Challenge14
As time draws nearer for the completion of mid-term examination, my students had their luggage packed for the vacation, but I have for them a simple social project. A project according to Encarta dictionary is “a task or planned program of work that requires large amount of time, effort, and planning to complete” but the project I have designed requires no formal planning or effort, all it needs is a loving heart to share and ready hands to help.
This
idea just stuck my mind while I and my class VIII ‘B’ students were arranging
our class for the exam as instructed by school examination committee. After the
job was done we sat for a while to wish each other best wishes and had talks on
what we would be doing in the fourteen day break. Almost 90% of them would be
helping their parents in cardamom field (cardamom/elanche has taken over as the number
one cash crop recently) and this is
one best thing we see in rural Bhutan where students pick up spades as soon as
they rest their pens for vacation. Some would be rushing to continue their town
lives even if it’s just for two weeks while some are desperate to see their
parents in the far east of the country. Then I just asked what good things they
have in mind for vacation other than helping their parents and friends. Its then I felt pin drop silence in the
class.
For
a while we were sharing nervousness in silence, then I said; ‘Do you think good
for others?’ yes we do, is the immediate answer. I explained to them a little I
knew of the virtues of good thinking termed as “Menpa Jangchub Sem” in shanti
Deva’s book the path to bodhisattva way of life. The talk of “Jukpa Jangchub Sem” followed our brief
session; it’s here that we thought of ‘one
good deed a day challenge during the
break’. Before we finalized our decision I informed them that it should not
be made an obligation or term it a religious,
I just told them to do it once with their true heart to experience the true
bliss.
To
make it even clearer I provided them few simple examples as follows:-
1. Helping
old/aged person to get on or off the bus, or helping someone to load or unload luggage
if you traveling.
2. Picking
few pieces of stone/gravels and fill up pot-holes in the road, or getting footpath
or steps in your village fixed.
3. Uprooting
grasses and weeds nearby lhakhangs/chortens/mandirs,
or making a flower garden for the same.
4. Comforting
a crying child/fetching a jerry can of water
Teacher
and students like two hands at close proximity we agreed to take up the challenge
in unison and reminded ourselves that it should be a complete voluntary help we
should render to community or individuals and not something of an involuntary
one to complete the project.
Since
then I had been designing a record sheet for them and finally came up with the
following.
“Good Deed a Day Challenge”
Name…………………………………………………..
Sl.No.
|
Action
(particular help rendered to community/individuals)
|
Date
|
Brief
description of how the community/individuals respond to your kind gesture (verbal/facial
expression/body language)
|
A
brief description of how you felt after rendering your help
(happiness/satisfaction/any other feeling)
|
Name
of community or individuals you helped
|
Signature/thumb
print of community head/individuals you helped
|
Signature of
candidate Signature of Class Teacher Signature of
Principal
NOTE:
- This project won’t fetch them or me any marks our reward but a simple
satisfaction. plz give me your valuable feed backs
