Aftercare Homes for the Holidays

I have recently had two opportunities to visit aftercare homes and spend time with girls who IJM has rescued.  We were invited to the first home for a performance.  The girls had been doing drama therapy for about 12 weeks as a part of their rehabilitation.  As a culmination of the course, they staged a performance and invited all of us at the IJM office to come.  Their teacher, a really lovely woman from the United States, explained that when she first began working with the girls, most of them couldn’t even stand up and say their name without feeling embarrassed.  Now, they were excited to perform an entire show, which they had written and directed themselves. 

The theme of the performance was past, present and future.  The girls acted out scenes of deception and betrayal that they had experienced in the past, followed by scenes of the life they hoped to have in the future.  In another act, they used creative movements and poses to express their new identity and value.  One girl sang a beautiful song in the traditional Indian style.  It was  wonderful to see these girls, who had experienced so much pain, with joy in their eyes.  It was clear that they were proud of what they had done, and it was really encouraging for us.

The other visit was for a Christmas party at a home for children of victimized women.   IJM coordinated the party, and it was hosted by my church.  We had a great time talking to the girls about their interests and their favorite Bollywood stars. They loved to dance and made us each stand up and dance for them.  Later in the evening we ate pizza and ice cream and a few members of the church acted out the Christmas story. 

The Nativity play

                                          My attempt at Bollywood dancing

(I wish I could share more pictures from these special events, but we were asked not to take any photos of the girls for their protection.)

Giving Thanks in Goa

I wanted to do a Thanksgiving post about all the things I’m thankful for, but the holiday really snuck up on me this year.  Probably because it’s still well over 80 degrees every day, and I haven’t seen turkey in any form in this country.  The interns in the office do have American holidays off, so we all took a trip to Goa over Thanksgiving.  Goa is famous for its beaches.  We live on the coast, but (as you can see from the first few picture below) the local beaches aren't really designed with the western tourist in mind; they are very crowded, and the water isn't safe to swim in --  most people stay fully clothed.

  This trip was the first bit of traveling we had done -- it was about a 14 hour drive.  We traveled overnight on a bus, thinking it would be easier to sleep in than a train because it’s air conditioned.  Let’s just say one of the things I’m thankful for is that we made it back alive.  Once at the beach, we had a great time.  We rented mopeds and biked around.  As if learning to drive on the wrong side of the road wasn’t difficult enough, we also had to dodge the cows which were all over the road.  Again, we all survived with no major injuries and had a great Thanksgiving dinner on the beach. (Red snapper cooked tandoori style.)

I did miss my family a lot -- there’s definitely no place like home for Thanksgiving -- but living here makes me constantly aware of all I have to be thankful for.  I don’t know why, when so many people in the world are suffering from lack of money and love and hope, I’ve always had an abundance of all of them.  I am, indeed, very thankful.

                                                                 the local beach

the local beach again

                             The red stuff here is tamarind - the Hindi word for it is "imli". 

   When I told these girls my name was Emily, they made me try it (and laughed at me, because it's sour.)

Goa!  Cows were everywhere, even on the beach.

                                                              Thanksgiving dinner