Monday we went to an orphanage in a coastal town an hour south of here, Mahablaipurem. We met the director of the orphanage, learned about his financial needs and we played with the kids for the afternoon. There were about 12 or so children, all under 13 years, and living and going to school in a very modest stone building.
They were amazingly sweet, knew limited English and called us all auntie and uncle. We took them down to the beach and played in the waves and played games. It was really amazing to see how unbelievably sweet they were. They didn't want anything, they didn't ask for money or things, the just wanted to hold our hand or sit in the sand with us. The director said that it costs about 50 American dollars for each child for one month, and unfortunately their wealthy Dutch benefactor just died and they are going to need financial support from the Tamil Nadu government now.
[When we went to the beach with the kids Sanjay taught them some game where you tackle everyone all at once. I didn't really get it but they had fun]Yesterday we went to a "truck stop" outside the city. A truck stop is really the same thing here as it is in the US, men that drive cargo trucks across the county stop for a day to rest and reload. At this particular stop there is an organization doing HIV-prevention outreach and education (because stats have shown that truckers moving across the country is a high demographic being infected and spreading AIDS). Within the center of the area there is a small booth that acts as a little classroom and some peer-teachers stay there to educate truckers. There are books and posters and demonstrations on health and hygiene, which we were all very impressed with. It seemed to be very effective for such a modest working space. (Although the large crowd of local truckers might have something to do with the 20 Americans getting off a bus and taking a ton of pictures....)
This morning a small group of us went to an AIDS hospice that is located inside a hospital in Chennai. This hospice was started by some men in the medical community when they paired up with some students from IAPA a few years ago (as you can imagine, there is a serious need for palliative care in this area). The director and a physician gave us a short tour of the center and explained how it is run. The tour was short due to the fact that the place was very tiny; six beds, handful of nurses and one physician. They also only had one patient at the time because there isn't enough staff, space and supplies to allow for more. They spoke to us about helping them work to expand their services and be able to serve more people. Despite the conditions, the doctor and nurses were so happy to see us (not unlike most places we go) and we so thrilled that we might be able to help them, even if it is just administration work or "beautification".
I wish I had time to write in further detail about all of these trips, but each service project is unique and moved us a little bit. I can tell some students are more drawn to one particular project, a lot of the girls want to go back to the orphanage and some guys saw the importance in the trucker outreach. I don't really know what I want to do yet, but we still have more opportunities to see other potential projects this weekend. (I am feeling a little overwhelmed because there are so many opportunities and there is so much need. Its hard to pick just one thing that is feasible in just eight weeks! So little time to get something tangible accomplished!)
On a final note, I think that it is interesting that at nearly all places we visit, no matter how small or impoverished or crowded, everyone still breaks for tea and cookies. I will never cease to be impressed by this.
[the beach temple at Mahablipurem]
-S
1 comment:
This was my favoite post so far.
I loved to hear about each of the service projects thus far.
They all sound unique.
It sounds like you are having an absolute blast. I love looking at your pictures. Post More :)
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