The days have passed quickly. We haven't been here long enough to adjust to the time difference, so once again, we are heading to bed before 9pm and will undoubtedly wake up around 4 or 5am!
We have worked from dawn until dusk - until the natural light of day we used to our advantage for filming and photographs, faded away to night - a constraint that forced us to make the most out of our days. Often, Dominique or Francis would be up and walking about getting early morning shots of the first sunrise and the gentle hues of the rice fields, the mango trees and flower beds that are scattered about the compound. I think we have been blessed to experience rural India. Driving through the streets of Rajahmundry and Kakinada to and from the Sankurathri compound, I have felt as though I walked into a National Geographic magazine for I found nothing in my surrounding that was remotely familiar to my way of life back home. I felt far way from home. I felt very much an outsider. I felt as though I was walking through the pages of a National Geographic magazine, for this is the only reference point I could connect to as I tried to make sense of the bustling cacophony of car horns, truck and motorcyle motors, people speaking/yelling in Telugu, roosters crowing, dogs barking,and radios playing the latest Bollywood hit as we wove our way through congested, polluted, garbage ridden city streets and rural village roads.
As I near the end of this stage of my blog, I must make mention of the efforts Dr. Chandra has made to show that clean, sustainable living is possible. Creating environmentally friendly ways to live and work on the compound is testimony to the great strides the Sankurathri Foundation is making. They have a working farm which grows food they need, cows provide fresh milk for making cream and yogurt, an irrigration sysytem for the farm and other areas about the compound that need watering. Even the children garden and clean their own playground. They make art out of recylced materials and are learning that living in an environmentally friendly way is possible. It just takes, effort, thought and proper action - and the "Clean India" signs posted in and around the compound are a constant reminder of Chandra's mission.
When I return to Canada, I will be visiting schools to promote educational trips to the Sankurathri compound here in Kakinada. The main focus for these visits would be cultural and environmental: learning about India, how its rural populations live and learning about the devasting effects of pollution and exploring possible solutions for such problems. Dr. Chandra's compound is the perfect place for students coming from developed countries to explore and learn about social and environemntal issues affecting developing nations. This would be the perfect educational experience for our youth interested in environmental science and socio-political issues. Here they would be challenged to find ways to make India - or the world - a cleaner place. The classes here, you see, take their students outside of the classroom walls!
Dominique and I spent time going through the high school this morning, taking pictures of the library, science and computer labs, as well as a room dedicated to teaching traditional Indian dance. How wonderful it would be for foreign students to come and learn the intricacies and meanings behind traditional Indian dance hand gestures? I didn't get a chance to try. Maybe on my next visit?
Today was our final day here with Dr. Chandra and his sister Hema. My teens are going through waves of emotions. Elation has been one of the most prevalent of emotions for them, I think. They have been caught up in their art of capturing the world on film - and this world has taken them in! Their favourite: the kids, of course!
Although this 12-day journey is coming to an end, so much is just beginning. We have the editing of the documentary to complete, compilation of the photos to create promotional materials for MSMF and then, my Montreal team will be hitting the circuit of schools, hospitals and univeristies to spread the word of Dr. Chandra's work and how Canadians can get involved. His work is meaningful. His methods are honest and transparent. The results are staggeringly positive. These past 25 years, he has bettered the lives of so many people - brought them health, education and belief in themselves that they can pull themselves out of poverty. I, for one, am going to lend a hand.
Namaste. xo
