The Slums
Jan 4
Today I left the comfort of Delhi and saw the India that I came to see… The Slums. I don’t even know where to begin the description. Basically the area was a maze of narrow alley ways covered with people. The houses were scraps of metal and brick with sheets as the doorway. Old women knelt in the muddy walkway washing dishes. Children played in the crematorium and the whole place smelled like a bathroom. This is because it was, I don’t say that to be rude, but because it’s true. During the walk not only did I constantly have to look up to dodge clothes lines, but I also had to look down to dodge people’s waste that they left in the alleys. The sad part about this whole thing was that this area belonged to working adults. Its not people who are lazy or gamble their money, it is people whose unexplainable misfortune runs their life… and the lives of their many children.
This is the area I will be working while here in India. The goal; to educate children of the slums so they can grow out of the slums. The target is all children, but especially women. The idea is that if women get jobs they can help increase a families income, this will give them power and a say in their marriage. If women make half the money they men will have to give them respect. Respect from men in India leads to respect in this society. This idea is becoming very highly regarded and has proven to be successful, as seen in Greg Mortenson’s work (Three Cups of Tea).
There are two of us working in this slum and I am teaching English and math to first and second graders. My partner, Jaime, is an Australian school principal who is one his fourth trip to India. I am very excited to work with Jaime and today we had a lot to take about after our visit. We both were struck by one major thing though; the smiles. Every child was happy although they were playing in a pile of garbage and feces. The all smiled and waved at us, trying to shake our hands and show us their games. They climbed, they ran, they sang, they lived life like they had it all although they had nothing. I have never seen such poor people, but I have never seen such happy people.
