The morning of the Old Age
Home visit wasn’t a regular, lazy
Sunday morning. In fact, it
turned out to be very special. As
it was a first time for most of us,
we could only imagine how these
grandmothers and grandfathers
would be, and how the place
would receive us. During our
journey, Varsha advised us to be
very compassionate and caring
towards them.
We were in for a pleasant surprise when a lot of smiling old
faces came down to see us. We
made them comfortable and
started talking to them. Most of the women there were spinsters, and were at ease when they spoke to us. Almost all the inmates
seemed to be leading a happy life there, as they called each other their brothers and sisters. It was very touching to see this kind of
selfless attitude among these old people. They were constantly checking on each other, asking if they were fine and whether they had
eaten.
One lady never seems to go off my mind every time I think about the visit- a camera shy Martha. She had gone through a lot of hardships
in life, yet, always wore a smile on her face. She told me that she enjoys doing embroidery and loves talkin g. We even came across some
dancing talent there. “Jack in the box” as he is fondly called, is one of the best dancers I have seen till date. Another lady by the name of
Veina Monteina also got cheers from us for her graceful dance moves.
On the whole, it was a very rejuvenating experience. It set me thinking how in spite of all their hardships, these people remain ever so
cheerful and spread so much joy. Special thanks to our photographers for the day- Sarath Menon and Kunal Baweja for clicking moments
to be cherished for eternity.
A large group of students from our campus paid a visit to Fr. Agnel’s Orphanage in Verna, Goa. All in all, it was a magical experience for the kids of the orphanage, as well as for the students who chose to spend time with the kids.
The visit began with a drawing competition, sponsored by Classmate and organized by the students. The kids spent an entire hour lost in their world of colours, creating beautiful pictures. The kids’ drawings were filled with the innocence and charm of childhood. They found the topics for the drawing competition - “My Favourite cartoon”, “My Dream” and “India As I see It“ very exciting.
For Std. 8-10, we organized a slogan writing competition, for which the topic
was “Saving Animals”. It was a major challenge for us to choose the top 3 in
each category, as every child’s drawing had its unique perspective towards the
topic. Yet, the winners were chosen, and were awarded gifts. The drawing competition was followed by an interactive session with the kids, which included
playing musical chairs, Antakshari, and dancing. It was an amazing experience.
Some of the older children went out to play basketball with the members of the
BITS Goa Basketball team, and were very happy to learn a trick or two on how to
play the game. As the visit neared its end, all the children had smiles on their
faces and so did we. After all, that’s what Joy Of Giving Week is all about.
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