Imagine you have been travelling for over 24hrs. By taxi, train, steam train, bus, truck and foot. You stumble into a campsite 3000m up on the side of a mountain in the jungle. There are over 100 others milling around: around 70 gypsy and irula kids (with some of the younger parents), indian leaders and camp staff from several states, other volunteers from several countries.
It's getting dark. It's also getting cold. You grab stuff from the truck, try to work out sleeping arrangements, hand out jumpers and jackets to poor kids who have never experienced cold, altitude, isolation from any form of civilisation - in short, anything like this before. Shell-shocked? I think so.
There aren't enough big jumpers, and so the tallest boys end up with some horribly short ones. They _all_ want ones with hoods, and you are overwhelmed by choruses of "cap, cap, cap.. friend, cap? Want cap". You all gobble down some hearty curry and rice, huddle around the fire, learn a fun song and watch a hilarious story be told (well, they listened too - I just didn't understand any!) and as soon as possible, head to bed.
The next morning is bitterly cold. If you were brave, you might have dragged yourself out of bed earlier than you needed to, and stumbled down to the lake. You would have seen mist feathering up off its sapphire depths as the day awoke.
You would have returned to the campsite and joined the shivering children; fervently hugging tumblers of hot chai in icy hands, and hanging out for breakfast (more curry and rice).
The day warms with the sun, and you all relax a little. You begin getting to know eachother. You learn more songs, play games, have competitions, try your hand at archery, maybe go walking and skipping through fern-lined streams and gorges, kids trailing from your hands and arms, taking off, hanging back, yelling, fighting, grinning, begging, learning names, forgetting names..
By the second day, you have come to expect the cold sweeping in. You know that you will get three square meals and plenty of tea. You know that there are a whole stack of people here who are filled with love and joy and compassion and you can't help seeing and feeling it.
The kids are still a little crazy, but the fighting and arguing is no longer a constant. There are many many more smiles than frowns. You really can't believe the change. So soon? And even the angry gypsy lady that yelled all the time and no one liked? Even she is smiling. And gleefully singing snatches of song.
By the end of the 2nd day, no one wants to leave. I'm not going to forget the shining eyes of kids kayaking for the first time - or the guts of those girls trying out abseiling.
On the last day, apparently one little boy burst out "TOO MUCH HAPPY!" That's exactly how I felt too, in this beautiful place, with these people.
This really sounds a bit too sentimental or romantic, I know. Couldn't really have been like that. People don't just change like that. (And of course they were -we are all- still far from perfect!)
But it was real. Something happened. We felt it and saw it and were blessed by this crazy community that grew together. Who knows what will happen when we all go back home - so many back to just surviving on a pittance from day to day, begging and pleading their way forward. Who knows? But I do hope and trust that those bits of peace and love will take root and keep growing. The Creator keep somehow working his redemptive magic.
Showing posts with label volunteering. Show all posts
Showing posts with label volunteering. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Useful Bengali for aforementioned volunteering!
If you ever happen to go..
Hello: Namaste/namaskaar
What's your name? Apni nam kiatche (or just nam ki)
I'm Jasmin: Nam Jasmin
How are you? kemanacho
good/very good: palo/kupalo
not feeling well: bet ache
Wait: dara
Soon: ekokpare
Come: aasho
Don't go: jeo naa
stop: thamun
What do you want? kitabe
What is it? ami janina
I don't understand: ami bujina
eat: ka
finished: huegatche
thankyou: donyobad
no: na
..I think I learnt about half of these!
Hello: Namaste/namaskaar
What's your name? Apni nam kiatche (or just nam ki)
I'm Jasmin: Nam Jasmin
How are you? kemanacho
good/very good: palo/kupalo
not feeling well: bet ache
Wait: dara
Soon: ekokpare
Come: aasho
Don't go: jeo naa
stop: thamun
What do you want? kitabe
What is it? ami janina
I don't understand: ami bujina
eat: ka
finished: huegatche
thankyou: donyobad
no: na
..I think I learnt about half of these!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Volunteering with the Missionaries of Charity (Mother Teresa)
Been meaning to finish this post for a while now, so here goes.
We spent a week volunteering with the Missionaries of Charity, which was the order of nuns begun by Mother Teresa in Kolkata. They have a whole bunch of different homes now, from the first Home for the Dying (Nirmal Hriday), to homes for abandoned children, disabled children and adults, teenagers, and a leprosy community.
I hung out at Shishu Bhavan, a home for abandoned/disabled babies, toddlers & primary-schoolers. I was with the toddlers. In the mornings people do more manual labour like cleaning, changing beds, helping with the washing & feeding the children. In the afternoons (when I was on) we helped a bit with making beds and feeding the kids dinner, but we spent most of the time playing with the kids outside.
They had a great little area with murals all over the walls, swings, play equipment etc. It was pretty fun (except for when you get sat on by kids with wet pants!!). They were pretty cute, and I can imagine getting attached to them if I spent more time there.
It was hard though too, because you didn't always know what was ok for them to do and what wasn't, and though their full-time (paid, local) carers were patient with us and them, I'm sure it would have been frustrating for them to be continually dealing with various behaviours that volunteers might allow. And the way (like all kids) they learn to do whatever they can to get attention! Of course, as a volunteer I could see it would be soo much better to be there for the longterm instead of short.
It was tricky not understanding everything that was going on, so time would help with that too! I don't think it'd take long to pick up enough bengali to understand the basics and be understood.
I think overall they seemed well cared-for, and we were happy to hear that nearly all of the babies and toddlers would be adopted out. Many even had adoptive parents already, and were just waiting for the lengthy legal process to go through.
All in all, my impression was that it was much more of a gift to the volunteers to be able to come, join in, and get a taste of life here - than any small service we could perform. The sisters are so hospitable - volunteers are invited to come along to mass in the mornings (at 6am!!), and there is a free breakfast (of bread, bananas and chai) for volunteers afterwards whether or not they attend mass. I was really touched by how gracious and patient the sisters were, in every interaction with one of the many visitors and volunteers.
We spent a week volunteering with the Missionaries of Charity, which was the order of nuns begun by Mother Teresa in Kolkata. They have a whole bunch of different homes now, from the first Home for the Dying (Nirmal Hriday), to homes for abandoned children, disabled children and adults, teenagers, and a leprosy community.
I hung out at Shishu Bhavan, a home for abandoned/disabled babies, toddlers & primary-schoolers. I was with the toddlers. In the mornings people do more manual labour like cleaning, changing beds, helping with the washing & feeding the children. In the afternoons (when I was on) we helped a bit with making beds and feeding the kids dinner, but we spent most of the time playing with the kids outside.
They had a great little area with murals all over the walls, swings, play equipment etc. It was pretty fun (except for when you get sat on by kids with wet pants!!). They were pretty cute, and I can imagine getting attached to them if I spent more time there.
It was hard though too, because you didn't always know what was ok for them to do and what wasn't, and though their full-time (paid, local) carers were patient with us and them, I'm sure it would have been frustrating for them to be continually dealing with various behaviours that volunteers might allow. And the way (like all kids) they learn to do whatever they can to get attention! Of course, as a volunteer I could see it would be soo much better to be there for the longterm instead of short.
It was tricky not understanding everything that was going on, so time would help with that too! I don't think it'd take long to pick up enough bengali to understand the basics and be understood.
I think overall they seemed well cared-for, and we were happy to hear that nearly all of the babies and toddlers would be adopted out. Many even had adoptive parents already, and were just waiting for the lengthy legal process to go through.
All in all, my impression was that it was much more of a gift to the volunteers to be able to come, join in, and get a taste of life here - than any small service we could perform. The sisters are so hospitable - volunteers are invited to come along to mass in the mornings (at 6am!!), and there is a free breakfast (of bread, bananas and chai) for volunteers afterwards whether or not they attend mass. I was really touched by how gracious and patient the sisters were, in every interaction with one of the many visitors and volunteers.
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