Wednesday 25 July 2012

Fantastic Quotes and Excerpts from John Steinbeck’s East of Eden


I finished reading East of Eden (1952), by John Steinbeck, this last May--not long after I arrived in India. It's a great book. Here are some quotes and excerpts from it that stood out to me. If you like them, I would definitely recommend reading the book. The whole thing is all that much better.

“It does take a time to get used to a new country. It’s like being born again and having to learn all over” (p 173).

“’Maybe you’re playing a part on a great stage with only yourself as audience’” (p 293)

“’Maybe everyone is too rich. I have noticed that there is no dissatisfaction like that of the rich. Feed a man, clothe him, put him in a good house, and he will die of despair.” (p 306).

“Humans are caught—in their lives, in their thoughts, in their hungers and ambitions, in their avarice and cruelty, and in their kindness and generosity too—in a net of good and evil” (p 411).

           “I remember clearly the deaths of three men. One was the richest man of the century, who, having clawed his way to wealth through the souls and bodies of men, spent many years trying to buy back the love he had forfeited and by that process performed great service to the world an, perhaps, had much more than balanced the evils of his rise. I was on a ship when he dies. The news was posted on the bulletin board, and nearly everyone received the news with pleasure. Several said, ‘Thank God that son of a bitch is dead.’
           Then there was a man, smart as Satan, who, lacking some perception of human dignity and knowing all too well every aspect of human weakness and wickedness, used his special knowledge to warp men, to buy men, to bribe and threaten and seduce until he found himself in a position of great power. He clothed his motives in the names of virtue, and I have wondered whether he ever knew that no gift will ever buy back a man’s love when you have removed his self-love. A bribed man can only hate his briber. When this man dies the nation rang with praise and, just beneath, with gladness that he was dead.
           There was a third man, who perhaps made many errors in performance but whose effective life was devoted to making men brave and dignified and good in a time when they were poor and frightened and when ugly forces were loose in the world to utilize their fears. This man was hated by the few. When he dies the people burst into tears in the streets and their minds wailed, ‘What can we do now? How can we go on without him?’
           In uncertainty I am certain that underneath their topmost layers of frailty men want to be good and want to be loved. Indeed, most of their vices are attempted short cuts to love. When a man comes to die, no matter what his talents and influence and genius, if he dies unloved his life must be a failure to him and his dying a cold horror. It seems to me that if you or I must choose between two courses of through or action, we should remember our dying and try so to live that our death brings no pleasure to the world.
           We have only one story. All novels, all poetry, are built on the never-ending contest in ourselves of good and evil. And it occurs to me that evil must constantly respawn, while good, while virtue, is immortal. Vice has always a new fresh young face, while virtue is venerable as nothing else in the world is” (pp 412-413.

“The quick pain of truth can pass away, but the slow, eating agony of a lie is never lost” (p 427).

Tuesday 17 July 2012

A Whole New Blog!

Maitri has started a new blog on Tumblr:  http://maitri-india.tumblr.com/

There is a huge difference between my blog (the intern blog) and this new, official blog for Maitri. In my blog I'm covering lots of personal experiences, largely to keep my family and friends from back home updated on my life while I'm in India.

Maitri's blog on Tumblr will keep everyone updated on Maitri's latest news, efforts, and projects. Please check it out:


http://maitri-india.tumblr.com/

Tuesday 19 June 2012

Daily Elements Mini-Series Part IV: Project Awaaz



"Education costs money, but then so does ignorance."
-Claus Moser

Awaaz (meaning “voice” in Hindi) is a project that Maitri runs to reach out to Delhi’s rickshaw-puller population. It is also the project that I have done the most work with so far, therefore it has come to take up a fair amount of my time on an average day. Allow me to give some background information on the project.

Hundreds of thousands of people in India migrate from villages and towns into big cities every year. Usually these people are men who are unable to find work at home. These migrants are often adult males who come to make some money to send home to support their families. Rickshaw-pulling is an attractive occupation for lots of migrants, because renting a rickshaw is easy and requires no immediate monetary deposit. Rickshaw-pullers will typically pay their rental fees at the end of the day or week, rather than up front.

Since rickshaw-pullers are often supporting a whole family back home (on average, one rickshaw-puller supports five additional people) they don’t have enough money to afford decent living conditions in the city (in this case, in Delhi). Most rickshaw-pullers are homeless. Many of them sleep on their rickshaws on the side of the road, while others stay in slums. Either way, they often lack access to safe water and food. Their personal hygiene suffers. Feeling isolated and depressed, many of them turn to risky sexual behavior and drug use that may expose them to HIV/AIDS or other STIs. Poor living conditions increase their risk of becoming infected with Tuberculosis. To make matters worse, since they don’t have a fixed address and they’re being paid under the table, it's very difficult for them to become officially registered as Delhi citizens. Without citizenship they are not able to access government-sponsored healthcare and other benefits.

Thus, Maitri created Project Awaaz. First the project team schedules regular educational sessions where they teach Delhi's rickshaw-pullers about hygiene and health-seeking practices. They also educate rickshaw-pullers about safe sex practices to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS. Second, through Project Awaaz, Maitri provides free healthcare and tests for diseases. They provide free medication to treat HIV and TB. Maitri works with a bunch of different partner NGOs and hospitals that contribute to the cause. For example, a local hospital donates the time of some of its staff when Maitri holds a health camp. One NGO based out of Australia provides Maitri with HIV tests that give a result within three minutes. Finally, Project Awaaz works to educate rickshaw-pullers about how to become registered citizens. This way they may begin to receive government-sponsored healthcare in the future.

Phew! Ok, so there it is! I’ve been spending a large chunk of my time at work researching this project and helping to write a grant proposal for it. Keep in mind that this is a very basic summary. It’s very rewarding work!

Monday 18 June 2012

Daily Elements Mini-Series Part III: Siestas


“Sitting and doing nothing doesn’t seem to be very easy for most of us. We’re used to always doing something.” –Thich Nhat Hanh.

Due to Delhi’s elevated temperatures I have taken to spending a good amount of time indoors, plopped in front of my air conditioning unit. And it’s great! Most of my friends and family are probably familiar with how over-scheduled I tend to be. I spent most of my time as an undergrad committed to being a full-time student while working about thirty hours per week. I often find myself working a ton at the cost of having very little free time.

But now I have graduated (woohoo!). I am working full time at an office where the work is very fulfilling. I’m in a big city that is pretty well sprawled out, and it’s REALLY hot. So usually by the time I’ve walked home from work I’m ready for a shower, a snack, and a siesta.

Siestas may consist of a variety of leisure activities, including but not limited to reading books, watching movies, learning Hindi, writing in my journal, doing yoga, listening to music, and of course, surfing the internet. I have taken up Pinterest. Yeah, didn’t really see that one coming. I used to enjoy cooking in my spare time back home, but here we have a housekeeper who cooks for us. So sometimes I go and keep her company in the kitchen while she cooks and try to observe her mad skills for preparing amazing, spicy, Indian food.

I just finished reading East of Eden, by John Steinbeck. It’s a GREAT book; I highly recommend it. Now I’ve moved on to Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie, who happens to be an English Indian. So far (I'm still at the beginning) the book takes place in India during the Freedom Struggle, but it’s a mix of magical realism and historical fiction. He throws in lots of Indian words and esoteric references, so it’s a challenging read, but so far I’m enjoying it!

I’ve discovered a new movie to add to my favorite’s list, which is Forgetting Sarah Marshall. So far I’ve watched one Bollywood movie with English subtitles called Rockstar. It was good, but a little long for my taste. Hindi is tough. But I’ve discovered an interesting website that is helping me (kinda sorta) be able to read Devanagari Script. I’m posting a link here, for those of you who are itching to learn to read a language that has an entirely different alphabet from what you’re used to: http://www.avashy.com/hindiscripttutor.htm 

As for music, I’ve been reconnected with my enjoyment of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Their music has a very west-coast feel that reminds me of home. As of today I now have some Bollywood music on my computer, but I’m not very familiar with any of it yet, so I’ll have to report back to you later on what I find there. But I’ve been building some nice playlists with more of the same music I would have listened too back home. Here are a few of the songs I’ve found and liked:
Sunlight, by Harlem Shakes
Pa Pa Power, by Dead Man’s Bones
Boyfriend, by Best Coast
Naked As We Came, by Iron and Wine
Girl from the North Country, by Bob Dylan
Scientist Studies, by Death Cab for Cutie

So I guess one could say that Thich Nhat Hanh is right in my case. I haven’t really been using this free time to sit and do nothing. I must be like “most people” because I AM used to always doing something. But I guess it’s worked out so that the heat and the city sprawl have forced me to take more time for myself to relax and enjoy simple pleasures.

Sunday 17 June 2012

Daily Elements Mini-Series Part II: Teaching


Teaching

Good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths theater.”
~Gail Godwin

 Teaching constitutes a relatively large portion of my time at work. There are two afternoon classes Monday through Friday and one morning class every day except Wednesday. The afternoon kids are divided into two groups: the younger kids (ages 4-10) come during the first hour and the older kids (10-15) come during the second hour. The morning class is for all ages. The size of the class varies by day, but I’d say the largest turnout we’ve had so far was maybe 30 to 40 students.


 Maitri reaches out to India’s vulnerable populations through about ten different projects. One of the projects is this “Children’s Tutorial Centre,” where children from local slums come to get educational support.

 Andrew and I often take turns planning the lesson and then our Indian colleagues interpret what we say into Hindi. Andrew has been teaching the kids mostly about science, whereas I have been trying to work on English. It’s a challenging task. Each class has a huge range of ages and skill levels. No matter what I plan there will be one or two kids who are totally bored because the lesson is too easy. No matter what I plan there will be at least two kids who can’t seem to grasp what is going on. At all.

 Regardless of these challenges, teaching just might be my favorite part of the job. It tends to put me in a good mood. I don’t even mind too much when they get rowdy. I’m impressed that these kids come to class every day even though it’s summer vacation. It’s a refreshing change from working with adults, where everyone is so serious. I’m pretty sure I laugh at least once during every class.

Daily Elements Mini-Series Part I: Heat


NOTE: The next few entries describe various elements of my daily life here in New Delhi. I will cover heat, teaching, siestas, and Project Awaaz.

Heat

“What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps me in a continual state of inelegance”
-Jane Austen

Today it got up to 111 degrees Fahrenheit (44 degrees Celsius). The weather report for tomorrow is 110 degrees. And guess what: the day after that is forecasted at 112 degrees. Sensing a pattern here? It’s HOT!

I write this after taking my third shower of the day. I have (almost) learned to accept that I am always sweaty and probably always will be sweaty while I’m here. Air conditioning helps somewhat. I’m sitting in front of my air conditioner at the moment and I feel mostly ok, but the parts of my body that are touching my laptop are uncomfortably hot.



My friends and I have managed to get around the city and see some sights, such as the Red Fort, Chandni Chowk, and now the Qtub Minar (pictured above). But I regret to admit that we probably would have made it out to see more stuff if it weren’t so ridiculously hot. So we’ve ended up going to the cinema pretty often—much more often than would be the case for me back home. First we saw the Avengers in 3D at this fancy-shmancy theater with big recliner chairs, free water bottles and juice. The following weekend we saw Snow White and the Huntsman, which turned out to be much better than I had expected. Last weekend we saw Prometheus in 3D, which was pretty awful. But I don’t care! I was out of my apartment on the weekend in a building with a comfortable temperature. That was good enough for me. The heat is overwhelming. 

It is way way way way way too hot.

Saturday 9 June 2012

Difficult Emotions and Poverty


IMPORTANT: This entry is long and contains some information that you might find shocking or upsetting. It's an account of my visit to four of Maitri's project sites two weeks back. It's overdue; I've been struggling to know what to say about it. But here is my attempt to describe what happened.

It was an emotional day. I didn’t realize beforehand just how emotional it would be. But that’s how it goes with this sort of thing. . .no matter how you try to prepare yourself, you can never fully prepare in advance. You can never understand how it will feel before you actually find yourself there.

We were in the office on Wednesday, working on revamping Maitri’s website. Sonal came and told us that we’d be going to a project site the next morning. We would be going to a health camp for rickshaw pullers. She explained that since rickshaw pullers tend to work during the day, the health camps must take place early in the morning, when they’re available.

So we went to bed extra early that night and woke up early on Thursday morning. I couldn’t get out of bed, I was so tired. Our other colleague, Anita, had warned us not to be later than 8 am. If we were late then our driver might leave without us. But we were off to a late start and got pretty anxious on the walk to the office. When we were halfway there we all realized we would be late. So we just hoped that they’d wait for us.

When we finally arrived at the office, another intern, Beleisha, informed us that the health camp had been postponed a day. I first felt frustrated at having hurried all the way to work for nothing. In the end I could only laugh about it though. I took advantage of the extra time in the office to email friends and family.

We made sure to retire early on Thursday night as well. Waking up early on Friday wasn’t any easier than the night before. But our spirits were high. I walked to work halfway expecting the camp to be cancelled altogether. I felt fine with either outcome. At the office we learned that our plans were still on for the day. I piled into a car with four of the other interns and we were driven to the first project site.

The first project site we visited was a health camp for rickshaw pullers. Well, I should really say that we went to a “slum” or a sort of shanty town and then sat next to the tent where a volunteer doctor was working. There were several other volunteers/staff hanging around, consisting partly of Maitri staff, and partly of staff from partner organizations, like the Spinal Injuries Centre.


 A very friendly young man whose name I can’t remember (I’ll call him Joe for now) took us on a tour of the slum. I was glad I had brought a scarf with because it was pretty dusty. Most of the little houses' doors were closed, so it was hard to get a good idea of what the living conditions were on the inside. A few people said "hello" to us, but other than that everyone just carried on with business as usual.

The second project site was an “overnight shelter” for homeless people. The visit lasted less than five minutes. We walked into a big room that had been partitioned off into individual rooms with makeshift curtains. We mostly saw women and children. A few little girls approached me and said “hello,” while smiling a big smile. Everyone was very welcoming.

We piled back into the car and drove through the crowded streets. Traffic was heavier in this this neighborhood than what I’m used to. There were droves of pedestrians on the sidewalks and crossing the street on every corner. I snagged this picture of the traffic behind our car at one point.



 Our driver pulled up to a building. Two kids were playing in front. One of them was naked, and the other was only partially clothed. The driver turned off the engine so we knew we were at the right place. A foul smell reached me as I stepped out of the car. Joe led us up the front steps and into the building where we were met by the project manager.

It’s a big building. The main doors open into a staircase and on either side of the staircase there is a large room. There were four stories. The smell was more intense in the staircase so I was relieved when we stopped into one of the rooms. There weren’t many people around, since most of them were off at work. In one of the rooms there were a few people sleeping on the floor. They must have been pretty exhausted; they didn’t even stir when we walked in. In another room some women were washing clothes. Each one was crouched down near the ground, pouring water from a big pot onto a garment. I wondered what they would do with the water that landed on the floor in the process. . .I don’t recall seeing a drain or anything. We were informed that (if I remember correctly) several hundred people are currently staying in the shelter, so I assume they’ll have to finish up the washing and then sleep on the same floor in the evening. One of the rooms on the top floor had some very interesting decorations. In one corner a big armchair was facing a TV. The walls in the corner were covered in pictures, some of which included images of Hindu gods. 




Joe led us from the top floor back downstairs so we could meet the group of kids who stay there. Now the smell in the stairwell was becoming unbearable. I felt sickly as I walked down the three flights of stairs. Fortunately the smell died down as we entered the next room. There was a group of about 15 kids sitting on the floor. It looked like a classroom at an elementary school. The woman who looks after them (possibly their teacher) approached me with a huge smile and said “Namaste.” Everyone was very welcoming.

Now it was time to explore around the outside of the building. We saw those kids again, not wearing clothes. We exited through the main doors and started to walk around to the back of the building. There was a bowl of food left out on the ground, and it was covered with flies. Joe showed us the restrooms and I’ll just say they weren’t pretty.

We had reached the end of the tour. We piled back in the car. No one talked and no one looked at each other. Our driver was playing some Indian music on the radio, which helped me calm down. I was hoping he’d drive us back to the office. I was suddenly not feeling up for any more exploring.

http://youtu.be/OLUWpt64GMc

Here's an example of some Indian music. I doubt we listened to this exact song, but you might check it out to get a general idea.

But, alas, we stopped at one last site on the way home. It was another, larger slum where Maitri regularly conducts health camps. This one was also home to several hundred people. We walked through the narrow paths between the different dwellings. Many of the walls are made with sheet metal. I was surprised to see electricity wires running from one little house to the other. Through the walls we could hear a few TVs switched on. Once again, the people we encountered were very welcoming and friendly. One woman saw us and offered to give us a cool glass of water. We had to refuse several times; she was very persistent. Visiting this slum was refreshing after the previous experience. I especially liked all of the animals we saw here. We encountered several rambunctious goats (so cute!), as well as some cats and a hog.




I still haven’t decided what to make of the whole experience, or what any of us can make of it. I’ve seen pictures of these kinds of places before, and I’ve heard about them. But now I’ve seen poverty, and smelled it. It’s real. I know I can’t help everyone, so do I just accept it and move on? Is that what we will all do? I don’t know what conclusions to draw from it. Any ideas?