Can you edit?

After putting it off for several years, I finally braved it and watched the popular Indian movies, Paa and Taare Zameen Par.  For those that haven't seen these movies, both are about kids with disabilities. Paa is about a kid with progeria, a rare disease that makes the child age rapidly. Taare Zameen Par is about a kid with dyslexia, a learning disorder that causes difficulty in reading. I put them off because I knew what the movies were about, and I have seen clips of the movies, and have heard the soul searching songs that pull at your heartstrings.  True, the movies star the best of the best in film industry, and has the most melodious voices singing their numbers. My kids were moved too. I let them watch Paa. My 9yr old kept going in and out of the room as she was trying to hide her emotions. My 5 yr old kept saying repeatedly that "this is not real, right, Amma?".  I replied, "Yes, Sweety, this movie is not real".  I am glad I didn't watch Taare Zameen Par with them as I was shamelessly crying watching it.  

Truth be told, I don't think it is the block buster acting of the Bachchans and Aamir Khan or the mellifluous voice of Shankar Mahadevan that moved people. What moved us all is that it is about children. More importantly, it's about children suffering. One film showed the kid surrounded by a loving mother, grandmother and eventually a loving father.  Although it was hard to see, a 12yr old grotesque looking kid suffering with issues that affect an 80yr old man, it was at least heart warming to see the love and friendship he received from his family, friends and teachers.  But when another film depicted an adorable kid misunderstood by his own parents and sent away to a hostel, it broke our hearts, because we can't see a child crying.  Especially, when he is just crying for love and understanding.  He is surrounded by people, people with the best intentions, but he is still very  lonely because there was not a single person that was willing to hold his hand and walk with him only because no one understood that he needed help.  It takes a loving special needs teacher to show the family and the world that the kid is capable of anything with just a little extra help and a lot of love and compassion.

Well, those were just movies. And their stories were completely in the writer and director's hands.  What about the children in the real world? If only there were writers and directors that can paint a beautiful life for them.  If only with some smart editing and graphics, we can make these kids with special needs to learn to read, write and do all the other activities that they normally can't.  Sadly, there is no editing in real life.  These kids and their families have to live their lives with the struggles that come with raising a special needs child.   But they don't have to do this by themselves.  They have Abhilasha and they have You!!!

As this year is coming to an end, we would like to thank you all for your continued support.  You are our heroes.  You may not know this, but you are editing the children's lives to better and independent ones.  Thank you, and Wish you a very Happy New Year!!!

Please visit Greatwish.org and make a donation today!!

Update on Abhilasha Kids

I wanted to post an update on the Abhilasha school and progress that the kids are making. Please check out this video interview of Mrs. Himabindu, co-founder of Abhilasha school. Click on tab 'Part 4' for the interview. http://ap7am.com/ap7am_show_detail_videos.php?newsid=46920#.TrHBFfIxsz8.gmail

The interview starts at about 37seconds into the video.The video is in Telugu (Indian language). I encourage everyone to still see the video as you will catch glimpses of the school, and more importantly, you will see the adorable kids in this school. You can see some of the activities that the kids participate in this school. Mrs Himabindu and her staff are doing awesome work in developing these kids.

When the interviewer asked her how she was motivated to establish this school:
Himabindu: When my son, Abhi, was born, my heart broke to see that he has special needs. I could not help wonder why he had to suffer like this. Why are they so unfortunate? Why is God punishing us like this? What will his future be like? And, most importantly, What will happen to Abhi when we are too old to take care of him?
And, that was the turning moment. She decided to see that her sweet son was born for a reason. And, that reason is to channel this grief into energy to establish a school for special needs kids so that she can help other parents like them, who want to give their special children a better future where they are independent and can build skills to do some basic things like walking, eating and talking.
A simple, but a very Noble thought.

When the interviewer asked her how she feels running this school:
Himabindu: I cannot describe in words how satisfying it is to see these children make progress. There is nothing in this world that beats that feeling. We celebrate whenever a child makes progress, even if it is as small as recognizing us.

Last but not the least, what moved me to tears is to see some of the kids that I met when I visited the school, and to hear the progress that they are making. This is at 5min 15 seconds into the video. Her son, Abhi, has started sitting on his own since last year. He is 12 years old now, and this is a very significant progress for him. Abhi is the kid in the orange shirt.
Another kid, Sai, that I wrote about in my blog. If you remember, he is the kid that is a big fan of the actor Prabhas. He is the kid in the green and white striped shirt in the video. When he first came to them, he could not walk or talk. When I wrote about him, he was able to walk with some help. Now, he walks without help. He also speaks in sentences. Again, a major leap in the development of this child.

Although, I am unable to help these kids physically, I am hoping sharing information about them and the school motivates others to appreciate the work of Bindu and her staff and help them however they can.

Thanks for reading, and please feel free to share your thoughts.

Visit with some precious kids

Along with meeting family in Hyderabad, Jana and I had the pleasure of meeting some very precious kids a couple of days ago, the Abhilasha kids. We dropped in around 10:00am, around their snack time. We were fortunate to be able to meet Bindu, wife of Nandu, the founders of Abhilasha. It was a pleasure talking to her and listening to the wonderful accomplishments she made in developmental disabilities area. She gave us a guided tour of the school. Both Jana and I noticed that it was more spacious than what the website (http://abhilashakids.org/) depicted. Renting a house and converting it to a school was an excellent choice as it gave a homely ambience versus an intimidating school environment. The school had all the colorful toys, playdough, books and games that any preschool carries. Only difference was that, blended with these toys are some equipment to accomodate the special needs of the kids at Abhilasha.

Bindu introduced us to the kids. We were thrilled to finally meet Abhi, her son. Abhi is a handsome, sweet and shy boy. He was trying to hide his face when his Mom introduced us to him, reminded me of how (my daughter) Nandu is when she meets someone new too, for the first few mins :) We didnt get a chance to spend much time with Abhi as it was time for his physical therapy. I told asked Bindu that we can wait if she needs to join her son, but there was no need for that as Abhi independently let himself be lead into the physical therapy room without asking for his Mom.

Next we met Namish, a boy wearing a brown shirt (you'll see the significance of the color soon :). Bindu told him to say hello to Aunty and Uncle, and he got up came forward and said "Hello" to both of us. A little later Jana started chatting with Namish. I was out of their earshot, but I could see that he was having a full fledged conversation, just like with anyother friends' kid. Thta's when Jana learnt that brown is Namish's favorite color. Bindu overheard Jana telling me that and she let us into a secret about Namish: He changes his favorite colors everyday, depending on what he wears or whatever catches his eye :) I can think of atleast 10 colors that Nandu showed her favoritism to depending on whatever :)

And, then there is little Sai. Cutest kid ever, makes you want to give him a hug and a high five when you see him. Bindu gave us a little background on him. Sai was born with Down syndrome. When he first came to Abhilasha a few months ago (please note, its just been a few months), he had no motor skills, no academic skills. He was scared to walk. He couldn't even hold a biscuit and eat it. As a Mom of two very active children, its heart breaking to hear that a child is scared to walk when he should be running, jumping and rolling in mud like our kids do. We yell at our kids to "slow down, be careful, don't get hurt, no more running and jumping, stop eating all that junk", when his Mom is probably waiting for the day when he will do all that and she can be a typical Mom too. Well, she is probably not too far from that day. We saw Sai holding a biscuit while he was chatting with us, not chewing it, but happy to just hold it. After sometime, when he was sitting on the floor and we were getting ready to leave, Bindu asked him to come closer and say Bye to us. He said "Bhayamavuthondi" (I am scared). When he still didn't get up even after some coaxing, Bindu used her trick. She gave him her little finger and he walked to a chair holding onto the tip of her finger. There was no other support from her. She just gave him a feeling of comfort that he was in good hands. And, finally, the grand finale. Bindu asked him to dance like his favorite actor, Prabhas. And, he was more than happy to stand up and show us some moves that even Prabhas probably can't do :) My Dad's favorite saying, "Kaki pilla kakiki muddu". I am one of those "Kakis" (crow) as I go around and tell every T, D & H how my son unlatched a door, and how my daughter colors regardless of whether they want to hear it or not. And, I am talking about 2 healthy kids here. So, I can only imagine how delighted Sai's Mom must have been when she first saw him eating a biscuit, walking, and ofcourse, dancing. Kudos to Nandu, Bindu and her team of Teachers and Therapists. I am hoping I can make a difference too in some Mom's life someday just like they are.