Another month in India has come and gone swiftly. It still boggles my mind that 2010 is staring me in the face. Has it really been a decade since the hullabaloo of Y2K? funny, man.
The past month has been filled with struggles and challenges, but has also been overwhelmingly rewarding. The following quote has been highly inspirational in my life lately:
I wanted to change the world (Unknown monk 1100 AD)
“When I was a young man, I wanted to change the world. I found it difficult to change the world, so I tried to change my nation. When I found that I couldn’t change the Nation, I began to focus on my town. I couldn’t change the town, and as an older man, I tried to change my family. Now, as an old man, I realize the only thing I can change is myself and suddenly I realize that if long ago I had changed myself, I could have made an impact on my family. My family and I could have made an impact on my town. Their impact could have changed the Nation and I could indeed have changed the world.”
The more I live my life, the more I realize how true this sentiment is. My experiences over the past few months have confirmed it more and more. The cool thing about it is that no matter where you are, you are still surrounded by a group of people you can make your "family." Even though I am half a world away from my biological family, I am still a part of a family here in Bangalore. The team I came with, the staff at Oasis, the other people in our building...start were you are! At the age of 24, I want to begin to live this way and continue for the rest of my life!
Many people have asked for more details of my daily schedule, so I am including a "standard" week in India for me :)
I walk to the Oasis office every morning, which is generally quite pleasant, because the weather here is beautiful and it's nice to enjoy the morning sunshine! For more on my walking adventures, scroll down to the morning walk post.
About three mornings every week, I get up early to spend some time with some of my favorite kids in the world: the kids of Mother Teresa's Orphanage for the Disabled. This orphanage was one of the ones started by Mama T, but it suffers from lack of funding and lower volume of volunteer help because the orphanages in Calcutta and Mumbai are much more well known. I treasure every minute I spend here. A typical morning is spent getting the kids out of urine-soaked nappies, fed breakfast, and into their respective chairs and places for the day. There is one little boy in particular whom I have grown extra specially attached to -- his Name is Nanden and he has a smile that goes on for miles. My heart leaps every time I walk in the door at his sweet voice yelling "Claaaaaire!! Walkin!!" This is my typical greeting. He loves the days I put his leg braces on and help him in a walker. He suffers from a spastic muscle condition that robs him of most motor control in his limbs. This is also a fun way for me to stay somewhat connected to athletic training and PT stuff (my job seems a world away!).
After leaving the orphanage, I head to the Oasis office. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings are spent planning for photo class, writing reports on brothel raids for the anti-trafficking team, or other various tasks. On Monday afternoons, a team of us from Oasis run a "girl's club" in a slum community called Doddigunta. Oasis runs a few other programs in Doddigunta, including a day care, a back-to-school program for kids that have dropped out of school, various health clinics, computer classes, and a boys football (soccer) club. A few weeks ago I was able to help staff a girl's retreat for the girls that regularly attend the girl's club. This experience was the highlight of my trip so far. Many of the girls had never spent a night outside of their slum or even seen a bonfire before. We called the camp "Discovering Your Real Beauty" and talked on topics such as fruit of the spirit (that beauty comes from the inside), sex & sexuality, and overcoming guilt and shame. Besides speaking on some of these subjects, I was in charge of GAMES!! ...wow - SO much fun playing crazy stuff with these girls!
Tuesday and Thursday are spent with the other two female members of my team, Sheila and Sarah, at a government home for trafficked, lost, and unwanted girls. I wrote a bit about this in my last email, but basically these girls are locked up here until they turn 18 (or, if they are very lucky, they may be placed in a "hostel" or with a family). We sing, dance, color, play games (duck, duck, goose is a perennial favorite, and is sometimes played for over an hour at a time), tell stories, do skits...pretty much anything to engage with these girls, let them know they are loved, and bring some fun into their lives. A life-skills program is also in the works, but it is not my main area of work.
My main project here happens Wednesday and Friday afternoons, when I teach a beginning photography class to students in two different slum communities. This has been a major undertaking, but is already SO rewarding!! I developed a 6-week course to cover photography basics, such as perspective and composition, and to give these kids a chance to practice with a camera. Plans are underway to place these students in internships upon graduating from the program. This is a very exciting development, as the main objective of the course is to teach a skill that will lead to employment possibilities. The classes are capped at 10 students in each place, and the interest level has been so high that we even have had to turn people away. It has been a new and interesting teaching experience for me, as everything I say is translated into two different languages!
If you are interested in learning more about this photo project, please do not hesitate to email me with any questions! We are still in great need of funds for this project (cameras, film, and film developing for 20 students adds up quickly!!) but I did the math, and roughly $30.00 covers one student throughout the entire course! If you are interested in supporting the project this way, donations are accepted through paypal on my website: www.ajourneyforjustice.com if you are on facebook, you can also spread the word by going to the group link http://www.facebook.com/home.
As you can see, the weeks stay pretty full over here on the other side of the world! I have about 6 weeks left in India, before I fly back to New Zealand. I love hearing from everyone at home, and your prayers are very appreciated!! Specific prayer requests include financial support for the photography school, unity as a team, and continued health while in India.
One final thought to cap off a great year: "Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen." 1 Peter 4:8-11
HAPPY 2010!!!!!!
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