It is said that speaking in public is the numero uno fear in people; but kids at Udaan have always been special and different from the rest.
I am volunteering for the Saturday Club again in this term, but chose a different club just to break the monotony. This Saturday was my first time with "The Book Club". I was there early to soak in the atmosphere and to comfort the butterflies in my own stomach. 25-30 young kids entered the room and were neatly divided into 6 groups with one volunteer in each group. I had 5 curious minds joining me in my group. After a quick round of introductions, we faced the mighty challenge to pick only one of the multiple stories packaged in attractive colors and characters. To solve the great mystery, we applied the time trusted technique of - "Akkad Bakkad Bambe Bo". This broke the ice. We then dived right into the colorful world of 'Bubbles' - the naughty chimp and talked about his extravaganza of drawing on the walls of his home and then helping his Mom clean it up. My 5 friends then all drew a bouquet and added a thank you note for their own Moms. Then came the interesting part of one kid in each group going to the center of the classroom and sharing the story with all. I was preparing myself for having to convince one of the kids to take this up, but it was the other way round. All the 5 were keen to take this up and I, instead had to convince them that only 1 of them will get to be the narrator that day.
This Saturday, I learnt the true meaning of the old adage of "Converting challenges into opportunities". Adulthood brings a lot of fear and scepticism with it, but sky is the limit for these kids. They are ready to take the flight, to take that 'Udaan'.
