So it’s been a rough week here in Guatemala and by rough I mean a bit hectic! With all that we have on our plate we really had to start taking advantage of our downtime. So we started the week by going on some house visits. This time we visited Wendy and we learned that she had been given the opportunity to rent out a place for 1,200 quetzales a month ($150) to open up a beauty salon. As soon as she said this I immediately thought it was a great opportunity! $150 dollars to rent out a space for a business  is an incredible deal! However, Laura and the people at Potter’s House brought me back down to Earth and explained the many difficulties and risks that Wendy would run if she decided to take the offer. Since Wendy does not have the money to pay the rent of the space each month she would have to get 2 other people to work with in order to split the cost of rent. This is a huge risk because most of the people that we met at Potter’s House haven’t worked with a team. I understand where the insecurities to work with others would come from, since most of the women have been left with 3 or more children by their husbands so, trusting others is something that doesn’t come easy to them. Also, Wendy doesn’t have any experience owning her own business. Although many obstacles have presented themselves in front of Wendy and her dream to own her own business, I still believe that there is a way to overcome all of these and make her dream come true! So, Katie C, Katie F, Tisa, and I started planning on ways that we could help Wendy. We started observing the students in our classes that we noticed were always taking notes and interested in learning. We made it our goal to look for people that Wendy could work with that are determined and willing to take a risk. Auri is a woman who stood out to us from the beginning. So, we asked Carol, who is part of the staff at Potter’s House, to take us to Auri’s house so we could get to know her some more and see if she would be a good candidate to join Wendy. It turns out that Auri has her own small salon in her home with a small mirror, a chair and a hair washing sink. She welcomed us into her home with a big smile and insisted that we sit on her couch while she told us a little bit about herself and her life. Auri’s husband abandoned her 7 years ago when their fourth child was born and she was left to care for all four of them on her own. Because Casa Del Alfarero noticed her determination to get ahead, they built her a small home near the community so, her home is the nicest one we have been to so far. Auri shared with us that she only works from home on weekends and she cleans houses monday- friday. There are many disadvantages of living in the community near the dump, because people barely have any money to eat much less to get a haircut for 15 quetzales so that is why she doesn’t work on her business during the week. However, Auri has progressed more than any other woman we have seen so far and it is evident that her hard work has paid off.

I was very inspired by Auri’s faith in God. I have always believed in God, but I have never consciously reached out to him like people here in Guatemala do. Auri told us that once her children were begging her to buy juice so that they could have some for lunch and Auri, who was short on money, told her children to pray for some clients to come in and cut their hair so that they could have money to buy juice for lunch. So Auri’s four children kneeled down by Auri’s bedside and prayed to God to bless them with some juice for lunch. Soon enough Auri had 5 clients that day and her children were able to have juice with their lunch. Auri laughed as she told the story but I could tell that Auri wholeheartedly puts her life in God’s hands.

After visiting Auri we decided to go take a look at the space that Wendy has been offered. It was a small place and to our surprise it was completely furnished with Beauty Salon supplies. The previous owner is Wendy’s good friend who used to own a barber shop and he’s offering her the space because he started a new business and doesn’t have time to run the barber shop any longer. He was generous enough to offer her the space at a low cost and with all the supplies included. I was a little too excited and I started thinking about how much potential the place had and how we could help decorate it, but once again we Laura reminded me that we still had a lot to discuss.

I know that there are a lot of risks involved, but how often do you get opportunity like this one? I won’t get my hopes up, but I think that we could really help Wendy figure something out.

Until next time,

Nicol.

If there is one thing I have learned over the course of our preparation process is that you have to prioritize your battles and fight them one at a time. And so I will begin at the beginning with project planning. First and foremost I want to give a shout out to everyone who’s helped us in preparation for such an ambitious and amazing project. Dhanya for teaching us Telugu and of course being patient with our questions and rather poor accents, Natasha for providing us with a plethora of information for both our brief stay in Mumbai and our prolonged one in Odisha, Sudheesh and Moy, two international students both from India (Sudheesh from Andra Pradesh, a neighboring state and Moy from Odisha) for providing insight on the culture and social structure of the area, S. Bheema Rao from our partner organization of DJMV who has done a ridiculously outstanding job of planning, outlining, creating pamphlets and posters, and thoroughly analyzing this whole process as well as answering our numerous questions. Without a doubt we have selected a great partner organization. Lastly I want to personally thank everyone who has sponsored me on this trip with either your generous donations or just your good thoughts. I couldn’t have done it without you guys. In a brief side note I’d like to give you a word of the day. In Oria (the language of most of Odisha) the word guy means cow so am I calling you friends or cows? You can decide for yourself *evil chuckle*. With all of this generous support, I had a very good feeling going into this project that we were prepared, or at least as much as we could be under the circumstances.

Roughly six long months were spent planning this trip. Nessa, John, Reanna, and I learned everything from language to culture to village evaluation tools, to current governmental policies in India. A grueling ordeal involving unclear visa deadlines, a plethora of papers, and a lot of really badly pronounced Telugu vocab finally came to an end. After a thirteen-hour plane ride we arrived in Mumbai.

I had no idea what to expect as the plane landed. I hadn’t even really registered in my mind that we were in India…until we stepped out of the airport. Mumbai is a city full of life and vibrant colors. Women in cortis and saris every color of the rainbow walk the streets of the city. Because it’s so hot and humid there are trees everywhere. Unlike most urban environments in the US, Mumbai has tons of trees even in areas with the most traffic. Poverty in Mumbai is also very visible. People sleep on the streets and sidewalks through the day and night. I am interested to experience the difference between the urban poverty we witnessed there and the rural poverty we will see when we arrive in Venkatraipur and New Baxipalli.

There is so much to say about a city as alive as Mumbai, but some highlights and standout memories for me included riding the train and putting the “packed like sardines” saying to shame, being kindly kicked out of the area surrounding a mosque, visiting Mani Bhavan which was where Gandhi lived for a time, visiting a Jain temple, and reading Bollywood signs one of which touted the slogan, “Don’t angry me!”

I am so excited to travel to Orissa! Again, I am not sure of what to expect but I look forward to meeting everyone from DJMV as well as the FMM Sisters who will be housing us for the next six weeks. More to come soon

-Lauren

Several times I have sat down to make a blog entry, to take advantage of this means of communication to tell a story; the story of several years, the story of thousands of lives, the story of countless struggle, the story of those who persevered and believed enough to overcome. Although it seems a simple act, it has taken more than a couple minutes and thoughts to express, to communicate, everything I was able to witness in these last few days.  The story that I share with you is one that encompasses a long, grueling history, and one that is for sure to have an extensive and exhausting future. This is a story in which the dictating problem has no concrete solution. We don’t know if this story will have a happy ending, or any ending at all for that matter. All we can do is use everything that we have been given to work in order to pass along the opportunity that we have enjoyed since birth, to those who have never been given such a chance. I want my writing, this post, to do justice to not only the people of El Basurero and the workers of Casa Del Alfarero, but also to the greater mission, the overall goal…to provide opportunity.

I have visited Guatemala two times in the past, once in 2007 with my family and once in 2010 on my own. However, the mass poverty that plagues the nation is not something that I, a Fairfax County native, will ever be able to forget. On a similar note, the people of Guatemala will always have a special place in my heart and mind. Let me tell you, when I came to Guatemala in 2010 on my own, with very little Spanish speaking ability, and naïve/sheltered mindset, I probably was not the most joyful person to be around. (and that’s an extreme understatement) But I can say with 100% confidence, with every fiber of my being, that my attitude turned around real fast thanks to the people of Guatemala. Never in my life was I able to spend time with better, more quality people who were willing to put forth every effort to make sure that I was having a great time, that I was able to be exposed to their fantastic culture, even though I did not deserve such wonderful treatment. One of the several things that strikes me about Guatemalans is their distinct ability to appreciate life, to have fun no matter where they are or what is going on. Needless to say, I had the trip of a lifetime in 2010! And thanks to the love of Guatemalan people, my life was changed. I made a promise to myself that I would return and try and pay the endless debt that I owe to these people. I came to Guatemala for a reason, these people without a doubt made me a better person, and I will always be more than thankful.

…Which brings me to now, May 24, 2012. We are here. We made it! Our ideas and hard work all year have turned into actions, and our actions hopefully will make some sort of difference, no matter how small. I arrived in Guatemala City on Monday and the first thing I was able to do upon arriving at Casa Del Alfarero was drive out to the overlook of the trash dump with Katie C. Pictures do not even come close to encompassing what we saw. Hundreds of people walking down to the dump, hundreds more already there scavenging, trucks driving through to crush the existing trash and to drop off more…all barely missing the people who were down there.  Talking with Laura, our helper from Casa, we were informed that about 11,000 people try to make a living from the dump, and living in the surrounding “neighborhoods” (for lack of better word).  As the trucks drove into the dump, we took notice that some trucks seemed to be more popular than others. More people swarmed around some trucks, and Katie C. and I did not understand…all of the trash trucks were the same right, I mean it’s all the same trash… wrong. Laura informed us that the people know which trucks come from which zones, and the richer zones provided better trash. That idea sickens me…

The next thing we were able to do was go on a house visit in the middle of the barrio. The house was crunched in the middle of several others, with a dirt floor and tin walls. There were two beds, a makeshift kitchen, and what looked like piles of junk. The woman runs her own sewing business, but lacks a proper sewing machine and does not have the means to buy one. She has one child of her own, but has taken in several more under her care. As she explained her living situation, I was astonished by the things she was telling us so matter of factly… So casually.  She shared with us that four of the children under her care were without birth certificates; they didn’t even know when their birthdays were. Without birth certificates, the children are unable to enroll in school.

As the day progressed, we were able to do some English and business classes to those who had previously signed up. Before leaving for Guatemala, I was very nervous about giving these classes. I did not think I was even close to being qualified to teach people about business. I didn’t think the lessons that we had planned were near advanced enough to do any good. I was very wrong, the women taking our classes have such limited business knowledge (most only have a fourth grade education) , that our lectures are able to do some good. We are currently planning for next week’s lectures as well as compiling a basic business book to distribute after our classes are over.

We have much work ahead of us, but I am honored and blessed to be a part of this mission. I hope that something that we are able to do, maybe some knowledge we are able to share, will benefit someone in some way.

Until next post,

Katie Faughnan

Orissa is a land rich of natural resources and industries have wanted to exploit these resources for profit. However, the people are diverse and tribes who live on the land fear their territory will be taken over. Furthermore, cyclones take the land every few years; therefore, development has to restart after each storm. Particularly in the area we’ll be staying, Gopalpur, the economy is based off of fishing, and the catch hasn’t been as good as earlier years, thus declining possible income to families.

After we finished eating (SUCH a delicious meal), chatting, and visiting their 11-month-old son, we left for Gopalpur. We didn’t get very far before Bheema stopped the driver so we could get bottled water at a stand. To our surprise, he came back with bagged lassi. Only made out of sugar cane, yogurt, salt, and water, the drink was absolutely delicious. The entire drive took about 3 hours. When we arrived at the DJMV convent, we greeted all the sisters (who are complete sweethearts!) and were were given orchids by four beautiful elementary aged girls. The welcoming was quite overwhelming. The sisters then invited us for lunch. Again, the food was amazing. From there, we further chatted with the sisters and spoke with Bheema about the school and what was to come and a little bit about what is to be expected of us. The rest of the day was spent venturing to the Sea and a light dinner at night. The people seem extremely interested in us being in their village, and I hope we are able to make a difference. Tomorrow we will begin the PRA tools (Participatory Rural Appraisal tools) to evaluate various components of the community to see what they most need. Bheema has a very set schedule for us, so I’m sure we’ll be at it for a while. I am interested to see how PRA works in the real world, after researching it pre trip. The Nourish group has also planned to meet to finalize our English curriculum so I know we have a long day ahead.

Cheers to the adventures ahead,

Reanna

Many of the women we work with in our classes have grown up with Potter’s House. They have spent their entire lives enslaved by poverty, and the desire to break free has been softened through years and years of struggle and slow progress. Apprehensiveness about their abilities flood their minds, and make quick action almost unattainable. Consequences of failure are so real and looming, that it requires so much bravery to take the plunge and try new things. In contrast, our culture is so fast paced, and focused on quick results, so it’s very hard for me to see the value in our contribution of a few short weeks. These women have taken business classes before, will attend our classes, and will take more in the future, so, I hope that we will be able to make an impact on at least one of the entrepreneurs here.

Yesterday we started teaching our second class about the relationship between revenue, expenses, and profits. At first we were nervous that our lesson plan was too simple, and that we would be done to quickly leaving our students bored, and disappointed. In actuality, it was the complete opposite, we received good feedback about the content of our lesson, as this was something the women wanted to learn to use while pricing their products, but we were asked to repeat the lesson next week, and take it a little slower. Our anxiety over our limited knowledge of business practices has been relieved realizing that concepts we have grown up thinking are logical, are the ones we need to explain to those who haven’t had the same exposure.

To lighten the mood, I’d like to share a few funny stories of us adjusting to life in our hostel in Guatemala City. Every night we wrap our heads in our t-shirts to protect our ears from the buzzing mosquitoes that make their way into our rooms through the cracks around the doors and windows. It always makes me laugh when I wake up in the morning and see Tisa with her turban on trying to pry herself out of bed.

In our new house in Villas Majen, there is no source of hot water. Therefore in the shower, there is an electrical water heater that heats the water at the spout. We found out later that these showerheads are appropriately named “widow-makers”. Last week Tisa was taking a shower, and we heard a loud pop, her scream and saw a flash of light come from the bathroom door. We yelled for her and she said she was ok, but that the showerhead blew up on her! We have a new shower head that works, and hasn’t blown, but it causes the breaker to switch a few times during the shower, so we all keep watch while each other is bathing to turn the switch back on as quickly as possible if it switches off.

As I explained before, we’ve grown used to bugs in our room, trying to avoid the buzz of the mosquitoes, falling asleep to the knocking of the big bugs running into our windows and doors, and watching the glow of the fire-flys that dot our ceilings at night. But, one thing I don’t think I could get used to is waking up in the middle of the night with a bug on my lips, and when I tried to brush it off I squished it and had a little snack. I couldn’t stop wiping my mouth and wanted to laugh and scream at the same time.

Our time in Guatemala so far has been a mixture of rushing to finish our lesson plans, hanging out for hours chatting in our room, hoping our “students” are learning something from us, and being given gifts of food and jewelry from those we visit during our house visits. This week we will be adjusting our focus on creating our book, hoping to create a resource for many people to read and follow along with long after we have left Guatemala City. I think I speak for everyone when I say that our experience so far makes us feel as this is our second home, and encourages us to continue working with projects like this in the future. The pace can be frustrating, and the roadblocks almost unbearable, but the small steps we see being taken to improve lives, are worth all the frustration.

Utill next time…here’s a picture of a community we visited, with the cemetery in the background.

Katie C.

In the time leading up to this trip to India and sharing the news about where I’d be this summer, I commonly encountered two distinct kinds of reactions from most people. There were those that expressed their sense of amazement, and perhaps admiration, that I was willing to make the sacrifices necessary to come and serve on this project, willing to endure hardships and all sorts of unpleasantries for the sake of helping those less fortunate than me. And then there were those who just as well expressed their admiration but more than that, they mutually shared the excitement and spoke of how certain they were of the joy that was awaiting me in the splendid country of India.

Table that thought for a moment… So I just watched The Bucket List, and there was a scene where Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson are sitting atop a pyramid in Egypt, and Morgan asks Jack the two questions that Egyptians were supposedly asked before being allowed into Egyptian heaven: “Did you have joy in life, and did you bring joy into the lives of others?” Quite thought-provoking questions! Needless to say, this led me to think about choices, particularly the choices I’ve made in my own life.

Now we are all faced with choices in life, millions upon millions of them, and some of them are small, like choosing to smile at a child as he crosses your path or deciding to look on the bright side of things when your seating arrangement on a 14-hr flight is a little less comfortable than one might like. And some of them are big, like deciding to travel halfway around the world to spend 6-weeks in the blazing heat, forgoing A/C and the other amenities of the Western world, essentially paying to work for free. It’s at times like these that I am reminded that it is not the hand in life that you are dealt but rather how you decide to play that hand that matters most – tis about the choices you make, no matter how great or how small, that make all the difference (…thinking of you Mr. Robert Frost…).

I’m sitting here in the wee hours of the night, somehow still operating on a mere 4-hours of sleep, simply wanting to share with you my own joy at this moment. Despite the cramped quarters and the troubles we’ve already faced with the airports and boarding pass issues and sleep deprivation and so on, I am finding immense joy in being here on this plane, flying with three other incredibly amazing volunteers, who I am so honored and blessed to have here with me, embarking on the journey of a lifetime. I feel overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude for having the privilege of getting to serve for the 3rd time on a Nourish project – but this time having the honor of sharing this leadership experience with someone that I admire from the bottom of my heart (…thinking of you Lauren…). To the Nourish – Austin officers & members, to the Nourish staff & Board of Directors, to our partner (DJMV) in India, to my fellow volunteers, to my family back home, to my friends wherever you are – I offer you a sincere and humble thank you for all your hard work and support to make this project happen!

So Mr. Freeman, yes, there has been, and continues to be, much joy in my life! As for the 2nd question – do you bring joy into the lives of others? – I invite you all (yes, you the reader) to follow us on our journey, and when our stories bring you a sense of joy, share your feedback with our volunteers and offer them your kind support. Know that each of us have chosen to set aside these weeks to come in order to travel to these two remote fishing villages in India to offer a helping hand, to offer a ray of hope, and perhaps at the end of the day, a little bit of joy.

Warmly,
John