The Future of Rotary is in Your Hands

Another inspirational message from past Rotary International President Rajendra K. Saboo to the Rotarians of District 3090 on the occasion of PETS/SETS on 9th April 2009.

He speaks about the then Rotary International theme, The Future of Rotary is in Your Hands...relevant even today.

 

The Doll With One Eye

Every discussion on Rotary's fight against polio in India begins with one man - Past Rotary International President Rajendra K. Saboo.

He was the pioneer who gave Rotary's efforts in India a national shape, launching dedicated NIDs - National Immunization Days - when the idea of immunizing every child in a single day seemed impossible.

The journey began with a powerful symbol.

In 1991, at a UNICEF conference at the United Nations in New York, RI President Rajendra K. Saboo painted one eye of the Daruma doll, pledging Rotary's commitment to end polio. The tradition is to paint the second eye when the wish comes true."

The tradition he explained: In Japanese folklore, a child paints one eye of the doll while making a wish and paints the second eye when that wish is realised. His wish was, of course, total eradication of polio. "That Daruma doll is still waiting for its second eye, and I hope very soon an RI President will be drawing the second eye on it," he said. 

The second eye, he said, would be painted only on the day the world becomes truly polio-free.

We have travelled far since then. India is polio-free.

But our work is not done. Pakistan and Afghanistan remain endemic. As long as polio exists anywhere, children everywhere are at risk.

So the Daruma doll waits - with one eye full of hope, and one eye waiting for history.

The day we paint that second eye is not far. And it will be Rotary's finest hour.

To See, You Must Sometimes Close Your Eyes

Past Rotary International President Rajendra K. Saboo's visit to the Institute for the Blind in 2017 was not his first. For years, our Club, Rotary Club Chandigarh, has been associated with the Institute - organizing leadership programmes for its young residents and supporting them with Braille machines and Braille paper.

But this visit was different.

That afternoon on 10th April 2017, Raja Saboo did something no one expected. He tied a dark patch over his eyes and asked to be led through the building. Step by step, he navigated the maze of stairs and corridors, alongside the children, experiencing for a few minutes what they live every day -a world without sight. 

There was no media around. It was not a photo op.  It was empathy in action.

This is Raja Saboo. The man who doesn't just speak for others - he steps into their shoes to truly understand their life.