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Little Money, Big Hearts

By Priya Shashidharan '04

“What is America like? Do you like it here in India?”

“Oh, yes, very much.”

“But we are poor. Our life is hard. We suffer.”

“You are poor, yes, but your hearts are rich.”

Going to do safai in the slums today was a testament to this conversation I have almost everyday. The slums look downtrodden and depressing from the outside. How do people live there? But now that I have been there, now that I know people that live there, now that I have been inside Divaben’s house, it is different. I have a new perspective. In India the poor suffer, yes, but they somehow are still happy and enjoy as much of life as they can. They dance and sing and love each other with the deepest affection. And they will treat you, a stranger, with that same love they give to their families. I was taken aback when each of the children gave me some of their snack that they got after school, even though they probably had not eaten all day.

Because they have to deal with so much, the Indian people have also acquired a sense of tranquility in the face of any trouble. The headlights on our jeep went out in the middle of rural Gujarat and we kept on driving. I pulled out my flashlight. Somebody took it and hopped onto the hood, acting as a makeshift headlight for the rest of the 2-hour drive home. No problem. I closed a car door on a boy’s toe. He only told me 3 seconds later: “Hey, my toe!” “Oh my god, are you ok?!” “Yup.”

America may have a lot of money, but India has a lot of people. And that is not always a bad thing when the people are generous, resilient, smart, loving, and skilled. A complexly embroidered wall hanging is a common site in homes. Intricately carved sandstone temples are nestled away in every corner of the city. Handspun cotton yields comfortable clothing and beautiful stationary. Organic fruits and vegetables are found at every crossroad. Such things are possible because of the abundance of labor here. These things cannot be found in America. Likewise, you cannot find things that exist in America here either, so they should not be sought after.

Big shopping malls, multiplexes, and sprawling industry do not make any sense in India, where people cannot find space to build a simple pit latrine. Just like the Water Worlds found in a drought-ridden Gujarat do not fit. The habit of adopting western ways to become a developed nation is leading India to be a land of imported ideas. Why import thoughts of others when so much creativity and culture lies in one’s own land? Development means building upon what is already established and working well, and making it work for the whole. Build upon the Kutchi mirror work, build upon the gobar houses, build upon the use of compost pits. Build upon the dosas and samosas, and the curry and the chai. Build upon the kindness and caring of the people. Build upon the peace and spirituality that radiates throughout the land. The potential for India is huge because of the huge hearts of its people.

Did You know?

Indicorps offers a variety of programs and opportunities that encourage leadership and civic engagement. While the fellowship focuses on empowering people willing to do whatever it takes to affect change, we also have local volunteer programs in India, an established internship program, an emerging domestic program, an effort to engage late-careers seniors in development, an online volunteer opportunity site, and more....

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From the Gallery

See images by Kajal Patel, a talented UK-based photographer, that are part of an Indicorps project to capture the journey of India's people. Her work particularly focused on widows and the nature of the rag-picking industry in Gujarat's largest slum.

Aasma

Learn about the Indicorps / SAATH partnership, started by Indicorps intern Ajlai Basu, that has lead to Aasma - a volunteer-driven school for street children near the Indicorps office in Gujarat.

The Fellowship

The next fellowship applications are available for fellowship classes starting August 2008 and January 2009. To apply, click here.

Inspiration

If you have come to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.

- Lila Watson