For those of you who know me from my childhood, you will undoubtedly recall that my curiosity of different cultures, languages mixed with a love of children and a passion for education has taken me around the world once before. (Sincerest gratitude to Naomi Bronstein who founded Heal The Children Canada - the organization which brought to me my five foster sisters). In June 1997, at the age of 24 and just ten days after graduating with my then most cherished possession, my newly earned degree in Applied Linguistics, I had set off on a solo journey to teach English at Chonnam National University in Kwangju-Ju, South Korea. It was an adventure fraught with moments of anxiety, loneliness, awe, delight, wonder, fear and joy. Often reminded by my fellow teachers that I was the youngest person teaching at the university that year, albeit I was only teaching after-school English classes to a group of sixth-graders and evening English as a foreign language classes to adults and I was not by any means a qualified professor. Despite my supposed lack of qualifications, six months prior to my departure, I had audaciously knocked on the door of Dr. Pringle's office,Director of Calreton's Applied Linguistics department, wanting to learn more about the sister-school Carleton had in South Korea.
"I have been learning Korean since I was 11 years old and for the past four years have dedicated my linguistic studies to studying and helping Korean learners of English. I am going to Korean when I complete my bachelor's degree and I want to explore all my options. Please tell me more about this school you have in Korea that accepts Carleton graduates to teach English." A month later, I received a call from Dr. Pringle: "The director from Chonnam' Language Education Centre will be in Ottawa next week and I would like him to meet you."
And this was the beginning of my professional adult life. It wasn't until after I had signed my contract and had gotten my passport and work visa in order that I realized the position I was filling was intended for master's and doctoral graduates - that a 4-year bachelor would normally have been considered as insufficient qualifications to be accepted to teach at the Language Education Centre at Chonnam. No matter. I taught English at Chonnam's LEC and travelled about Asia from June 1997 to June1998. This marked an important year of personal discovery and growth that would carry me forward for the next 18 years.
I'm not going to go into the details of my adventure in South Korea. For the purpose of this blog, it is enough to mention that I used my Han-gul to make new Korean friends, reconnected with my beloved foster sisters, Ju-yong and Hye-Jung, met my first pen-pal, Sun-Hyung, fell in love for the first time, visited the demilitarized zone between the two Koreas, snorkelled in the Gulf of Siam during my Christmas vacation, discovered the extent of my gift to teach language and learned that true communication extends beyond linguistic barriers of syntax and grammar. It was a year that would later serve to anchor me into my sense of self and steer me forward 15 years laters when I found myself starting over as a single mother of 1yr old Daphnée and 3yr old Chelsea living and teaching downtown Montreal.
My Korean adventure will remain in my heart forever, but it is now behind me. For reasons presently unbeknownst to me, this India project has been gently and firmly placed in my hands. I did not seek it, it just came.
I write this first blog as my film crew - my two 17-yr old students Dominique, our photographer, and Francis, our film maker, fly Qatar Airways across the Atlantic, over the Middle East and onto Hyderabad in central India. We'll have one more flight to make from Hyderabad to the coastal city of Rajahmundry where we will be greeted by our driver sent by Dr. Chandra Sankurathri. You see, two years ago, I told my dear friend, retired school teacher Michelle Danis, that I would continue her work with MSMF, the Manjari Sankurathri Memorial Foundaiton. Michelle had been actively fundraising for MSMF since its beginnings 25 years ago. Recently she has had to stop her work with MSMF because of health issues, so I told her that I would step in. As a teacher myself, I promised to continue her efforts in finding ways schools could help to support the Sarada Vidyalayam in Kakinada.
The Manjari Sankurathri Memorial Foundation, is a charitable foundation based in Ottawa that funds a primary school, a high school, a vocational school and a hospital which specializes in ophthalmological care. 25 years ago, Dr Chandra and his friend, Sarma Vishnubhatla, set up MSMF's main office in Ottawa, Ontario. Dr Chandra returned to India to be with his sister Hema and together began Sarada Valyalada in 1992 - the school named after his daughter. In 1993, the Srikiran Institute of ophthalmology, named after his son was opened. In naming the foundation after his wife, the school after his daughter and the hospital after his son, the memory of their lives remain. Manjari, with her 6 year old son Srikiran and 3 year old daughter Sarada were victims of the 1985 Air India terrorist bombing. They were on their way to visit relatives in India. Chandra had planned on joining his family within a month's time. After such a tragedy, I believe that there is no true way to heal. It is, in my mind, a wound that would remain open forever.
However, I feel compelled to share that I have come to believe that if one is to recover -or find a way to continue living - from the pain of extreme loss, hurt, or deep sadness is that they must put forth acts of love and kindness that are in direct contrast to the amount of pain experienced. This is how I overcame bouts of depression, anxiety, anger and blame after my 10 year marriage dissolved. In my classrooms, for example, I found myself shifting my lessons from teaching for the test to creating learning opportunities that fostered imagination and creativity. I was teaching my teenagers to find their voice in their writing assignments. The result was very simple: happier students! This shift in teaching methodology enabled me to understand the personalities and life experiences of the 200+ students seated in front of me every week. To achieve this shift, however, it took patience, determination, kindness, compassion and understanding. These were the values that I actively brought into my life that helped me heal from my personal pain. When I would see the positive results of this shift, I would smile. I would feel happiness; an emotion I thought had disappeared from my life.
I cannot speak for Chandra but I can only assume that finding the land to build a school and purchasing a bus that would go into the local rural communities to bring the children of local farmers to his school for a free education and a chance for a brighter future would perhaps bring about moments of joy through his works of compassion and giving. Perhaps, this has helped him heal.
Now, you may be wondering how I put this team together. Let me begin with Dominique.
Three years ago, Dominique was a student in one of my grade nine English as a Second Language classes at College Notre Dame in Montreal. A talented writer in French, she seemed not so enthralled to express herself in my English class, but she never caused any problems, was quiet and polite although lacking on the active participation aspect of the class. The latter never really bothers me. I believe all students have their own way of participating. We are not all outspoken extroverts, therefor, I have respect and make room for the contemplative introvert who'd rather listen and do their work silently.
One particular day in class, while I was doing a standard homework check, she told me that her work was not done. No further explanation was given. In front of me was just another uninterested teen who seemed she'd rather be anywhere but in school. In response, I asked her if she could hand it in the next day, to which she replied with an emphatic "yes". Perhaps she was just surprised that she wouldn't be reprimanded for an incomplete homework assignment or perhaps she was relieved that the stress she lived having walked into the class with the work not done was now gone. A smile came over her face, she relaxed at her desk and I continued teaching my class.
The next day, I received an email from Dominique in my teacher's inbox. She was thanking me for the leniency I had shown her. She went on to explain that she was living very difficult moments in her personal life and that school was not a priority at that moment. Her homework assignment was included as an attachment to this email.
When I saw her the next day, I spoke to her and said:"You know, I really appreciate that you told me you are going through a hard time because now I understand your attitude in class. We all go through hard times but we all still have responsibilities that we cannot let go to the way side. I can't tell you personal details about my life, but I will tell you that I too am struggling with certain aspects of my life. Despite these obstacles, I still get up every morning, show up at work and give my best. I expect you to do the same, but I have something to propose to you. What would you say to each of us keeping a journal of what we're living? In three year's time, when you are no longer a student here at the college, we will compare notes and collaborate on a creative writing assignment."
Again, she smiled, and wholeheartedly agreed. In June of last year, she graduated but before she left CND, she left a hand-written note on my desk: "...thank you...the writing activity saved my life in some ways...I can't wait to see you again. Here is my email...."
I didn't see Dominique again until the following September when she dropped by the college to visit her former teachers. When she found me in my office she started to explain that she was now studying photography. Little did she realize that our writing project would have to be put aside for I was looking for a photographer for another project that would take us to the other side of the world.
And Francis is our videographer / movie director / documentary film maker / D.O.P (director or photography). Around College Notre Dame, Francis is known for his passion and talent for making films. At the age of 17, he began 66 Production (www.66production.com) which has already garnished him a few awards for his short films, as well as a continuous flow of projects and contracts that has this senior high school student quite busy running his own business while studying for exams and completing homework assignments.
I came to know Francis in the same way I met Dominique. Two years ago, he was my student in a grade 9 English as a Second Language class. As most students, he just blended into the crowd of 34 seated in rows in my classroom, diligently (or not) participating in class activities and completing assignments. It wasn't until the final assignment of the year that Francis showed his true colours, not just as a teen with a love of film production, but as a socially conscientious person with heart.
The end of year assignment came to me when I discovered the documentary "I Am" by Hollywood movie producer Tom Shadyac, who had travelled the world asking "What is wrong with the world, and what can we do about it?" And so, I gave my class this very question to answer in any which way they saw fit: a power point presentation, a prepared text or even a spontaneous improvised response for those kids who posses the talent of theatre improv and a natural flare for public speaking (of which there are always a few in each class!). The template of the final presentation of this homework assignment was to be chosen by each student. Francis chose to create a short film that brought us to tears. Francis had put together a simple yet moving 5-minmute video of himself and a friend walking about Montreal handing out bag lunches to homeless people on the streets, in parks and in the metro. While one approached these people, spoke with them and handed them the bags, the other filmed from afar and they dubbed in a raspy Janis Joplin-esque busker singing an acoustic version of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ7KnyA2_Vo&feature=youtu.be
Fast forward two years to September 2014, to the start of a school year that is to take me away from the comforts of my classroom to the interim seat of coordinator of the department of "Animation spirituelle et engagement communautaire". My role this year would be to connect the school community of 1600 teenagers with our surrounding community through project sharing, collaboration and opportunities of volunteerism for our students. One idea my director had proposed was to have our video savvy students create a promotional video for a not-for-profit organization in Montreal - a way of giving and sharing of our talents to a worthy organization making strides in improving the quality of lives of people in need. This particular discussion was merely a brainstorming session to set me on my feet and get me going in this new position, yet it did not take me long to propose which not-for-profit would most benefit from this idea.
On two occasions, once in June 2013 and again a year later, I had invited Dr. Chandra to meet with the direction of CND, one of a few net-working stops in Montreal Dr. Chandra had made in his yearly trip to Canada and the United States. I wanted to use my connections and knowledge of prominent schools in Montreal to promote the work of MSMF in the hopes of creating links between our communities; College Notre Dame and College Ste-Anne-de-Lachine most notably welcomed Dr. Chandra both years. Whereas the students and direction at Ste-Anne's are moving forward with student-generated social projects for the school children at Dr. Chandra's Sarada Vadyalayam in Kakinada, India, Notre Dame hadn't made any movements forward in creating any particular project to help Dr. Chandra; until now.
In gratitude to the kindness and generosity of Lotfi Tazi, General Director of College Notre Dame, CND is making the production of much needed new video materials for MSMF possible, while simultaneously choosing to invest in the talents of a young movie producer as he sets out with us this week to create his first documentary.
I have been involved with MSMF since 2011 and in 2012, was welcomed by Dr. Chandra and Sarma Vishnubhatla to be part of the MSMF board of directors. My learning curve is very high this year, but I welcome all these opportunities for personal and professional growth. In June 2014, Chandra insisted I see the schools and hospital first hand. In turn, I insisted that he tell us his story. We each accepted the other's request.
And this is how I came to be on a Christmas Eve flight to India with Dominique and Francis. After more than 16 hours of flight, 9 hours of layovers and four airports, we made it to the south-eastern Indian province of Andhra Pradesh. Our final stop was Rajahmundry - a rural area an hour away from Dr. Chandra's villa. By 12:00pm on December 26, 2014, my young film crew and I were finally seated around the dining table with Chandra and his sister, Hema, tasting the flavours of homemade vegetarian Indian cuisine. I tell her the food is delicious and that she has a beautiful home, to which she smiles and says: this is not my home, this is OUR home.
It is now 4:15am on December 27. I cannot sleep, for my body still thinks it is 5:30 pm and I have just slept all day. I am seated on my bed typing into my iPad. The room is quiet but I can hear the chattering of birds coming from the gardens outside.
We have each been given our own room with a private bathroom. Hema, Dominique and I have rooms on the first floor and the Chandra and Francis are on the second. Our accommodations are very modest and quite comfortable. A queen-sized bed with light bedding tightly pulled over a firm mattress is to one side. This room is my present place of personal refuge - something every traveller needs to adjust to new surroundings. A ceiling fan overhead quietly turns giving off a pleasant circulation of cool air as the windows are locked for safety purposes. If it were to get too hot, the air conditioner would provide us the relief we would need. We have computer and Internet access and a telephone at our disposal. We truly have all we need to get this project underway. There is no humidity and there are no bugs. We keep the screens on the windows closed to keep the mosquitoes away, but we're all well into our regiment of prescribed Malaria pills just in case.
To all of you at home thinking about us and praying for us throughout this adventure: thank you! I believe I can speak for Dominique and Francis and say that we feel motivated and confident in ourselves to give our all to this project. We feel blessed to have been given this opportunity to see the world.
To the memory of Manjari, Sarada and Srikiran, whose smiling faces greet us at almost every turn throughout the villa, I say that the creation of a documentary for MSMF, is not going to be a retelling of tragedy turned around. We do not want to rest on the idea that tugging at heart strings and pity will compel people to donate to a charitable cause. Rather, our perspective will be one of progress as we focus on the result of 25 years of hard work and labours of love that have built a family home, a primary school, a high school and an internationally recognized eye hospital, all of which serve the poor of this region. Schooling is free. Eye exams and cataract surgeries are free. The lives of more than 2million people have already been blessed because of the activities of MSMF. Chandra explained at dinner time, that the goal for MSMF is to ensure that these activities continue forever. The goal of my team is to do justice to Dr. Chandra and Hema, to honour the memories of Manjari, Sarada and Kiran and to bring the work of MSMF to the attention of the world.
"I have been learning Korean since I was 11 years old and for the past four years have dedicated my linguistic studies to studying and helping Korean learners of English. I am going to Korean when I complete my bachelor's degree and I want to explore all my options. Please tell me more about this school you have in Korea that accepts Carleton graduates to teach English." A month later, I received a call from Dr. Pringle: "The director from Chonnam' Language Education Centre will be in Ottawa next week and I would like him to meet you."
And this was the beginning of my professional adult life. It wasn't until after I had signed my contract and had gotten my passport and work visa in order that I realized the position I was filling was intended for master's and doctoral graduates - that a 4-year bachelor would normally have been considered as insufficient qualifications to be accepted to teach at the Language Education Centre at Chonnam. No matter. I taught English at Chonnam's LEC and travelled about Asia from June 1997 to June1998. This marked an important year of personal discovery and growth that would carry me forward for the next 18 years.
I'm not going to go into the details of my adventure in South Korea. For the purpose of this blog, it is enough to mention that I used my Han-gul to make new Korean friends, reconnected with my beloved foster sisters, Ju-yong and Hye-Jung, met my first pen-pal, Sun-Hyung, fell in love for the first time, visited the demilitarized zone between the two Koreas, snorkelled in the Gulf of Siam during my Christmas vacation, discovered the extent of my gift to teach language and learned that true communication extends beyond linguistic barriers of syntax and grammar. It was a year that would later serve to anchor me into my sense of self and steer me forward 15 years laters when I found myself starting over as a single mother of 1yr old Daphnée and 3yr old Chelsea living and teaching downtown Montreal.
My Korean adventure will remain in my heart forever, but it is now behind me. For reasons presently unbeknownst to me, this India project has been gently and firmly placed in my hands. I did not seek it, it just came.
I write this first blog as my film crew - my two 17-yr old students Dominique, our photographer, and Francis, our film maker, fly Qatar Airways across the Atlantic, over the Middle East and onto Hyderabad in central India. We'll have one more flight to make from Hyderabad to the coastal city of Rajahmundry where we will be greeted by our driver sent by Dr. Chandra Sankurathri. You see, two years ago, I told my dear friend, retired school teacher Michelle Danis, that I would continue her work with MSMF, the Manjari Sankurathri Memorial Foundaiton. Michelle had been actively fundraising for MSMF since its beginnings 25 years ago. Recently she has had to stop her work with MSMF because of health issues, so I told her that I would step in. As a teacher myself, I promised to continue her efforts in finding ways schools could help to support the Sarada Vidyalayam in Kakinada.
The Manjari Sankurathri Memorial Foundation, is a charitable foundation based in Ottawa that funds a primary school, a high school, a vocational school and a hospital which specializes in ophthalmological care. 25 years ago, Dr Chandra and his friend, Sarma Vishnubhatla, set up MSMF's main office in Ottawa, Ontario. Dr Chandra returned to India to be with his sister Hema and together began Sarada Valyalada in 1992 - the school named after his daughter. In 1993, the Srikiran Institute of ophthalmology, named after his son was opened. In naming the foundation after his wife, the school after his daughter and the hospital after his son, the memory of their lives remain. Manjari, with her 6 year old son Srikiran and 3 year old daughter Sarada were victims of the 1985 Air India terrorist bombing. They were on their way to visit relatives in India. Chandra had planned on joining his family within a month's time. After such a tragedy, I believe that there is no true way to heal. It is, in my mind, a wound that would remain open forever.
However, I feel compelled to share that I have come to believe that if one is to recover -or find a way to continue living - from the pain of extreme loss, hurt, or deep sadness is that they must put forth acts of love and kindness that are in direct contrast to the amount of pain experienced. This is how I overcame bouts of depression, anxiety, anger and blame after my 10 year marriage dissolved. In my classrooms, for example, I found myself shifting my lessons from teaching for the test to creating learning opportunities that fostered imagination and creativity. I was teaching my teenagers to find their voice in their writing assignments. The result was very simple: happier students! This shift in teaching methodology enabled me to understand the personalities and life experiences of the 200+ students seated in front of me every week. To achieve this shift, however, it took patience, determination, kindness, compassion and understanding. These were the values that I actively brought into my life that helped me heal from my personal pain. When I would see the positive results of this shift, I would smile. I would feel happiness; an emotion I thought had disappeared from my life.
I cannot speak for Chandra but I can only assume that finding the land to build a school and purchasing a bus that would go into the local rural communities to bring the children of local farmers to his school for a free education and a chance for a brighter future would perhaps bring about moments of joy through his works of compassion and giving. Perhaps, this has helped him heal.
Now, you may be wondering how I put this team together. Let me begin with Dominique.
Three years ago, Dominique was a student in one of my grade nine English as a Second Language classes at College Notre Dame in Montreal. A talented writer in French, she seemed not so enthralled to express herself in my English class, but she never caused any problems, was quiet and polite although lacking on the active participation aspect of the class. The latter never really bothers me. I believe all students have their own way of participating. We are not all outspoken extroverts, therefor, I have respect and make room for the contemplative introvert who'd rather listen and do their work silently.
One particular day in class, while I was doing a standard homework check, she told me that her work was not done. No further explanation was given. In front of me was just another uninterested teen who seemed she'd rather be anywhere but in school. In response, I asked her if she could hand it in the next day, to which she replied with an emphatic "yes". Perhaps she was just surprised that she wouldn't be reprimanded for an incomplete homework assignment or perhaps she was relieved that the stress she lived having walked into the class with the work not done was now gone. A smile came over her face, she relaxed at her desk and I continued teaching my class.
The next day, I received an email from Dominique in my teacher's inbox. She was thanking me for the leniency I had shown her. She went on to explain that she was living very difficult moments in her personal life and that school was not a priority at that moment. Her homework assignment was included as an attachment to this email.
When I saw her the next day, I spoke to her and said:"You know, I really appreciate that you told me you are going through a hard time because now I understand your attitude in class. We all go through hard times but we all still have responsibilities that we cannot let go to the way side. I can't tell you personal details about my life, but I will tell you that I too am struggling with certain aspects of my life. Despite these obstacles, I still get up every morning, show up at work and give my best. I expect you to do the same, but I have something to propose to you. What would you say to each of us keeping a journal of what we're living? In three year's time, when you are no longer a student here at the college, we will compare notes and collaborate on a creative writing assignment."
Again, she smiled, and wholeheartedly agreed. In June of last year, she graduated but before she left CND, she left a hand-written note on my desk: "...thank you...the writing activity saved my life in some ways...I can't wait to see you again. Here is my email...."
I didn't see Dominique again until the following September when she dropped by the college to visit her former teachers. When she found me in my office she started to explain that she was now studying photography. Little did she realize that our writing project would have to be put aside for I was looking for a photographer for another project that would take us to the other side of the world.
And Francis is our videographer / movie director / documentary film maker / D.O.P (director or photography). Around College Notre Dame, Francis is known for his passion and talent for making films. At the age of 17, he began 66 Production (www.66production.com) which has already garnished him a few awards for his short films, as well as a continuous flow of projects and contracts that has this senior high school student quite busy running his own business while studying for exams and completing homework assignments.
I came to know Francis in the same way I met Dominique. Two years ago, he was my student in a grade 9 English as a Second Language class. As most students, he just blended into the crowd of 34 seated in rows in my classroom, diligently (or not) participating in class activities and completing assignments. It wasn't until the final assignment of the year that Francis showed his true colours, not just as a teen with a love of film production, but as a socially conscientious person with heart.
The end of year assignment came to me when I discovered the documentary "I Am" by Hollywood movie producer Tom Shadyac, who had travelled the world asking "What is wrong with the world, and what can we do about it?" And so, I gave my class this very question to answer in any which way they saw fit: a power point presentation, a prepared text or even a spontaneous improvised response for those kids who posses the talent of theatre improv and a natural flare for public speaking (of which there are always a few in each class!). The template of the final presentation of this homework assignment was to be chosen by each student. Francis chose to create a short film that brought us to tears. Francis had put together a simple yet moving 5-minmute video of himself and a friend walking about Montreal handing out bag lunches to homeless people on the streets, in parks and in the metro. While one approached these people, spoke with them and handed them the bags, the other filmed from afar and they dubbed in a raspy Janis Joplin-esque busker singing an acoustic version of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ7KnyA2_Vo&feature=youtu.be
Fast forward two years to September 2014, to the start of a school year that is to take me away from the comforts of my classroom to the interim seat of coordinator of the department of "Animation spirituelle et engagement communautaire". My role this year would be to connect the school community of 1600 teenagers with our surrounding community through project sharing, collaboration and opportunities of volunteerism for our students. One idea my director had proposed was to have our video savvy students create a promotional video for a not-for-profit organization in Montreal - a way of giving and sharing of our talents to a worthy organization making strides in improving the quality of lives of people in need. This particular discussion was merely a brainstorming session to set me on my feet and get me going in this new position, yet it did not take me long to propose which not-for-profit would most benefit from this idea.
On two occasions, once in June 2013 and again a year later, I had invited Dr. Chandra to meet with the direction of CND, one of a few net-working stops in Montreal Dr. Chandra had made in his yearly trip to Canada and the United States. I wanted to use my connections and knowledge of prominent schools in Montreal to promote the work of MSMF in the hopes of creating links between our communities; College Notre Dame and College Ste-Anne-de-Lachine most notably welcomed Dr. Chandra both years. Whereas the students and direction at Ste-Anne's are moving forward with student-generated social projects for the school children at Dr. Chandra's Sarada Vadyalayam in Kakinada, India, Notre Dame hadn't made any movements forward in creating any particular project to help Dr. Chandra; until now.
In gratitude to the kindness and generosity of Lotfi Tazi, General Director of College Notre Dame, CND is making the production of much needed new video materials for MSMF possible, while simultaneously choosing to invest in the talents of a young movie producer as he sets out with us this week to create his first documentary.
I have been involved with MSMF since 2011 and in 2012, was welcomed by Dr. Chandra and Sarma Vishnubhatla to be part of the MSMF board of directors. My learning curve is very high this year, but I welcome all these opportunities for personal and professional growth. In June 2014, Chandra insisted I see the schools and hospital first hand. In turn, I insisted that he tell us his story. We each accepted the other's request.
And this is how I came to be on a Christmas Eve flight to India with Dominique and Francis. After more than 16 hours of flight, 9 hours of layovers and four airports, we made it to the south-eastern Indian province of Andhra Pradesh. Our final stop was Rajahmundry - a rural area an hour away from Dr. Chandra's villa. By 12:00pm on December 26, 2014, my young film crew and I were finally seated around the dining table with Chandra and his sister, Hema, tasting the flavours of homemade vegetarian Indian cuisine. I tell her the food is delicious and that she has a beautiful home, to which she smiles and says: this is not my home, this is OUR home.
It is now 4:15am on December 27. I cannot sleep, for my body still thinks it is 5:30 pm and I have just slept all day. I am seated on my bed typing into my iPad. The room is quiet but I can hear the chattering of birds coming from the gardens outside.
We have each been given our own room with a private bathroom. Hema, Dominique and I have rooms on the first floor and the Chandra and Francis are on the second. Our accommodations are very modest and quite comfortable. A queen-sized bed with light bedding tightly pulled over a firm mattress is to one side. This room is my present place of personal refuge - something every traveller needs to adjust to new surroundings. A ceiling fan overhead quietly turns giving off a pleasant circulation of cool air as the windows are locked for safety purposes. If it were to get too hot, the air conditioner would provide us the relief we would need. We have computer and Internet access and a telephone at our disposal. We truly have all we need to get this project underway. There is no humidity and there are no bugs. We keep the screens on the windows closed to keep the mosquitoes away, but we're all well into our regiment of prescribed Malaria pills just in case.
To all of you at home thinking about us and praying for us throughout this adventure: thank you! I believe I can speak for Dominique and Francis and say that we feel motivated and confident in ourselves to give our all to this project. We feel blessed to have been given this opportunity to see the world.
To the memory of Manjari, Sarada and Srikiran, whose smiling faces greet us at almost every turn throughout the villa, I say that the creation of a documentary for MSMF, is not going to be a retelling of tragedy turned around. We do not want to rest on the idea that tugging at heart strings and pity will compel people to donate to a charitable cause. Rather, our perspective will be one of progress as we focus on the result of 25 years of hard work and labours of love that have built a family home, a primary school, a high school and an internationally recognized eye hospital, all of which serve the poor of this region. Schooling is free. Eye exams and cataract surgeries are free. The lives of more than 2million people have already been blessed because of the activities of MSMF. Chandra explained at dinner time, that the goal for MSMF is to ensure that these activities continue forever. The goal of my team is to do justice to Dr. Chandra and Hema, to honour the memories of Manjari, Sarada and Kiran and to bring the work of MSMF to the attention of the world.
Love you even more..
ReplyDeleteYou are amazing! Keep it up
ReplyDeletexox
Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteHonest and beautiful.
ReplyDelete