Features

By Sonia Salfity, 
Desperate Dieter

Procrastination is a choice. When we delay making smarter choices we hold ourselves

hostage instead of living in the freedom that comes from immediate action.

We have the power to resist instead of negotiating with ourselves and making excuses. 

Eventually, we discover that we turn into prisoners as we believe the lies we tell ourselves and impede our progress.

Tackling challenges The right place to begin tackling our challenges is to face them head on.

We can start by simply changing the language we use. For example, instead of telling ourselves we’ll do something later, we can do it right then and there.

Whether it’s folding the laundry or cleaning out the pantry or doing those squats we meant to start a year ago! Let’s simplify our lives by taking ‘I’ll do it later’ out of our vocabulary.

If you don’t do some things immediately you’ll talk yourself out of it.

Trust me, I know! Been there, done that!

‘When we delay making smarter choices we hold ourselves hostage instead of living in the freedom that comes from immediate action’

When procrastination is our norm, tomorrow never comes.

That’s a truth you can take to the bank! Procrastination never pays.

It always steals our time and our peace of mind. We all know how overwhelming it feels when we delay time-sensitive matters.

It could be an action or having a hard conversation with someone.

The longer you delay the more overwhelming it becomes.

The snowball effect Imagine a tiny snowball that rolls down a hill and gets larger and larger destroying everything in its path.

This “snowball effect” is what happens when we keep putting off taking care of our health, for example.

Making smarter choices today will set us up for a healthier future for many years to come.

The opposite is also true.

Failing to take immediate action in the present will cost us a very high price in the future.

We either pay a little now, or we pay exponentially more down the road.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t like to gamble with my health. 

There is no amount of money that will help one get out of that debt because sickness and disease don’t discriminate between rich or poor, young or old, female or male.

Everyone pays a price for neglecting their well being.

I will be the first to confess that I neglected my health for many years when I was busy taking care of our children and now I’m paying the price.

Investing in ourselves Instead of putting on the oxygen mask on myself I depleted my reserves and ran on an empty tank.

Motherhood can do that and so can jobs and other responsibilities.

How do we expect to get better when we don’t take time to invest in our own lives?

‘Making smarter choices today will set us up for a healthier future’

That’s the best gift we can give ourselves and everyone around us as we’re better able to care for them when we care for ourselves first. 

It’s the difference between arriving with a full tank instead of a depleted one that runs on fumes.

If our cup is empty how can we possibly expect to pour anything out to our loved ones?

Friends, join me as we fight this monster they call procrastination. Let’s grab it by the bull horns and show it who the boss really is!

Let’s be the ones that call the shots and start taking control of the things we actually do have control over.

The funny thing is once we tackle this giant we discover that he wasn’t so big after all. 

He eventually shrinks to the size of a mouse when we dare set our minds to soldier onward and forward!

Reprinted with permission from Family Flavours magazine

GENEVA — A Swiss foundation must do more to trace the provenance of works in a vast art collection acquired in questionable circumstances during World War II, a team of experts said on Friday.

There has long been suspicion around the Nazi-era origins of one of Europe’s most prestigious private art collections, acquired by arms dealer Emil Buhrle, who made his fortune during the war.

The German-born industrialist became a naturalised Swiss citizen in 1937. By the time he died in 1956, he had amassed around 600 artworks, including masterpieces by Cezanne, Degas, Manet, Monet, Renoir, Rembrandt, Picasso and Van Gogh.

Some had previously been looted from their Jewish owners, or sold cheaply and in haste as their owners fled the Nazis.

The Buhrle Foundation, which owns the collection, has been working to clarify the provenance of the works for years.

Its efforts came into particular focus when Kunsthaus Zurich, one of Switzerland’s most prestigious art museums, agreed to permanently house the collection. Until then, it had been displayed at a private museum on the outskirts of Zurich.

The Kunsthaus has faced especially keen scrutiny since it opened a new building to house a large part of the collection in 2021.

‘Insufficient’

A team of experts mandated by the Zurich authorities and the museum to evaluate the foundation’s research on provenance on Friday concluded that it had been “insufficient”

“Provenance research must be continued,” said the team, led by renowned Swiss historian Raphael Gross, president of the German Historical Museum Foundation.

The Buhrle Foundation has confirmed that 13 paintings bought by the German-born industrialist.

Following a series of court cases after World War II ended, in the late 1940s Buhrle returned all 13 pieces to their rightful owners then repurchased nine of them, the foundation said.

But the foundation says its research over two decades concluded there were no signs of “problematic provenance” for any of the 203 works in the current collection.

Friday’s expert review examined the foundation’s sources, methodology, accuracy, standards and historical contextualisation.

Voicing particular concern that the foundation had categorised 90 works as unproblematic despite lacking full provenance research, the experts insisted they should all be re-examined.

The research should “concentrate on clarifying the previous J ownership and persecution-related confiscation of the works”, they added.

“Without the Nazi’s persecution, the Buhrle Collection would never have reached the level it did,” Gross reporters at a new conference, the Swiss news agency Keystone-ATS reported.

‘Superficial’

The experts conducted an in-depth examination of the provenance investigation conducted on five emblematic works. They research there, they said, was so “superficial that decisive indicators [were] overlooked”.

One of the works, “Madame Cezanne with a Fan” by Paul Cezanne, had belonged to the US writer, poet and art collector Gertrude Stein, who was living in Nazi-occupied France.

The experts urged the Kunsthaus to set up an interdisciplinary panel to create a scheme for examining all art in its own collection and on long-term loan that could potentially be linked to Nazi-related confiscations.

The report also suggested the museum conduct a further debate, if possible a public one, about the Buhrle collection and the museum’s association with his name.

KOH TAO, Thailand — Record-high sea temperatures are bleaching coral reefs worldwide and putting a new focus on attempts to restore these key marine ecosystems.

Here is an overview of how coral restoration is being done around the world:

Restoration begins with obtaining coral, sometimes by breaking it off from a healthy reef. These pieces can be broken into smaller bits in a process called microfragmentation.

Each piece can become a new coral.

Another option involves collecting “fragments of opportunity” — coral pieces broken off by natural causes such as storms.

Conservationists can also propagate from egg bundles collected during reef spawning, though this is perhaps the most difficult approach.

Spawning is brief, generally happening just once a year, and is affected by many factors, including the lunar phase and water temperature.

Coral microfragments generally go into a “nursery” until they grow sturdy enough to be transplanted to an existing reef or an artificial structure.

Fragments of opportunity are treated similarly. If big enough, they can be transplanted directly to natural or artificial reefs.

Bundles of coral eggs and sperm collected during spawning will develop into larvae that can then be settled onto reefs or, more commonly, grown on artificial foundations before being transplanted to their final homes.

Other techniques are used to bolster coral restoration, including mineral accretion technology.

This involves sending a low-voltage electrical current through seawater to encourage minerals to dissolve and crystallise on artificial reef structures, speeding up coral growth.

The technique has had mixed results, with some studies reporting better growth and more resilient corals, but others finding no significant benefits.

Other interventions include substrate stabilisation, which shores up reef foundations, and algae removal.

Restoration projects heavily favour quick-growing branching corals.

The delicate branches of these corals are more susceptible to becoming fragments of opportunity, and are also easier to microfragment than massive or encrusting corals.

Their fast-growing nature gives restoration projects quicker results, though focusing on only one type of coral can reduce ecosystem diversity.

Does it work?

Coral restoration projects report survival rates of around 60-70 per cent, according to a study published in 2020.

But around half the projects in the study failed to properly measure whether they achieved the goals stated at the outset, including reef function.

Monitoring was also often brief, at a median of just one year, far less than the time needed for a reef to form, according to the authors.

Still, the projects can produce real benefits.

A 2024 study of artificial reefs in Indonesia found that within four years the structures had a coral carbonate budget — a measure of reef wellbeing — that was nearly equal to nearby healthy natural reef.

What are other considerations?

Some experts worry that coral restoration is too often presented as panacea for reviving reefs, and point out that transplants will only survive if the surrounding conditions are right.

That means first addressing climate change, which causes the warm temperatures that lead to coral bleaching.

“Well-designed and managed restoration projects have an important role to play, but there is only so much they can do if radical action on the climate is not taken almost immediately,” warned Lisa Bostrom-Einarsson, the marine ecologist who led the 2020 study.

And other stressors, from blast fishing to sedimentation, must also be tackled for reefs to have a future.

Reef restoration also rarely offers a one-for-one replacement of destroyed ecosystems.

The Indonesia reefs examined in the 2024 study are still largely made up of transplanted corals, with little sign yet that “natural recruits” are taking root and building reef diversity.

Building reefs through microfragmentation also limits genetic diversity and can put reefs at risk if disease takes hold.

Still, well-done restoration offers considerable benefits, including coastal protection and boosting marine life.

That also helps local communities dependent on fishing or tourism.

“Restoration will not save corals at the current rate we’re losing them,” said Gavin Miller, a marine scientist with the Global Reef organisation in Thailand.

“It’s more about these localised impacts and the scale and the awareness that you can raise from there.”

SAN FRANCISCO — Some of the world’s major music labels are suing music generation services Suno and Udio, accusing the startups of violating the copyrights of top artists to train their generative AI engines without permission.

Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Records, Capitol Records and others — who filed the copyright infringement suits on Monday in federal courts in Boston and New York — are seeking damages of up to $150,000 per song or shares of the companies’ profits.

“Unlicensed services like Suno and Udio that claim it’s ‘fair’ to copy an artist’s life’s work and exploit it for their own profit without consent or pay set back the promise of genuinely innovative AI for us all,” Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) chief executive Mitch Glazier said in a statement.

Examples cited in the lawsuits included prompts using Suno’s service to churn out songs mimicking copyrighted works of Chuck Berry, James Brown, Michael Buble, ABBA, and others.

Suno and Udio did not respond to requests for comment.

Breaching ownership rights of people’s artistic creations to train generative AI models has been a flashpoint as the technology races to become more capable and, ultimately, more profitable.

The two lawsuits, one against each company, center on generative AI services that allow people to make songs using basic prompts.

Suno and Udio have been evasive about how they train their AI models, saying that is a guarded secret, according to the complaints.

Music publishers are collaborating with “responsible developers” to build AI tools that respect the works of artists, according to the head of the RIAA, which announced the lawsuits.

“Real music comes from real life and real people,” Black Music Action Coalition Chief Executive Willie “Prophet” Stiggers said in the release.

“It is vital that artists and songwriters are in charge of their own work, story, and message.”

In April, hundreds of artists and songwriters including Billie Eilish, Smokey Robinson and the estate of Frank Sinatra signed an open letter urging protections against what they called an “assault on human creativity” posed by artificial intelligence.

“We must protect against the predatory use of AI to steal professional artists’ voices and likenesses, violate creators’ rights, and destroy the music ecosystem,” read the letter, submitted by the non-profit Artist Rights Alliance.

PARIS — Invaders in the Petit Palais: Some 60 of the world’s most renowned street artists have been invited into the rarefied confines of a Paris institution, even if some admit it raises questions about whether they belong.

The Beaux-Arts palace on the banks of the Seine houses an illustrious selection of 19th-century painting and sculpture.

But the “We Are Here” exhibition sees the street artists infiltrate it with graffiti, murals and graphics dotted among the portraits — even adding cartoon wings to statues.

Some merge almost too well — a freshly made portrait by Tunisian artist DaBro looks perfectly at home in a cluster of solemn 19th-century street scenes until you realise it features break-dancers.

Others are more jarring, such as the pixelated alien by the French artist Invader sitting above a Monet sunset.

It is, say some of the artists, a logical step.

“Street art always has the spirit of invasion.

We always want to take over spaces that are not open to us,” said Inti, a Chilean artist who provided a huge mural.

But the exhibition has also made him question himself, he told AFP: “To enter into a closed space like this is to enter into an institution — it’s a bit counter to what we try to do outside.”

He was concerned, too, that street art has become too commercialised, undermining its rebellious spirit.

A painting by US artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, who started out in street art before moving into galleries, sold for $110 million in 2017; a shredded artwork by Britain’s guerilla street artist Banksy went for $25 million in 2021.

Hush, a street artist from the north of England, agrees that art movements die when they become too accepted by the establishment.

But its ethos still challenges the elitist atmosphere of galleries, he said.

“As a working-class guy, you don’t always feel accepted in art museums. With street art, everyone feels allowed to come in,” he told AFP.

“And you can still be disruptive, you can still have fun. The good thing with being from this scene is you don’t feel like you have to say yes. It means we’re still in control.”

‘Buried underground’ 

One of the first items to strike visitors is a giant aerosol can emerging out of the ground with cartoon wings, courtesy of London-based artist D*Face.

“It represents the fact that we’ve been buried underground and often overlooked and now we’re coming up to be seen,” he said.

The timing is right, he added, with France plunged into political turmoil this week by a far-right landslide in European elections.

“Urban art is really the first global art movement. You go anywhere in the world and there is a street art community,” said D*Face.

“It’s all about inclusivity, whereas politics right now is trying to divide us.”

Also present is Shepard Fairey, aka Obey, renowned for his “Hope” posters for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.

His “Liberty, Equality, Brotherhood” shows French figurehead Marianne with a blood-red tear running down her cheek, made in response to terrorist attacks in Paris in 2015.

“The thing I love about street art is that it brings people together, it’s got a generous spirit,” he said.

“Anything that makes people think about their common humanity rather than selfish protectionism is very valuable for this moment.”

But can street art maintain that political relevance if it becomes too accepted by the elite?

“We’ve been saying street art is dead since its inception and it has kept evolving,” said Hush.

“But it has come full circle. Street art was against the people who could say yes or no.” And now they say yes to us.

PARIS — Sports kit and Greek goddesses from Christian Dior vied for attention with living sculptures from Iris Van Herpen as haute couture went high concept at Paris Fashion Week on Monday.

Paying homage to the Olympics a month before the Games in Paris, Dior presented some glamorous if improbable sportswear, including gold-feather swimsuits and a red bathrobe decorated with mosaics of mirrors.

Dior’s show was held in the gardens of the Rodin Museum around works by African-American artist Faith Ringgold who died in April.

Its monumental embroideries on the theme of sport are being exhibited throughout the week.

Haute couture week features ultra-expensive, one-off bespoke clothing and comes straight after the conclusion of the menswear shows in Paris.

Schiaparelli kicked off the week with a “back to basics” approach that dispensed with some of the gimmicks like fake animal heads or the baby robot that drew a lot of attention in recent shows.

“I didn’t want a robot baby. I didn’t want anyone to talk about anything but the clothes. No tricks, no anatomy,” creative director Daniel Roseberry told reporters after the show.

“I kept coming back to this idea that no one knows how to say Schiaparelli, but everyone knows what it means,” he added.

Van Herpen’s sculptures

Also putting on a show on Monday was Dutch designer Iris Van Herpen, fresh from a blockbuster retrospective of her work in Paris this year.

She presented a unique artistic performance for her latest show: no catwalk, just five models stuck to huge canvases performing slow dances.

Once over, these “aerial sculptures” were carefully dismounted to the delight of the fashionistas.

And India’s Rahul Mishra gave a typically flamboyant display, with glittering outfits packed with rhinestones, sequins and glass — though without the usual wild colours.

“I was working on the idea of aura and you always think of colour, but the more I thought, the more I was lost. Aura is infinity, space, mystery — so black became the mood, like seeking in the darkness in space,” he told AFP.

Thirty couture shows are due before Thursday. Valentino and Fendi are absent this season, but Balenciaga and Thom Browne have joined the calendar.

Couture shows only happen in France, which strictly regulates what meets the definition.

The creations are mainly destined for red carpets, major jet-set events and royal weddings, attracting a crowd of the uber-elite who come to scout out party outfits, including Kylie Jenner and Doja Cat at Schiaparelli, and Jennifer Lopez and Korean muse Jisoo at Dior.

By Shama Kaur,
Kundalini Yoga Teacher & Wellness Mentor

World Asthma Day, observed each year on the first Tuesday of May, is a global effort to spread awareness about asthma, a common respiratory condition affecting people worldwide. The day aims to inform communities about asthma management, preventionand treatment.

By highlighting the importance of understanding asthma triggers and seeking proper care, World Asthma Day encourages everyone to take steps to manage their condition effectively.

Bringing harmony to your breathing

In yoga, asthma is often viewed as a disturbance in the flow of prana (life force energy) and the balance of the air element within the body.

According to yogic philosophy, the lungs are associated with the air element and are considered the primary organ for the exchange of prana.

When the flow of prana becomes disrupted or blocked, it can manifest as respiratory issues, such as asthma.

Emotionally, asthma may be related to feelings of grief, sadness, or unresolved emotional tension.

These emotions can contribute to constriction and imbalance in the chest area where the lungs are located.

Practicing yoga and breathwork techniques can help release these emotional blockages and restore harmony to the respiratory system.

In terms of chakras, asthma is often associated with imbalances in the heart chakra (Anahata) and throat chakra (Vishuddha). The heart chakra governs emotions related to love, compassion and self-acceptance.

The throat chakra is associated with communication, self-expression and creativity. Imbalances in these chakras may contribute to difficulty expressing oneself, suppressed emotions and tension in the chest and throat, which can exacerbate asthma symptoms.

Alleviating asthma 

Pranayama is breath control and it is a fundamental part of Kundalini Yoga. According to the 3HO Foundation, the average rate of breathing for most people is 16 times per minute. When the rate of breathing increases, or if it becomes rapid and irregular, the mind also becomes disturbed and erratic.

Yoga practitioners believe that your rate of breathing and your state of mind are inseparable. When you learn how to focus your breath, you have more control over your mind, which influences mental well-being by reducing stress and calming negative responses.

Beyond mental wellness, researchers have found that mindful breathing also supports physical wellness. In controlling your breath, you can help strengthen the immune system and support the body’s response to disease. This is particularly important when it comes to respiratory health.

Yoga — A Remedy to Respiratory Illness by Dr Sripriya Krishnan states: “that many people with serious respiratory ailments have found a solution in yoga.”

He goes on to state that if the lungs are permanently damaged, as in chronic bronchitis, yoga teaches how to improve the mechanical efficiency of our breathing and make the most of our lung capacity.

Pranayama at home

With heightened awareness of respiratory wellness, many people are exploring the breathing exercises of pranayama at home. Here are two simple Kundalini Yoga breathing techniques you can practice anywhere to improve your respiratory health:

Technique 1: Long deep breathing

Long deep breathing uses the full capacity of the lungs by utilising the three parts of the lungs: abdominal or lower, chest or middle, clavicular or upper. Begin the inhale with an abdominal breath. Then add the chest breath and finish with a clavicular breath. All three are done in a smooth motion.

Start the exhale by relaxing the clavicle, then slowly emptying the chest. Finally, pull in the abdomen to force out any remaining air. Breathe through the nose, and focus on gradually slowing your breath. Continue for 26 breaths, or 3- 31 minutes.

Technique 2: Alternate nostril breathing

Sit in a comfortable position either on the floor or in a chair and maintain a straight spine. Using the thumb and index fingers of the right hand, make a “U” and use the thumb to close off the right nostril and the index finger to close off the left nostril.

Close the left nostril, inhale deeply through the right nostril. At the end of the inhale, close the right nostril and exhale through the left nostril.

Now inhale through the left nostril fully and deeply, then close the left nostril and exhale through the right one.

Again, inhale through the right nostril and continue alternate nostril breathing. The breath must be complete and full on both the inhalation and exhalation cycles, keeping the shoulders without tension and the body relaxed.

Continue for 3 - 5 minutes. To conclude, inhale deeply, hold the breath a few seconds, lower the hand and exhale.

Controlled breathing through pranayama can help improve respiratory health, which is even more important during the coronavirus pandemic.

To learn more visit kundaliniresearchinstitute.org and 3ho.org.

Reprinted with permission from Family Flavours magazine

LOS ANGELES — Donald Sutherland, the enigmatic actor whose lengthy career encompassed films including “The Dirty Dozen” and “The Hunger Games,” has died, his son said on Thursday. He was 88.

“With a heavy heart, I tell you that my father, Donald Sutherland, has passed away,” actor Kiefer Sutherland wrote on X.

The elder Sutherland had a distinctive look — and piercing eyes — that brought a depth and mystery to the huge range of roles he inhabited over more than half a century on the big screen.

One of Canada’s most famous sons, he played dashing leading men as well as antiheroes and villains, most recently making a name among a new generation of fans as the evil President Snow in “The Hunger Games” franchise.

“I personally think one of the most important actors in the history of film. Never daunted by a role, good, bad or ugly. He loved what he did and did what he loved, and one can never ask for more than that. A life well lived,” wrote Kiefer Sutherland.

Reaction to the Emmy- and Golden Globe-winner’s death was swift, with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hailing his unique talents.

“I had the opportunity when I was much younger to meet Donald Sutherland, and even as a young man who hadn’t had a full exposure to the depth of brilliance of Donald Sutherland, I was deeply, deeply star struck,” he told a press conference.

“He was a man with a strong presence, a brilliance in his craft, and truly, truly, a great Canadian artist, and he will be deeply missed.”

US President Joe Biden paid tribute to a “one-of-a-kind actor who inspired and entertained the world for decades”.

Ron Howard, who directed Sutherland alongside Robert De Niro and Kurt Russell in action-thriller “Backdraft,” called him “one of the most intelligent, interesting & engrossing film actors of all time”.

“Incredible range, creative courage & dedication to serving the story & the audience with supreme excellence,” he wrote on social media.

British actor Helen Mirren, who starred with Sutherland in 2017’s “The Leisure Seeker”, said he was “one of the smartest actors I ever worked with,” Variety reported.

“He had a wonderful enquiring brain, and a great knowledge on a wide variety of subjects. He combined this great intelligence with a deep sensitivity, and with a seriousness about his profession as an actor.

“This all made him into the legend of film that he became. He was my colleague and became my friend. I will miss his presence in this world.”

Rob Lowe said Sutherland had been “one of our greatest actors”.

“If you want a master class in acting, watch him in ‘Ordinary People’,” he wrote on social media, referring to Robert Redford’s multi-Oscar-winning directorial debut in 1980 about the disintegration of a wealthy family.

“Barry” and “Happy Days” actor Henry Winkler called Sutherland “singular,” an adjective also chosen by “The Batman” director Matt Reeves.

“Such a beautiful, soulful, and singular actor. His performances have meant so very much to me... and to the world. One of the all-time greats,” he wrote on X.

1970s hits

After what he called a “meandering” start to his acting career, Sutherland came to prominence in Robert Aldrich’s “The Dirty Dozen”, where 12 convicts are tasked with carrying out what appears to be a suicide mission in occupied France.

Starring alongside luminaries such as Charles Bronson, Lee Marvin and Telly Savalas, Sutherland’s impish charm caught the attention of producers of “M*A*S*H”.

Though set in the Korean War, the 1970 film was widely seen as a sophisticated satire on the Vietnam War.

His casting opposite Elliott Gould turned Sutherland into a household name in 1970s America, and opened the door to a durable career that would see him work with some of the biggest names in show business.

They included Jane Fonda, with whom he starred in 1971’s “Klute”, in which he played a detective who falls for the call girl he is supposed to be protecting.

Fonda won an Oscar for her performance, which she credited to her intense feelings for Sutherland, with whom she was in a relationship at the time.

Their off-screen chemistry brought Sutherland into her pacifist orbit, and he became active in anti-Vietnam War circles.

The pair put together a travelling revue, which irked the US government and landed them both under FBI surveillance.

SEOUL — For BTS ARMY members, as the K-pop phenomenon’s fan base is known, the timing of Jin’s discharge from South Korean military service couldn’t have been more fortuitous.

Just 24 hours after the oldest member of the world’s biggest boyband was discharged from duty, the South Korean capital was overtaken by BTS fans, with tens of thousands of people lining up on Thursday to join the group’s annual party.

Organised by HYBE, the band’s agency, the BTS FESTA last year saw 400,000 fans attend.

This year’s event, held at a sprawling sports complex in southern Seoul, is expected to exceed the record, with Jin giving out free hugs at a nearby location to a select group of 1,000 lucky raffle winners in a “huggathon”.

With lines stretching up to three kilometres around the FESTA venue, fans showed up from as early as 7:00am to make sure they could get their hands on the band’s coveted merchandise and free photo cards of their idols.

BTS has been on a self-described “hiatus” since 2022, with all seven members conscripted successively for military service.

Due to tensions with the nuclear-armed North, South Korea requires all men under 30 to sign up for service.

After his discharge on Wednesday, Jin said on South Korean app Weverse that the “huggathon” was his idea, and that he had “initially wanted to hug 3,000 fans” but that he had to agree to a smaller number due to safety concerns.

As she waited for the annual party to kick off, BTS fan Lisa Pavelchack said she was really proud of Jin “for doing what he needed to do” in life.

The 48-year-old from Ohio said she had flown to Seoul especially for the FESTA, which she was attending with friends she had met at a BTS concert in the United States.

Ann Suwanan, a 19-year-old from Thailand, was sad that she, like Pavelchack, was not going to get the chance to hug Jin.

“I wanted to hug him so much,” she told AFP.

Wearing a purple tulle dress and a big purple bow in her hair, she said she “cried a bit” with joy when Jin was discharged.

Hector Sosa, a 40-year-old father, said he had flown from Mexico to Seoul to accompany his adoring ARMY member daughter.

“My daughter is a fan of theirs and we came for her birthday as a present,” he said.

“We landed at 5:00am today in South Korea and came straight here.”

PARIS — France mourned the loss of a singular voice and “an icon of French song” on Wednesday, as the death of Francoise Hardy took one of the last great figures of its 1960s heyday.

Hardy’s death at 80, after a long battle with cancer, was announced by her son late on Tuesday, and commemorations poured in from across France and beyond.

Several newspaper headlines used the title of her 1968 hit “Comment te dire adieu” (“How to Say Goodbye”).

That was also the question of President Emmanuel Macron, who issued a statement praising “an idol of the young who became an icon of French song”.

There were messages from much further afield, including from Chuck D, co-founder of pioneering hip-hop group Public Enemy.

“Us beat diggers found some vintage stuff in Francoise Hardy records #RestInBeats,” he wrote on X.

Hardy long had admirers around the world, and was the only French artist in Rolling Stone’s list of 200 greatest singers last year.

Mick Jagger once described her as his “ideal woman”, Bob Dylan wrote a poem for her, and women everywhere imitated her androgynous style and embraced her melancholic melodies.

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal praised a “singular voice with a fierce tranquillity, Francoise Hardy rocked generations of French people for whom she will remain anchored in moments of their lives”.

Electro pioneer Jean-Michel Jarre recalled “the elegance of her harmonious whispers that will resonate forever in the hearts of boys and girls of all ages”.

That was a nod to another hit, “Tous les garcons et les filles” (“All the Boys and Girls”), which sold 2 million copies in 1962 when she had just turned 18 — and which Hardy also composed herself, a rarity at the time.

In the carefree sixties, her melancholy vibe stood out, with a restraint that contrasted with the exuberant style of Brigitte Bardot.

Bardot, now 89, said she was “overwhelmed” by news of Hardy’s death.

“France has lost with her a little of that nobility, that beauty and that luminous talent, of that elegance that she conveyed all along her life,” said Bardot in a statement.

Hardy’s career spanned more than 50 years and almost 30 studio albums, including several film and theatre roles.

Prefiguring the slender models that would soon take over catwalks, she became a muse for designers such as Paco Rabanne and Yves Saint Laurent.

Despite battling throat cancer, she was still making music in her 70s. Her last album, “Personne d’autre”, was released in 2018.