Hello everyone!
I am in the beginning of my third week of being in India, in these three weeks I have learned some Hindi, lost my inability to eat spicy food, become well aquainted with a lot of alone time(which I decided to dedicate to wild-life photography of squirrels), and faced some tough questions that I am still trying to understand and probably never fully will.
So while I am in India the NGO that I am volunteering with is called Butterflies. Butterflies works with a wide range of children’s right’s issues, including education for kids who do not go to school, working with street children and working children, as well as running a child helpline and resiliance center for kids in crisis situations. They put an emphasis on involving the kids in the organization and in having a say in their own future, which is a different emphasis than I am used to seeing in NGO’s that work with children’s rights, but its an approach that seems to me to be very insightful and far-reaching.
I have been visitng Butterflies almost every day, visitng one or another of their contact points(places where teachers or volunteers interact with various kids), and also their sports and cultural events which they hold for their kids. The Cultural evening, where the children can show off their singing and dancing skills for volunteers and other children, was amazing. One group of kids had taught themselves to do breakdancing and backflips and all kinds of crazy things from watching music videos. I was worried when they were performing, but also quite impressed.
Along with the fun and education also come a lot of tough issues. Most of these kids are willing to learn and interact with workers but many of them also face tremendous challenges. Some are ex-substance abusers and some are still in the terrible cycle of glue or solution sniffing. The face of a child high on glue is very disquieting and heart breaking. I don’t know what else I can do sometimes except pray that somehow through interactions with people from Butterflies eventually they will be able to be empowered to change their lives. My favorite place to work is the Resiliance Centre. The function of the resiliance center is similar to the children’s shleter in the states: a temporary place for kids who were in crisis situations in their families. Though they have all come from abuse, or from living on the street, these kids are truly resiliant. They greet me every time I come to visit with a thunderous ” NAMASTE DIDI” which meanst ” HI Sister” in Hindi , whil I was walking on the way to the center today, I heard this really loud music from a few houses away. When I went up the stairs and stepped into their recreaction room I found all 14 little boys dancing wildly to this bollywood music. Though thankfully they only had the music and not the skantily clad music video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTmF2v59CtIMy Name is Sheela
It was a hilarious sight to say the least, they had made up some very enthusiatic but also very strange dance moves and were not shy at all about showing them off. It was good to see them all be so happy and care free for a few hours, and just being silly little kids.
Last weekend here in New Delhi I visited the Ghandi Memorial. Visiting the memorial was very peaceful, and his words are a lasting influence to us today. To those of us who feel our actions, though well intentioned, may be insignificant, I leave you with two quotes of great people who lived and served in India.
Whatever you do may seem insignificant to you, but it is most important that you do it.
If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
Remeber that we belong to each other! 🙂