"Change-a-thon. Are you ready to join the league?"

"Mamma, did you see the dirt at the end of our lane. We must do something.", exclaimed Adrian, a class 9th student. 

"What are you going to do son? Are you going to clean it or something?", chuckled his mother. 

"I will do something mom, something.", replied the determined Adrian. 

After a lot of contemplation, that evening Adrian took his bicycle and went around Harrington Road, clicking a few pictures.

  

He wrote an article to the local newspaper, "Avenues Harrington Road"  in Chetpet, Chennai attaching the photos above. This 13 year old did something that was remarkable and truly praiseworthy. The article in the newspaper spread like waves and immediately the garbage was cleared and Adrian became the "Hero" of the locality overnight. 

 

After this success there was no looking back for Adrian, he recently published another article called "The terrible Indian disease". (Thoughts of Cancer and Aids would have crossed your minds). Alas there is another disease that many Indians are infested with. The disease of "Urinating" at any place where they can sit and where no one is watching. Adrian provides a very effective solution to this saying that just like putting "No parking" boards, boards such as "Only dogs urinate here" or "Idiots are welcome to urinate here" can be displayed. Sarcastic yet effective isn't it?

"Be the change you want to see in the world"

This famous quote by the father of our nation, Mahatma Gandhi pertinently explains the above incident and has truly inspired me to write this blog. We are surrounded by a number of social issues that leave us perplexed. We sulk, fuss and complain about it but never do we realize that somewhere we can make a change. 

Just make a difference, raise your self-confidence, have a positive attitude about yourself and a small seed sown will bloom into a beautiful garden. 
When a 9th class student could awaken to the social problems overnight, why can't we ????????
 We dream of a better India, we want a better future for our kids but all we do is only complain. 
The questions that raise within ourselves are "Why don't others realize?","Why can't the government take steps?". 
Have we ever asked questions like, "When will i realize?", "Why can't I make a change?"  

I firmly believe in a quote by Barack Obama, The American President.

"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time, we are the ones we've been waiting for."

 Do you complain about the ever increasing heat everyday?

Wait and look back, we are the cause of it. "Global warming" is taking place because we wanted a luxurious lifestyle. What can we do at our end?

 

• Reduce using plastic and switch to more of natural stuff. You can use the newspaper at home to make paper bags and use them for your daily marketing. The other day i was reading an article which said that in many places in OOTY plastic is not used at all. When people in small hill stations can behave so matured, why do we still behave immature? Will it cost us more to use paper bags? Yes it will. But will it be more costly than the anti-tan creams you use to protect your skin from the sun.
• Drive smart: If you and you colleague drive to the same destination you can take turns in using your vehicles. Less fuel, less pollution and destination reached.
• Plant a tree and keep the heat away.
• Rain water harvesting is another step that you can take to beat the heat and not rely on tankers for that extra litre of water.

 "Why are these roads so dirty?"

 Is this what you sulk about everyday?

 We want our homes clean, we even want the porch to be clean and what do we do? Drop garbage in our neighbor's porch? Ridiculous isn't it?  You don't have to go around cleaning it. Throw your waste in the proper dustbins (who knows seeing you do this you may have a lot of followers too).

 "We organize another big protest: Anna Hazare" 
This headline hit the front page of various prominent newspapers and news channels.

 

 It made me proud to be a citizen of a country where revolutionists like Anna live. Many of us would have wanted to join the campaign against corruption. But do we realize that we too are victims and enhancers of this. Why is it that we always wait for people like Anna Hazare to come ahead and open our eyes, when will we begin to quest for the Hazare in us? Next time think twice before paying bribe to get your passport or visa work done faster.

 "I am scared I may land up having cancer because I am a victim of passive smoking". 
You have a family member who smokes continuously and are irritated about it.  

Worst part, I have often noticed that the men carrying infants often smoke. How irritating it is? We watch a lot of hoardings with pictures of a man with burnt lungs and sometimes make fun of it. Have we ever realized that someday we could be victims too. Even after knowing the reality if you feel that the longing for smoking is higher that the aftermath, then very well go ahead and spoil your life. But you do not have the right to spoil the life of the people you live with. Do you want to see your child or your wife in the ICU battling for life because of your lanky and atrocious addiction?

 India has 4% of the World's water and studies show that India will be a water-stressed nation by 2010. It's time to awaken and face the reality. I wouldn't say "conserve water " but surely using a bucket less of water everyday while bathing would suffice. Using the water that you use to wash vegetables can be used to water the plants in your garden.

As i write this blog as a part of the contest "Time to change" , I acknowledge the advertisement by Stayfree where the youngster helps the old couple and brings about a change in her friend's way of thinking.

 The above issues cover the day to day problems we are meted to. However, there are various other problems today that show the dark reality that our country is infested with. Rape cases, murder in broad daylight, female infanticide, gender bias, differences on caste, poverty, child abuse, domestic violence  against women, alcoholism, population etc are social issues that need to be addressed. 



A mother is a life giver, a sister is a life support, a wife is the best companion and a woman on the whole is an enigma who needs to be understood, nurtured and taken care of.

Can we help in these situations? I say a "yes".  If we come across such problems we can inform the concerned bodies like NGO's to look into the matter or probably write an article in the newspaper like Adrian to make people aware of it.

 Movies and short films are released on various social issues. 

We watch them and enjoy them but do we reciprocate? 

Do we come back home and contemplate on what we saw or cover our faces with blankets and fall asleep? The reality is that the blanket has become a mask that we use to cover ourselves to the pitiful site outside that we are ashamed of and wake up the next day to think on how we can cheat someone or on how we can make more money. Even if someone goes ahead to fight for a cause, we ridicule him and pull him down. If we can't find our calling, the least we can do is support the other and encourage him.

We are lazy and weak hearted to realize that change starts at our home, change starts from us. It is a process of realizing the problem, gathering courage to face it, contemplating on it’s solution and having the strength to fight for it.

Be rigid with yourself, gear up before it’s too late, join the bandwagon in making your world conducive. Now is the time to change.

Are you ready to make a change? Are you willing to take up the banner in creating a beautiful morrow?  Are you ready to create a "RENAISSANCE"?

Do you dream of a better future? Don't wait for another Mahatma?  Find the Mahatma in yourself.

Kindle your spirits and enlighten yourself. The change lies within you, quest your innate abilities and make your mark.

The time to change is now,

Stop, wait and take a vow.

Be the change you wish to see,

Reach your goal and never flee.

Open your eyes to face the truth,
Challenges are many and you will have to fight.

Dream for a better future,

Let this be your juncture.

The moon is not far to reach,
When Niel could, why cant you beseech.

Change you thoughts, let it begin with you
Heal the world and see it anew. 

IT'S THE TIME TO CHANGE!!!
MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE!!!

This post has been written as an entry to the contest "TIME TO CHANGE" ( Be the voice of change and tell us what you would want to change). If you are a part of Indiblogger you can vote for my post here.