My blog has been stalled because my schedule has completely changed. I no longer go to the Pune Office everyday. I stay at Vadu and teach. Being an adaptable person is a must for being here in India, and teaching is no different. I came to Maher ready to tutor 4 students in English. Now I am adapting to teaching 50-60 students! I would be lying if I didn't say this terrified me, but I wasn't about to say I wouldn't try. As I like to say, "Trying is the first step towards failure." Or Sucess. The first challenge was trying to find a way to figgure out what level each class was at. I'm teaching a mix of ages, from 11-19. I am glad I had that class on tutoring or I wouldn't have a clue of what to do. Most of the students are at a very low level of understanding English, and even lower at speaking it. It's a challenge to teach without being fluent in Marathi myself. The first class was so perfect it gave me the courage for the next one. Picture this: it's 8:30am. My class room has windows that are missing so there's a warm breeze drifting through the room. Sunlight is streaming in, and there's about ten sparrows that are noisily chatting overhead (they live in the classroom and drop straw from their nests on the floor everyday). I have my books and lesson plan on my lap, chalk ready and "Good Morning" written across the blackboard, ready to go. My seven students filter in, late. They are all 12 to 13 yr old boys, but thye are all smiin gand ready to learn. They listen and laugh. They learn!!!! As they left, I was on cloud nine. maybe I CAN teach!!!!
Not all my classes have gone so smoothly. The evening classes had too mcuh energy. they had been in school all day and now they didn't want to sit still. A few took advantage of the fact that I am a marshmellow. I had new rules I wanted to make, but how could I explain them? And how do you bitch a student out with such a language barrier? Students came late. Students came that weren't even on the list. Studensts came form other classes. It was time to ask for help. We had a meeting with Hira and she really let them have it. We got the schedule stait and new rules were layed down. We set up another class too because so many other students wanted to learn English. So now I have 12 classes a week. (God help me.) I also still need to figgure out the Thursday night class because Thurday's there's no power so it will be too dark to teach. I had to cancel last Thursday. This Thursday I need to plan a class with flashlights and no black board.
A week or so ago, we had a group come by to tour Maher. I walked in the office and was surprised to see a white guy there. Then I turned around and saw that there was a whole group, very mixed. Their group is called Action for life. They go around the world meeting people who make big changes and learn from them. (There's probably a lot more to them than that, but I am still learning about them). One was from Australia, one someplace in Europe I have never heard of (how embarassing), one from Kenya, one from Korea (I think), and one from China. I like to call them the superfriends. I went with them on their tour to Vatsalydam and we all chatted the whole way. I thought they were an amazing group of people and I was excited they intived me to visit them where they are staying in Punchguna (spelled wrong), about two hours away. I think I shall. I think I shall.
My birthday was amazing. I woke up early to celebrate with the children since I was going to be gone when they returned from school. Upon opening my door, 4 children were already sitting outside my door way. "Happy Birthday Didi!!!!!" They wanted to be the first ones to wish it to me. Then they all shook my hand. My birthday was off to a good start. The main room were we gathered was decorated in balloons and had a beautiful sand art creation on the floor with a prayer-lamp-thingy (that's not what they call it.) I sat on a cousion in front of it and we all had prayer. I lit the prayer-lamp-thingy with Sister Lucy, Hira, AND the birthday boy. Yes, it was not just my birthday: a little boy turned one, so i got to share! They said a prayer in marathi and then English. it included thanks for ME and how grateful they were, and how they wished me happiness, and on and on. I sat with my eyes closed very moved. I don't know that I deserved such a speech since I feel everything I give here is given back to me ten fold. I had to try REALLY hard not to cry in front of those 200 and some children and women. REALLY HARD. They blessed me with kum kum (that red and orange stuff that they put on your forhead). They put a flower garland on me. Then they brought a small cake that me and the birthday boy cut and ate like they do in weddings: I fed him and he fed me. Then sister Lucy. We passed out sweets the women and children and my day moved on quickly.
I was to prepare for my second Hindu Wedding, this one of a higher caste. I wore the apologetic clothing : the Sari. There was alot of running around to fit me into a blouse that made my boobs pointy, just like my Halloween coustume. Noone gets poked though, because your boobs and almost every other part of you gets securely wrapped up. I figgured i wouldn't need help dressing myself for quite some time, but here I was at 29, being dressed my two women. A sari is a complicated thing, much like wearing orgami. Fold here, here, and here. Pin this, this and this. I had to ask how to use the tiolet in it. The women also did my hair and put "matching" jewelry on me. My taste is a bit different, but they all said I looked "soondar" beautiful. We then rushed off with gifts in tote to the wedding.
This wedding was MUCH bigger than the last, about a thousand people. They gave gifts to US. The men and women sat seperately. I thought that was very strange. It was such a striking division: one side was every color you can think of with the women, the other was all white with the men (except for the orange hats that some wore as a sign of respect). This wedding was more organized. I was called on stage twice, once to receive a coconut (an official greeting), once for a photo. It was a beautiful wedding. We stopped and had a snack dinner at a restraunt. It was my first time eating out in a dinning situation. Lucy got me a Lassi which is better than any cake. I was very happy. I doubt I will be forgetting this birthday anytime soon.
I should also mention that a new volunteer showed up a few days ago, from London. Her name is Bernie and she will be here for the rest of the time I am here. She has a nice accent and offers me tea. It's nice to have another English speaking person around.
I am having problems taking enogh photographs. Everthing is intersting and picture worthy, and I'd love to paint alot of the things I see, but... Taking pictures of everyday things is hard. Picture this: you are on your way to work, or you are shopping, when some crazy foreigner is pointing a camera at you! How rude!! Plus, I'm always doing stuff and don't want to be toting a camera. So, my pictures are lacking and I feel I may regret it.
I use alot of restraint here. I want to frolic though the banana trees that are just down the road. Frolic- skipping, chasing insects, humming, the works. But I don't know who owns the field of how they would feel about the crazy woman running through it. I want to run down the road in the Village for exercise, but running isn't propper for women. I want to burst out laughing at many of the things I see, but I don't often. And I really want to cuss at traffic or things, but I do so only in my head. Again I'd like to state that my language skills aren't good enough to explain that I am (somewhat) sane.
Till next time, and who knows when that will be...
No comments:
Post a Comment