Namaste and tashi delek, dear Carpe family!
I’ve been in northern India for over a month now, and words can’t describe how wonderful it is to be here. I was breath-taken upon my initial arrival and seeing my new home in the mountains for the first time, and I don’t think I’ve taken a full inhale yet – although, that could also potentially be attributed to the altitude here.
For the past few weeks, I’ve been teaching an adult intermediate English class at a Tibetan NGO called Tibet World. I do classroom instruction with about six students (who are almost all Tibetan refugees) for two hours a day, and I do English conversation class with about twenty students for two hours a day, as well. Conversation classes are possibly the most joyous events in the universe. I have never laughed so hard in my life – from a 47 year-old monk named Sonam imitating President Obama meditating on the toilet (toilet meditation would solve all of the world’s problems, according to Sonam) to the younger students teaching me “useful” Tibetan phrases (I can successfully say “Shut up! Stop lying,” but have yet to learn “My name is…”), conversation class is consistently the most hilarious part of my day. When we’re not laughing, we’re asking each other questions. Well, to be more accurate, I’m the one asking questions – about Buddhism, about Tibet, about life in India – and I learn something new every single day. I’m so grateful to have a community here willing to teach me.
One of the biggest issues discussed in this community is that of the situation in Tibet. While I’ve been trying to understand everything, I don’t think I’ll fully grasp what’s happened and what continues to happen there for quite some time. In short, for those who are as clueless as I was a month ago, the Chinese government has occupied and claimed Tibet as Chinese territory for decades. Tibetan culture has been systematically stomped out by the Chinese government. This has resulted in many Tibetans seeking refuge in countries like India and Nepal. They make an incredibly dangerous journey across the Himalayas, averaging about one month in length, in order to reach freedom outside of Chinese rule. While this journey leads to many fatalities due solely to the brutal conditions of the Himalayas, in recent years the number of Tibetans able to escape Tibet has plummeted as the Chinese army has made it nearly impossible to reach the Nepalese border without being shot and killed. The situation in Tibet is heartbreaking, as people are trapped there and prevented from practicing their religion, knowing their history, or celebrating their culture. You can be arrested in Tibet for carrying a photograph of the Dalai Lama or for waving the Tibetan national flag. There are so many parts of the issue – the missing Panchen Lama, political prisoners, self-immolations, the environmental consequences – and I’m very slowly beginning to understand it all.
One of the best ways I’m learning is through hearing people’s stories. Some of the most unforgettable parts of my group semester in East Africa came from hearing stories – whether they be from the man we met on a street in Uganda who had escaped the LRA, the girls who were living in a Rwandan home for rape victims and their babies, or the Tanzanian girl who had grown up in a children’s home – talking to people and getting to know what makes them who they are is what I remember most distinctly from East Africa. And here in Mcledoganj, there’s no exception. But this time, laptop-equipped as I am, a friend from my East Africa semester and I have begun working on a blog that shares the stories of the incredible people I’m meeting here so that people at home can benefit from knowing them, as well. Refugees Represented (or Ref Rep) is what’s accompanied my morning coffee for the past couple of weeks, and I couldn’t be more excited about it. My goal is to get more people interested in human rights issues and to gain a better understanding of what they can do to affect change, even from home. It’s in the early stages now, but I’m hoping it grows and that I’m able to continue it even after I get back from India… which might not be for quite a bit longer than I had originally thought (sorry, Mom and Dad). You can check the blog out at refrep.org!
I couldn’t imagine a better FVP for me. I’m growing, learning, and being challenged each day I spend here. And as much time as I spend asking questions and reading books, the best learning experiences seem to come when I’m least expecting them. Most recently, I walked home with a Buddhist nun one afternoon because it was raining and she didn’t have an umbrella. She happens to live a few minutes down from where I live, so when we passed my room, I toId her to keep the umbrella so that she could get home comfortably. I was in a hurry and needed to get my other umbrella from my room and go back to class. I didn’t think much of it, because I had just bought the umbrella a few minutes before I saw her to avoid getting drenched before teaching, and I had another one waiting for me in my room. But in the week that has passed, I’ve seen her a few times walking down the street while I sit in a café or on the balcony of Tibet World. And despite the fact that the monsoon season is over and rain isn’t predicted again for weeks (seriously, we’ve had the most beautiful days lately), she’s always carrying the umbrella. Maybe I’m missing some kind of cultural norm here, but even so, I get goose bumps every time I see her with that two dollar umbrella.
Wishing everyone well on their journeys all over the world – whether you be adventuring abroad or delighting in the comforts of home. Hope you feel the love from this little corner of India.