Brother Gaston Dayanand
Dear brothers and sisters of Asha Bhavan Center (ABC),
It seems impossible to me to tell you year after year, how much I love you all, secretary, director and your family, workers, members, well-wishers, and of course above all, your beautiful but suffering kids, my own great-grand-children...
You know also quite well how much I appreciate your work, because of its efficiency, deep thinking, original and even genial way in preparing schemes, your audacity to propose to Rehabilitation Council Of India, Government of India gratitude that the families of children have towards your care, your compassion, your sharing and your love, and eventually, the appreciation the donors themselves have to you because they feel so proud to help ABC, especially our dearest Dominique Lapierre and his wife.
From the very beginning of your long march towards 'excellence', I told you some essential things that so many social workers nowadays forget:
- Devote your priority not to build something nice, but to give love to the inmates and transmit dedication to your staff.
- Never forget that, whatever we do or want to do belongs already to God and that Healone can help you achieve your aim of service to the suffering physically or mentally challenged. Because alone, you cannot do anything really beautiful. You need the inner strength offered by God.
- Always remind your professional brothers or sisters first to think about the persons they want to help, and not the ways they have learnt to help.
- And eventually, accept in advance the praises (awards, etc) or the backlashes in com- plete equanimity, feeling satisfied that you have given your best to achieve your aim.
In our social work, it is never the end which is the more important, but the ways we perform our duties. Better 20 children loved that 100 children unloved or neglected. Better not to be the best professional if you are not the best lover of the patients. I do recognize that many NGOs seem to be extremely successful, but when examining their outstanding computerized methods internationally praised, we realize that the output is only quantitative, that the beneficiaries are far to be satisfied, and that the essential inclusive endeavour is missed.
Dear Sukeshi and John-Mary, keep on giving your time and your life as you have done up till now, during more than 40 years for the first and some 17 years for the second, and you would have fulfilled the very aim of having found A NEW WAY OF BEING SOCIAL WORKERS. Some may not agree, but close the ears to the jealous gossip and follow the Arabic proverb: "The jackals howl, but the caravan passes".
With my congratulations to all ABC members, hoping that next year will be easier for you that this year 2017 where the limited funds and various threats have somewhat hampered the cadence of your work.
Your elder brother and uncle, with the Almighty Lord of the Universe's blessings and my own,
Bro. Gaston Dayanand,
ICOD, the 14th August 2017