Today was so beautiful. My driver, R.D. Singh, picked me up from the hotel at 11:00 and we went to a shop to purchase some biscuits to donate to the Mother Teresa Home in Jaipur. I did not spend a lot of time at the home; I just sat down with the Sister in charge of the home and talked to her for a few minutes about their work. If you are interested in learning about Mother Teresa's legacy and the work that her foundation does in India, click here.
During my last trip to India, dozens of children approached me in Kerala asking for pens and pencils. These were not "beggar" children and they did not want money, just writing utensils. I did not understand why until my guide informed me that they needed them for school. I gave them the few pens I had in my luggage, but I was very sad that I only had a few to give. Ever since then, I have wanted to donate pencils to a school here. Today, I finally had that opportunity.
After leaving the Mother Teresa Home, I purchased 100 pencils, erasers, and chocolate bars at a small shop. (In hindsight, I wish I had purchased ten times as many!) Mr. Singh then took me to a local government (i.e. public) school, where I was welcomed with open arms. The principal, administrators, and faculty treated me like a movie star and did everything they could to make me feel comfortable at their school. The teachers were so warm and kind-hearted, so appreciative of my small donation, and insisted that I go room to room to personally give the supplies to the children.
As you can see in the slideshow below, I visited several primary classrooms. Each time I entered the room, the children stood up to greet me. Most of the children were in the "Hindi Medium" program, which means they study in Hindi (there is also an English Medium), so I would introduce myself and tell them that I am from the USA and their smiling teacher would translate. I tried to shake every child's hand and ask their names because most of them had never spoken to a Westerner before and were quite nervous.
After I ran out of pencils, the teachers escorted me into a large room where a couple classes of students were already lined up waiting to take a group photo with me! I could not believe how excited everyone was about the pencils until I realized that it was not the pencils they were excited about; it was me. They were proud of their school, and appreciated that I took the time to visit. The faculty wanted to know everything about me: my marital status, my occupation, how many servants I had... They were just so happy that I was there. It was such a wonderful experience.
I will be posting the school's mailing address, in case anyone wants to send them some supplies. I would like to have a "pencil drive" when I return to the States, so collect those extra pens and pencils in your junk drawer and send them to me! Email or message me on Facebook for my address if you would like to donate any school supplies - I'll pay the postage!
Namaste, and thanks for reading.
During my last trip to India, dozens of children approached me in Kerala asking for pens and pencils. These were not "beggar" children and they did not want money, just writing utensils. I did not understand why until my guide informed me that they needed them for school. I gave them the few pens I had in my luggage, but I was very sad that I only had a few to give. Ever since then, I have wanted to donate pencils to a school here. Today, I finally had that opportunity.
After leaving the Mother Teresa Home, I purchased 100 pencils, erasers, and chocolate bars at a small shop. (In hindsight, I wish I had purchased ten times as many!) Mr. Singh then took me to a local government (i.e. public) school, where I was welcomed with open arms. The principal, administrators, and faculty treated me like a movie star and did everything they could to make me feel comfortable at their school. The teachers were so warm and kind-hearted, so appreciative of my small donation, and insisted that I go room to room to personally give the supplies to the children.
As you can see in the slideshow below, I visited several primary classrooms. Each time I entered the room, the children stood up to greet me. Most of the children were in the "Hindi Medium" program, which means they study in Hindi (there is also an English Medium), so I would introduce myself and tell them that I am from the USA and their smiling teacher would translate. I tried to shake every child's hand and ask their names because most of them had never spoken to a Westerner before and were quite nervous.
After I ran out of pencils, the teachers escorted me into a large room where a couple classes of students were already lined up waiting to take a group photo with me! I could not believe how excited everyone was about the pencils until I realized that it was not the pencils they were excited about; it was me. They were proud of their school, and appreciated that I took the time to visit. The faculty wanted to know everything about me: my marital status, my occupation, how many servants I had... They were just so happy that I was there. It was such a wonderful experience.
I will be posting the school's mailing address, in case anyone wants to send them some supplies. I would like to have a "pencil drive" when I return to the States, so collect those extra pens and pencils in your junk drawer and send them to me! Email or message me on Facebook for my address if you would like to donate any school supplies - I'll pay the postage!
Namaste, and thanks for reading.
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