When Sourabh Jain first became a father to his daughter, he struggled with bonding with her in the beginning. That’s when he realized that games and books are interactive and provide an opportunity to spend hours with her. Thus he began the hunt for games and toys that not only helped him bond with his daughter but also contributed to her cognitive (认知的) development.

During this search, he realized that not only are these toys and games hard to find, but they can also burn a hole in one’s pocket. Another realization was that there is always some amount of plastic in the toys and it is harmful to the environment and the little ones.

While he expected to give his daughter the world, he also wanted to leave behind a cleaner, greener, and more sustainable world for her. Today, he owns The EleFant—a toy rental company, or in Sourabh’s words, “a labor of love”.

Currently, the company has a customer base of more than 250 subscribers with over 2,000 downloads of the application per day. They also have collaborations with 70 toy companies where they source their toys.

Among these 250 subscribers is Rahul Bhauwala who rents toys for his 6-year-old son. “I am a working professional and I hardly get any time to go out and spend hours looking for and buying toys. I could use that precious time to play with my child instead. This is why I love using The EleFant app. They have a wide range of toys which are categorized by age group. The products are very well-packaged and my son loved opening them as it looked like a present to him,” he says.

As for the future, Sourabh says, “Our intention was not to make it an expensive and exclusive service (专属服务). Instead, we aimed to provide an opportunity for everyone to give their children everything in a sustainable manner. The value is kept in this way, emphasizing inclusivity and accessibility for all.”

The idiom “shoot for the stars” has just taken on a literal meaning for cancer survivor Hayley Arceneaux. On February 22, 2021, the Memphis, Tennessee, native was selected to be one of four crew members of the Space X Inspiration—the world’s first civilian astronaut mission. The 29-year-old will make further history as the youngest American—and the first with a prosthetic limb(假肢)—to travel to space.

“Until this mission, I could have never been an astronaut,” Hayley said. “This mission is opening space travel to people who are not physically perfect.”

Hayley’s space dream began two decades ago, following a visit to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, during a family vacation. “I got to see where the astronauts trained and of course wanted to be an astronaut after that—who doesn’t?” She recalls. However, the young girl’s dream was destroyed a year later when she was diagnosed with bone cancer—in her femur(股骨).

Fortunately, the often fatal disease had been caught early and the experts were able to limit its spread through chemotherapy(化疗) and by replacing the diseased bones with metal rods in her left leg. Given NASA’s strict medical requirements, Hayley knew that her dream of becoming an astronaut would probably never be realized. However, the young girl had already set her mind on a different, and equally challenging mission—working with young cancer patients at the hospital where she had been cured.

As it turned out, Hayley’s dream of going to space was far from over. On January 5th, 2021, she got a very surprise call from Jared Isaacman, CEO, asking her if she would like to go to space. “Immediately I said, ‘Yes, yes, absolutely!’” Arceneaux told AFP.

“Where’s Papa going with the ax?” said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table for breakfast.

“Out to the hog house,” replied Mrs. Arable. “Some pigs were born last night.” “I don’t see why he needs an ax,” continued Fern, who was only eight.

“Well,” said her mother, “one of the pigs is a runt. It’s very small and weak, and it will never amount to anything. So your father has decided to do away with it.” “Do away with it?” shrieked Fern. “You mean kill it? Just because it’s smaller than the others?” Mrs. Arable put a pitcher of cream on the table. “Don’t yell, Fern!” she said. “Your father is right. The pig would probably die anyway.” Fern pushed a chair out of the way and ran outdoors. The grass was wet and the earth smelled of spring time. Fern’s sneakers were sopping by the time she caught up with her father.

“Please don’t kill it!” she sobbed. “It’s unfair.”

Mr. Arable stopped walking. “Fern,” he said gently, “you will have to learn to control yourself.” “Control myself?” yelled Fern. “This is a matter of life and death, and you talk about controlling myself.” Tears ran down her cheeks and she took hold of the ax and tried to pull it out of her father’s hand.

“Fern,” said Mr. Arable, “I know more about raising a litter of pigs than you do. A weakling makes trouble. Now run along!” “But it’s unfair,” cried Fern. “The pig couldn’t help being born small, could it? If I had been very small at birth, would you have killed me?” Mr. Arable smiled. “Certainly not,” he said, looking down at his daughter with love. “But this is different. A little girl is one thing, a little runty pig is another.” “I see no difference,” replied Fern, still hanging on to the ax. “This is the most terrible case of injustice I ever heard of.” A queer look came over John Arable’s face. He seemed almost ready to cry himself.

“All right,” he said.” You go back to the house and I will bring the runt when I come in. I’ll let you start it on a bottle, like a baby. Then you’ll see what trouble a pig can be.” When Mr. Arable returned to the house half an hour later, he carried a carton under his arm. Fern was upstairs changing her sneakers. The kitchen table was set for breakfast, and the room smelled of coffee, bacon, damp plaster, and wood smoke from the stove.

“Put it on her chair!” said Mrs. Arable. Mr. Arable set the carton down at Fern’s place. Then he walked to the sink and washed his hands and dried them on the roller towel.

Fern came slowly down the stairs. Her eyes were red from crying.

As she approached her chair, the carton wobbled, and there was a scratching noise. Fern looked at her father. Then she lifted the lid of the carton. There, inside, looking up at her, was the newborn pig. It was a white one. The morning light shone through its ears, turning them pink.

“He’s yours,” said Mr. Arable. “Saved from an untimely death.

“And may the good Lord forgive me for this foolishness.” Fern couldn’t take her eyes off the tiny pig. “Oh,” she whispered. “Oh, look at him! He’s absolutely perfect.” She closed the carton carefully. First she kissed her father, then she kissed her mother. Then she opened the lid again, lifted the pig out, and held it against her cheek.