TOUCHING HEARTS
SPREADING SMILES SINCE 1617
Soniya Chacko
Nasik, Maharashtra, India
Soniya Chacko
Nasik, Maharashtra, India
“Touching hearts and spreading smiles since 1937… We radiate ourselves bringing smiles on the face of every Indian”
-Indian Overseas Bank
Whenever I go to
Indian Overseas Bank, I read this caption there. Every time I read, a smile
blossoms on my face and I can feel the beauty of every word of the caption. It
makes me think that if a bank which has started for the transaction of money
has so much of service to offer to its customers, how much more service minded
I, a bearer of the title “DAUGHTER OF CHARITY”, should be!
Even though, I realize
I cannot bring a total change in the society, I know my smile can do a lot; it can
touch the hearts and bring smiles on the face of everyone with whom I come in contact.
Yes, dear friends, let
us also borrow this caption “Touching Hearts Spreading Smiles since 1617 (From
the beginning of the Confraternity of Charity). We radiate ourselves bringing
smiles on the face of every one.”
“Remember….smile! And
the world smiles with you…”
DAWN OUT OF DARKNESS
The world of children
is more colourful, powerful and full of dreams because they are at the blossom
of their life. They are just beginning to experience the beauty of this cosmos,
like the butterflies which are just beginning to fly to a new world of colours,
flowers and honey.
Children are the
heritage of every nation because they are the future of tomorrow. They are
precious and valuable because their whole life is ahead of them to serve the
nation. They have a beautiful world to see, to hear and to experience.
Unfortunately due to starvation, selfishness, greediness, abuse, extreme
passion, increased urbanization, access to sexual information and activities
through internet and visual media and the disappearing of value based
relationship, they are being exploited. With wounded hearts, minds and body
they have lost their wings at their nonage. Let us look at the various areas
where children, the little “butterflies” are made wingless.
1. Child
labour
2.
Homeless children
3. Sexual
assault
4. Child
marriage
5.
Children fighters
6. Killing
of girl children and female feticide
7. Criminal children
8. Child prostitutes
9. Children with incurable disease.
1. Little Labourers
Child labor is
exploitation of the week and the helpless. It is resorted to as it is cheap and
trouble free – children do not have any union; they can be beaten into
submission; they can be forced to do the unpleasant task and dirty jobs adults
will not do; they can be terminated when they are sick or no longer of economic
value; they need not be given any housing; they sleep on the work floor when the
day’s work is over etc. Children are a
resource for those who are below poverty line.
About 160 million[1]children
are globally involved in child labour of which 41% are in Asia alone. In India 73
million children are involved in child labour which is highest for any country.
These children are put to work in ways that drain their childhood of joy, crush
their right to normal physical and mental development, and deprive them of their
precious time for education. Children are involved in these works:
·
House hold work
·
in companies like Beedi, paper, match box etc
·
building works
·
hotels
·
in factories
·
quarries
·
and other economic activities
There are manifold reasons
behind the huge number of child laborers across the world. Poverty and
illiteracy are the main reasons behind the increasing number. Generally poor
parents encourage their children to earn money by working instead of sending
them to school. At the same time rich people and owners never think about the
health and freedom of these poorchildren.
2. The Son of Man Has No Room to Lay His Head
The Lord has entrusted
man this earth with full of things in order to use them for his survival. But
even today our little brothers and sisters wander because they have no place to
lay down their head. In countries like Iraq, Afghanistan, India, Congo etc children
are dying due to malnutrition, hunger and disease. And in Chechnya thousands of
children are homeless. The continuous war and violence in Iraq and Palestine
territories causes many assassinations of children. Thousands of children are
wandering in the streets begging.
3. Sexual Assault
The promulgation of “the
protection of children from sexual offences Act 2011” in India is a strong step
against sexual assault in our country[2].
Child abuse is a grave crime that cannot be condemned or ignored because it affects
every child’s growth into a wholesome person. This violation is taking place in
homes, schools, streets, working places, refugees’ camps in peace times and in
times of conflicts and crisis. The children who are the victims of sexual
assault carry the painful impact in them for the rest of the years. It happens
not only in Somalia and Sudan but also in our country.
4. Child Marriage
In many of the African
and Asian countries child marriages are common. Many times it is placed upon
female virginity. In some cases of child marriage, both are children while in some
other cases, the marriage takes place between a grown up and a child. This
issue is very common in Gujarat.
5. Children Fighters
Another tragedy is
that in Sudan, Congo, Somalia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Afghanistan etc children are
being recruited to serve as fighters. It is really a tragedy that happens to
the lives of these little children. They are recruited from the Islamic
schools. They grow up playing with guns
and knives instead of toys. From their tender age onwards their minds are with
the thoughts of Zealots and terrorism. Another tragedy is the kidnapping of
children especially in Uganda.
6. Killing of Girl Children and Female Feticide
“What is the future of
this child”? This question arises in the
mind of most of the parents in India when they come to know that the child is a
GIRL. Dowry system even if it has been
prohibited by law it has not yet been stopped even by the most educated people.
Dowry is the main cause for killing the girl child. In Rajasthan they are
finding new methods to get rid of girl children.[3]
7. Criminal Children
Increasing crimes and
decreasing values in our society is the “parents” of criminal children. It is
also the effect of “the sick hurry and divided aims” of the modern society.
Working parents, broken families, divorces, negative influence of the media etc
also contribute to the growth of criminal children. The children who are born
in prison are also adversely affected.
8. Child Prostitute
Globalization has
given birth to “new victims” (e.g.
trafficking, child prostitutes, HIV/AIDS victims). So many East Asian children
are trafficked from the countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines, and India
etc and are sold to some gulf countries. Lakhs of Nepal girls are sold in
Indian ‘red streets’ because they are good looking. Children are even kept to
act as an agent between brothels and the prostitutes.
9. Children with Incurable Diseases
In the beginning of
eighties AIDS was anew to the world. Thirty years later, today it is spread
everywhere like wild fire. Due to prostitution, drug usage (street children),
mother to child transmission etc. it has spread far and wide. Thousands of
children have become orphans due to the death of their parents with AIDS.
Millions of children are awaiting death like buds which are cut off even before
it blossoms.
The children who are
born in Nagasakia and Hiroshima even today are living witnesses of the nuclear
bomb. The children of Chernobyl and Bhopal are also being born with defects.
REACH OUT AND TOUCH THE WOUNDS
As Vincentians let us look at these issues with pro-active roles and rise up as a major alley in the process of protecting our little children with a
As Vincentians let us look at these issues with pro-active roles and rise up as a major alley in the process of protecting our little children with a
Ø new way of seeing
Ø new way of relating
Ø new way of being
present
Ø new way of doing
Jesus who was born in
a manger is disfigured himself in these children. He had no place to be born,
he had no dress to prevent the cold, and He had to travel like a refugee. And
we are called to touch and heal the Lords’ wounds.
How Can We?
It is our turn right now to bring ‘systemic change’ in our society by networking with the Vincentian family with non-government organizations within and outside the countries, with persons/groups of other faith. It entails organizing the poor as groups and communities so that they can address their poverty through solutions that are long term. Organize child line through which the people can inform us about any issues of children. Let us go a little further ahead from our daily routines.
It is our turn right now to bring ‘systemic change’ in our society by networking with the Vincentian family with non-government organizations within and outside the countries, with persons/groups of other faith. It entails organizing the poor as groups and communities so that they can address their poverty through solutions that are long term. Organize child line through which the people can inform us about any issues of children. Let us go a little further ahead from our daily routines.
Children have no way
to resist, no voice, no power. Time is up for each one of us to rise for it is
our turn to become prophets of our time, to become voice of the voiceless, to bring
alive Vincent and Louise through our way of seeing, relating, being present,
and doing.
CONCLUSION
Let us remember the
children who are deprived of the sweet memories of their childhood… who are
born to work in their tender age… who keeps their sweet dreams and unfulfilled
desires within their wounded hearts… who extend their “Life” just to satisfy
their hunger. “When our laws become like cobwebs which may catch small flies
but let wasps and hornets through”,[5]
when the life of animals are important than human (e.g. Save Tiger plan,
increasing the love for pets, worship of some animals), let us not allow our children
to become like silk worms (the silk worm dies of its wealth) because it is
their time to be like the butterflies. Arise! “The night is far gone…Let us
then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light”. Today it
is our turn…..[6] to bring
DAWN OUT OF DARKNESS. Always remember, “A
journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step!”
