A year gone by

A year gone by

2023 was a rewarding year as we finally emerged from the aftermath of the pandemic and could proudly say that we were back to pre covid times. The children had made up for the losses incurred during the pandemic and were back on track! Classes were once again full and he chatter and  laughter of the children filled every corner of the centres as well as the recesses of our heart. It was pure unadulterated pleasure. So this year I decided that my message will be a bird’s eye view of the year gone by so that each one of you can get a taste of Project Why.

Let us begin with academics. The year saw classed filled to the brim and little and not so little heads studiously bent over open books or listening with bated breath to what the teachers were saying. This year teachers went outside the box and came up with new teaching methods. There was a lot of practical teaching and children learnt how to identify chemicals and other scientific experiments. Visual learning was another tool teachers used with the help of movies and the Internet. Debates and quizzes were organised every month to help the children deepen their knowledge. Outings to local parks helped the children learn about nature and were excellent prompts for drawing and painting. June 10th was a special day as it saw the reopening of our early education programme that we had to close because of the pandemic. We were all thrilled to see our tiny tots back and once gain hear their laughter and giggles.

Of course regular reading and writing practice were a daily routine and assessments were held every quarter. Remedial measures were taken when needed. Children performed well in their respective schools and did us proud as they always do. All board examinations were cleared with success with many children doing exceedingly well. Everyone got promoted to the next class. PTMs were conducted across all centres to ensure that parents become part of their children’s learning journey.

But is was not all studies. This year we could finally resume our educational outings and the children visited India Gate, Doll Museum, Bharat Darshan Park, Bal Bhawan, Railway Museum, Waste of Wonder and Children’s Park. They all had a great time. In-house creative  pursuits were the order of the day. The children learnt how to make decorative items with waste material. They also tried their hands at wall paintings,cloth painting and spray painting and unleashed their creativity.

A summer camp was organised in all centres and the children had great fun. They engaged in indoor and outdoor games, learnt fireless cooking and partook in a host of creative activities. They of course completed their holiday homework.

At Project Why we celebrate all festivals and commemorative days: New Year, Diwali, Xmas, Republic Day, Women’s Day. Word Health Day, World Environment Day to name a few. Children make drawings, write slogans and essays and engage in spirited debates, These celebrations help children increase their knowledge in a fun way. The special needs children made Rakhis and Diyas and sold them at Azure Hospitality and CSKM school.

Several workshops were organised. Dr Gulabani led a 16 days workshop to help teachers deal with children who have problems and difficulties in learning. This was a very successful initiative held over 16 Saturdays. Modicare Foundation held its yearly workshop on teen and adolescent issues and ETPA Foundation held story telling activities. These workshops are very useful and a good way to network.

It was also a year of repair and maintenance. We repaired the roofs of Khader and Yamuna as they had been severely damaged by rain, built a much needed toilet in Okhla and built a classroom in Giri Nagar. This was thanks to the generosity of our supporters.

But it was not all fun. 2023 had its sombre moments too. We lost a student from Okhla in a road accident and severe floods damaged our Yamuna centre and the homes of all our kids. Many reached out to help. The Rotary Club gave tents and sleeping bags and Azure Hospitality provided hot lunches to over 150 persons during 10 days, Avantika led a blanket drive that yielded or 650 blankets that were distributed before the cold set in. Clothes too were collected and distributed. We are grateful to each and everyone who reached to to help the flood victims.

Teachers had their fun time too. A day visit to Agra was organised with the support of Enfances Indiennes and was enjoyed by one and all. The staff of all centres visited the Yamuna centre had lunch with the children and engaged in a lot of fun activities with them. Teachers visited CSKM school and shared their ideas and teaching methods. It was rewarding experience. And finally they enjoyed a picnic lunch with Xavier Ray at the Nehru Park.

This year saw many visitors. Mr Ashok Trivedi, Mrs Anju Trivedi and Ms Shelly Trivedi were chief guests at our Republic Day function at Khader. Mr Trivedi hoisted the national flag and addressed the children. Mr Trivedi also visited the Yamuna centre and shared lunch with the children. Mr Adish Jain and Mrs Asha Jain visited the Okhla centre interacted with teachers and a few students and had lunch with the staff. Mr Jain has adopted the Okhla centre ‘forever’!

A group from Enfances Indiennes led by its President Xavier Ray and Hans Emde President of Project Why Germany also visited us this year. They spent quality time with the children and shared lunch with them.

We were really blessed to have many of our main funders visit us this year and very proud of showcasing our work to them.

This was a short glimpse of 2023, a year when things fell back in place after the dreaded pandemic.

I would like to thank all our supporters as well as my incredible team and terrific board without whom none of this would be possible.

We look forward to 2024 and all the miracles that will unfold.

Happy 2024

Love

Anou

Another rite of passage

Another rite of passage

I am just back suitcase shopping. Not for me though! I do not travel.

Come Monday Utpal will board a train and leave for Mumbai to fulfil his dream of working in the movies. The stage is set for him as Mrinal and Abhigyan wait for the shooting of their next serial. My mind goes back to 2006 when I had gone suitcase shopping for him as he was going to boarding school. He was 4. We bought a little red bag and filled it not just with the things on the list given to us by the school, but also with a plethora of dreams yet to be revealed and fulfilled. Today one of these comes true.

Over the past years as he moved from class to class we packed many suitcases for him never forgetting to tuck in the yet unfulfilled dreams.

If his going to school the first time was a rite of passage for the two of us, today as he moves into the adult world is yet another one we both have to go through.

I remember when he left for school the first time, I wept like a baby, a mix of feelings gushing through my mind, and my heart being ripped wide open. Was I doing the right thing in sending such a tiny tot to a big boarding school. The mind jumped in to quell the heart: it was for his good; education was what would make the dreams come true.

The primary years ended and we moved to secondary school, then the final examination and results. School days were over. Then came college in another city a few hundred kilometres from here. His BA in hand, Utpal came to Delhi for his internship and then secured a job in a digital media start up. But that was not in the dream box.

I was happy having him at home, seeing him every day. It was comforting but as I said not part of the dream. I was quite happy the way things were but not the God of small things to whom all dreams were entrusted. He had to make them come true. So the universe conspired to make things happen and they did at lightning speed: a phone call or two and before we knew it Utpal had a job offer and even a place to stay for the initial days. It was time to go.

The last few days have been busy shopping, packing, cooking special treats. No one is saying anything. Each quietly counting the days till the suitcases are ready to move and our little Utpal with them.

The coming  days will be hard. Keeping a brave face is hard. The half packed suitcase in the room stares at me and I feel my throat constrict and my eyes well up.And I am not the only one. Though no one says anything. There are so many things I want to say but can’t. I find myself patting his cheek or giving him a furtive hug and walking away.

I know I have to let him go as that is the only way he will be able to find his wings and fly and let him go I will as there is no other option. I know that when it is time to leave the house, I will send him off with a smile and the right words but I also know that when the car is gone and one has stopped waving goodbye, I will break down and weep.

But suitcases with dreams have a destiny to fulfil.

I will simply pray everyday to the God of small things to take care of my darling child and walk with him always.

So help me God

So help me God

Since July 2020 when I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma I have been compelled to stay away from my beloved Project as I was immuno compromised and that mixed with the Covid pandemic was a heady toxic cocktail. Over the past three years I have been to the project a handful of times. However I keep in close touch with the Project thanks to the innumerable pictures posted every day in the famous Project Why WhatsApp group.

Pictures of children studying diligently, of children playing, singing, dancing, painting with fervour, of visitors dropping by, Pictures of the meals at the Yamuna centre; pictures of celebrations. Sometimes children are prompted to share their thoughts and dreams as was the case recently when a group of children were asked what they want to be when they grow up. The answers were heartwarming: engineer, teacher, IAS officer, police officer, bank manager and even artist. The list is endless, the dreams are big for only if you dream big can you aspire to see your dreams come true.

We at Project Why strive to give wings to all these little big dreams and hope to make as many as we can come true. And we have seen many come true over the last two decades.

When I see the pictures of these children holding their dreams for all to see my heart fills with joy, my eyes go moist and my throat constricts. I feel blessed but also overwhelmed by the magnitude of the task but nowhere ready to give up.

Over the past two decades I have felt the presence of a very special God, the God of lesser beings as I chose to call him or her! This very special God has helped me at every stage and brought so many miracles in our lives. It is to this God that I pray everyday to give me the strength to soldier on no matter what.

Soldier on I will.

So help me God.

I want to be….

I want to be….

Asked them what they want to be and pat come he answers: a teacher, a police officer, an engineer, a bank manager, an IAS officer and even an artist! So many dreams tucked away safely in the little heads of our children.

I always urged them to dream big, to dream of what may seem impossible knowing that dreams are answered as there is a God for he lesser bings, a God that listens.

We at Project Why strive to keep these dreams alive, So help us God