Be the Cause

Category: Service Vacations

RICH IN SPIRIT

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Angel & I are SO glad that we didn’t pass up the opportunity to be here. It’s so much more than we could have imagined.

We knew we would be doing service for others, with some fun and cultural experiences mixed in, but we didn’t anticipate being on the receiving end of so much generosity. Particularly from the local Indian volunteers, who live with so little material comforts themselves. (Read Albert’s blog – we second the sentiment!)

All the demonstrations of warmth and giving may be partly to help inspire us in our service, but mainly because this is just the way they are all the time! We were told this is ingrained in the Indian philosophy.

Our first day exploring the city, we walked around the “old part of the city”, past shops, street vendors, mosques, temples, cows and goats. There were families living in slum apartments there. One family invited us in to see how they live. Bharti said it would be normal that, if we had said we were hungry, they would have offered to share what little food they had. There is an Indian saying that “Guest is God”.

That same saying is posted in the Seva Cafe, which is open to serve 50 or more people every evening, for free. Payment is always only what you are able to give and inspired to give, to help keep the restaurant going. Most months, there is a profit, but whether or not there is, a fixed amount is donated to varous charities in the city.

Our service days have been pretty packed with activities. Playing games, doing crafts and dancing with the Manav Sadhna kids, bathing them and dressing them in the donated clothes, painting at a nearby school, visiting a school for the blind and another for mentally challenged (they performed for us!), cooking and serving at Seva Cafe, etc. We sang Christmas carols at a huge Christmas party at Manav Sadna. Don’t think we sounds too great; most of us have colds. ;-)

Re: communication, we’ve learned only a few basic words, but smiles communicate the most. Both ways. Quoting Laura from our group, the people may be poor in material goods, but they are immensely rich in spirit. There’s also “Namaste”, which for those who don’t know, means “I honor the God/spirit in you”.

Blessings to all here, at home and wherever you’re reading this!

Marcella & Angel (Jose)

so what are some other things that we have done here?

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more random ramblings….

angel, marcella, and i stayed with a host family. one of the manav sadhna folks (suresh), his wife, his 1.5 year old son, and his mother live in a small apartment on the 4th floor of a building. they welcomed us into their home and immediately said, please make this your home. you are no longer guests, you are part of the family. they cooked for us, talked with us, showed us their wedding pictures. their little son, Satu, was so adorable. they’ve taught him to clench his fist and yell out a cute “YESSSS!”. anything we needed, they provided for us. it was overwhelming. they had relatively little, but gave everything with open arms.

there are many people who try to help and do service for others. we helped a couple of german fellows who were constructing a shelter out of bamboo for people either waiting to pick up their kids from school or who are just walking by.

some of the best things that i have seen is how everyone inspires each other. supun, angel, and i helped with the re-building of pravin’s house in the slums. we did fairly simple tasks, moving bricks and sand for mortar. but thru these small acts we were able to make a fairly large impression, i believe. when we needed to unload the bricks, it would have taken much longer to carry them person by person. instead, when neighbors saw what we were doing, they were inspired to help make a human chain that moved the bricks like a conveyor belt.

and the generosity from manav sadhna and nirali and everyone is just amazing. we haven’t payed a single rupee yet for our accommodations and almost all of our meals. they have taken care of a lot of the transportation. they have connected us with unbelievable opportunities for service. and at the same time, they have their own programs working this whole time, educating the children in the slums, providing food and health aid for them, etc. but they don’t make the children dependent on them. instead, they educate them and teach them usable skills for vocations.

on a random note, the music, song, and dance in india is amazing. everyone sings and dances, and they do it without hesitation or embarrassment. rather, it is done with pure joy and heart. i will never forget their voices and spirit.

albert

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