Poila Boishak celebrations at Anavi
15th of April 2015 was celebrated as Poila Boishakh in Bengal. And we normally make new years’ resolutions, which invariably are forgotten in a few days time. But there is one resolution that we try to better every time. That is to have a celebration! And this time we bettered ourselves by beginning the celebrations a few days in advance.
The celebrations began for Anavi this April when we made our first visit of the month to the Thakurpukur Cancer Hospital. The members always get teary eyed at the sight of these young children and we try to do our best to bring even a hint of smile on these faces.
On 17th April, it was a double dhamaka. First stop were the oldies of Apon Ghar. They were treated to a special lunch arranged by Anavi. Groceries were purchased by members and the in house cooks tossed up a tasty lunch meal for the inmates. But more than the food it was the time that we spent there made it special for them and us. These inmates spend their time mostly indoors and do not have many outside people to talk to. So a visit by the members is something they eagerly look forward to.
In the evening we were with the young children at Shib Mandir Non Formal School. They were as usual very happy to see the aunties and uncles from Anavi . The visit was made special because of the tasty food packets that they got. Nothing to get young kids motivated more than the sweets and snacks. The kids here belong to under privileged sections of the society and their parents are laborers and day wage earners. For some of them it is not easy to get two square meals a day even. That we could bring smile on these innocent faces, is something that fills our hearts with joy. But the celebrations did not end here.
On 23rd April, the aunties of Anavi were at the Topsia Creche for kids. This small Creche is for children of parents who work hard just to make ends meet. Here again we distributed rations for the kids meals as well as cakes and chocolates. We also spent time with them and got an idea of the progress these kids are making. We were pleasantly surprised to see that in spite of all the hardships some of the children were very eager to learn. Our sincere thanks also goes to Nana di who presented us with a box of chocolates as a token of appreciation and to cheer in the new year. Nana di has been instrumental in supporting and running this Creche.
Let’s hope the rest of the years goes by bringing smiles to many such lives!
