Friday, December 16, 2011

Bend, Don’t Break, with the Wind


Having lived by the ocean for many years, I’ve observed the strength and beauty of the tall palm trees that grow at the water’s edge. These stately giants are able to withstand the hurricane-force winds that uproot and destroy many larger, older, and more majestic trees. What is the palm trees’ secret to staying in one piece through huge, devastating storms? They bend almost down to the ground at times, and it’s that ability that allows them to survive. The Tao invites us, too, to be resilient, elastic, and pliant when we face the powerful winds that are part of life. When destructive energy comes along, allow yourself to resist brokenness by bending. Look for times when you can make the choice to weather a storm by allowing it to blow through without resistance. How does this work? Be willing to adapt to whatever may come your way by initially allowing yourself to experience that potentially destructive energy, much like the bending tree in the hurricane. When criticism comes, listen. When powerful forces push you in any direction, bow rather than fight, lean rather than break, and allow yourself to be free from a rigid set of rules—in doing so, you’ll be preserved and unbroken. Keep an inner vision of the wind symbolizing difficult situations as you affirm: I have no rigidity within me. I can bend to any wind and remain unbroken. I will use the strength of the wind to make me even stronger and better preserved.

Namaste.

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UDAAN


THE IMAGE OF THE YOUTH TODAY


“RUIN & MISERY MARK THEIR WAYS, AND THE WAY OF PEACE THEY DO NOT KNOW.”- The bible


It is logical to ask why. What causes the youth of today to strike at the face of law & order, to lash out at their parents, friends and enemies alike with hatred, jealousy, and indecency to such alarming degrees?What has so dramatically caused our youth to become callous and hedonistic that material pursuits have become the call of the day?If we grapple with these questions for a while, we know that it is nothing but the perpetual erosion of moral absolutes from our culture which has resulted in such mayhem.When youth do not have a personal value that separate the right from the wrong, wheat from chaff, there is nothing to prevent them from treading the path to a cold disregard for values a human life holds.Restoring the moral absolutes to the fabric of our society is pivotal to the solution of dealing with the leviathan of immorality but not the entire solution.We must not only ensure the youth from getting immersed in a culture that glorifies hedonism, violence, illicit sex, drugs and other evils but also allow them to experience love and nurture of a caring family and companionship of true friends.Our youth must learn what it means to honor and respect people & property and value life. And this was how udaan took birth into the minds of few young students, all of them being like your next door kids but still desiring to make a difference in the society..

UDAAN-A SMALL INSIGHT

Udaan is a surge towards the open sky of love, faith, hope, courage, dignity and undying happiness...we the Youth are the foundation of the society and if the foundation remains weak, decadence is just a matter of time. Hence, to attempt to provide solutions and to firefight the imminent collapse of the future is what udaan is all about.It’s an Endeavour to help our friends recognize the beauty of life – it’s a big heart that cares for you, a small mind that understands & provides answers to your problems & questions. It is a medium to lend you a hand and show you the right path. It’s a weapon to destroy the fear deep rooted in the hearts of the youth, a ray of hope for the hopeless, a friend that shares your burdens and cares. Udaan - “it’s a step at a time” towards a better and glorious tomorrow.

VISION STATEMENT

Udaan a youth organization aspires “to impact this generation positively & challenge them to live spotlessly pure lives, sustained by integrity of character and nurtured by spiritual and moral values”

MISSION STATEMENT

Udaan –a youth organization, works to broaden the perceptions of the youth s about life and its worth.It aims at comprehensive growth of the youth to wake up to their potential and channelize their vast reservoir of energy to bring down the insurmountable.

OBJECTIVES OF UDAAN

· To create awareness among students about basic human values and principles of life.
· To develop an overall personality of the youth by emphasizing on sensitive and emotional intelligence.
· To inculcate strong ethical moral and spiritual values in students.
· To help students learn character defining qualities like tolerance, adjustment & decision making.
· To provide the best possible counseling to the students, to help solve their problems.

PROGRAM METHODOLOGY

Almost 3 years of our going research, training and experience have gone into the methodology that Udaan adopts, to reach out to the youth. it includes:
· Udaan introductory session: Consisting of ice breakers, games, choreography, etc. interspersed with a briefing of the history of udaan.

· Natak: Professionally scripted and performed plays such as loose control, enlightment, crazy 6.5, looking into the problems and issues students are facing.
· The interactive session: A discussion forum between the professionally experienced team of udaan. Counselors and the students taking up the issues bothering the students like relationships, time management, stress management, career choices and so on.
· Enactment: Udaan provides a platform for the students to showcase their talents and their creative flamboyance/flair to think up ideas, script plays, write songs and poems on some contemporary issues.
· The big jam: The time of fun filled singing and music with ‘Electrika’- the udaan band.

STUDENT COUNSELLING

We normally think of udaan counselors as someone to whom students go to when things are not working the way we think or believe they should. These are all good concepts but we find that youth interaction create awareness about self realization i.e. purpose of life. After all the purpose of learning is, learning how to get through life, hopefully in one piece and in harmony. The emphasis on youth interaction and udaan counseling is to help individuals find out who they are , their purpose, their gifts, and help them walk in the path that of a human being with strong ethics and ethos . We our own self are the best teacher and once a person is connected with their purpose and their calling they will not be happy or content with anything else outside. Individuals and students are able to learn far faster than in normal teaching settings as the focus is on purpose of life as the center of all things. Once purpose is at the center, things are in balance. Once balance is obtained individuals and students are able to learn more, retain more, and learn to become a part of the solution. This is true for children, youth and adults. One is just a little bigger than the other and perhaps older, but the needs are the same.

UDAAN HELPLINE CENTRE

Udaan counseling center (a counseling center for youth issues) started on 1st July ’08 at head office’ vidhyut nagar. A team of energetic youth under the guidance of renowned physiatrist, counselors, experienced lecturer solves issues. Udaan deals in various issues students face, few pertinent problems are: emotional, career, family and friend, study related, sexual, behavioral adjustment, tension and depression, memory, physiological, lack of concentration, drug rehabilitation.Careful listening is the largest part of what udaan counselors do. We make sure students must share the problem areas in their own terms and help them define what they wish to do next. We actively offer suggestions for further ways of investigating or begin to resolve the problems; sometimes we are less interventive and let the work proceed more at the students pace.Udaan Basic counseling is offered free of charge to students as part of the udaan- a youth organization designed to help them make most of their life. If students need more specialized or more intensive support than the udaan counseling center can refer to an outside service. Some of these are free of charge; others do take a charge.In present scenario, seeing a counselor doesn't mean you are ill. However, where there are some symptoms of illness - depression, anxiety etc. - counseling can be helpful. Counselors will not treat you as a sick person, but rather as someone going through a bad time.Udaan counselor profiles are:

Name of Counselor -Field of Expertise

Ajay Krishna sharma -Study and time management
Aswani khandelwal body -building , nutrition n diet
D.P.Madhu -career counselor
Dr. Sanjay agarwal -Law and dispute related issues
M.L.Goel -Over all student behavior
Nitin pal singh -art of living teacher
Rampal vidhyabhaskar- Moral n social values
Ravi goenka -public speaking n spoken eng
Surkesh sir -company law, managment eng
Vrindavan das ji -Spiritual guru

LOOKING FORWARD TO YOU

With its growing size of operations and the expenses & costs involved in propagating the ‘Vision of Udaan’, we strongly feel that the pocket money of the members and donations from some like-minded individuals would not suffice. Today we look forward for the continued support and encouragement of many more individuals and organizations alike, so that Udaan may not die out of financial constraints but keep touching hearts and changing lives of many more youth.
ALL FOR ONE
cheerz!!