A trip by the seniors to Bahai Temple and the beach

By Neena Badhwar

Sri Om Care Foundation now provides day care and activities for Indian seniors from six  convenient venues. In Chester Hill every Thursday from 10am  to 2pm; in Auburn every 2nd  and 4th  Wednesday  from 10am to 1pm; Pennant Hills every Monday from 10am to 2pm; Seven Hills every Wednesday and Friday 10am ”“ 2pm; Toongabbie 1^st and 3^rd Wednesday from 10am to 2pm and at Wentworthville First Saturday of the month 12.30 to 3.30 pm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These Day Care Centres provide opportunities for carers of older people to take a break while the elderly attend activities and socialise with other individuals. It not only gives rest to the carer but also gives an outing opportunity to a senior who at times has to live an isolated lifestyle due to old age.

Sri OmCare organises outings and picnics for the elderlies every now and then taking the seniors to some sightseeing places to parks, temples and even a beach. Sri OmCare Seniors have been to picnics together and thanks to its dedicated workers who are trained in aged care as they help everyone smilingly. The food prepared by Sri OmCare   cooks  is also made fresh on the day with nutrition needs of Indian seniors in mind. Dishes are mainly Indian served along with sweets and fresh fruit.

The Pennant Hills seniors went for an outing to Bahai Temple and Dee Why Beach on February 1, 2016. Pinky Anand cooked a delicious menu which was served hot to everyone’s delight. There was delicious Punjabi Kadi, Baingan Aloo, Rice and Fresh Chapatis followed by Sooji Halwa with kishmish and a piece of banana fruit for everyone.

Says Pinky,”My husband knows that the food must be freshly cooked for the elderly. So we got up at 5am and made the dishes as well as the chapatis.”

The first stopover was Bahai Temple where the seniors were served tea, coffee and snacks. Then they were shown a video on Bahai Faith which believes and respects all the religions.

Bahai faith is a monotheistic  religion which emphasizes the spiritual unity of all humankind. It was founded in Persia in the 19^th century by Bahá’u’lláh. Three core principles establish a basis for Bahá’í teachings and doctrine: the unity of God, that there is only one  God  who is the source of all creation  ; the unity of religion, that all major religions have the same spiritual source and come from the same God; and the unity of humanity, that all humans have been created equal, coupled with the unity of diversity, that diversity of race and culture are seen as worthy of appreciation and acceptance.  According to the Bahá’í Faith’s teachings, the human purpose is to learn to know and to love God through such methods as prayer, reflection  and being of service to humanity.

Our Indian seniors afterwards went inside the Bahai Temple. The temple precinct has high ceilings and a very calm and peaceful atmosphere. We were asked to pray there in our own prayer. So we decided to do Arti but before that we read the Bahai prayer provided to us in Hindi.

क्या ईश्वर के अतिरिक्त कठिनाइयों को दूर करनेवाला अन्य कोई है ? ईश्वर का गुणगान करो।   वही ईश्वर है।   हम सभी उसके सेवक हैं तथा उसके आदेश से प्रतिबंधित हैं।

– बाब

हे मेरे परमेश्वर ! हे मेरे परमेश्वर ! अपने सेवकों के हृदयों को मिला कर एक कर दे और उनके समक्ष अपने महान उदेश्य को प्रकट कर जिससे वे तेरे आदेशों का अनुसरण कर सकें और तेरे विधि विधानों का पालन कर सकें।   हे परमेश्वर ! उनके प्रयासों में उनकी सहायता कर और उन्हें अपनी सेवा करने की शक्ति प्रदान कर।   हे प्रभो! उन्हें केवल उनके स्वयं के ऊपर न छोड़ और उनके पगों का तेरे ज्ञान के प्रकाश द्वारा मार्गदर्शन कर और अपने प्रेम से उनके ह्रदय को आनंदित कर दे।   सत्य ही तू उनक असह्यक और स्वामी है।

– बहाउल्लाह

मैं साक्षी हूँ, मेरे ईश्वर की मुझे जानने और तेरी हेतु तूने मुझे उत्पन्न किया है।   मैं इस क्षण अपनी शक्तिहीनता अवं तेरी शक्तिमानता, अपनी दरिद्रता तथा तेरी सम्पन्नता का साक्षी हूँ।

तेरे अतिरिक्त अन्य कोई ईश्वर नहीं।   तू ही संकटों मैं हमारा सहायक तथा स्वयंजीवी है।

– बहाउल्लाह

 

We chanted our arti as it echoed in the hall and rose high up into the ceiling. It was quite an experience as we all felt very good afterwards. Soon we were taken to the Dee Why beach where our chef Pinky lost her shoe to the roaring waves that came to meet us at the shore. Many of us stayed away from the water but some bold ones tried to face the waves and got wet. As we walked away Pinky left her other lonely shoe too at the beach as it had no use to her after we watched the waves for some time that perhaps the sea may  hand the shoe back to us.

As it was drizzling it was hurriedly decided to go visit Davidson Park which is situated near the water as an overhead bridge takes busy traffic from one end to the other end of the city. But underneath the bridge sitting on the plush green grass growing there we were served the sumptuous yet simple Punjabi meal.

 

 

 

 

Everyone was happily fed and smiling and hugging everyone as we boarded the bus back for our return journey back home. We had gathered in our memory a beautiful day together as Shweta Sharma’s blue tooth sang loudly through its speaker some wonderful old numbers such as ”˜Ajeeb dastan ha ye kahan shuru kahan khatam’. Even where we had sat we had this beautiful yet shy possum observing us from the crevices of the wall where our table was.

Sri OmCare’s caring and always smiling workers in Mehdi, Shweta, Sanjita and Pinky made it a wonderful outing for all. It was as if they already practice what the Bahai faith teaches and preaches ”“ that is to know and love God through service to humanity. Thank you Sri Om Care!

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