A New Year's Resolution, Comes the Dawn

My New Year's resolution this year is to reach out and connect more with the people around me. It's funny, I use this blog to bare my heart and soul sometimes, yet struggle to find the time to share even just a tiny ounce of myself with my peers and fellow Baan Unrak volunteers living in our little village.

This has got to change, for the sake of my own sanity. Every day I'm making decisions that directly affect dozens of children, and every night I'm shouldering more and more of the burden it requires to work with troubled youth...it gets too heavy sometimes, even for me, and I will go mad if I continue to keep it all bottled in.

So let's communicate more, shall we? For now, let me start with some sharing, the poem of the month for me! Hope this helps get you through a tough day, if you're ever having one.

Comes the Dawn Author: Veronica A. Shoffstall

After a while you learn the subtle difference
Between holding a hand and chaining a soul,
And you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning
And company doesn’t mean security,
And you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts
And presents aren’t promises,
And you begin to accept your defeats
With your head up and your eyes open
With the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child,
And you learn to build all your roads on today,
Because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans,
And futures have a way of falling down in mid-flight.
After a while you learn
That even sunshine burns if you get too much.
So you plant your own garden and decorate your own soul,
Instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure...
That you really are strong,
And you really do have worth.
And you learn and learn...
With every goodbye you learn.

Happy New Year to all friends and family, at home and afar!

Ananda Marga Retreat: Malaysia 2011

Ananda Marga, What Is It?

Ananda Marga is a global spiritual and social service organization founded in 1955 by Shrii Shrii Anandamurti (Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar), lovingly referred to as Baba which means"father" in Sanskrit.

"The mission of Ananda Marga is self-realization (individual emancipation) and service to humanity (collective welfare): the fulfillment of the physical, mental and spiritual needs of all people. Through its meditation centers and service projects around the world, Ananda Marga offers instruction in meditation, yoga and other self-development practices on a non-commercial basis, and responds to social emergencies and long-term social needs.”

The Philosophy:

“There is in the living being a thirst for limitlessness.” Most things in this world are ‘limited’, meaning they may provide pleasure for only a short while; we as humans can never be satisfied with limited things, and it is in our nature to crave long-lasting happiness. Infinite happiness, or bliss, is attainable if we aim to expand our awareness, develop our capacity to love and connect with all life, and create a personal relationship with the greater ‘cosmic consciousness’ that guides this life (which we may call God.)

Ananda Marga teaches ‘self-realization’, the practice that leads to the discovery of infinite peace and happiness.

“It is an ideology and way of life; a systematic and scientific process for the fulfillment of all human needs: physical, mental and spiritual. It is introversial, intuitional practice; with techniques ranging from personal hygiene to yoga postures; from social service to meditation. Its goal is the all-round elevation of human beings, both individually and collectively, in all spheres of human existence: individual, social, economic, intellectual and spiritual.”

Ananda Marga Volunteer Service Projects:

"As an organization, Ananda Marga has a global network of centers in virtually every country of the world. Its activities encompass a wide range of projects for the welfare of humanity, animals, plants and the whole planet. These include yoga and meditation centers, schools, children’s homes, food distribution centers, disaster relief, medical centers and community development projects. Emphasis is placed on meeting the needs of the local people and assisting them in developing their personal and social resources for the prosperity of all."

Baan Unrak is just one of the many Neo-Humanist organizations worldwide, and Didi Devamala (a nun in the order) is teaching these very same principles of 'self-realization' to all of her children in the Home. At this retreat in Malaysia I got up close and personal with the organization, and met a lot of followers (Margis) walking very different, and interesting, paths in life. Overall, the retreat was a collection of nearly 200 individuals, who at various stages in their lives came together in search of one thing: the need for collective peace and happiness. I found everyone to be extremely giving, supportive and generous as we joined with the children from Baan Unrak in group meditation and 'kiirtan' (see video above.)

If you'd like to learn more, check out the organization's website here. Click on the links for more information about teaching centers nearest you, and the network of volunteer centers and service projects worldwide.

Baan Unrak Travels: Singapore & Malaysia!

The Baan Unrak traveling troupe has safely returned home with great stories from their first adventure abroad!

THE JOURNEY:

I was invited to spend the past 3 weeks as a care-taker for 18 kids (ages 7-17 years old) from the Baan Unrak Children's Home. We traveled from Bangkok to Singapore and Malaysia, showcasing yoga and dance performances. I also helped Didi participate in talks and meetings about social welfare development, promoted fundraising for our Home, and helped to sell a range of products from our single mother's project Weaving Center.

Didi Devamala asked me to help lead her children abroad knowing that she would be called away regularly for important meetings and conferences. That left me with a new catch phrase for the kids, 'Who's the boss?!'

More importantly, it left me with 18 passports, 18 invitation letters and important travel documents, endless customs and immigration forms, organizing flights and transfers (with small panic attacks whenever one of the small children left my line of sight), leading sightseeing trips on our free time, setting wake up calls for morning meditation and picking fights with the big children about curfew 'lights out!' each and EVERY night...the days were long, filled with: cooking, cleaning, walking, running, screaming, laughing, and loving (especially for the small children who were homesick nearly every night.)

The journey was incredible but exhausting. We had no money for spare creature comforts, so we traveled humbly. We were invited to sleep in yoga centers in Malaysia and Singapore (on the condition that we vacated each day they had a class scheduled); and we kept a strict regimen of cooking and cleaning so as not to impose on our hosts' hospitality. Sleeping on the hard wood floors every night with only a thin blanket did something funny to my back and shoulders, and I think I've earned a few more grey hairs in my top-bun than I originally expected...For me, traveling in this fashion was a challenge as well. When I travel, I'm used to splurging here and there for a cup of coffee or extravagant meal; however I didn't want to flaunt my money in front of the kids and I didn't want to buy anything I couldn't share with all 20 of us...so I learned a few lessons myself about truly traveling without expense.

However, seeing these kids on a plane for the first time in their lives...was something special for me. I had to teach them how to buckle and unbuckle the plane seat belts; how to use the airplane toilet (they were afraid of the noise!); how to navigate through an airport and find their gate; how to pack and prepare for a trip abroad each travel day; how to 'pop' the pressure from their ears when the pain became too much! On the second flight back from Malaysia to Bangkok, they were seasoned pros already...and I was one proud Care-Takin' Mama.

SINGAPORE:

In Singapore the kids performed for long-time donors and friends of Baan Unrak, and they got to visit some incredible sights: the Merlion, the Discovery Center and Snow City, Singapore Zoo and Night Safari, the Jurong Bird Park, a boat trip around the bay, a cruise down Orchard Street, and a beach day at Sentosa Island complete with a night showing of laser lights, song and dance! These kids were so lucky, on my first trip to Singapore I couldn't do any of these fun things because the entrance fees were too expensive...lucky for them to have such generous sponsors, and lucky for me to get to tag along!

MALAYSIA:

In Malaysia, the kids participated in a yoga and meditation retreat for 3 days and had great audiences for their performances. On their free time they visited the iconic towers of downtown Kuala Lampur, little India, Chinatown and surrounding sights. They spent a total of 11 days abroad, and packed in as many activities as they could!

THE RETREAT:

The retreat was organized by the Ananda Marga community (Margis) who are made up of followers of the Neo-Humanist philosophy worldwide, the very same philosophy backing the Baan Unrak Home and Foundation.

Every year retreats like this are organized in different corners of the world, and the purpose of each retreat is to have a collective gathering to embrace spirituality, and to hold meetings for the Didis and Dadas (nuns and monks of the order) to meet and review each other's volunteer projects and discuss issues and social development plans in the regions they are based in. I was fascinated, meeting these Didis and Dadas and learning more about the philosophy. In my next post I will be sure to load more photos and videos of the retreat and share more about what I have learned of Neo-Humanism over the past few weeks.

AT THE END OF THE DAY...

The most rewarding part of the trip has been seeing a sense of pride develop and evolve in the children as Thai citizens; and as they compared life abroad to their own humble upbringing they felt a renewed sense of appreciation for many of the values they were brought up with at Baan Unrak.

I have also developed a renewed sense of hope in mankind's capacity to give selflessly. So many people came together to support this trip for us and everyday people spent hundreds of dollars making sure we were fed, well taken care of and entertained during our stay. Most of the people who helped us had never met these kids before, and some people only heard a few words about our project before they were inspired to hand over wads of cash for Didi...It was really something else. Our kids truly touched the lives of hundreds of individuals, merely by their presence.

More than once people came to me privately thanking me for the work I was doing...this made me uncomfortable and I felt undeserving to be honest. I never thought of what I was doing here as a truly selfless act; it was very much my own selfish love that brought me here to live with these kids...however, I did feel energized that there were so many people I came into contact with over the past few weeks who were in awe and support of what I was doing with my life... I must admit their words filled my heart with something I must have felt missing and needing right now. Not glorification...but exoneration from my conscious debt to 'modern mass' society.

THANK YOUS:
This trip was the trip of a lifetime for these kids, and none of it would be possible without the generous support of our friends: our friends in Singapore and Malaysia for being such welcoming hosts and sponsoring all the fun activities for our children; Patrick Dering of Bangkok for his generous donation which carried us all the way through our journey; Chusak (aka Taraka Nat, a child from the Baan Unrak Home who had the great task of networking a relationship between the Home and Thai AirAsia); Krittawat and Mother Ladda (who were able to put us in touch directly with AirAsia); and Mr. Tassapon Bijleveld the CEO of Thai AirAsia sponsoring our tickets, for supporting our mission and providing this awesome opportunity for a very special group of children!

If you would like to see more photos from our trip abroad, check out my Picasa Web Album: Baan Unrak Travels!

Namaskar,

Stefanie

Stay tuned for the next post about the ins and outs of an Ananda Marga Meditation Retreat.

AirAsia Gives The Gift of International Travel!

Happy days! 18 of our children were eligible to apply and receive Thai citizenship and passports last month which is a great accomplishment for the Home and the success of our mission! These blessed children will also get the greatest gift of all this holiday season: the gift of international travel to Singapore & Malaysia sponsored generously by AirAsia airlines!

None of this would be possible without the generous support and determination of a few individuals: Chusak (aka Taraka Nat, a child from the Baan Unrak Home who had the great task of networking a relationship between the Home and Thai AirAsia airlines); Krittawat and Mother Ladda (who were able to put us in touch directly with AirAsia); and Mr. Tassapon Bijleveld the CEO of Thai AirAsia for sponsoring our tickets, for supporting our mission and providing this awesome opportunity for a very special group of children!

Enjoy the video of the Baan Unrak Yoga Performance, just one of 12 show pieces our kids will be performing while on the road. Stay tuned for more photos and videos, as we fly to Singapore on Friday Dec.2nd!

STAY CONNECTED: Baan Unrak Facebook (the Baan Unrak Children's Home page) and My Picasa Web Album for more photos, updates, stories and video links during our journey.

Interested in learning more about our program? After the video, keep reading for extra details (including background stories of the kids and the purpose of our travel.)

The proposed travel schedule:

Dec 2nd: Travel to Singapore

Dec 3rd-Dec 6th: Performances and sightseeing in Singapore

Dec 6th-7th: Travel to Malaysia (Kuala Lampur)

Dec 7th-11th: Retreat, performances in Kuala Lampur

Dec 12th-15th: Free Time, Sightseeing &Travel back to Thailand

Children Details: 16 kids + 3 Adult supervisors (Ayati, Taraka Nat, Stefanie) + Didi Devamala, total pax 20

Names of kids: Chamu, Mimi, Kamela, Kushuma, Panarat, Soso, Prema, Janako, Taruni, Darika, Ice, Dream, Fai, Malee, Rambo, Davie

Background of Kids:

These kids are mostly displaced children, born in remote villages along the Thai/Burmese border. Most of them have been abandoned by their parents; the primary reason being poverty and a lack of economic opportunity for families along the border. Some have been abandoned by parents that were HIV positive; because the families had no hope for a future to care for themselves, much less their children.

Mostly these kids have been brought to the Baan Unrak Children's Home as a last resort: a safe place where school, medical care, food and housing is all provided for free. These particular kids traveling are a privileged few, only 10% of the children at the Baan Unrak Childrens Home. After a challenging process, they have been able to gain government approval for Thai IDs and passports for international travel. Most importantly, these kids represent the rest of the children from their Home; the kids who have not yet received national ID cards, may never receive ID cards, and for those who may never be as lucky in the future to receive such a privilege as a Thai passport.

Purpose of the show:

Primarily, the purpose for this traveling troupe is to raise awareness about the Baan Unrak Children's Home and to promote fundraising for a major project: the construction of a new school building for the Home Schooled Teenagers. Equally important for the welfare of these children, is the hope that this trip will promote personal growth and development through international travel. For these kids, travel is a precious opportunity and rarely done outside of Bangkok city since the costs are too enormous and the logistics too difficult. Hopefully these kids will have a memorable experience to cherish in their lives; learn something new about different environments and cultures around the world, and hopefully learn something new within themselves as well.

Performances:

Singing songs---2 songs originally composed/written by Lochoy from the Baan Unrak Home

Indian Dance---5 dances

Yoga Performance---3 performances

Karen Dancing---1 dance

Thai Dancing--- 1 dance

None of this would be possible without the generous support of sponsors and friends of the Baan Unrak Home. Thank you and hope this trip will be the beginning of many more for these wonderful kids!