“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not- Anne Bradstreet (1612 - 1672), 'Meditations Divine and Moral,' 1655
sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.”
The moment we rolled down the windows of our Qualis, the stench struck at us like a slap on our face. It seemed that this was a treatment meted out to uninvited prying visitors from a different socio-economic culture. Our welcome was not grand, in a matter of speaking. However, it was a reception that mere mortals like us would remember for a lifetime. The dilapidated building looked at us in deep sorrow…beckoning us to lend it some honour in its hour of nakedness. The grounds loyally embracing the old building lay bare silently accepting the human faeces being piled on it. The ‘caged’ hence protected saplings, provided by the New Delhi Municipal Corporation, growing in the midst of the wilderness were keenly telling their story. It was a story in likeness to the lives led by the people in the area. Posh housing colonies set amidst uncivilized impoverished and rejected destitute. If these silent witnesses could speak out they would have narrated a very tragic tale…a tale of a destitute destitute-home.
“There will be little rubs and disappointments everywhere, and we are all apt to- Jane Austen (1775 - 1817), Mansfield Park
expect too much; but then, if one scheme of happiness fails, human nature turns
to another; if the first calculation is wrong, we make a second better: we find
comfort somewhere.”
Enter Esther. Make no mistake, this pint sized woman is in no way related to Xeres the king of ancient Persia. However like the Esther of old her love for ‘her’ people was more than ‘evident’ from her eyes. Our mutual introduction done, we walked through the front door of the institution. While walking through the door we felt a caressing on our heads. Imagine our horror when we realized that the source of affection was actually a network of naked wires coming out of their meter board! We were then taken around the single storeyed building and shown the different rooms. There was a room for sewing machines where the local womenfolk would stitch bed-sheets. There was a cramped classroom where almost 40 children of varied ages sat and stared at their instructor. There was a room where the teachers assembled. Finally there was a broken down room with a board ‘Centre for Performing Arts’ - This was their toilet. Just taking in the sights any ordinary person could estimate the pathetic environment that the children and women spent their days in.
Our team, after absorbing the initial shock, immediately sprung into action. While Sharda, Ruby and Sandhya held a meeting with the women Avantika, Kavita, Niju, Manoj and I spent our time with the children.
“
There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct or- Niccolo Machiavelli (1469 - 1527)
more uncertain in its success than to take the lead in the introduction of a new
order of things.”
The children as expected were extremely shy at first. It seemed that the presence of their instructor inhibited their interaction with us. On our request their instructor left them completely in our hands. A couple of songs and several handfuls of toffees later the children opened up to us. We then got down to knowing their names - Ruby, Isha, Poonam, Mahesh, Rumina, Sarita among others – Children whom fate had dealt a crippling blow, children who with their apparently nameless faces would automatically disappear in the labyrinth of social inequalities. The singing reached its crescendo with ‘I am a soldier’ – their favourite song. A round of story telling followed the singing. I tried to tell them the parable of the ‘Ten Talents’ in the context of rural India. We then distributed pencil boxes and notebooks to the children. The distribution complete, we encouraged the children to break their inhibitions by dancing to the tunes of the latest film tunes. The children danced whole-heartedly along with Niju, Kavita and Avantika. Their enthusiasm was infectious enough to keep us going longer than we had planned.
After a fabulous round of dance, we distributed food packets to the children. Just after this Niju and me spoke to the children about personal hygiene. The children, although they looked like urchins, were aware of the various forms of personal hygiene. This came as a very pleasant surprise to us.
“Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried- George Washington (1732 - 1799)
before you give them your confidence. True friendship is a plant of slow growth,
and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to
the appellation.”
Our most enterprising contribution was the provision of seeds of seasonal fruits and vegetables for the purpose of gardening. I had a wonderful time, through an interactive session, giving them a few specific tips on planting these. These seeds were selected on the basis of economic and time-bound viability. They could grow vegetables year-round to feed their families, and any surplus would be a source of income. As an extra measure of enthusiasm, we expressed our desire to revisit them in August – to partake in the fruits of their labour. The success of our maiden venture could be gauged by the fact that the children could identify each of us by our names…or nicknames shall we say.
"Every action of our lives touches on some chord that will vibrate in eternity."- Sean O'Casey (1880 - 1964)
Our trip was based around the premise that it would not be a one-time affair. On grounds of plain old humanity it is imperative that these people receive our continuous support…much beyond the requirements of a ‘Global Volunteer Day’ programme. From a corporate perspective, it is a social obligation that we must live upto. The difference is in empathizing with these destitute and not sympathizing with them. We must realize that what these women and children are in is a situation. If not solved soon enough, it will become a problem.
No comments:
Post a Comment