Sunday, January 29, 2006
When Women Unite….
…The Story of an Uprising… (about the film -- web link)
About the film -- I got from another web link (for your convenience)…..
This film is an enquiry : It unravels history through interviews with activists, government officials, liquor dons, and village women.This film is a document : It is an account of true events derived from the testimonies of women of 22 villages in Nellore district.This film is a story : It recreates, through drama, the emotional intensity and tensions of the struggle from the perspective of one of its participants - Kotamma.Year : 1992Place : Nellore, IndiaRural women revolt against government supply of liquor to their villages. The revolt spreads like wild fire. In four months, 800 village shops have been stormed and shut down by angry women. In twelve months, the movement has spread across the state of Andhra Pradesh.As the dust settles on one of the most extra-ordinary social uprisings of modern India, there are questions to be asked : Why did it happen in Nellore ?How could a spontaneous, leaderless agitation sustain for 3 years and finally affect state policy?
What has it meant for the women involved ?What caused this unique ferment of feminism, politics and democracy?
Dear friends,
Repeating a couple of paragraphs from the mail I sent you…
I watched this documentary again on Jan 26th, after 8 and half years. And tears rolled down my cheeks… again, esp. in that one scene when the father, intoxicated by arrack (toddy, local liquor), commits insest (on his own daughter) and smashes his wife’s head with a grinding stone when she comes to defend her daughter. The child is left an orphan…. very sad indeed. Domestic Violence, aggravated by alcoholism – the alcohol sale which is sanctioned by the state! And how the women organize to fight the powerful liquor lords! And WIN!! A true grass-roots movement with no identifiable leaders.
The first time I saw this film was at an inaugural event for an organization I had the priveledge to start, along with few other women from Portland, Oregon. Many of you know of SAWERA (http://www.sawera.org/). Screening of “When Women Unite” was our first fund-raising/outeach activity. It was in the summer of 1997 at Portland State University theater on 5th Ave. in downtown Portland. The film was directed by Shabnam Virmani. One of the film makers, Nata Duvury was with us and we had a Q&A session with her following the screening. I remember all this so vividly…. And it’s been over 8 years since…. we raised a few hundred $$.
The film screening was organized by an organization called “Sthree Jagriti”. Geeta Menon (perhaps the founder), the lady behind the success of Sthree Jagriti, called me in the morning on Jan 26th (a national holiday for India’s Republic day) to inform about the program. When I heard that they were screening “When Women Unite…”, I definitely wanted to be there. Also, it has been over a month since I had made my first visit to Sthree Jagriti and this was a great opportunity to re-connect.
And so I went, promptly at 3 pm, to their office just a couple of km from my home.
The organization that brought the film was an organization named “Pedestrian Pictures”. Two people, a man and a young girl, from the organization came to Sthree Jagriti with their equipment – projector, screen... They are a grassroots organization, the lady said. When I asked about funding needs, the beautiful young and vibrant activist said they were quite self sufficient and did not need a lot of money. They did not want to be bogged down by granters who might dictate what they did with the money that they donated. Much the same thoughts as we at SAWERA felt, starting out… Pedestrain Pictures is doing a fine job in the city, outreaching through film….
A little more info. gathered on Pedestrain Pictures by Googling…
Shimoga and Bangalore, Mahila Jagruthi is consciously not registered as an NGO. ... Together with Pedestrian Pictures they are documenting.
Champions of the Masses: Mahila Jagruthi with Pedestrain pictures : http://deccanherald.com/deccanherald/oct16/metro4.asp
About Acid attacks: Documentaries developed by the ‘Pedestrian Pictures’
http://deccanherald.com/deccanherald/apr052004/metro15.asp
On demolishing “unauthorized” housing developments:
http://bangalorebuzz.blogspot.com/2004_12_01_bangalorebuzz_archive.html
Tsumani Relief Operations:
http://www.indianngos.com/tsunami/esg.htm
……..
Back to “When Women Unite: The Story….”
…we were all crowded together in a small room on Bannerghatta road, very close to where I stay in Mantri Elegance flats in Bangalore. I watched the movie in the midst of a bunch of activists and a whole lot of domestic workers (servants) of the local area. It was a moving experience. It was a warm Sunday afternoon, quite stuffy in that small room.
There was one fan and that helped a bit.
The venue and audience of this screening, was in sharp contrast to the gathering in Portland. The narrow stairs leading to the room upstairs was dusty and very dirty – stained walls (with red beetlenut spit... yuk!) and a dead cockraoch!! But, the room inside was clean. We sat on the floor with mats. One servant maid, who had lost one leg and using a pole/stick. Many children were present. They clapped their hands to the music of the documentary. Most of the narration was in English and they said they did not follow anything. They stared at me when I cried. But the Telugu dialogs interspersed with English and the powerful images were more than enough to convey the message.
After the showing of this powerful documentary, there were speeches from two individuals, leaders in their own right. Yashodhara from CIVIDEP India and Rukmini from “Grament Karmikara “Mundee” (Civil Initiatives for Development and Peace (Cividep-India) is a non-profit organisation that is studying labour issues in the sector)
Yashodhara is no longer a garment worker I think, but Rukmini continues to work in the factories. They mentioned that 4 lakh people were employed by the growing garment industries springing up all over Bangalore. They are more organized than the domestic workers that Stree Jagriti is trying to mobilize. It was absolutely moving to hear these two empowered women making changes to better their lives at their work place. Rukmini commented that she gets full support for her work from her husband and children – who remind her that she needs to leave soon to be on time for her meetings (outside of work – to mobilize and outreach).
Just some links om the garment factories…
http://www.cleanclothes.org/campaign/olympics2004-08-24.htm
http://www.blonnet.com/2003/09/20/stories/2003092002091700.htm says “The garment industry in Karnataka is one of the largest employers in the State along with the bidi industry. And women form a major part of this workforce. "According to ILO standards, manufacturers here are supposed to comply to certain rules like the local labour laws, safety and health issues and social security measures. Not all, but several of them are violating these rules."
“…the wages paid to the worker here is far lower than what a similar worker would be paid in the West. The hourly wage of a British worker is about Rs 420 while that of an Indian one is about Rs 8. And most of the workforce is on contract employment
Some more links on the garment industry – workers and their lives…
http://www.cleanclothes.org/campaign/olympics2004-08-24.htm
Protest in Bangalore when 4 women garment workers were killed in a New Delhi factory fire: http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/dec122005/city1948220051211.asp
Weaving a Grim picture…
http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/oct10/spt4.asp
an excerpt from this page…
“She works daily for over 12 hours, with lunchtime being the only quick break she takes during the whole day. As the festive season approaches, she works for even longer hours to make up for the few holidays she would be given. Even at a distance, she is capable of feeling the presence of her alcoholic production manager as he makes way for himself into the stuffy room. As he approaches her row, she would rather prefer him to walk away without interacting with her because of his abusive behaviour and the advances he makes. She will soon complete five years of service, but knows very well that manipulated account books will never let her get the benefits she is entitled to. But as she arrives at her workplace on Mysore Road, she finds herself better off than many others working like her. Shanta is one of the 1,03,039 women officially registered as garment factory workers in one of Bangalore’s many production units”
………
I was pleasantly surprised to see one of my close friends, Sudha Narasimhachar, at the film screening. Sudha was the one who had connected me to Geeta Menon of Stree Jagriti. Sudha is a freelance writer after giving up her career in the Banking Service. She writes regularly in the local newspaper and has recently got her work published in an American press too, I hear (need to get details of that). Here are just a couple of her works on the web I got thru google search…
Garden Shock: http://67.18.142.206/deccanherald/nov152004/middle.asp
Making families and health come first: http://www.reportingpeople.org/story.asp?a=health&catid=hlt&stid=st0195
Banking on the human touch:
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2004/10/11/stories/2004101103570300.htm
There are many wonderful pieces that Sudha has written and I have read too on various topical subjects. I can’t find links to them now.
….
After the spontaneous energized talk by the folks from the garment factory unions, there was a “Badge distribution”. Stree Jagriti created “IDENTITY” cards for their members! The women were elated to receive this – it felt very important to them: A photo ID. The two guests from the garment factory, Sudha and me were given the priveledge to distribute these. Photos were taken of this and the speeches. It felt like a great Repulic day awards celebration.
The event ended with a song, sung so spontaneously … sung with pride and not so much melody, but wonderous none-the-less.
At the end of the long afternoon, a couple of women served bananas and delicious Jalebies (sweet made of “maida” (all purpose flour) or gram flour deep fried and soaked in sugar syryp or honey sometimes). I thought of all the food we took to our SAWERA group meetings - cookies and cool drinks. And the potluck parties we had at meetings of client, members and the board… they were soooo lavish compared to what I saw here…..
….BUT, the energy to serve our communities and create social change seemed the same at both places…
Just when we were going to leave, I saw a bunch of folks swatted to give strength to woman who was going through a lot of violence in her home. I remember her from my last visit. She was enduring physical abuse from her husband and was afraid to leave. How would she support her 4 children? What would people say? Geeta Menon, Sudha and a few more ladies gave her courage. Her mother was by her side and supports her too. I also told her how important it was for her to believe in herself and understand that there was a support network for her. Ending her life was not an option, I told her.
I decided to tell my maid, Yellamma about Stree Jagriti. Perhaps she can go to their monthly meetings and understand her rights, get organized and help someone in need and someone who is suffering that she might come across in her own community? Yellamma is brave and successful. She’s a single mom with 5 children, works really hard and always has a smile on her face. She got her daughter married last year. Her youngest son is still in primary school and her 3 other daughters all go to school (2 in residential school for the poor). Children also help her with household chores. I have told her specifically not to bring her teenage or younger daughters to work. Yellamma was not a maid. She had to take up this profession (funny to call it so, when they are the most un-organized and “un-recognized” sector right now) when her husband passed away, suddenly after he contracted Hepatitis (Jaundice) several years ago.
Sthree Jagriti has volunteers that help children with computer education. I should connect them to the “Computer clubhouse” program at Intel:
http://www.intel.com/community/india/education.htm
The clubhouse is typically located in an underdeveloped-setting and is operated in partnership with an NGO. Currently, there are 65 Intel Computer Clubhouses open in 10 countries, with India hosting 2 of them. I know they have one in Bangalore, near Jakkur (where the new International airport is coming up).
Some more interesting links on the docu film:
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3307/is_199703/ai_n8003244
A Video/DVD Library:
http://www.unl.edu/womenssp/resources/videos.html
South Asian (?) Filmmakers:
http://www.sawnet.org/cinema/
I am eager to start my active engagement in the local community. I hope I will be able to make time this year, amidst adjusting to my new job and move to another home, 3-4 km away from where we currently live.
Look forward to hearing from you on your “soul satisfying” endeavours.
-Sri
About the film -- I got from another web link (for your convenience)…..
This film is an enquiry : It unravels history through interviews with activists, government officials, liquor dons, and village women.This film is a document : It is an account of true events derived from the testimonies of women of 22 villages in Nellore district.This film is a story : It recreates, through drama, the emotional intensity and tensions of the struggle from the perspective of one of its participants - Kotamma.Year : 1992Place : Nellore, IndiaRural women revolt against government supply of liquor to their villages. The revolt spreads like wild fire. In four months, 800 village shops have been stormed and shut down by angry women. In twelve months, the movement has spread across the state of Andhra Pradesh.As the dust settles on one of the most extra-ordinary social uprisings of modern India, there are questions to be asked : Why did it happen in Nellore ?How could a spontaneous, leaderless agitation sustain for 3 years and finally affect state policy?
What has it meant for the women involved ?What caused this unique ferment of feminism, politics and democracy?
Dear friends,
Repeating a couple of paragraphs from the mail I sent you…
I watched this documentary again on Jan 26th, after 8 and half years. And tears rolled down my cheeks… again, esp. in that one scene when the father, intoxicated by arrack (toddy, local liquor), commits insest (on his own daughter) and smashes his wife’s head with a grinding stone when she comes to defend her daughter. The child is left an orphan…. very sad indeed. Domestic Violence, aggravated by alcoholism – the alcohol sale which is sanctioned by the state! And how the women organize to fight the powerful liquor lords! And WIN!! A true grass-roots movement with no identifiable leaders.
The first time I saw this film was at an inaugural event for an organization I had the priveledge to start, along with few other women from Portland, Oregon. Many of you know of SAWERA (http://www.sawera.org/). Screening of “When Women Unite” was our first fund-raising/outeach activity. It was in the summer of 1997 at Portland State University theater on 5th Ave. in downtown Portland. The film was directed by Shabnam Virmani. One of the film makers, Nata Duvury was with us and we had a Q&A session with her following the screening. I remember all this so vividly…. And it’s been over 8 years since…. we raised a few hundred $$.
The film screening was organized by an organization called “Sthree Jagriti”. Geeta Menon (perhaps the founder), the lady behind the success of Sthree Jagriti, called me in the morning on Jan 26th (a national holiday for India’s Republic day) to inform about the program. When I heard that they were screening “When Women Unite…”, I definitely wanted to be there. Also, it has been over a month since I had made my first visit to Sthree Jagriti and this was a great opportunity to re-connect.
And so I went, promptly at 3 pm, to their office just a couple of km from my home.
The organization that brought the film was an organization named “Pedestrian Pictures”. Two people, a man and a young girl, from the organization came to Sthree Jagriti with their equipment – projector, screen... They are a grassroots organization, the lady said. When I asked about funding needs, the beautiful young and vibrant activist said they were quite self sufficient and did not need a lot of money. They did not want to be bogged down by granters who might dictate what they did with the money that they donated. Much the same thoughts as we at SAWERA felt, starting out… Pedestrain Pictures is doing a fine job in the city, outreaching through film….
A little more info. gathered on Pedestrain Pictures by Googling…
Shimoga and Bangalore, Mahila Jagruthi is consciously not registered as an NGO. ... Together with Pedestrian Pictures they are documenting.
Champions of the Masses: Mahila Jagruthi with Pedestrain pictures : http://deccanherald.com/deccanherald/oct16/metro4.asp
About Acid attacks: Documentaries developed by the ‘Pedestrian Pictures’
http://deccanherald.com/deccanherald/apr052004/metro15.asp
On demolishing “unauthorized” housing developments:
http://bangalorebuzz.blogspot.com/2004_12_01_bangalorebuzz_archive.html
Tsumani Relief Operations:
http://www.indianngos.com/tsunami/esg.htm
……..
Back to “When Women Unite: The Story….”
…we were all crowded together in a small room on Bannerghatta road, very close to where I stay in Mantri Elegance flats in Bangalore. I watched the movie in the midst of a bunch of activists and a whole lot of domestic workers (servants) of the local area. It was a moving experience. It was a warm Sunday afternoon, quite stuffy in that small room.
There was one fan and that helped a bit.
The venue and audience of this screening, was in sharp contrast to the gathering in Portland. The narrow stairs leading to the room upstairs was dusty and very dirty – stained walls (with red beetlenut spit... yuk!) and a dead cockraoch!! But, the room inside was clean. We sat on the floor with mats. One servant maid, who had lost one leg and using a pole/stick. Many children were present. They clapped their hands to the music of the documentary. Most of the narration was in English and they said they did not follow anything. They stared at me when I cried. But the Telugu dialogs interspersed with English and the powerful images were more than enough to convey the message.
After the showing of this powerful documentary, there were speeches from two individuals, leaders in their own right. Yashodhara from CIVIDEP India and Rukmini from “Grament Karmikara “Mundee” (Civil Initiatives for Development and Peace (Cividep-India) is a non-profit organisation that is studying labour issues in the sector)
Yashodhara is no longer a garment worker I think, but Rukmini continues to work in the factories. They mentioned that 4 lakh people were employed by the growing garment industries springing up all over Bangalore. They are more organized than the domestic workers that Stree Jagriti is trying to mobilize. It was absolutely moving to hear these two empowered women making changes to better their lives at their work place. Rukmini commented that she gets full support for her work from her husband and children – who remind her that she needs to leave soon to be on time for her meetings (outside of work – to mobilize and outreach).
Just some links om the garment factories…
http://www.cleanclothes.org/campaign/olympics2004-08-24.htm
http://www.blonnet.com/2003/09/20/stories/2003092002091700.htm says “The garment industry in Karnataka is one of the largest employers in the State along with the bidi industry. And women form a major part of this workforce. "According to ILO standards, manufacturers here are supposed to comply to certain rules like the local labour laws, safety and health issues and social security measures. Not all, but several of them are violating these rules."
“…the wages paid to the worker here is far lower than what a similar worker would be paid in the West. The hourly wage of a British worker is about Rs 420 while that of an Indian one is about Rs 8. And most of the workforce is on contract employment
Some more links on the garment industry – workers and their lives…
http://www.cleanclothes.org/campaign/olympics2004-08-24.htm
Protest in Bangalore when 4 women garment workers were killed in a New Delhi factory fire: http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/dec122005/city1948220051211.asp
Weaving a Grim picture…
http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/oct10/spt4.asp
an excerpt from this page…
“She works daily for over 12 hours, with lunchtime being the only quick break she takes during the whole day. As the festive season approaches, she works for even longer hours to make up for the few holidays she would be given. Even at a distance, she is capable of feeling the presence of her alcoholic production manager as he makes way for himself into the stuffy room. As he approaches her row, she would rather prefer him to walk away without interacting with her because of his abusive behaviour and the advances he makes. She will soon complete five years of service, but knows very well that manipulated account books will never let her get the benefits she is entitled to. But as she arrives at her workplace on Mysore Road, she finds herself better off than many others working like her. Shanta is one of the 1,03,039 women officially registered as garment factory workers in one of Bangalore’s many production units”
………
I was pleasantly surprised to see one of my close friends, Sudha Narasimhachar, at the film screening. Sudha was the one who had connected me to Geeta Menon of Stree Jagriti. Sudha is a freelance writer after giving up her career in the Banking Service. She writes regularly in the local newspaper and has recently got her work published in an American press too, I hear (need to get details of that). Here are just a couple of her works on the web I got thru google search…
Garden Shock: http://67.18.142.206/deccanherald/nov152004/middle.asp
Making families and health come first: http://www.reportingpeople.org/story.asp?a=health&catid=hlt&stid=st0195
Banking on the human touch:
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2004/10/11/stories/2004101103570300.htm
There are many wonderful pieces that Sudha has written and I have read too on various topical subjects. I can’t find links to them now.
….
After the spontaneous energized talk by the folks from the garment factory unions, there was a “Badge distribution”. Stree Jagriti created “IDENTITY” cards for their members! The women were elated to receive this – it felt very important to them: A photo ID. The two guests from the garment factory, Sudha and me were given the priveledge to distribute these. Photos were taken of this and the speeches. It felt like a great Repulic day awards celebration.
The event ended with a song, sung so spontaneously … sung with pride and not so much melody, but wonderous none-the-less.
At the end of the long afternoon, a couple of women served bananas and delicious Jalebies (sweet made of “maida” (all purpose flour) or gram flour deep fried and soaked in sugar syryp or honey sometimes). I thought of all the food we took to our SAWERA group meetings - cookies and cool drinks. And the potluck parties we had at meetings of client, members and the board… they were soooo lavish compared to what I saw here…..
….BUT, the energy to serve our communities and create social change seemed the same at both places…
Just when we were going to leave, I saw a bunch of folks swatted to give strength to woman who was going through a lot of violence in her home. I remember her from my last visit. She was enduring physical abuse from her husband and was afraid to leave. How would she support her 4 children? What would people say? Geeta Menon, Sudha and a few more ladies gave her courage. Her mother was by her side and supports her too. I also told her how important it was for her to believe in herself and understand that there was a support network for her. Ending her life was not an option, I told her.
I decided to tell my maid, Yellamma about Stree Jagriti. Perhaps she can go to their monthly meetings and understand her rights, get organized and help someone in need and someone who is suffering that she might come across in her own community? Yellamma is brave and successful. She’s a single mom with 5 children, works really hard and always has a smile on her face. She got her daughter married last year. Her youngest son is still in primary school and her 3 other daughters all go to school (2 in residential school for the poor). Children also help her with household chores. I have told her specifically not to bring her teenage or younger daughters to work. Yellamma was not a maid. She had to take up this profession (funny to call it so, when they are the most un-organized and “un-recognized” sector right now) when her husband passed away, suddenly after he contracted Hepatitis (Jaundice) several years ago.
Sthree Jagriti has volunteers that help children with computer education. I should connect them to the “Computer clubhouse” program at Intel:
http://www.intel.com/community/india/education.htm
The clubhouse is typically located in an underdeveloped-setting and is operated in partnership with an NGO. Currently, there are 65 Intel Computer Clubhouses open in 10 countries, with India hosting 2 of them. I know they have one in Bangalore, near Jakkur (where the new International airport is coming up).
Some more interesting links on the docu film:
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3307/is_199703/ai_n8003244
A Video/DVD Library:
http://www.unl.edu/womenssp/resources/videos.html
South Asian (?) Filmmakers:
http://www.sawnet.org/cinema/
I am eager to start my active engagement in the local community. I hope I will be able to make time this year, amidst adjusting to my new job and move to another home, 3-4 km away from where we currently live.
Look forward to hearing from you on your “soul satisfying” endeavours.
-Sri
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
The Art of Happiness…and Daffodils ....
…what’s the connection? Read on if the subject interests you….
Dear friends,
Happiness….it’s a state of mind – one might say. “The “Art” of Happiness” - it’s not a science. There must be various creative ways to be happy then?
Well, I’ve had this book for the longest time. I got it from another dear friend in Portland (like the “Soul of the Citizen” that I wrote to you about sometime back). This book “The Art of Happiness”, A Handbook for Living by his Holiness The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D, beckoned to me as if it were…from the shelf on which I’ve placed a series of books that are on my reading list (which I shared with you a while back too – the reading list I mean; And thanks to many who sent me more selections which I’ve added to the list to buy/borrow and make sure I read).
Link to book on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1573221112/qid=1136809947/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/002-0150933-9280051?s=books&v=glance&n=283155
I picked “The Art of Happiness” up, just a couple of weeks ago, and started to read. I’m yet to complete it but I’m so happy reading it – that I just could not wait to share my thoughts with you, while I’m only half way thru the book.
If you have read it too, would you share your thoughts, perspectives, joys?
Howard Cutler has written this book by including interviews with the Nobel peace price winner.
This book is written as a dialog, an interview at times.
In a section on “Meditation on the Purpose of Life” which I started to read with sceptism since I thought it would be something profound and difficult for me to grasp, I found something very very simple and a sound advice to overcome frustration and become happy, while in a confused state of mind leading to uncertainly and therefor unhappiness. The Dalai Lama said …
“When life becomes too complicated and we feel overwhelmed, it’s often useful just to stand back and remind ourselves of our overall purpose, our overall goal. When faced with a feeling of stagnation and confusion, it might be helpful to take an hour, an afternoon or even several days to simply reflect on what it is that will truly bring us happiness, and then reset our priorities on the basis of that. This can put our life back in proper context, allow a fresh perspective, and enable us to see which direction to take”
Very commonsensicle, simple and yet profound I thought. The important thing is to internalize this and implement it, to bring back happiness if one finds it slipping away.
In a section on “Lonliness and Connection”, Howard asks his holiness “Do you ever get lonely”. The anwer was, again, a very simple and straight “No”. Howard says that he was unprepared to hear this answer as his expectation was that The Dalai Lama would say … “Of course…every once in a while everyone feels some loneliness…” and he was planning on asking him how he deals with loneliness! After confirming that the answer was indeed a “NO”, that his Holiness never experienced loneliness, Howard asked what he attributed to that (lack of loneliness), to which the reponse was…
“I think one factor is that I look at any human being from a more positive angle. I try to look for their positive aspects. The attitude immediately creates a feeling of affinity, a kind of connectedness” (with anyone and everyone, hence no question of being alone?)
“And it may be partly because on my part, there is less apprehension, less fear, that if I act in a certain way, maybe the person will lose respect or think that I am strange. So, because that kind of fear and apprehension is normally absent, there is a kind of openness, I think it’s the main factor”.
Howard continued struggling to comprehend the scope and difficulty of adopting such an attitude. He questioned as to how could a person achieve the ability to feel that comfortable with people, not have the fear or apprehension of being disliked or judged by other people? Are there any specific methods that an average person could use to develop this attitude?
To which The Dalai Lama responded “My basic belief is that you first need to realize the usefulness of compassion. That’s the key factor. Once you accept the fact that compassion is not something childish or sentimental, once you realize that compassion is something really worthwhile, realize its deeper value, then you immediately develop an attraction towards it, a willingness to cultivate it”
“One could define compassion as the feeling of unbearableness at the sight of other people’s suffering. And in order to generate that feeling one must first have an appreciation of the seriousness or intensity of another’s suffering. So, I think, the more fully one understands suffering, and the various kinds of suffering we are subject to, the deeper will be ones level of compassion”.
There is a whole section on Suffering, feelings of empathy and compassion. In another place in the book, the connectedness of Human beings is dicusses. How cultures tend to claim to be individualist or community oriented and what one really means by having the focus on the individual and questioning whether that really can be….
…It’s all very good reading and will give you immense satisfaction I think.
……………… an now moving on ………
….. as I mentioned in the subject line…to….
…..DAFFODILS……
Daffodils… by William Wordsworth…
[Aside: “Words Worth - The English Training center” the board reads. It’s an English-English named school to train people speaking Indian-English to speak American-English so they can work in call centers? Perhaps that’s what it is. I do not know. But I see the sign board every day on my daily commute to work in the Intel bus. The sign is hung on the small office upstairs, just off of a very busy main street near Koramangala/ Madiwala]
… “Daffodils” - that’s the poem that my 12 year old daughter memorized at school one term, before the Dussera holidays --- the whole of it, for her 6th grade English Literature class!!
I remember the poem most all verses of it, cause I too (like her) had “by-hearted” (memorized) it when I was in class 6 or 8 I do not quite remember which. I remember my English Literature teacher explaining the figure of speech called “hyperbole” when we read the verse …. “Ten thousand saw I at a glance, tossing their heads in a spritely dance”
Actually, now analyzing that verse, the “Ten thousand” may not be a hyperbole after all. That is, IF you consider the tulip garden in Woodburn – small town so close to Portland, that we visited many an Oregon Spring….I think there are a “million tulips” (and daffodils too perhaps), in all the rich colors of the spectrum, luxurious and lovely…and the numbers and varieties may be even outnumbered at the Skagate Valley in WA, that we never finally visited.
Wooden Shoe tulip farm, Woodburn, Oregon: http://www.woodenshoe.com/springshow.html
Skagit Valley: http://www.gonorthwest.com/Washington/northwest/skagit/Skagit_Valley.htm
And the annual Tulip Festival there: http://www.tulipfestival.org/
I did not think that I would be back in India, have a daughter who would read the very same poem and have her own interpretations…
The last stanza in “Daffodils” – express that sheer thoughts of joyful moments of the past can bring happiness in the present!
“For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.”
…………
Continuing on the subject of poems…there is also this poem by Robert Frost, President Kennedy’s favourite I’m told? Esp. the last 4 stanza ----
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.But I have promises to keep,And miles to go before I sleep,And miles to go before I sleep.
My husband had read this poem while he was in school and had even recited it for a competion, he said. It’s the poem titled “Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening”.
……..
So long, wish you much happiness and compassion in your life.
-Sri
PS: The two favourite poems…
Daffodils
by William Wordsworth
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced, but they
Out-did the sparkling leaves in glee;
A poet could not be but gay,
In such a jocund company!
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening
By Robert Frost
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,And miles to go before I sleep.
Another nice poem also by Robert Frost:
THE ROAD NOT TAKEN
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Dear friends,
Happiness….it’s a state of mind – one might say. “The “Art” of Happiness” - it’s not a science. There must be various creative ways to be happy then?
Well, I’ve had this book for the longest time. I got it from another dear friend in Portland (like the “Soul of the Citizen” that I wrote to you about sometime back). This book “The Art of Happiness”, A Handbook for Living by his Holiness The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D, beckoned to me as if it were…from the shelf on which I’ve placed a series of books that are on my reading list (which I shared with you a while back too – the reading list I mean; And thanks to many who sent me more selections which I’ve added to the list to buy/borrow and make sure I read).
Link to book on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1573221112/qid=1136809947/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/002-0150933-9280051?s=books&v=glance&n=283155
I picked “The Art of Happiness” up, just a couple of weeks ago, and started to read. I’m yet to complete it but I’m so happy reading it – that I just could not wait to share my thoughts with you, while I’m only half way thru the book.
If you have read it too, would you share your thoughts, perspectives, joys?
Howard Cutler has written this book by including interviews with the Nobel peace price winner.
This book is written as a dialog, an interview at times.
In a section on “Meditation on the Purpose of Life” which I started to read with sceptism since I thought it would be something profound and difficult for me to grasp, I found something very very simple and a sound advice to overcome frustration and become happy, while in a confused state of mind leading to uncertainly and therefor unhappiness. The Dalai Lama said …
“When life becomes too complicated and we feel overwhelmed, it’s often useful just to stand back and remind ourselves of our overall purpose, our overall goal. When faced with a feeling of stagnation and confusion, it might be helpful to take an hour, an afternoon or even several days to simply reflect on what it is that will truly bring us happiness, and then reset our priorities on the basis of that. This can put our life back in proper context, allow a fresh perspective, and enable us to see which direction to take”
Very commonsensicle, simple and yet profound I thought. The important thing is to internalize this and implement it, to bring back happiness if one finds it slipping away.
In a section on “Lonliness and Connection”, Howard asks his holiness “Do you ever get lonely”. The anwer was, again, a very simple and straight “No”. Howard says that he was unprepared to hear this answer as his expectation was that The Dalai Lama would say … “Of course…every once in a while everyone feels some loneliness…” and he was planning on asking him how he deals with loneliness! After confirming that the answer was indeed a “NO”, that his Holiness never experienced loneliness, Howard asked what he attributed to that (lack of loneliness), to which the reponse was…
“I think one factor is that I look at any human being from a more positive angle. I try to look for their positive aspects. The attitude immediately creates a feeling of affinity, a kind of connectedness” (with anyone and everyone, hence no question of being alone?)
“And it may be partly because on my part, there is less apprehension, less fear, that if I act in a certain way, maybe the person will lose respect or think that I am strange. So, because that kind of fear and apprehension is normally absent, there is a kind of openness, I think it’s the main factor”.
Howard continued struggling to comprehend the scope and difficulty of adopting such an attitude. He questioned as to how could a person achieve the ability to feel that comfortable with people, not have the fear or apprehension of being disliked or judged by other people? Are there any specific methods that an average person could use to develop this attitude?
To which The Dalai Lama responded “My basic belief is that you first need to realize the usefulness of compassion. That’s the key factor. Once you accept the fact that compassion is not something childish or sentimental, once you realize that compassion is something really worthwhile, realize its deeper value, then you immediately develop an attraction towards it, a willingness to cultivate it”
“One could define compassion as the feeling of unbearableness at the sight of other people’s suffering. And in order to generate that feeling one must first have an appreciation of the seriousness or intensity of another’s suffering. So, I think, the more fully one understands suffering, and the various kinds of suffering we are subject to, the deeper will be ones level of compassion”.
There is a whole section on Suffering, feelings of empathy and compassion. In another place in the book, the connectedness of Human beings is dicusses. How cultures tend to claim to be individualist or community oriented and what one really means by having the focus on the individual and questioning whether that really can be….
…It’s all very good reading and will give you immense satisfaction I think.
……………… an now moving on ………
….. as I mentioned in the subject line…to….
…..DAFFODILS……
Daffodils… by William Wordsworth…
[Aside: “Words Worth - The English Training center” the board reads. It’s an English-English named school to train people speaking Indian-English to speak American-English so they can work in call centers? Perhaps that’s what it is. I do not know. But I see the sign board every day on my daily commute to work in the Intel bus. The sign is hung on the small office upstairs, just off of a very busy main street near Koramangala/ Madiwala]
… “Daffodils” - that’s the poem that my 12 year old daughter memorized at school one term, before the Dussera holidays --- the whole of it, for her 6th grade English Literature class!!
I remember the poem most all verses of it, cause I too (like her) had “by-hearted” (memorized) it when I was in class 6 or 8 I do not quite remember which. I remember my English Literature teacher explaining the figure of speech called “hyperbole” when we read the verse …. “Ten thousand saw I at a glance, tossing their heads in a spritely dance”
Actually, now analyzing that verse, the “Ten thousand” may not be a hyperbole after all. That is, IF you consider the tulip garden in Woodburn – small town so close to Portland, that we visited many an Oregon Spring….I think there are a “million tulips” (and daffodils too perhaps), in all the rich colors of the spectrum, luxurious and lovely…and the numbers and varieties may be even outnumbered at the Skagate Valley in WA, that we never finally visited.
Wooden Shoe tulip farm, Woodburn, Oregon: http://www.woodenshoe.com/springshow.html
Skagit Valley: http://www.gonorthwest.com/Washington/northwest/skagit/Skagit_Valley.htm
And the annual Tulip Festival there: http://www.tulipfestival.org/
I did not think that I would be back in India, have a daughter who would read the very same poem and have her own interpretations…
The last stanza in “Daffodils” – express that sheer thoughts of joyful moments of the past can bring happiness in the present!
“For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.”
…………
Continuing on the subject of poems…there is also this poem by Robert Frost, President Kennedy’s favourite I’m told? Esp. the last 4 stanza ----
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.But I have promises to keep,And miles to go before I sleep,And miles to go before I sleep.
My husband had read this poem while he was in school and had even recited it for a competion, he said. It’s the poem titled “Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening”.
……..
So long, wish you much happiness and compassion in your life.
-Sri
PS: The two favourite poems…
Daffodils
by William Wordsworth
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced, but they
Out-did the sparkling leaves in glee;
A poet could not be but gay,
In such a jocund company!
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening
By Robert Frost
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,And miles to go before I sleep.
Another nice poem also by Robert Frost:
THE ROAD NOT TAKEN
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Monday, January 02, 2006
Thoughts…Ringing in 2006
Sent to friends and family (many from Portland Oregon, but also from various parts of India and other parts of USA) on Dec 29th 2005
Dear friends & family,
Hope you have had a chance to enjoy life’s little pleasures over this past year that just wizzed by - those precious refreshing moments that give you energy and enthusiasm; that help you to handle todays’ fast paced urban life and pressures that come with it.
A couple of days ago, while walking to my bus-stop just in front of my flats, I listened to a little 5 year old boy from the flat above ours. He was carrying his small backpack to school, his father held his little hand, while his sister walked a feet ahead. They headed to their school bus, which also arrives at the gate of our flats, early each morn. The little boy kept repeating a new word he had learnt at school that week perhaps - “mist” “mist” he kept saying. Then I noticed the fine mist of the early morning. It was beautiful, cool and wonderous. I looked back and showed him a drop of water on a blade of broad grass on our walkway; I told him that was “dew”. Did he learn another new word, perhaps he knew it already?
Another morning a few weeks back, again while driving to work, I noticed a flock of white (migratory?) birds (Egrets?) – tens of them, no hundreds…settled on the Agara Lake, half covered with green water hyacinth that grow in leaps and bounds on these small water bodies, multiplying in geometric progression. The other half of the lake was clear and clean. One moment later, I saw these beautiful white elegant birds in flight, although some were still on the lake. It was a beautiful site in the morning sun, refreshing. One day, very soon, the whole lake will be clear of the water hyacinth; Local volunteers will help with the cleanup much like they did with planting the saplings (now small trees) around the same Agara lake. I know that a couple of years ago, volunteers from Intel Involved program joined others in the community to plant those saplings around Agara Lake, opposite HSR layout.
I had the woderous pleasure of meeting so many of you this year…
We met our dear friends from Portland - Paru and family, Anandhi and family, Nalini and family, Anita R, Manju Raju (twice), Mary and Scott, Suri and Sashi and family (from Austi; We were in PDX together), Suresh Chittor and family, Venkat Gaurav and family, Chandrika and family, Ulhas, Paul Alappat; Even though we could not meet in person, I spoke on the phone to Jayashree Anand in Udipi, Usha Ulhas and Usha Ramanujam & family while they stayed in Chennai, I met Usha Ramanujam’s parents later when I visited Chennai. We also met some others from Portland - Alala Sundaram and family, Veena Iyengar and family (at Mac Donald’s in the Forum Mall in Banglore J and in Mysore during our trip there!) and Tulasi Sidarth (briefly at work at Intel).
I had the great pleasure of re-connecting with my friends from childhood, from WAY back when I was 2-10 years old, I mean! I met Banu (twice in Palghat and Bangalore), Padma (she visited last week from Warrangal), Sumana and family (in Chennai), Jaya (in Chennai). I will be meeting Usha Prakash and family (in Bangalore now visiting from Seattle) during the first week of Jan.
On Christmas eve day, we went to lunch at Leela Palace. They have a great buffet at this 5 star hotel (or is it 7-star?) on airport road – just opposite the Intel building. We had promised Maya this lunch for a long time and were glad to make it happen for her. We saw the lovely decorated Christmas tree and there was a beautiful ginger Bread house – life size and made with real cookies and icing. Made us think of the holiday season in Portland – the malls and all. For lunch there was a huge spread of salads and soups, main courses and more. There was a profusion of desserts – melting tiramisu, lemon parfait, black forest cake, mango mousse and lots of Indian sweets including kaju barfi and payasam…We were Rs. 2000 poorer by the end of the lunch but a fine setting and tinge of experience of the rich and famous, I think we had…and were (temporarily) quite satisfied and happy J
ASIDE: I found a site with top dessert names: http://www.toptastes.com/recipes/desserts2.htm
Straight from the Leela Palace I had to go to my 3 pm appointment. Since we were getting late, we decided to go all together – Maya, myself and Renganthan (he was much interested in the visit too). This was at a place in stark contrast to the Leela. We headed to a small little office on Bannerghatta Road. A narrow staircase, laden with dust and scraps of paper and dirt led us to the office of an org. called “Stree Jagrithi” (Women Awake! and Aware?). Geetha Menon is a founder of this org. and has dedicated over 2 decades of service to the cause of poor women - mostly domestic servants. Through Stree Jagrithi, she has provided a space for this un-organized sector of workers. I met about 25 women (all household domestic servants) and some 10 children. I spoke to them about some of the work I was involved in at SAWERA in Portland. Among them, that day was a woman who had just been beaten and threatened by her husband. She was fearful but feeling better sharing her strory that day in the safe confines of Stree Jagriti. There is so much going on here, I will have to talk to you about it all in a separate (dedicated) mail. Suffice here to say that the 1 hour we spent here, has moved me deeply and kindled my urge to get-involved and contribute to the need of my local community. Unlike the time at the Leela which was relaxed and fun, this visit just an hour later, got to my heart. The picture on the wall of the room flashes in my minds eye as I write this – a picture of a hand, with blue and gold colored glass bangles, and a slogan that said “No laws were made by silence” (or some such words)
Just some idea about the Stree Jagriti from google search…
Stree Jagriti in the news (a fund-raiser event for child rights work that the org. is involved in: http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/nov102005/metrothurs1523172005119.asp
Mention of founder Geeta Menon: http://india.indymedia.org/en/2002/06/1507.shtml
And Stree Jagriti’s outreach to teenaged girls: http://www.tehelka.com/story_main1.asp?filename=In050104We_shall.asp
And Tehelka – the People’s paper….
http://www.tehelka.com/home/20040501/default.asp
…
Yesterday (Dec 29th) I attended a talk by Mr. Narayana Murthy (founder and chief mentor of InfoSys). This was a keynote address to Alumni of NITW (National Institute of Technology Warrangal) at their 2nd annual international meet. My childhood friend Padma’s husband, Mr. Subramanyam, a current Prof. at NITW and Alumni, invited us. Mr. Murthy talked eloquently about how we can contribute to our communities and help create change. “A Leader sees every constraint as an opportunity” he said and continued to quote Kennedy “Wether you think you can or you cannot, you are right and you will”. He urged us to focus on “public good” and place it above “private good”. One day, the “public good” will be THE good for each of our private lives, he added. He had a lot of thoughts to share, much advice to give and many things to talk about, from his exemplary life. At the end, he appealed to the Alumni to make sure they contribute, in small ways or big…
I gathered from his speech that by just giving 2% of ones earnings away to causes close to ones heart, we would be richer by leaps and bounds; but poorer in a very insignificant and unnoticeable way.
I would like to wish you’ll success and happiness in 2006 and years to come…
….And because success is a journey, not a determination…
Wish you a wonderful journey in 2006… towards whatever goal you have set for yourself. I sincerely hope that you are able to take a few steps (if not many) closer to that goal … bravely overcoming the few backward steps you might have to take along the way.
I look forward to continuing communication and connections with you through 2006, and beyond J
Best Wishes from our family – Maya, Renganathan and my mother (Saroja mami) to yours!
-Sri
(Srilakshmi/Lakshmi/Cheema)
Dear friends & family,
Hope you have had a chance to enjoy life’s little pleasures over this past year that just wizzed by - those precious refreshing moments that give you energy and enthusiasm; that help you to handle todays’ fast paced urban life and pressures that come with it.
A couple of days ago, while walking to my bus-stop just in front of my flats, I listened to a little 5 year old boy from the flat above ours. He was carrying his small backpack to school, his father held his little hand, while his sister walked a feet ahead. They headed to their school bus, which also arrives at the gate of our flats, early each morn. The little boy kept repeating a new word he had learnt at school that week perhaps - “mist” “mist” he kept saying. Then I noticed the fine mist of the early morning. It was beautiful, cool and wonderous. I looked back and showed him a drop of water on a blade of broad grass on our walkway; I told him that was “dew”. Did he learn another new word, perhaps he knew it already?
Another morning a few weeks back, again while driving to work, I noticed a flock of white (migratory?) birds (Egrets?) – tens of them, no hundreds…settled on the Agara Lake, half covered with green water hyacinth that grow in leaps and bounds on these small water bodies, multiplying in geometric progression. The other half of the lake was clear and clean. One moment later, I saw these beautiful white elegant birds in flight, although some were still on the lake. It was a beautiful site in the morning sun, refreshing. One day, very soon, the whole lake will be clear of the water hyacinth; Local volunteers will help with the cleanup much like they did with planting the saplings (now small trees) around the same Agara lake. I know that a couple of years ago, volunteers from Intel Involved program joined others in the community to plant those saplings around Agara Lake, opposite HSR layout.
I had the woderous pleasure of meeting so many of you this year…
We met our dear friends from Portland - Paru and family, Anandhi and family, Nalini and family, Anita R, Manju Raju (twice), Mary and Scott, Suri and Sashi and family (from Austi; We were in PDX together), Suresh Chittor and family, Venkat Gaurav and family, Chandrika and family, Ulhas, Paul Alappat; Even though we could not meet in person, I spoke on the phone to Jayashree Anand in Udipi, Usha Ulhas and Usha Ramanujam & family while they stayed in Chennai, I met Usha Ramanujam’s parents later when I visited Chennai. We also met some others from Portland - Alala Sundaram and family, Veena Iyengar and family (at Mac Donald’s in the Forum Mall in Banglore J and in Mysore during our trip there!) and Tulasi Sidarth (briefly at work at Intel).
I had the great pleasure of re-connecting with my friends from childhood, from WAY back when I was 2-10 years old, I mean! I met Banu (twice in Palghat and Bangalore), Padma (she visited last week from Warrangal), Sumana and family (in Chennai), Jaya (in Chennai). I will be meeting Usha Prakash and family (in Bangalore now visiting from Seattle) during the first week of Jan.
On Christmas eve day, we went to lunch at Leela Palace. They have a great buffet at this 5 star hotel (or is it 7-star?) on airport road – just opposite the Intel building. We had promised Maya this lunch for a long time and were glad to make it happen for her. We saw the lovely decorated Christmas tree and there was a beautiful ginger Bread house – life size and made with real cookies and icing. Made us think of the holiday season in Portland – the malls and all. For lunch there was a huge spread of salads and soups, main courses and more. There was a profusion of desserts – melting tiramisu, lemon parfait, black forest cake, mango mousse and lots of Indian sweets including kaju barfi and payasam…We were Rs. 2000 poorer by the end of the lunch but a fine setting and tinge of experience of the rich and famous, I think we had…and were (temporarily) quite satisfied and happy J
ASIDE: I found a site with top dessert names: http://www.toptastes.com/recipes/desserts2.htm
Straight from the Leela Palace I had to go to my 3 pm appointment. Since we were getting late, we decided to go all together – Maya, myself and Renganthan (he was much interested in the visit too). This was at a place in stark contrast to the Leela. We headed to a small little office on Bannerghatta Road. A narrow staircase, laden with dust and scraps of paper and dirt led us to the office of an org. called “Stree Jagrithi” (Women Awake! and Aware?). Geetha Menon is a founder of this org. and has dedicated over 2 decades of service to the cause of poor women - mostly domestic servants. Through Stree Jagrithi, she has provided a space for this un-organized sector of workers. I met about 25 women (all household domestic servants) and some 10 children. I spoke to them about some of the work I was involved in at SAWERA in Portland. Among them, that day was a woman who had just been beaten and threatened by her husband. She was fearful but feeling better sharing her strory that day in the safe confines of Stree Jagriti. There is so much going on here, I will have to talk to you about it all in a separate (dedicated) mail. Suffice here to say that the 1 hour we spent here, has moved me deeply and kindled my urge to get-involved and contribute to the need of my local community. Unlike the time at the Leela which was relaxed and fun, this visit just an hour later, got to my heart. The picture on the wall of the room flashes in my minds eye as I write this – a picture of a hand, with blue and gold colored glass bangles, and a slogan that said “No laws were made by silence” (or some such words)
Just some idea about the Stree Jagriti from google search…
Stree Jagriti in the news (a fund-raiser event for child rights work that the org. is involved in: http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/nov102005/metrothurs1523172005119.asp
Mention of founder Geeta Menon: http://india.indymedia.org/en/2002/06/1507.shtml
And Stree Jagriti’s outreach to teenaged girls: http://www.tehelka.com/story_main1.asp?filename=In050104We_shall.asp
And Tehelka – the People’s paper….
http://www.tehelka.com/home/20040501/default.asp
…
Yesterday (Dec 29th) I attended a talk by Mr. Narayana Murthy (founder and chief mentor of InfoSys). This was a keynote address to Alumni of NITW (National Institute of Technology Warrangal) at their 2nd annual international meet. My childhood friend Padma’s husband, Mr. Subramanyam, a current Prof. at NITW and Alumni, invited us. Mr. Murthy talked eloquently about how we can contribute to our communities and help create change. “A Leader sees every constraint as an opportunity” he said and continued to quote Kennedy “Wether you think you can or you cannot, you are right and you will”. He urged us to focus on “public good” and place it above “private good”. One day, the “public good” will be THE good for each of our private lives, he added. He had a lot of thoughts to share, much advice to give and many things to talk about, from his exemplary life. At the end, he appealed to the Alumni to make sure they contribute, in small ways or big…
I gathered from his speech that by just giving 2% of ones earnings away to causes close to ones heart, we would be richer by leaps and bounds; but poorer in a very insignificant and unnoticeable way.
I would like to wish you’ll success and happiness in 2006 and years to come…
….And because success is a journey, not a determination…
Wish you a wonderful journey in 2006… towards whatever goal you have set for yourself. I sincerely hope that you are able to take a few steps (if not many) closer to that goal … bravely overcoming the few backward steps you might have to take along the way.
I look forward to continuing communication and connections with you through 2006, and beyond J
Best Wishes from our family – Maya, Renganathan and my mother (Saroja mami) to yours!
-Sri
(Srilakshmi/Lakshmi/Cheema)
