Community Development – Page 2

“Will it ripen?”

I make my usual stop, enroute from school, to pick up fruits. This old lady, sits by the highway watching buses speed by, making small talk with anyone who is waiting for the bus. She smiles and waves at me, asking me how my daughter is doing. As she packs a big bunch of bananas […]

Excel with empathy

3 PM.. the school leader moves the chair slightly back.. stretches her hands up.. adjusts her sari pleats and drinks water.. picks up her lunch box and walks slowly to the shed for lunch… As she walks out, she stops to ask me, “Ma’am can you please just help me with adding all the numbers […]

Shoba, the sofa.

‘What gives you comfort?’ was picked up as a prompt in our sharing circle. Ela started off sharing ‘sleep’ as the one thing in her life that provides her comfort. “It makes me overcome anything; because I HAVE to hold myself together to make things work at home,” she says. One can’t miss the grit […]

“Girls and boys can’t sit next to each other Ma’am”

“Girls and boys can’t sit next to each other Ma’am”“Hmm.. tell me why?”“People in the village will mistake us- they will judge us…”“I am sure we can explain this to them”“No, Ma’am ! No way we can have them talk to each other”“Okay… So we all have big dreams for our children – that they […]

Breathe in… Breathe out…

The room was filled with calm deep breaths – 30 adults breathing in and out in-sync… The gentle breeze added a sprinkle of freshness while the trees swayed in silence – as if they too, were in the meditation space. A soothing voice bloomed out of the silence, asking them to slowly open their eyes […]

Race of Privileges

“Let’s start the race- but this is a race with a twist! You will get instructions in a chit of paper and you will follow the instructions” shared the facilitator. Interest peaked, teachers were looking eagerly at Tamilarasi miss, who first opened her chit. ‘ You are a woman, move 5 steps backward’ whereas Karuthamma […]

Salt Economics

The floor was swept, the room was cleared- a circle of tiffin boxes appeared. The aroma of food filled the air as we all opened our boxes. The box lid became a plate, where every teacher in the circle put out some food and passed it around. There was some discomfort as I followed suit- […]

“Of what use is sugar for me?”

Her Sungudi was pleated carelessly, hair in a careless bun, a toothy grin, and so many wrinkles- as if every worry she ever had was etched on her face forever. She stopped by the door to say her goodbye, before she headed home after a day of cleaning, sweeping and keeping the school clean… Just […]

Category: Community Development