Nothing is Impossible

My cousin had Down's syndrome. After she passed away in 2001, her sister, Parvin, and I created and administer a trust to train young ladies like her to live workable lives. We found a few reliable institutions and funded 3 kids back then. Today, we provide funding for about 30 around India and track each child's progress carefully . One of the nice things is that Coffee Cafe Day, an upmarket cafe has recognized that these human beings, too, have hearts of gold and can serve. At one of the cafe's Delhi branches, all their serivice staff have Down's. There are two 'regular' supervisors. The wonderful thing is that customers, after they get over the initial shock of their stereotypes colliding with a different reality, they are in complete awe of seeing the impossible become delightfully everyday! Now, Coffee Cafe Day is considering hiring humans with Down's, usually deemed unworkable in a customer service context, on a city-wide, possibly nation-wide scale.

Aruna's birthday is coming up, and I was just remembering her.

And just on a compltely different -sort of - note Mumbai airport has a new venture called Foot Bar. It provides reflexology, and foot massage for weary travellers. The therapists are almost all - blind.

I love it when I can see people and myself being used well, for a purpose bigger than ourselves..

Reminds me of something George Bernard Shaw wrote:
"I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generation.".