Life @ its BEST!!

I have never in my life felt so well loved, my day passed by so quickly that I did not want it to end........ After all this wasn’t an end for me, just a new beginning. A beginning that I was awaiting for quite some time now. But some things come to you when you least expect it. And that’s exactly what happened with me. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that during my 2 yr stint with MBA- I will work for an NGO and that too full time for 15 days. An icing to the cake was that I was working with children. What more could I have asked for!! All good things in life come in small packages and these tiny tots are a testimony to this statement. I have wanted to work with children since a long time now.....to be precise since the day I visited an orphanage with my mother and her few friends.

It was somewhere in Andheri. I was in my junior college then. Children are so beautiful and captivating.......their innocence shines through in every action. I specifically remember the warm Sunday afternoon I visited this place. There were so many children there. They looked so happy and content that they spread this positive aura all around them. The orphanage was run by nuns. They took us to a room where there were only toddlers. A small baby girl, dusky complexion, beautiful, bright wide innocent eyes captured my attention. I kept staring at her crib and she smiled at me. There was this moment of mutual happiness which passed between us. My heart went upto her. She waved her tiny hands at me, indicating that I carry her. I did not. Even today this is one thing I haven’t forgiven myself for. I do not know why I did that. I wanted to take her home, raise her, play with her, teach her and bring her up as if she was my own- but I did none of these things. My heart melted, but my hands froze and all I could do in that moment of total helplessness was stare at her lovely face. Maybe I was afraid that I would not be able to put her back if I carried her in my arms.She was very attractive for a baby, would have grown up to be a attractive young woman some day. Her eyes even today haunt me. This was a few years back, I often wonder whether she goes to school, who her friends are, is she happy, has someone adopted her - just random thoughts.........

And so when after all these years, an opportunity came knocking for a social cause I believed in, I was more than thrilled. Dreamz home works for street children. The children were such an enthusiastic, high energy kids. Within half a day my group members and me were panting!! The kids, all 44 of them were all over us- hugging, cuddling, asking us to tell them stories, read out books to them, teach them dance and songs. Name it- and we have done that. There are a lot of things we learnt from these children. They are so innocent, their thoughts so vibrant, their souls so pure, their smiles so captivating. Words fail me today as I type this. Every action of theirs is enduring. Like they would not begin eating their food, till every child has got his lunch and after which they say a prayer - all 44 of them with joined hands and closed eyes. Even when there was a party, where there were lovely goodies to eat the kids were more concerned if my team members and me had eaten!! I don’t think I will see such lovely angels. These are one of a kind. The kind that knows that what hunger is- that’s precisely why they happily offer their food to everyone and then eat. The kind that has faced rejection- the reason why they crave for so much attention.

They would be in an age group between 3-15 years. We as grown up matured adults crave for attention and love. All of us want to be loved. Somewhere, deep within us, we are children afterall!!. Fate can be cruel sometimes, I see no other explanation when I spend time with my little angels. Angels of love, of hope, of promise. They reassure me that this world is not that bad as it seems. :)