. Just like in the past elections, the COMELEC declared that there were fourteen (14) election hotspots. These election hotspots are Ilocos Norte, Abra, Masbate, Nueva Ecija, Western Samar, Eastern Samar, Antique, Basilan, Sulu, Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Sarangani and Zamboanga Sibugay. (14 Provinces as HOTSPOTS, Sun Star Manila. 2010) In every election, violence is unavoidable despite government and COMELECs effort to minimize the same by introducing reforms such as the computerization of the election. The COMELEC is trying its best to prevent killings and violence and cheating during the election. However, notwithstanding the efforts of COMELEC to prevent or stop these killings and violence, there will still be killings among candidates and supporters during election pe riod. Such unfortunate events are inevitable during election period. The most devastating election related violence was the Maguindanao Massacre. We all heard that more than 50 media men were massacred in Maguindanao. Thus, if the election is held this year, such violence will likely to happen again. Candidates and supporters will surely do everything to win in the election. Hence, if the Barangay Election is postponed, this will be a breathing space for our people to heal the wounds that was caused by the 2010 national election. Though it is temporary, people would not get to suffer again this year. As the saying goes, time heals all wounds. Online dictionary defines it as people eventually get over the bad things happened to them. (Time heals all wounds, Dictionary. n.d.) I agree that aside from budgetary constraints, another strong reason why the upcoming Barangay Election scheduled this 25th day of October 2010 must be postponed is because of the recent hotly contested national Election which divided our countrymen. The recent division among our countrymen which caused personal ill-feelings among candidates and supporters are still fresh and remain unhealed. I finally agree with our government leaders in proposing for the postponement of the upcoming Barangay Election because the holding of another election within the year is too much for us to bear. Our country is currently experiencing huge budget deficit. If we postpone the upcoming Barangay Election, our government will save at least three billion pesos. I believe that our government can use the savings for infrastructure and other basic services for the needs of the poor. I also believe that the upcoming Barangay Election will interrupt COMELECs duty to decide pending election protests from the 2010 national Election promptly. As previously stated, due to the recent hotly contested national Election, our countrymen remain divided up to the present. They are divided because of the support they gave to their respective chosen political party or candidate to the extent of hurting false personal accusations against one another. I am in favor of the postponement of this years Barangay Election in order to heal the wounds of the last presidential Election. I am worried that candidates and supporters will be quarreling again and impute wrongdoing against one another just like in the last 2010 National Election, there were incidents wherein loyal supporters of one camp who accuse the other for being corrupt even without evidence just to destroy his reputation. In another instance, another camp made false accusations that a candidate has psychological problems, such similar false accusations will surely arise again if we conduct the election this year. Thus, unhealed wounds would be opened up again. We cannot afford things to happen again. Division among our people is too deep and if not reminded, our people and the government might break down. Another reason for the Barangay Election to be postponed is because of the huge expenses for the conduct of election. To conduct an election, the COMELEC will spend au to THREE BILLION PESOS (P3,000,000,000.00) for the printing ballots, salary of the teachers, and purchase of election paraphernalia and other election expenses.(Preparation for Barangay and SK Election, Philippine Update Election. 2010) The money that will be used as an expense to conduct Barangay Election will come from taxes which our taxpayers pay. Because our country is having a huge budget deficit, the money allocated in our budget throughout the year is larger than the money earned or collected by the government. Thus, congress is proposing that the Barangay Election must be postponed. The savings may be used to fund the infrastructure and other social services for the poor. Congress believes that the needs of the citizens should be the prioritized first before electing new officials. Conducting the Barangay Elections would not change the fact that the current or newly elected officials would still be doing their job. The government already spent more than TEN BILLION PESOS (P10,000,000,000.00) in the recent Presidential Election. (Finally, automated elections .2010) Our country just had the most expensive election this year. By postponing the Barangay Election, our government will be able to reduce the budget deficit which our economy greatly needs. The Proponent who wants to have the Barangay Election held this year suggests that it should not be postponed. Her strongest point is the issue of corruption among current officials while I do admit that corruption thrives in our government including Barangays, I submit that conducting as election this year is not the solution to the problem. Election is not the solution to corruption. The proponent for continuation of the Barangay Election this year argues that because of the elections, issues regarding the corrupt officials are exposed during campaign. She argues that during campaign, candidates expose anomalies and corruption. However, they failed to appreciate that the candidates often impute malice and false accusations and concoct evidence of corruption just to destroy the reputation of their opponent. The proponent of this years election failed to notice that I even if election will be held this year, there will still be corruption and several corrupt candidates will still win. Hence, competition will not disappear. The best solution to eradicate corruption is the strict and effectiveness implementation of the law. Thus, the government should see to it that the corrupt officials are prosecuted and punished so that other government officials will be afraid to commit corruption. I believe that the postponement of the Barangay Election has far greater advantage that any possible disadvantage. In financial aspects, the money that may be saved will be used for infrastructures and public service. Hence, our people, especially the poor will greatly benefit from the funds for social services. Because of the recent national election, the people are already divided. Filipinos should be unified especially during his hard times. We should have unity to achieve peace and order in this country. I dont see any disadvantage if we postpone the Barangay Election. Positions of Barangay officials will not be left vacant. Current Barangay officials will just continue to act in their respective official duties. Thus, public service will not be hampered. I agree that the issue of election expense is the main reason why most of our government leaders opt to postpone the upcoming Barangay Election. Secondary is the unhealed wounds that Filipinos suffered by reason of the recent National Election. So many candidates and supporters became enemies because of the election. Another reason why most government officials agreed to postpone the Barangay Election because of the several election protests for the national election are still pending with the COMELEC, the holding of the Barangay Election this year will interrupt COMELECs duty to decide the protests promptly. Therefore, the postponement of the Barangay Election will be a great help for the whole country. Congress should pass a law for the postponement of the Barangay Election and have it held in 2011 or in 2012.

Societies Scapegoat :: essays research papers

Societies Scapegoat   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Youth crimes are on a continual rise. It seems that everyday violent offenders keep getting younger and more aggressive. We turn on the news only to hear that a ten year old mugged,shot,stabbed,beat or blew up one of his peers. With crimes on the rise involving children, people begin to look for a cause. Society, when looking for a scapegoat, becomes worse than a blood thirsty lynch mob at a witch trial. Usually the most obvious source of violence within a home is the television. However, in most cases it is not the true cause. With the TV in the forefront of virtually every home in the civilized world, it's no wonder that it's the easiest target for criticism. It's elementary to blame the tube for a child's behavior; it's a quick and easily identified source of violence within a youths confined world. The TV many times is identified as the cause of aggressive acts to avoid dealing with other underlying issues. Society today has an entire array of different afflictions that plague us from day to day. The television is of very little significance alongside the landfill of troubles that influence children today. Besides, trying to get networks to cut out violence and aggression entirely would be like trying to get Jesus Christ to write a top ten list of reasons why Christianity sucks. (It's not going to happen.)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  TV is not the reason that our youth courts are filled to capacity with court dockets so hideous you would swear that you were looking at the start of the apocalypse. Television programs are not the reason for the apparent increase in adolescent crime. If you find yourself picking up your kids from the police station all the time, it's not the TV's fault!!! There are no significant consequences for youth crime in our justice system. Maybe we should impose stiffer penalties on violent offenders, instead of more censorship on TV. Kids would not have such a tendency to mug, beat, strangle or shoot their peers if there were tougher consequences for doing so.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Japanese are responsible for some of the most violent cartoons ever created to date. I mean these things make our R rated movies look like a walk in the park. Japanese cartoons display bloodshed and drug induced murdering sprees as if they were nothing. Even with all this vicious behavior on Japanese televisions, the youth crime and aggressive behavior is one tenth of ours. How can this be? Because the Japanese have adopted a zero tolerance policy for criminal behavior and reprimand criminals with a vengeance.

Impact of War and Violence on Children in A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Be

Children exposed to violence within their communities are left with emotions of hopelessness, insecurity, and doubt. Historical events such as the war on terrorism, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the tragic events of September 11th have had a detrimental effect on the entire nation, including the children. Although every child is not directly affected by the aspects of war, it somehow has an emotional effect on all. The involvement of a nation with war affects every individual differently, whether it is out of fear, anger, doubt, hope, or love. In the short novel A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah, he narrates the story by telling his own involvement in the Civil War in Sierra Leone as young boy and the many issues he faces while living in horror. Also, author Garbarino points out in his book Raising Children in a Socially Toxic Environment in the chapter involving the security of children that: More and more children in the United States are experiencing a growing sense of insecurity about the world inside and outside the boundaries of their families. It does not take much violence and terror to set a tone of threat. Even in the worst war zones—places like Sarajevo—shooting and killing is intermittent. Memory of the emotions of trauma does not decay; it remains fresh (Garbarino 64-65). As Garbarino recognizes, the effects of war and such violence is something that sticks with a child and remains constant in their everyday lives. The experiences that children face involving war in their communities and countries are traumatic and long lasting. It not only alters their childhood perspectives, but it also changes their reactions to violence over time. Sadly, children are beginning to play more of a major role in wars in both the... ...volving death and separation. Children within the United States whose parents serve in the military are left to deal with issues of separation and fear. The fear of not knowing when their parents are coming home, and if they’ll come back the same person they were when they left. Since we are incapable of hiding violence and the act of war from children, it is better to help them understand the meaning behind it and teach them that violence is not always the answer. Children react based on what they see and hear, and if the community and world around them portrays positive things, then the child will portray a positive attitude as well. Works Cited Beah, Ishmael. A Long Way Gone. New York: Sarah Crichton Books, 2007. Print. Garbarino, James. Raising Children in a Socially Toxic Environment. San Francisco, California: Jossey-Bass, 1995. Print.

Filmmaking :: essays research papers

The Film about Filmmaking Truffaut's irresistibly charming "film about filmmaking" is an enormously affectionate homage to cinema, as well as a portrayal of the joy and anguish of filmmaking. The framing film Day for Night tells the story of a director; Ferrand (Truffaut) and his crew shooting a romantic family melodrama entitled Meet Pamela at the Studio Victorine in Nice. As the shooting proceeds, the personal crises of the crewmembers engulf the professional sphere of their lives, and threaten the smooth progress of the filming: one of the leading actresses, Sà ©verine (Valentina Cortese), is anguished by her son's terminal illness and unable to remember her lines because of her alcoholism; Stacey (Alexandra Stewart) is three-months pregnant and refuses to shoot a swimming scene in a bathing suit; Alphonse (Jean-Pierre Là ©aud) seeks feminine/maternal affection and lingers over the same question: "Are women magic?" Ferrand realizes that films are more harmonious than life: there are "no traffic jams or no dead waits," and people like them are happy only in their work of making films. Despite a series of difficulties and the accidental death of Alexandre (played by Jean-Pierre Aumont) in a car crash, the crew manages to complete the filming and then disperse to future destinations. From the outset Day for Night is full of Truffaut's nostalgia for cinema of the past. A title sequence accompanied by orchestral music gradually turns into a melancholic accordion tune; a still of Dorothy and Lillian Gish with subtitle announces that the film is dedicated to these legendary stars of the silent screen. The spectator is then led to a square seemingly in Paris, a rather chic landscape dotted with a metro station, a fashionable cafà ©, stoned buildings, the sound of busy traffic and pedestrians. A young man (Jean-Pierre Là ©aud) with a solemn expression on his face appears from the metro station and walks towards an elderly man. After a while the young male slaps the latter on his face. As soon as an immense tension occurs we hear the voice "Cut" and the camera tracks back to reveal that it was a shooting of a film. The camera pulls back further and we see the film crew, a television presenter and her crew. The television crew interviews the actors and they p rovide us with a synopsis of the film they are shooting: Meet Pamela is the story of a tragic affair of an adulterous couple.

Caterpillar Management Structure

Caterpillar Management Structure Caterpillar is a corporate governance structure where the Chairman of the board acts as the CEO. The Board of Directors is a group of independent non-employee directors that are chosen from outside of the company. Many of the group presidents report to the CEO, which makes the vice-presidents report to each group president. The Board consists of 14 directors and is divided into three classes for the benefit of election. The Board has four committees which are Audit, Compensation, Governance, and Public Policy. The Board adopted Guidelines on Corporate Governance Issues and that reflect the Board’s commitment to oversee the policy functioning as well as all decision-making. These guidelines are for both the board and management level, with a view to enhancing stockholder value for the long term benefit. The average age of the Board of Directors is currently sixty three. Caterpillar uses change management and 6 Sigma which is used to both prioritize and guide the improvement of health and safety performance. Caterpillar established procedures to encourage facilities to improve employee safety by utilizing the Vision Zero program. Each facility conducts annual reviews of its safety programs and reports these results to the facility manager. Facility management is responsible for the establishment of objectives, goals, metrics, and targets for the facility’s safety process and providing resources and authority to facility staff. Managers and employees are to use the SMART goals that are identified, tracked, and rewarded at each facility. All front-line leaders discuss safety with employees on a daily basis and all supervisors hold formal weekly safety meetings. The behavior of all employees is governed by a Code of Worldwide Business Conduct whereas management employees are retested on this code annually. Caterpillar’s code of ethics is called Our Values in Action. Integrity, Excellence, Commitment and Teamwork are the core values identified in the code and are the foundation for Caterpillar’s corporate strategy. The code applies to all members of the board and to management and employees worldwide. It documents the high ethical standards that Caterpillar has upheld since its formation in 1925. The values of Caterpillar are centralized throughout the entire organization. Caterpillar’s hiring practice is designed to assess the skills and talents of all applicants to compare to the jobs they have available. There are four phases to the hiring process, which are: Completion of an application and forms, testing, invitation for an interview, and job offer. Caterpillar’s compensation package represents their employees’ contributions to the success of the company and the investment in their financial security. They have a highly competitive salary structure which is designed to attract, retain and motivate the valuable employees whose contributions help the company succeed year after year. There are two primary components which define Caterpillar’s compensation philosophy: Pay for Performance and Pay at Risk. As and employee’s responsibility increases, so does the proportional amount of â€Å"at risk† pay. In addition to the base salary, Caterpillar offers incentive plans and gain-sharing plans that give employees the opportunity to impact their compensation for achieving targeted corporate and business unit results.

In case you forget

There was death at the start, just as there was death at the end. Though whether a fleeting wisp of this crossed the Irishman's dreams and shook him awake on this least likely of mornings, he would never know. All he knew that when he opened his eyes that the world was somehow changed. As always the first thought that come to his head was the quick, searing hope that the last eight weeks had never happened. But as he saw the pale morning light filtering through her curtains, reality hit him with an icy certainty-Aileen was dead, and it was his entire fault. He looked at his alarm clock; 7:00 shone angrily at him in red, making him turn back to the wall. It beeped impatiently at him, and it was that, not the cold, which finally gave him the thought to give up his worthy fight and struggle out of bed. He breathed in the faint lingering smell of musty perfume. Photos of horses stared down at him from the walls. He was in his wife's room. A coat was slung over the chair where Aileen had left that morning of the accident. The hairbrush of the table was coated in a fine layer of dust, a few blonde hairs clinging to the bristles. Nothing in the room had changed for four weeks, not since the day Aileen Flaherty died. At the sight of the familiar things, his stomach twisted. He glanced at the photo of him and her. Pat and Allie. Patrick Harper and Aileen Flaherty. Sergeant Major and Horse whisperer. Mr and Mrs Patrick Harper. Husband and wife. There were tears in his eyes, which he reckoned was from the dust in the room. He got dressed. His kharki and olive uniform was oddly loose after the tight dress uniform of the funeral. Harper gazed in the mirror. Everything was to military precision. His blue eyes had not lost the desperation and soulessness that the dark alleyways of Dublin required. He picked up his rifle and placed a finger in a notch of unpolished metal. It was this small dip, in the butt of the gun, which gave Patrick Harper the small amount of Gaelic luck, which soldiers said was invincible. He just wanted to get out of this room. It was too much to bear; knowing that Allie was never coming back. A small silver locket was worn around his throat. It had saved the sergeant-major's life once, a stranger had fired across the street and the tall Irishman shivered at the thought of what would have happened if the precious metal heart had not been attached around his neck. A small photo of his soul mate was in it, and he was suddenly angry that he had it. He made a mental note to take it off later. The week that had followed Aillie's death had been a blur, and for him it was probably best that it had remained like that. For days he had been almost catatonic. The Latin words had washed meaninglessly over him and he read, dry-eyed, over and over her name and date of birth and death. And still tears would not come. He wanted to cry, he really did, but something was stopping him. He could only think of the blood on her neck which looked like a necklace of broken rubies and that he had noticed irrelevantly that red didn't not suit her and he made a note not to buy her a ruby necklace for her birthday. He had felt the sting of tears as he knelt beside her and held the silent, still warm body that he most loved in the world and had cried out inside at his own brutality. Her warmth would fade just as the memory of her would fade and he would forget the character that gave this exquisite creature life and love. She would exist now only in his memory and of those of who had known her best. She had given herself to him and never doubted the decision, unlike him. And now he had killed her. It should have been himself who had been caught in the blast, he who died, not this and his grief was formless, incoherent, a pain of betrayed love. The war-lord had not even noticed the girl in Harper's arms. ‘Congratulations. You did it.' He had done it so that he could free Ireland and St Patrick. He had done it so that innocent blood had been spilt on the pavement. He had done it so that he could feel a pain, so great, that he would never feel it again. They had then given him thirty silver coins, for his service to Ireland. Five pounds fifty in change, exactly. Every one of those thirty pieces of silver to him was blood money. Blood that was still fresh on his hands and would remain so for evermore. Sometimes he would wake up and feel happy and then he would see the blank postcard on the desk, still franked, but it meant that someone close had died for his or her country. Then the happiness went. Sometimes he would see her in the street and his heart leaped. Then the knowledge that she no longer existed would sink in. It was the training day of the recruits that had brought about the change. The sergeant- major had stabbed his bayonet repeatedly into the belly of the straw bales dressed in the uniform of English paratroopers. He had lost his humanity then, humanity that Allie had unearthed during their married years. He had felt the tears coming to his eyes. Tears of guilt and anger, no longer held back by the crushing weight of guilt, flooded over his cheeks. It unlocked a sluice gate inside of him and for two weeks he wept and let out all the pain, that as a soldier he was trained to ignore. He could have drowned himself in the salty water that was not rain. But in the calm aftermath, Harper took stock and decided to survive. In that moment he had became an adult. You could see it when he didn't know he was being watched, and from his eyes glittered a sad and old Gaelic magic, as old as time itself. Patrick Harper opened his diary. It was April the 12th, six weeks since the bomb had been secretly planted and with it buried the bloodied remains of his spouse's body. That was strange. April was already a dozen days old, Allie's death already eight weeks in the past. He had marked with a pencil March the twenty-fourth to the first of April because that was when he had expected his first child. He remembered how the bloom of pregnancy was in her and how beautiful she had looked in those heavy months. He looked at the chair, in which she had sat and told him about his child and he had held her, speechless. His child. He had been so happy then. There was no joy now. The rifle was thrown down because he did not want to hold a killing machine any longer. As a top marksman he had spilt enough innocent blood. Much more than he could count. He checked his wallet. A library card that expired today, but he had not the heart or the energy to renew it. Aillie had encouraged him to read, to take his mind off what he knew she knew that he had done the whole day. She had kept silent on the whole issue, but he knew that she didn't approve. He had read just to keep her happy, but in the week before the accident he had taken to reading her the story of Macbeth. The man who had killed to get what he had wanted, lost his humanity, and could not back out. In the end it had destroyed him. He remembered that Lady Macbeth went mad from the blood on her hands. That there was a darkness in her that she could not escape. Perhaps there was a darkness in him too. There was a shopping list in there too, which she had typed up so that he could go and get something to eat. She had said that she was coming in a bit later as she had to check up on the horses at the stables. She had never come home. He had ripped it into three pieces, because he thought it not worthy of her. He had saved a piece, the only bit where her actual handwriting was shown and he pulled it out now and marvelled that he had never actually seen her own scruffy hand until after her death. His hand carefully placed the relic back into his wallet along with the library card, the pocket diary and the thirty silver coins that he had yet to summon the courage to either ignore or destroy them. The cuckoo clock on the wall opened its tiny wooden doors and the cheerful little bird popped out announcing that it was half past seven. It was always late and Harper automatically checked the time on his own analogue watch, without realising that it had already stopped working on the twenty-second of March. The day his world stood still. Harper reckoned it was the blast that had destroyed the mainspring. But he had taken it along to the fixing shop anyway and had said that it had fallen off the table onto the floor. No one noticed the lie, nor the pricking of tears that covered up the real truth. He had wanted to tell them the truth, to shrug off the awful weight of his conscience, but there was a lady behind him. They could not fix it and told him that it was a lost cause and also asked him if he was sure if it had fallen onto the table as surely a greater force had broken it. He answered curtly that he had an extremely hard floor and the case was left as that, as no one dared cross the tall man with dried blood on his shirt. It was getting light and he knew that he should have left the house by this time. It was a dangerous time to be out on the streets and alleyways at dawn. The bright light, fierce and orange, made it hard to see the camouflaged barrels of guns and the dark green uniforms of British riflemen. He checked his pockets for any spare ammunition, bandages and anything else that might come in useful if a vengeful enemy was on the prowl. Emptied out onto the table, the pockets produced a piece of string, a couple of Irish punts, a small shiny paperclip, a chewed pencil and a piece of paper which a sketchy map had been scrawled on. He screwed the map up and threw it away. The other objects, he decided, were not of any use so he left them on the dresser next to the blank postcard. Harper took the thin rectangular card in his hand. The Irishman took one look at it and stashed it irritably into his pocket, so that he would not have to go through the torture of seeing it every morning. He would burn it later. A bunch of keys, all shapes and sizes, hung by the bedroom door. He plucked them from their resting-place, wanting to keep his hands and mind busy so as not to dwell on the bitterness inside of him. There was the front door key, the back door key, and the key to the small battered car of his that was collecting dust in the garage. There was also a group of strange shaped keys, their handle diamond shaped instead of the regular circular ones. They called up a distant memory in him, the faded pictures in his mind kept in rhythm with the metallic jangle of their knocking together. He still could not think what they were for, and so not wanting to annoy himself any longer he freed them from the main group and put those in his pocket too. Subconsciously he knew that he was taking them with him because they were connected with Allie's mortise lock, which she had put absolute faith in. It did not matter that their house had been burgled three times in a row, she still insisted that the rusty metal clump remain on the door. They had had their first argument over that lock and Allie had thrown a book at him, cutting his cheek and leaving a small scar. Harper had been the stock of jokes from the soldiers for a few weeks after that. He did not care. He was lucky. He had Allie. They were in it together. The mirror, from which he still had not moved, glittered in the light. It made his uniform look grey. His eyes were grey. His heart was grey. A shadow of his former personality. He was glad Aileen could not of seen him now. She wouldn't have even recognised him. ****** Blood pounded in his head, his breath rasped in his chest. The rifle on his back thumped on his spine, the metal foresight dug into his skin. It slipped into the hinge of his elbow with the rhythm of his feet, which slipped on the slushy cat-ice. Harper and Liam Kelly dived into the relative shelter of a brick corner. Bullets ricocheted, taking pieces of brick and dust off the wall. Hot air seared past their pulsing cheeks, tiny metal balls, so destructive, slapped into the pavement, inches away from their feet. The sergeant and the private loaded quickly, knowing every second the procedure took, minutes were stole from their lives. Instinct took over, the movements refined by practice and desperation. There was no time to think about what happened next; to the best fighters, it came as a second nature. Harper touched the familiar small island of unpolished metal, something to fight against the curse of bad luck. Kelly saw his friend feel the small dip in the rifle's butt, and he knew that the sergeant's keen mind was already at work. He had bruised his shoulder and had twisted his ankle on the sloppy slush, but that was all. He could see the pink in the snow, the pigment caused by the fresh blood of his comrade's. Worst of all was the sound of their screams, a sound that he had heard many times before, but now it seemed to have been magnified a hundredfold. Now Harper turned and worked his way around the wall again, giving space to the flickering bullets, Kelly supposed so as not to drive them nearer to the young fresh teenagers, who hid round the opposite corner. He stopped and looked at Kelly and then called out to him. ‘Stay there Liam. Don't move.' Then without any sign of fear, he walked towards the men in the green uniforms of British Riflemen. Kelly could see his lips moving, but he could not hear the words over the sharp, snapping retort of the rifles. Perhaps he was praying, or maybe not at all. He did not stop until he was right up to them and only then did they seem to register his tall looming presence. Liam saw him reach for a screaming horse's bridle and grip them hard. With a firm hand, ignoring the slapping bullets by his face, he pulled the bay mare off her hind legs. Then he slapped her hard on the rump and sent her away. Thus cheated of their game, the Rifleman turned their attention to the tall Irishman. The picture of what followed stayed with every man and women on the street till the day they died. And never would they know for sure what had happened. The platoon of green-jackets wheeled to their left, sending beautiful, crystal shards of snow and slush up into the air. For a moment they appeared not to know what to make of the man who stood undaunted before them. What was certain was that Harper could have walked away. Two or three steps to the side could have denied the British the glory of another Irish death. The Riflemen, so Kelly believed, would simply have let him be gone, where others had led. Instead, Harper stepped towards them. The moment he moved, as he must have foreseen, the Rifles snapped into action. And even now, Harper could have stepped away. He knew where the guns would fire, what was happening inside the mechanics of them and why, before it even knew itself. Yet on this day, he neither dodged nor ducked nor even flinched, and, once more, walked forward. Harper could hear Aileens voice calling out his name. ‘I'm here.' He whispered ‘What is it?' The group of green jackets raised the barrels, the light reflecting off the metal onto the snow. They licked their lips and they lined up the foresight onto the lone solitary target. At this distance they could not miss. The settling snow was still too thick for Kelly to be sure, but he thought he saw Harper open his hands a touch and, in a movement so flowing that he may of imagined it, showed the British his open palms. It was as though the Irishman was offering something and perhaps it was what he had always wanted to offer the gift of friendship and peace. But although he would never from this day forth mention the thought to anyone, Kelly had a vivid impression that it was otherwise and that Harper, without fear or despair, was somehow offering himself. ‘I'm here. What is it?' And then he knew. ******* They buried Patrick Harper by Aileen. The intention was to keep the funeral small and for family only, but on the day about one hundred people came, touched by the actions of the tall, handsome soldier in the white-sugared street. There was room for only a few in the small but ornate Catholic Church, so they threw open the doors and people watched from outside where cherry blossom danced and cartwheeled in the small breeze. He was found, lying there, a tiny smile on his face, motionless on the snowy carpet. It eyes were loosely shut as if he were sleeping peacefully. They typed this up on the army records of births and deaths. But there was one thing which they had not mentioned. Tucked away, from all sight were two claddagh rings. One gold and one silver. The Irish icon of friendship, love and loyalty. They were wrapped in a torn piece of paper, one side a list of food items and on the other side, scrawled blue ink pen which was in the handwriting of Aileen Harper. On the paper, all she'd written, inscribed in the ancient language of the Irish Celts were the small italic letters which made up four short words. In case you forget.