by Anuradha Bakshi | Jan 26, 2006 | Uncategorized
All year long we celebrate innumerable festivals.. many are religious… some social… we wish each other diwali and xmas, eid and pongal amd freindship day and mother’s day… often not quite knowing what each of them signifies..
Today is R Day.. often viewed as a day of parades and traffic restrictions, of closed shops and extra security measures.. of jaded school functions where the essential is absent.. but let us take a moment and think about what we celebrate today.. the coming into force of our Constitution..
Most of us may not realise how important this is. But it is this text that guarantees each and every Indian freedom and the right to live with dignity…
We, the people of India, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a Sovereign socialist secular democratic republic and to secure to all its citizens :
Justice, social, economic and political;
Liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship;
Equality of status and of opportunity;
and to promote among them all fraternity assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation
Every child of India has a right to know its constitutional rights and his duties.. and made aware of the responsibility he carries.. every child of India has to be made aware of his place in the democratic pattern, has to learn the fact all Indians have one vote, no matter who they are.. has to be made aware of the freedom he enjoys and the duties that ensue. Hence freedom of movement allows him to relocate – something a country like France does not permit – but he also has to understand that relocation means sharing already limited resources and therefore respecting them.. Freedom of religion also means accepting the other one’s beliefs.. Every child of India has to know that he has a right to education, one that the state must guarantee..
We all aspire for a better tomorrow individually and collectively, a better tomorrow for every Indian as only when that hapens, will our country truly wake up.. and if education is the way, then education needs to include making children aware of their true identity as citizens of India.. as only then will they be able to fulfill their dreams…
happy R day!
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jan 25, 2006 | Uncategorized
here is the latest picture of our very own babli from bed no 6, ward no 2… quite a star she is as she puts on a million dollar smile in spite of pain and a swollen eye! so little babli has a brand new heart… it took some effort that began when mr never say die a.k.a sitaram brought her to pwhy and ended with the great supportBabli team – inumerable friends and well wishers from the world over – at work!
across the road in ward no 19 of another hopsital, Nanhe is rid of the terrible pain that lost the valiant battle against the now famous never say die smile, a smile that helped us through the long journey to get Nanhe his much needed operation..
and this was the smile we were treated to a few moments before he was taken to surgery..
babli aur nanhe are today on the way to recovery, but they have also spearheaded a new mission for project why: that of helping children in need of life saving interventions.. and this could only have been possible without of one invisible hero… our very own sitaram.
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jan 23, 2006 | Uncategorized
This picture was taken minutes before scared little braveBabli’s angiography.
Take a moment to look at it:
You have Babli being tended to by Sophie with love and tenderness, while her father looks on probably wondering why all this fuss about a girl!
Watching is Sitaram eyes filled with love and concern, remembering his own angst when his Raju was in the same situation and probably praying for Babli’s well being
And in a corner is little Arzoo who is terribly perplexed as she senses something is not quite the same as usual. Remember Babli is Arzoo’s mother figure at home..
So much has been caught on camera in this picture.. from human relationships which know no frontiers, to the realities of India’s girl child.. to the invisible and touching synergies that make pwhy what it is..
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jan 21, 2006 | Uncategorized
Little Chetna is Nanhe’s roomie.. she is two months old and has a hole in her heart that requires surgery.. the family is not rich and the mother bears the stigma of having lost her first daughter and produced another defective one.. everything seems to conspire against this little child.. almost as if the large sum required would be a bad investment..
As I looked into her huge black eyes, all I saw was a tiny little heart beating as best it could to infuse life into this beautiful child… the conclusion was foregone.. something had to be done, and in spite of the many questions that would be raised by detractors and friends, I knew almost intuitively that my friend, the god of lesser beings, was at work again.. and the slight hesitation that was about to cross my mind was set to rest there and then as the incredible Sitaram had taken the lead and was asking for referreal papers and contact numbers..
team pwhy on standby for Babli, had its next mission charted out.. and before I could say anything operation Chetna had begun imbued with a life of its own.. another miracle was in the offing…
Somehow this was a special moment in the life of pwhy, one that proved that we had come a long way as the lead to save Chetna was taken by he humblest son of India… one who was also repaying a debt!
For me it was a moment of quiet celebration…
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jan 20, 2006 | Uncategorized
Babli has a new heart.. one that does not have holes.. one that will allow her to breathe easily, to run, to play, to eat all the thing she wants , to do all a kid her age should do, one that will enable her to sleep through the night without feeling breathless.. in one word to be a normal spirited nine year old..
For this day she had to wait long years because her parents were very poor but most of all because she was a girl, somewhat a lesser child.. a disturbing reality in our land.. but no one knew that this child wanted to live and fight for her life.. from the time I met Babli – who should be called bubbly – I was surprised by the energy and zest this child showed in everything she did: her perky ways, her sparkling eyes, her cheerful chatter, every part of her spelt l-i-f-e.. so live she had to..
Sometimes one gets amazed at the ways the god of lesser beings operates and how he makes everything conspire to make small simple miracles.. Babli came to pwhy via S our now veteran heart craftsman; her simple poignant tale touched many hearts the world over and a great network of supporters helped us meet the financial requirements; G and D charmed the doctors and before we knew it the operation was over… the whole operation seemed to have been touched by the Babli’s almost cheeky spirit..
Even through the complex set of invasive and sometimes difficult medical tests, Babli found ways to call everyone to order when needed: a touching smile in the lift, an almost cocky look into the camera at the height of a painful moment, a furtive caress, a hand held.. simple ways of reassuring us all when we needed it most..
And this time even mr god did not do too badly: a series of investigations on a holiday when the waiting time is short, a quick admission and even prompter surgery and voila.. and through it all a dad by proxy, to see her through and make up for one that was not up to the job, as Gary was there all the way..
This post would not be complete without a mention for the team of caring and great surgeons and doctors, a bunch of proud Indians with a heart, who perform miracles every day.. and whom we salute!
So to teamBabli which crosses all frontiers and sees with its heart a big thank you…
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jan 19, 2006 | Uncategorized
nanhe’s operation is still uncertain.. and it is now his 20th day in the hospital.. but believe me ward no 18 is a happy place.. and almost a family ..
there is puja who has a tumour in her abdomen, and vishal who has high fever, and vijay who suffers copper toxicity and has lost the use of his limbs and ritu who has water in her lungs..
they come from different places but all have one thing in common: a smile and a will to beat the ailment and live..
and today, as nanhe slept.. I discovered his little world!
