AFVOA Newletters of Year 2008

Page 27 of 56 who spoke about short comings and had genuine suggestions . Whether it was in consoling or counsel ing he exhibit ed deep underst anding and uncommon humaneness. Of ten he gave valuabl e hint s on the thinking in higher echelons regarding vet erans’ wel fare and at the same t ime he explained the amount of ‘pushing’ they are having to do to make the civil government lis ten to the memoranda presented by them. We saw in him an epitome of a soldier of that other rough world out there who was also a gentleman in soci al society. 39. Aft er an interesting and enjoyabl e evening the vet erans partook with GOC-in-C of an excell ent dinner whi ch was so graciously hosted by the Area HQ. In any contest between power and patience, Bet on patience. W.B. Prescott STATION EVENT The St ation Social , one of the most popular events of the Station was held on 19 May 2008. The date was a departure f rom the past practi ce of holding it on the l as t Saturday of the month. The dat e was chosen keeping in view the full moon and the holiday that followed on account of Budha Poornima the following day. An even more wel come departure was that inst ead of holding it in the Palm Grove Compl ex it was held this time on the sandy Beach-Front of INS ADYAR. From the moment of the announcement the expect ations among our members was palpable. The very idea of spending an evening on a sandy beach lapped by the rhythmic waves of the Bay of Bengal with the full moon shining on top was captivating. Confi rmations came pouring in and this was one Station Social where the number attendees of Veterans and fami lies almost equall ed the Serving Frat ernity. The beach- front i s a vast expanse of meti culously maint ained sandy space. The periphery was t ast efully l ight ed up. There was ample area to walk around and meet people. Clust ers of children here and there built sand fortresses only to t rampl e them and begin rebuilding again. Tables and chai rs were l aid out for those who wi shed to rel ax list ening to the softly flowing gazal music wat ching the s ilvery sea on whi ch the moon incessantly creat ed ever changing designs of light and shade. Excell ent ar rangements had been made for food and snacks on coupons . Those present hardly realized the passage of time amidst the meeting, greeting and eating. The children had so much more to pl ay and grown ups had so many more stories to swap but all too soon one found that the night was not so young and every one agreed that the t ime to part had come. Every one expressed a heart felt thanks to Commodore PV Van Halt ren, VSM, the Naval Of ficer In Charge, Tamil Nadu, his of ficers and men for taking so much pains in organizing a memorabl e St ation Soci al . Words, once they are printed, have a life of their own. Carol Burnett Confirmation by telephone for attending AGM & Dinner be sent by 04 Jun 08.