"The Startling Experience of a Trainee with Shafa Home" by Rachna

A new bee at Shama Home, has been given the opportunity to touch upon every flower. This time it was a bigger one, when they trusted me to take me to Dehradun for one day workshop “Nayi Pahal” on Awareness towards De-addiction on 16^th of February 2016 to meet the Graduate and post graduate students. Being an outside we could not be the checkers, hence, our major goal was to prepare the change agents as this program has to be taken forward by students themselves. This was successfully met, hence, paving ways for us to work with them in the future course of time.

Early Morning with sleepy eyes we welcomed a new day with a new aisle, from the capital of nation (Delhi) to capital (Dehradun) of God’s own land (Uttrakhand). It felt mystical within but the exteriors didn’t seem much different on the lapse of the two times, with nothing much at view but glances of far laid mountains at times, just made the visit as worth as a lady on seeing her valentine.

It was not just a first visit out of town but a first attempt to address a crowd, of which initially I used to be a part of. I was scared to make the movement but wanted to break free, I was scared to speak and to break free I decided to shout.  From student to Speaker, a drastic thrill, rushed in my veins and I could not chill. Their acceptance of us was shown in many forms, did show that we all do want to break free of certain norms.

Meeting the young adults and being a part of a psycho-educational program, their desire to take the movement forward:  to help their peers and let them know the consequence of addiction, was just enough the acknowledgment. Seeing them all stand tall in front of us was just like a scenic beauty of the mountains that were away and far yet visible. And I left myself there with a promise to come back, to meet those future change makers and make-up for what was in lack. 

------ by Rachna