YOUTH POWER
Some people dream of great accomplishments, while others stay awake and do them. Today, India, the world and the Rotary movement need youngsters like you, the Rotaractors, to stay awake and build a strong nation, a peaceful world and a vibrant Rotary movement.
It is always a great privilege to be associated with the Rotaract because of the high standards the new generation is able to learn in community service. Inspiration can move us in different ways. It can help us to face a challenge with renewed hope and determination. It can remind us to be proud of our confidence with which we have overcome obstacles. And sometimes it can take root in our hearts and guide the way we look at life. Rotaract is that kind of inspiration that will have a profound impact on your life. The message of Rotary is simple. This message is passed on to you through Rotaract and to children through Interact. The message is this: “Our lives are not defined by the date we were born or the date we die, but by what we do with that life in between.”
Young people’s commitment to the welfare of the community is unmatched in India and the number of Rotaract clubs is an indication of that. It is important that the art of serving humanity and willingness to give and share what you have with those who are less fortunate is learnt at an early age. This is the purpose of Rotaract. Through our Rotary movement we aim to do a random act of kindness and touch the lives of millions, each one of you here and everywhere. Rotary and Rotaract help to discover more opportunities to spread positivity in this world.
When it comes to service, many Rotaractors have shown that they cannot be contented with what their club has achieved right now and that they are willing to find to what great heights they can go if they strive harder. This is a leadership quality and Rotaract builds this within young people who will lead the country.
Youngsters like you, especially professionals, who are battling it out for growth in your chosen career should have the necessary motivation to lead your country in the coming years and this extra inspiration is being provided in your growing age through Rotaract and later developed through Rotary.
Culturally and spiritually this is the richest land on the planet. To live and operate in this world you have to identify yourself with something superior and that is service to humanity. What is the best way to approach Rotaract and Rotary? It is through a spirit of service and celebration of humanity in everyone around you.
Rotary and its partners in service, Rotaract and Interact clubs, are not merely symbolic. It is true on an energy level which pushes you towards service and higher thinking. As human beings, we arise from the earth and become active in our various stages of growth. After a while, we fall back into inertia once again. But we have the capability of breaking this cycle. That is why when you join Rotaract you automatically get an aspiration to transcend, to go beyond your own capabilities and when the Rotaractors become Rotarians they are able to give a more definite dimension to the idea of service.
So what makes service through Rotary and Rotaract exciting? Rotary and Rotaract makes your service activity exuberant. With a bouquet of activities, a Rotaract club removes the drudgery normally associated with service and makes it worthwhile for every member to contribute their skills in whatever way they desire.
So we find that Rotarians crossed their limitations when they challenged themselves to eradicate polio from the world and today we are very close to that. By partnering Rotary in this noble task, Rotaractors played and immense role all over India during the National Immunisation Days. Rotarians and Rotaractors, I will say, make the most powerful pair in the world when it comes to volunteering.
The desire to serve comes when your inner wellbeing is taken care of. Like there is a technology to create external wellbeing, there is a whole dimension of science and technology to create your inner wellbeing. Rotaract brings you that science and technology easily and in a fashion that can be assimilated by an ordinary person. This is why we say that Rotary makes an ordinary person do extraordinary things.
Rotary’s service opportunities have shown the world that the future is something that does not exist in our experience, but it exists as a possibility. That is why every service project is designed to make the world a slightly better place to live and we have seen how communities are being benefitted. Rotarians are propelled by compassion and do what is needed.
Stewardship is critical to the success of the Foundation. Our stewardship resources directly impacts the reputation of the Foundation among Rotarians and the general public. As stewards of The Foundation, Rotarians are responsible to donors to use donations appropriately.
When we say Service Above Self in Rotary, it does not mean that a Rotarian or a Rotaractor is required to be constantly glued to this project or that. Rotary is not against pleasure. It is just that Rotarians and Rotaractors find something more intense and enduring within themselves when they go around the world as volunteers in a Rotary service programme.
All of us want others to be nice to us. So it means we have to nice to others. If you want to change others, you have to change yourself first to become a transformed person. It is this action of yours that will trigger transformation in others. Rotaract aims to teach you how to go about transforming yourself at an early age since there is a popular saying which goes like this, “What can’t be learnt when you are 5 can’t be learnt when you are 50.” The classic example of this is Japan, since we seem to have totally forgotten to inculcate the sense of discipline in our children. This is where you, the Rotaractors, come in. By your sterling behaviour you should be an example to your brothers and sisters at home, your friends in colleges and your colleagues at work. That stamp of Rotaract culture which distinguishes you as a trustworthy person should always be seen in every action of yours.
This is what will make you alive to the needs of the society around you and make you serve others. Only those who are fully awake can be of help to others. If you are asleep can you wake up others? Rotaract gives you the light to lead the way when you grow up and aspire to lead the organisation and country. If you are in darkness how can you become the source of light to others?
You are all intelligent people. Probably more intelligent that your parents and earlier generations in some spheres. For service you need empathy more. Rotaract tries to slowly elevate your consciousness towards leading a holistic life where you are in sync with others around you which includes humans, animals and plant life. You need to spread the word to those who degrade our environment that life cannot sustain if they continue to pollute and exhaust all natural resources. This message must be spread by you people in every part of the city you live. Fortunately rural areas are still better but what is needed there is the education against open defecation and you can take the project of Swach Bharat across to boys and girls in villages more easily than grownups.
With some love for every life around you and some empathy, you can save the environment and transform the world. You can and You must. Nothing can stop you from doing this except your own ideas about yourself.
I have a poem for you and this is set to the tune of the famous song ‘Bachelor Boy by Cliff Richard. This song is titled ‘When I was 18.’
When I Was 18
When I was 18 my father said
Son I’ve something to say
And then what he told me I’ll never forget
Until my dying day
He said son you’ll soon grow up
And become a fine young lad
So I want you to join Rotaract
And learn to serve like your dad
He said son there is no peace in this world
It’s always full of strife
But you can make people change
And that’s the purpose of life
He said son people need your help
So do what you can do through Rotaract
And learn to love and learn to give
And keep your life intact
He said son the world around you
Has lots of people in good measure
Not all of them are happy like you are
They need your time, talent and treasure
He said son start to see all people as one
And like them for what they are
Rotary will take you closer to them
Whether they are near you or far
So I joined the Rotaract and I’m happy for it
And I now know the way
I’ll work for peace in the world
And serve till my dying day.