Light the Path - Essay

Light the path-   This is the Essay that was submitted to District contest..though it didnt make it to prize winning,  worth sharing for what makes Inner Wheel in our lives is drawn from its unknowing presence that makes it worth ......

***************Read On************Light the Path*******************************

…….the woods are tall and sky is dark.  Here and there few stars shine.  The moon is hiding behind the dark clouds like a new bride.  There is silence.  Silence of a woman who is in pain, who is in despair, who is in helplessness and who is lonely fighting the life’s battles.  She is quiet looking at the dark sky.  Her heart has no hopes or thoughts. 

She closed her eyes in prayer.  Prayers seeking help.  And support to make her comfortable.  She slept off in fear and lonely night dawned with the first ray of sun falling on her tired face.  Her tired eyes opened slowly.  The first sight of sun rays brightened her tired face.   She stood up slowly but steadily… she could see the new path of hope and light that can take her forward.  In the distance, she could hear the sounds of flowing waters from the brooks and crippling of the birds in the forest.  A spontaneous smile invades her tired face.  She looked beautiful and stunning with the sun rays on her.  Yes, she found the light.  She found the path. She will move on.

A monkey hopping from one tree to another, playfully threw a fruit towards her.  Hunger reminded her to grab it fast and eat it too.  She walked to the brook and took a plunge in the stream and started to enjoy her bath.   The water looked clean.  Fresh water made her drink a gulp and she realized how thirsty she was.  The thirst for truth, hope and for life.  Where else she can find all this at a time, than in the dense forest filled with nature and free from modern hassles of the outside world.   Her eyes shined bright.

She sat on a rock.  Took the twigs around and started to drum on the tighten skin of a dead animal.  The sounds emerged from her drums made from no where… made the birds around making wonderful sounds.  She knew she is educating them.  The cuckoos answering her sounds made her get up and walk towards the trees.  She found a fleet of swans flying ahead in the direction against the winds.  A beautiful v shape that made the leader take the route to fly and the fleet just follows making the winds shy away in pride.  Above all the birds, the girl saw an eagle.  Uninterrupted by the sudden showers of rain drops that come from dancing clouds.  Yes, the eagle is flying just above the clouds.  The giant bird.  An undisputed leader.   The girl just wished that she relives like an eagle. With pride.  With wisdom and with power.    

The woman is none other than the one who found her inner self.  Her true inner self.  Her immense strength and power.  Her Inner Wheel.   The wheel that makes her drive away fears, empower the inbuilt strengths.   The passion for self-esteem and self-respect makes her a true woman.  Yes, she is none other than you and I.  Every one who is part of Inner Wheel just ahead to light the path.   Towards a new dawn.

-          Written By Umasree Raghunath,

President, Inner Wheel Club of Madras South

World Elders Day - Awareness Program - Participated in the camp conducted by Indian Medical Association - Kodambakkam Branch

This is not an Inner Wheel South Project.  However, the takeaways from the awareness program attended are worth sharing

• Elders are like children.  You need to care them, make them feel wanted and comfortable
• Emotional, physical, social and in some cases financial drain makes them feel vulnerable
• Age related health issues are a major concern and timely support is essential
• In this world, of virtualization, every parent is prone to loneliness and insecurity
• Medical care provides longetivity and that comes with a package of issues uncontrollable
• Life style changes and health care regimes and active social lives keeps oldage a happy time
• Support and little care from children and love from grand children keeps elderly happy and healthy
• One 94 year old aunts beautiful advise was 'Vayya Kattu'  means keep your mouth in control -  this is applicable to both how we talk, how we interact, how we eat and how we live
• Elders are active participants in the society and their wisdom and knowledge is needed
• Keeping active social life makes them young in heart, feeling better and sharing their lives well
• In this mechanical age of sustainability, handling issues like Dementia, Memory loss, all sorts of issues related to diabeties, blood pressure, artiristis,  asthma, depression, can be handled with keeping regular exercise in practice, prayers and spirituality, eating right and sleeping well
• Balanced exercise, active social life, eating timely and right food, and keeping anxiety away without causing exhaustion or over enthusiam with medically proven valuable and effective life styles makes oldage a blessing 
• 'How to age gracefully'  was the topic of the day..and each participant showed how much they love life, to live peacefully and healthy, and how much they want to still contribute to their families and society makes youngsters put their heads down to thinking
• Aging gracefully is not just keeping ourselves wanted, beautiful or acceptable, but it also includes to keep health related issues away, emotional stress under control and participating in social activities and long forgotten hobbies reinvented and keeping one self busy and occupied
• The adage ' Never too Late'  is the mantra to make life meaningful and interesting.  Aging gracefully happens automatically as we know to balance our health, mental ability, social interaction and financial controls that gives security,  social life, healthy body and mind and a spiritually enlightened soul.
•  Thank you Dr Mani for this beautiful campaign and also Dr Viswanathan and Dr Lakshmi for your valuable inputs and presence.  Blessed to have been there for the beautiful evening.  

 

National Total Literacy Program - Teach India Project - Supporting Rotary International and Inner Wheel District 323

Educate a woman, and the whole family is educated.   Educate a family and the whole village and Nation gets enlightened.  It is not just the responsibility of the government, but also each one of us to make this Nation 100% literate.  In this mission towards National Total Literacy Program, each club in the Inner Wheel District 323 contributed their possible amounts to make this program get started and get going.  Small drops makes a ocean.  Each one of our thoughts makes a vision.  Hence this joint project with District and all other participating clubs towards a National cause.

Teachers Training programme for 30 teachers at a time for 4 days where they train them on how to teach children maths and spoken English - 2 of the important subjects which children really need to be proficient in . The cost including material and supervision after training is around Rs. 2500 per teacher.   Rotary District 3230 with an NGO Vidyarambam for help in making TEACH programme effective.

We at Inner Wheel Club of Madras South are glad to be part of this bigger cause with our little drops of support

District Clubs Limb Donation Camp at Polambakkam Village

Thank you Kusum for donating Rs.5500 for the wheel chair donated to the district as part of the Limb Donation Project of the District in Polambakkam Village.Cheque to dist treasurer on 6th and wheelchair donated during district clubs  visit to Polambakkam on 12th along with District members.

Kusum's contribution for the limb donation

Note from District Chairman Swarnalatha earlier for clubs participation 323 Village Project Report

The Assessment Camp for the physically challenged relating to limbs was conducted at Pollambakkam 

Village on 31st staff. District Chairman, Secretary, ISO and myself were present. Local assistance was rendered by the   United Services Squad and excellent arrangements were made by them.

As per survey, there were 40 challenged in and around the village of which 27 attended the camp.16 

were assessed for need based gadgets totally numbering 17 as detailed below.

Tricycles 5 N0s each costing Rs. 6500 amounting to Rs. 32,500

Wheel Chairs 4 N0s. Costing Rs. 5500 amounting to Rs. 22,000

Left side KAFO 3 Nos Costing Rs.5500 amounting to Rs 16,500

Modified Foot wears 2 Nos. Costing Rs. 850 amounting to Rs 1,700

Bil. Knee crawling shoes 1 No. Costing Rs. 850 amounting to Rs. 850

Bil. Auxiliary Crutches 1 No. Costing Rs.950 amounting to Rs. 950

Left side trans Humeral Prosthosis costing Rs. 8500 amounting to Rs. 8,500

Transportation expenses Rs. 5500 and other project expenses like providing food for the recipients, 

volunteers and momentos for the Dr. And his team Rs. 11500

And as this is the joint project of the clubs I seek participation from all the clubs at the earliest as  October 12th
 Dr. Sundar Subramanian of Freedom Trust and his team of dedicated  has been fixed for distribution of gadgets .
 October at Polambakkam Village.

Wild Walk - Global March for the elephants and Rhinos - 4 Oct 2014 at Marina Beach, Chennai

As Naturalists..we got the opportunity to lead the walk yesterday at Marina....bikers and police preceded us and close to 400 people from various walks of life followed.....

http://www.mylaporetimes.com/2014/10/active-participation-at-the-wild-walks-march-at-the-marina/

On October 4th people in cities throughout the world marched as one voice to save Elephants and Rhinos. The countdown to their extinction has begun. Unless action is taken now, we will lose these majestic, highly intelligent, and emotionally sentient creatures FOREVER.

More than 35,000 elephants are being killed every year so their tusks can be carved into ivory trinkets. A rhino is slaughtered once every 9-11 hours for its horn. Their only hope for survival lies in an immediate end to the ivory and rhino horn trade (both "legal" and "illegal") and the chance to recover from decades of mass slaughter. Pencilsrock Academy team represented the Madras Naturalists' Society and IWC Madras South. The organizers put us right at the front of the procession . Our team prepared to begin the march. The youngsters at the front show their enthusiasm in nature conservation. They wore vulture masks to show that the vultures are indirect victims in elephant poaching as the poachers poison the elephant carcass to avoid being detected by the sight of soaring vultures. — at Light House , Chennai... covering a distance of 7 kms. The organizers had composed a song exclusively for the event. The song was played from the van that is following us.

Go Green continues for another year - Project Pasumai begins from home.....Terrace Garden and Home made composite

Sandhya  and team continues the Pasumai Project with a well pruned terrace garden with home made composite  and Sita akka's terrace garden is children's favorite.     Kalarani carries on with kitchen garden and Rooma's beautiful landscape at her back yard and Indira Revi' s beautiful garden and beautiful trees and plants at Viji Jinadas's hours and beautiful yummy mangoes from Vasanthi's farm garden and Sheila Krishnan farm house filled with a lovely greenary making it more welcoming for our South club annual farm house parties.   Just like how cleanliness and charity begins from home,  Project Pasumai also gives amazing bonus to celebration of life.   The learnings from last year Green Synopsium, and several initiatives and seminars we attended on Go Green last year, we just take them forward with passion, ease and pleasure.  Few glimpses from several of the go green efforts of our club members.