Chapter 2 from Andrew Forde - continuing his report from India

Andrew Forde in India

Moving onto Chapter 2 has brought about many very difficult and exciting times, from networking with some of India's most charismatic and influential figures in all areas of development, advocacy and spirituality, to having my first (and hopefully last) visit to casualty, to seeing one of man's most spectacular monuments of love and much more.

When I last contacted you I would imagine I had just returned from the pink city, Jaipur. Since then life in the school has just got better and better. We have a very strong relationship with the children now. They feel comfortable around us, know what to expect and know how we work. Through a process of trial and error a lot of the time, we've developed our own style of communicating with the kids and ultimately teaching them. Quite a few people have emailed me asking "How the hell can ya teach the kids anything since you don't have Hindi?!". Well its quite difficult, that's for sure. But it's amazing at how small a part of communication speech actually is, until you are in a situation like this. Mime, body language, repetition, props and fun are our means of communicating. Kids are fantastic, they don't get fed up of not understanding us when we do speak English to them, they are intrigued by our looks, our actions, our new ways of teaching, our accents, and our language, so are constantly taking in everything we do. It's a serious responsibility in so many ways, to know that every thing you do and every word you say is being taken in by these kids, and they are picking all these things up from you without either you, or them realising it. The fantastic thing is, that Sarah and myself have done things very differently to our Indian teacher Manju, which has highlighted our attitudes and tolerance to certain things. For example, although it is not a huge problem in our particular school, hitting children as discipline is perfectly normal practice over here and this is something we of course take a very dim view of. When a child does something out of order, we would NEVER touch that child. The pacifist method works far better for everyone in the long run. The children are amazed at us not hitting them. I remember one occasion where one of the younger children, Papu, wouldn't settle in class; kept shouting and being generally very hyper. When I said "Shhh Papu!" Raja, an older boy in the class, came up to me with a wooden stick which we use to point to the blackboard, and had a big smile on his face, as if to say "Here you are Andrew, go thump him and that'll shut him up!". I was really taken aback by it, but needless to say I didn't take him up on the offer!

We have really seen progress over the last number of weeks. Sarah and myself now know the level each child is at, some not able to hold a pencil and others beginning to do decimal long division and so on. I can't describe how brilliant a feeling it is to see a child has just learnt subtraction from you, or can now write the alphabet without guide dots on the page. It's the simplest of things that are really the most valuable to us all.

As I may have mentioned before, I'm doing some work with the Juvenile Justice Unit in Prayas in the afternoons. It has been such a fantastic education for me, especially since I will be studying International Human Rights Law in September and this is directly related. I'm working on getting substance for my thesis while I'm here, and networking with as many relevant players in the area of Human Rights when I can. I think the area of child labour/child abuse will be the path I will take for my thesis, both of which are enormous problems in India.

Since the last instalment, I was lucky enough to travel north of India to Dharamasala for a couple of days. While up there, a group of us stayed in the Dalai Lama's home town of McLeod Ganj. An absolutely breathtaking place. Such beautiful scenery, high up in the hills of the Himalayas. Lush green forests sporting all kinds of wildlife and trees. It was such a break from the noise, filth and stress of Delhi. As it happened, it was the Dalai Lama's 70th Birthday party that weekend; good timing eh? Turns out he wasn't available for us to bring him out for a pint though! Maybe next time!

The town is alive with hundreds of Tibetan Buddhist monks, all of whom are seeking refuge in McLeod Ganj because they can no longer practice their faith in Tibet as a result of the Chinese occupation. The Dalai Lama led thousands of Tibetan people over the Himalayas to hold onto heir tradition without being imprisoned many years ago, and even to this day Tibetans are making the treacherous expedition over the hostile mountains looking for freedom to practice their faith.

While walking around one of the beautiful monasteries I ventured to ask a local a bit more about the monastery. As it happens, the gentleman, Tinsen, I spoke to was in fact himself a monk at one time, who had crossed the mountains to get from Tibet when he was just 15 years old. It took him a month of hardship, having left all his family behind him (and probably will not see them again) to get where he now was. Tinsen was a fantastic guide and ambassador for his people, and brought us to some of the most amazing and unspoilt monasteries around Dharamasala that day. We met the second in line to the Dalai Lama, who blessed us in a very symbolic presentation of placing silk scarves around our necks. It is very spiritual, peaceful and relaxing around McLeod Ganj, hugely recommended for anyone to visit regardless of religious inclinations.

Returning back to reality in Delhi was a sobering experience.

The following week we, and a group of UCD volunteers were invited to a reception at the Irish Embassy in Delhi. It was a great opportunity for us all to exchange stories and let off some steam. Felt like we were transported back to Ireland for a few hours. Ambassador Dowling and all the staff at the embassy made us feel so welcome.

As the clock was ticking up to Global Perspectives week, which ran from July 25th - 28th, we all decided it would be a good idea to spawn some thought into the area of global developmental issues if we held a debate within the group. "Dropping the Debt is a Placebo" was the topic put to the house to speak on. I spoke as part of the team against the motion. It was an interesting evening and we invited some of the most senior representatives in Prayas to judge. Thought provoking evening, but the team against put forward the better argument, in the judges opinion.

Last Saturday, the gang of SUAS Volunteers made the long haul from Kolkata to Delhi for the start of G.P. Week. We all headed to Agra, the home of the Taj Mahal on Sunday. I was absolutely astounded at the sight of the Taj. It should not be underestimated. It is a towering palatial monument built by a man for love of his wife. Certainly one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen. Returning home, so began Global Perspectives week, where we got the opportunity to meet representatives from the UN, UNDP, UNICEF, World Bank, N.G.O.'s and other accomplished professionals in the areas of health, education, spirituality and development. It gave us the opportunity to ask relevant questions and to learn more about each organisation and topic.

Mid-week I had the misfortune of being in the way of some kind of orange tropical palm-sized spider, who fell from the roof onto my head as I walked into one of the talks. Here's how I ended up in casualty - I felt something fall onto my head so tried to knock it off, but instead it fell onto my shoulder and clambered up my neck where it sunk into me. It was soooooo sore. Took the power from my legs and my neck swelled up within seconds with whatever kind of venom that came as part of the bite package! Had to get to the hospital, just in case of anaphylactic shock or worse side effects of a bite from a spider like this. I felt fine within about an hour, but better be safe than sorry, so got my I.V. anti-everythings pumped into me. Was hoping I might be able to climb up walls and shoot webs from my wrists after a few hours, but I was very disappointed!!

Tomorrow we are starting back into our final four weeks of placement. It's amazing to think I am going into week seven here now; time is just whizzing by. We are organising a school tour for the children in our school on Tuesday which I'm really looking forward to. This may be the first time most of them have ever ventured outside of their own area, Budh Bazaar. We are hiring a bus and bringing them to India Gate, which is one of the main sights to see in Delhi city centre, vaguely resembling the Arc de Triomphe of Paris. Afterwards we will be bringing them to a children's park of slides, swings etc. I am so excited for them, because it will give them a day to be children again. Yes, a lot of them will go home to the reality that is working every evening after school to make a few rupees, but maybe bringing them outside the box will give them some hope. I think it will.

On another note, and most importantly, I want to let you know that the total amount of money raised by this years volunteers and coordinators for the overseas projects amounts to €98,829.28. This is a PHENOMENAL amount of money - and will be going directly to the organisations that we are all working with. To give you a rough sense of the impact that kind of money will have allow me draw a few comparisons.

€98,829.28 = 9,074,967.78 Kenyan Schillings = (roughly) Primary education, a food program and a post primary sponsorship scheme for 974 disadvantaged children for one whole year.

€98,829.28 = 5,183,993.31 Indian Rupees = (roughly!) 1830 children in pre-primary care, 318 primary children accessing coaching centres and 306 girls in vocational training centres again for one whole year

Thanks to everyone for all the comments, questions and support you've been giving me. I am delighted to hear from you all.

If anyone has any questions, comments or suggestions or would like to make a donation, please contact me at: andrew.forde@dcu.ie or 086 8048877".

For further information on SUAS, visit their website: www.suas.ie.