India, March 8 -- Doubting Thomases abound these days in our society. Positive news is scarcely palatable to such worthies. Negativity is assimilated with ease by them. The original Thomas from the Gospel was actually a good soul and a committed follower of Jesus Christ. Our modern-age doubters are of the more hardened variety. They will rarely believe in the goodness of mankind. Each bit of joyful news will be received with a modicum of suspicion or doubt. They resort to baseless allegations like "He must have bribed the referee" or "His uncle must have called up the owner of the firm", as the case may be. Such lifelong doubting Toms must lead quite a troubled life, though. To not be able to believe in anything that augurs well must be a terrible existence. Professional detectives and those responsible for the security of critically sensitive installations might be forgiven for developing such tendencies along the way. The very mien of their careers involves an element of suspicion at large. But what of others? Why should the shopkeeper, the chartered accountant, the schoolteacher or the next-door neighbour live a perennially doubting existence? Some sports analysts are amongst such folks rather often. They cannot digest upheaval, unexpected performances or come-from-behind miracles. Their cynicism usually gets the better of them and they doubt all instances on the field that do not go according to plan. But when life itself can be utterly unpredictable, then sports can be even more so. Agreed that a number 11 cannot score a series of double centuries out of the blue, unless the opposition is the Poptawadi XI- Sunil Gavaskar's favourite mocking target! To believe in the credibility of the unexpected is to have faith in humanity, which is largely a healthy trait to possess. Parents of impressionable teens are quite often at fault in instilling large doses of disbelief in the goodness of mankind. Nincompoops who masquerade as world leaders nowadays, tend to fortify such negativity in society at large, even more. Harbingers of faith, positivity, inspiration and goodness are quite a rarity in such a scenario. But parents must be the first ones to admit that they could do with a lot of improvement in the overall narrative that they present before their progeny. Self-doubt is, of course, a worse affliction. To allow the forces of negativity, to gnaw at one's insides, is a truly impossible way to live. Overthinking about one's own infirmities and lack of success in comparison to general expectations is a major modern ailment. The youth are falling prey to the clouds of doubt that seem to envelop many situations these days. Happenings around them tend to instil such nervousness and doubt in young ones. The nature of people around them, the content or absence of conversations and the overall vibrations that they perceive, truly impact the mindsets of millennials and members of Gen Z. To allay their fears, worries and doubts is a task that mature individuals should take up in campaign mode. Who will dole out a 'shabash' or two to earnest but uncertain youngsters, if we won't? Who will pa them on the back and back them to the hilt, if parents don't? By endlessly comparing their children to others and by propounding a criticism filled discourse all the time, parents are engendering a quicksand of self doubt. Kids who are appearing for board exams or competitions are not worried about the exam, but about parental pressure. The clouds of doubt can be dispelled only by a surge of positive thinking in society. Social media channels that continually spew venom and instigate fear in society, must be shown the door with alacrity. A culture of sports and fitness will also enable a healthy trend. Not only for the body, but also for the mind. Habitual lethargy can lead to much greater angst in the mind than if the individual is physically active. Doubting Thomases may never vanish from the face of the earth. But there is a need to propel forward an army of faith-generating human beings who are verily the ambassadors of happiness. Where will such an army come from? From our educational institutions perhaps. They are the only hope....