Mary Lourdes Bonnici MBA

  The Twelve Days of Christmas — History, Meaning and Tradition Day 64 of the Christmas Countdown From Christmas Day to Twelfth Night: faith, festivity, folklore, music and the changing calendar Mary Lourdes Bonnici MBA | Learning • Knowledge • Growth Introduction For many people Christmas seems to finish when the presents are opened on 25 December. Historically, however, Christmas Day marked the beginning of an extended season. The Twelve Days of Christmas connect worship, hospitality, visiting, music, shared food, seasonal games and the anticipation of Epiphany. They also survive in the remarkably memorable cumulative song in which a mysterious true love offers an ever-growing collection of gifts. Understanding this tradition therefore requires two different stories: the calendar of celebration and the history of the song. They overlap, but they are not identical. This article explores why the twelve days are usually counted from 25 December to 5 January, how Twelfth Night and ...

  The Importance of Rest: Why Doing Less Can Sometimes Help Us Do Better The science of recovery and sustainable achievement Mary Lourdes Bonnici MBA | Learning • Knowledge • Growth Introduction Rest is not a reward reserved for people who have finished everything. It is part of living and learning sustainably. Constant activity can conceal fatigue, mistakes and declining attention. Yet rest does not always mean doing nothing: sleep, quiet, enjoyable movement, time with loved ones and pauses between demanding tasks can serve different purposes. This article examines what rest means, what evidence supports, where uncertainty remains and how to make practical changes without assuming everyone has equal freedom over their time. 1. Learning Objectives Understand different forms of rest; distinguish sleep from breaks; evaluate research on attention and recovery; recognise warning signs; plan a realistic routine; and critically apply the concepts to an illustrative case. This article pro...