That's a Goal!!!

With my eyes towards the ball midway in air, I clumsily moved ahead crossing half a dozen kids when somehow, someone wearing a blue jersey pushed the ball towards me with a forceful effect of his right foot and I miraculously turned the ball in the right direction, one kick and it was right inside the post, keeper's foot missed it with just about two inches and it was just this easy for me to score the first goal of my life. All I had to do was to be at the right place.

This made me think how was I at that place or what inspired me to be there. This was in the first minute of the second half of the football match between dream a dream kids and nike employees.

Minutes before this all I was doing was watching them all play from a distant and when Pooja asked me why am I not playing all I could say was "I'll go in for the second match", well, there was no second match..Rakesh knew it and he literally pushed me into the game with a few other kids who could not play in the first half as substitutes for the players who were really tired...That one little push made a difference to me, I scored the first Goal of my life, that's big..at least for me..And the truth is that it'll be big and important for anyone...Think of the kids who were playing there first match, who were competing against each other and against their own selves, their own limitations for the first time, who were experiencing the spirit of the game and togetherness of the team and more than anything they were experiencing the human will to WIN. They all wanted to WIN and not as an individual but as a TEAM. They were pushing themselves, running from one side of the ground to another.

And how did this all happen?...with the efforts of a few individuals in the Dream Team and Nike.

That's what the Dream Team strives to do, they work to push people to their best. They strive to make kids aware of their potential, they are trying to give them dreams, aims and GOALS. Now, that's a GOAL!!!

Today, I made a difference

Here's one of my post on the dream blog.

Today.

Teach For India

Sometimes connecting the dots, as Steve Jobs puts it, becomes so easy. Somehow someday I started with this idea of joining Abhigyaan, then starting a blog where everyone associated with Abhigyaan can share there thoughts and experiences and then someone posting stuff about Teach For India on it.

The very first moment I saw that something like this exists I called up Ravi and Abhishek and told them that WE can DO something. Something significant and something that resonates with our thoughts and plans.

Everything about Teach For India excited me, the content on its website, the people associated with it, the methodology, the subtlety with which the biggest of all dreams has been shared, the straightforward way in which the problems our country is facing and solutions to them are mentioned, everything caught hold of my imagination.
The most amazing thing was thrown at me when I checked out the application procedure, The biggest application I had ever seen, it has some 6 pages and comprises of almost everything anyone can know about you. The minutest of the details. Writing those essays was overwhelming. Looking back at everything you have done in your life and how it has shaped you, the way you are now....It was too good and in a way it helped me understand the significance of everything that we do in life and how it affects our persona.
But, this was just the beginning of an awe-inspiring process. Application submission was followed by telephonic interviews and then a looooong assessment center. Although I was directly called to the assessment center..yay!!! a lot of guys had to go through the telephonic interview which again was grueling to them...

It will take another looonnng post to describe the assessment center. For now I will let you know the final result...I GOT IN...I have been offered admission to the fellowship 2010. yoyoyoyoyo
But the process has just begun..making THE DECISION...and getting family and friends to accept and believe in THE DECISION...