Single adults - those people 25 years and older who are not married, can thrive, and enjoy life to its fullest. However, far too many of them experience great pressure from family, friends, and society, to get married and have children. Many of them, even when having no plans to marry, are pressured to have children because they are told it is the best thing to do.

There is no requirement in law, religion, or scripture, for someone to get married to be a productive, healthy, thriving human being. Each individual is created as a complete human being which the potential to grow and flourish. Unfortunately, many are taught that they are not complete or a whole person unless they get married. Hence, some are desperate to find a partner. Some are lonely because they were not encouraged to think of themselves as a self-actualized person.

The following are seven tips for single adults to thrive:

Have a positive self-concept: Psychologist, Dr. Tim Clinton states, "This need is a true and deep appreciation for oneself, a genuine and joyful self-acceptance, an authentic self-esteem, which results in an interior sense of celebration: It's good to be me ... I am very happy to be me!" To thrive, one must believe in oneself. One must fully accept oneself and do not depend on others to be validated. In addition, knowing that we are created in the image of God and are made complete, unique, special and with a purpose, is an important principle in developing a positive self-concept.

Accept that you have the power to select and the freedom not to select: Too many single adults, especially females, anxiously sit waiting, hoping to be selected by a prince charming. After a while of not being selected as a life partner, it leads to despair. They forget that each of us, including females, has the power and freedom select to or not to be selected. Dr. Laura Schlessinger wrote in her book "Ten Stupid Things Women do to Mess Their Lives" these profound words, "Far too many behave like beggars than choosers in the dating game. For them, dating is a process of hoping to be selected rather than an opportunity to select."

Don't assume being single is a handicap: "Many singles are walking around like their 'singlendom' is a badge of shame," states Dr. Clinton. I encourage single adults to wear their singleness as a badge of honor. Dr. Jenny Taitz, clinical psychologist, and author of "How to Be Single and Happy" looks at being single as your chance to figure out your own personal mission statement. She says this is the critical time to figure out who you are and what you stand for.

Get out of your parent's home: If you are 25 years old or older and your parents are still asking you, "Where have you been?" "Why are you coming home so late?" "Why do you dress that way?" "Why were you not at church last week? "When are you going to get married?" Then it might be best to live on your own. They might be making it difficult for you to thrive as a single adult. They are still thinking of you as a dependent, immature person, who cannot think or your own. They might be overly protective and do not understand boundaries. Far too many parents are actually preventing their adult children from thriving because they want to keep them "under their wings." On the other hand, far too many single adults enjoy living off their parents. They are selfishly using their resources. Don't procrastinate on following your dreams and living an abundant life: Procrastination is a killer of the drive to thrive. Sitting and waiting and hoping for something to come to you is a big mistake. Holding off on important things to do or personal development will stifle you. Take that trip you've been thinking about, and don't be afraid to go out by yourself to enjoy a movie or dinner at a fancy restaurant. Serve enthusiastically in ways God leads you. Make plans and set goals. Consider ways God is leading you to grow, and strive to become the person he is molding you to be. Get up and move. Ecclesiastes 11:4 New International Version states: "Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap."

Remember you are non-negotiable: You make your own decisions. You have the power to evaluate and critique things and situations to come to your own conclusions. Be assertive. Be pro-active. Be confident. A thriving single adult knows the things in his or her life that are not negotiable. It could be about integrity, respect, and honor. A thriving single adult does not vacillate on making important decisions and does not allow others to divert his thoughts or direction.

Remember you are a child of God: He made us full and complete. There is no dating period nor marriage certificate required for heaven. There is no requirement to have children to enter heaven. There is no driver's license or college degree needed to enter heaven.

   
 • Barrington Brennen is a marriage and family therapist. Send your questions or comments to question@soencouragment.org, telephone 327-1980 or visit www.soencouragement.org.

Vendors with retail spaces at the redeveloped cruise port have been handed their keys and are outfitting their spaces in preparation for the port's grand opening on May 26, Chief Executive Officer of Nassau Cruise Port Limited (NCP) Mike Maura told Guardian Business, adding that the spaces are 100 percent leased.

Maura said with the marine work complete and the land-side development coming to a close, the commercial spaces were handed over. He said it is expected the retail spaces will be fully open for the port's grand opening.

"The tenants are all outfitting their spaces," said Maura.

"Some are faster than others, but the expectation is at the time that we have our grand opening on May 26th, everybody's open and serving our guests."

Maura, who is currently at the Seatrade Cruise Global conference, said Royal Caribbean International voiced strong support for the redeveloped port during a panel discussion at the event.

"They applauded the progress that has been made to improve the destination of Nassau," he said.

According to Maura, NCP's bookings remain strong, with confirmed bookings for 2023 at about 4.2 million passengers, and confirmed bookings for 2024 exceeding 4.5 million passengers.

"So that tells you there's high demand for Nassau as a

destination," said Maura.

He explained that the port's grand opening will include a friends and family day on May 35th, when NCP will honor construction workers, Bahamas Customs, Bahamas Immigration and Port Department representatives who have helped to get the project to where it is.

"We're excited to finally get the opening behind us. We still have some phase two plans that will come on stream in 2024, but the material elements of the project, our amphitheater, our Junkanoo museum, the marketplace, which is the legacy Ministry of Tourism tenants - they have the authentic Bahamian products - and then the port square, those areas will all be operational. So we're excited."

A man, whom a judge said showed a "patent lack of remorse" for having a sexual relationship with an underage girl, was on Wednesday jailed for 15 years.

Walter Gray, 29, was convicted of two counts of unlawful sexual intercourse following a trial before Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson.

Gray was a family friend of the victim and lived in the same neighborhood.

According to the virtual complainant, Gray would come and check on her while her mother and uncle were at work.

When she was 13, the complainant said, she asked him to perform oral sex on him. Gray obliged and told her not to tell anyone, she said.

During his testimony, Gray denied willingly having sex with the girl. He claimed he fell asleep on the sofa at her home and woke up to find the child performing oral sex on him.

The judge said Gray should have allowed the victim to "complete her childhood".

Grant-Thompson said, "Even if this child, who you walked daily to the shop, came onto you, you should have instructed her to put her clothes back on, not willingly have sexual intercourse with her or put your penis in her mouth."

She said that Gray was entitled to the most condign punishment given his breach of trust.

The prosecutor, Erica Duncombe-Ingraham, had sought a sentence in the range of 10 to 15 years.

On the other hand, defense lawyer Moses Bain, asked for a two-year prison sentence followed by five years of probation, with a breach of probation sending Gray to prison for five years.

Bain also suggested an order that Gray perform 150 hours of community service.

The COVID-19 pandemic has left an indelible mark on our lives and on our societies. It has also reinforced the power and potential of digital technologies to advance public health.

Indeed, countries that leveraged digital innovations were better off.

Places with centralized disease reporting could track the spread of COVID and warn municipalities when it was time to adjust public health measures or reinforce hospital capacity while countries with electronic medical records and digital certificates had an easier time rolling out COVID vaccines and tailoring outreach efforts to vulnerable and at-risk populations.

Digital technologies also had an enormous impact for our patients - those who had access to digital tools benefited, while those who didn't suffered a greater impact from disruption in health services.

In places where telemedicine was available, patients could stay in touch with their doctors, even amid lockdowns, allowing them to continue receiving necessary care and medical treatments. Simple messaging and video apps helped patients get the guidance and prescription they needed from the safety and comfort of home.

Shouldn't this be our new normal?

Other sectors have long benefited from digital technologies.

Mobile cash transfers and digital transactions have brought millions of underserved people into the financial system.

Virtual schooling has expanded access to education - including for individuals with learning differences - and enabled more people to earn degrees on their own time.

Digital solutions have helped public transit systems operate more efficiently and improve the rider experience with real-time tracking.

It's time for the health sector to embrace digital technologies. By modernizing how we provide care, we can make our health workers' jobs easier, improve the patient experience and strengthen our health systems.

To help ministries of health look to the future, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has developed Guiding Principles for the Digital Transformation of the Health Sector. This document lays out clear priorities and considerations to ensure health system improvements are equitable and sustainable.

First, it's important that everyone can access the internet with sufficient bandwidth for teleconsultations and other online services.

As more and more people rely on digital technologies to gather information and to engage with health systems - whether it's making appointments or conducting virtual consultations - universal connectivity has become an important determinant of health.

Universal connectivity is key to achieving our goal of health for all. Yet across the Americas, 30 percent of people still lack access to the internet. And within countries, stark disparities in internet connectivity persist across urban and rural divides. Without access to the internet, populations cannot benefit from digital advancements, and the most vulnerable will fall further behind.

That's why we must also promote digital inclusion.

While many people have grown accustomed to tools like computers and phones, access and familiarity with these technologies vary by age, income, and region. When embracing digital tools, countries must consider the needs of all people to avoid widening gaps in care.

Countries should pay special attention to ensuring that digital solutions are adapted to the social, cultural, environmental, and economic conditions where they will be applied.

Equally important is ensuring that our health workers, everywhere, are adequately trained in these technologies.

Data is the bedrock of good public health. It reveals trends, gaps and opportunities to target interventions. So as countries bolster patient registration systems, disease tracing, and surveillance, they must ensure that data can be broken down by age, gender, ethnicity and regions, so vulnerable populations aren't left behind.

Real-time data made available through robust health information systems can improve how health systems are managed since it can reveal problems and pinpoint where additional resources may be needed.

That's why it's important that public health data be integrated and have open access across different platforms, so local and national health systems can access the information they need - at the right time and in the right format - to make decisions.

To encourage greater public health collaboration, it's critical that public health data is made available to the stakeholders who are responsible for priorities, funding, and programmatic actions.

Countries have no option but to bring our health systems into the digital age, but that will require sustained investments, political commitment, and a willingness to work with other sectors.

Technologies have shaped the world around us. Now, we must harness their power to transform our health systems to build a safer, healthier and more resilient future.

• Dr. Carissa Etienne is the director of the Pan American Health Organization.

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