I was up to my ankles in muck. Dirtier than I've ever been in my life. Completely exhausted. Broke my sandal. Something painful is stuck in the bottom of my foot.
Man, it was a great day!
Today I went to visit Janvikas Pratishthan, an organization that works in the rural areas near Pune. They have many different programs aimed at healthcare, job training, youth development, microcredit, securing land rights, agriculture and sustainability.
They are what I want to be when I grow up.
We went to visit a small village to see one of their completed projects. The village was home to 27 families. I think the entire village could have fit inside my in-laws' house. The project was to build a pipeline to bring water to the village. Prior to this, the women had to walk nearly an hour to get water and bring it back to their homes. So we set out to take that same walk and see the work that had been done.
I had no idea what I was getting myself into.
It was a beautiful walk. But it was difficult and quite messy. Twenty minutes in I had to remove my shoes (actually they were removed for me by the muck I'd just stepped into) and carry them in my hand the rest of the way. We walked through rice paddies with water above my ankles. We slipped and slid up and down a pathway of mud. I lost my balance and fell on my ass only once (ok, twice). I stepped on sharp rocks, sticks and thorns. One is permanently embedded in the bottom of my foot. Wrangling with my dupatta provided a constant source of amusement for the village women walking with us.
After this adventure, we headed back to the office, located in another village. From there we took two girls to another village where a foundation runs a free nursing school. That village is about an hour away, and it is a one and a half year residential program, after which the girls have a one year contract to work in a hospital there. As these are poor village people (teehee Village People), it is very unlikely they will be able to visit each other during this time. Needless to say it took quite a bit of persuading to get the families to agree. But, when the two and a half years are up, these girls will be able to work anywhere they want and earn good money for their families. So in the long run, it's totally worth it.
And now, for your viewing pleasure, some photos I managed to take along the walk.
Man, it was a great day!
Today I went to visit Janvikas Pratishthan, an organization that works in the rural areas near Pune. They have many different programs aimed at healthcare, job training, youth development, microcredit, securing land rights, agriculture and sustainability.
They are what I want to be when I grow up.
We went to visit a small village to see one of their completed projects. The village was home to 27 families. I think the entire village could have fit inside my in-laws' house. The project was to build a pipeline to bring water to the village. Prior to this, the women had to walk nearly an hour to get water and bring it back to their homes. So we set out to take that same walk and see the work that had been done.
I had no idea what I was getting myself into.
It was a beautiful walk. But it was difficult and quite messy. Twenty minutes in I had to remove my shoes (actually they were removed for me by the muck I'd just stepped into) and carry them in my hand the rest of the way. We walked through rice paddies with water above my ankles. We slipped and slid up and down a pathway of mud. I lost my balance and fell on my ass only once (ok, twice). I stepped on sharp rocks, sticks and thorns. One is permanently embedded in the bottom of my foot. Wrangling with my dupatta provided a constant source of amusement for the village women walking with us.
After this adventure, we headed back to the office, located in another village. From there we took two girls to another village where a foundation runs a free nursing school. That village is about an hour away, and it is a one and a half year residential program, after which the girls have a one year contract to work in a hospital there. As these are poor village people (teehee Village People), it is very unlikely they will be able to visit each other during this time. Needless to say it took quite a bit of persuading to get the families to agree. But, when the two and a half years are up, these girls will be able to work anywhere they want and earn good money for their families. So in the long run, it's totally worth it.
And now, for your viewing pleasure, some photos I managed to take along the walk.
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| FYI: That's a plow |
1) So when are you going to grow up?
ReplyDelete2) Did you meet a cowboy, biker, or construction worker while you were there?
3) I'm so glad that you get to have moments like this to help balance out the awful ones. (I honestly think I would have been in jail for murder by now. Or in a hospital for either starvation or on a vent because of anaphylaxis.)