Update

It's been quite awhile since I was near enough to an internet cafe to post, so I'll just catch you up on where we've been and then do some more detailed posts later. The internet is excruciating slow, and most of them are little dark rooms. I'd rather be out exploring, so maybe later tonight when I don't really want to be roaming the streets.

For the past week we have been in Sarnath and the villages that surround it. Sarnath is the place where Buddha gave his first teachings and is a site for Buddhist pilgrimages from all over the world. There are more than five Buddhist temples in one very small town.

We were there to work with the Social Awareness Village Education project. This project, started by a truly remarkable man - Dr. Jain - is building village based schools to serve the Dalit children and the other lower caste children. He is starting village centers for the pre-school - K children (mostly just a mat outside a woman's home) to prepare children for school. He has built a primary school that these children can go to after pre/K for no fees. Most of these children can't even afford a pencil, much less the uniforms and school fees and books required by most schools. Eventually he wants to build a highschool (and university!), but for now, when children graduate 5th grade he tries to find sponsors who will support a child through high school (6000 rps a year - about $250 - will cover the full cost of a child's education.) The students and I taught in the pre/K schools each morning and worked in the afternoon 'helpline' study hall for the primary aged students. Mostly we focused on English and some 'geography' lessons about where we come from. We sang songs (Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes was VERY popular) and they sang for us. Dr. Jain's principles are based in Ghandian ideals, and their theme song seems to be "We Shall Overcome," which each village school sang for us in both English and Hindi. "We shall overcome" in Hindi translates to "we shall have success" which is a great message for these kids to sing.

The children are so beautiful and the poverty is so deep. Most children are very undersized, even for the small Indian stature. Lots of evidence of eye disease and respiratory illness for many. Their smiles and enthusiasm lights up their faces, and it was a blessing to spend time with them.

M