in my shoes

Sadhana Forest is a place that has forever changed my life.  The manner in which we lived, the friends who I met, and the aspirations that we all had will never leave my body.  Yorit and Aviram are reaching out for help.  If you know anybody who can help, please pass this message on.

Dear Friends of the Forest,

Thank you all very much for supporting the launch of Sadhana Forest Haiti in Anse-a-Pitre!!!

The community in Haiti is doing very well. We obtained the permission from the Government to reforest and do water conservation on a very large piece of land.

Since April 8th, we have planted thousands of trees there, established an organic gardening demonstration plot and interacted with thousands of Haitians in Anse-a-Pitre and in the camps of Port-au-Prince.

On October 26th to November 5th we will be holding a free International Sustainability Event in our community in which Haitians and international participants will exchange knowledge of different sustainable practices and experience friendship and unity. You can see more details on http://www.facebook.com/l/6b63eS6EEgpl3A0qiC0CrjpjUrg;www.sadhanaforesthaiti.org.

In the mean time, in India, things are also advancing very fast. In the last few months, we have had a huge amount of water conservation work and last Friday we started the tree planting season. This year we have large seedlings to plant that can cope well even with the hardest conditions. Many groups from across India and the world are coming here and getting experience and training in different aspects of our work. We have also started a small reforestation project in Madhya Pradesh, Central India.

Funding is still our weakest point. We are facing a huge financial challenge due to some large unexpected expenses related to the early onset of heavy rains this year. Some roofs are in need of fixing or changing, some parts of our solar system have to be replaced, the road has to be improved, etc.

We would like to ask you for your support with fundraising. At the moment, Sadhana Forest needs around $10,000 US urgently and any help would be greatly appreciated. If you know anyone who could help us, you are welcome to refer them to the donation page on our website: http://www.facebook.com/l/6b63e2vi1OFpR8fo1YHhJfdWXSA;https://secure.aviusa.org/donations_donatenow_sadhana.php.

Thank you very much!

Lots of love,

Yorit and Aviram

• In India, when asked “Is it more important to be rich or happy,” most people would say it’s more important to be rich.
• In the big cities, western toilets have been around for almost twenty years.  However, when given the option of a western toilet or a squatting toilet, I almost always choose the squatting toilet.  They are generally more hygienic and better for your body!  In the south, most toilets have no way of flushing.  You simply do your business and pour a couple of cups of water on top for it to naturally flow downward.  It gets a bit stinky.
• Word of mouth statistic:  Only five percent of Indian people speak English fluently.  This seems very accurate from my experience.  Although many people have very basic English skills for counting, exchanging names, and inviting you for chai or to look into a shop, very few people can answer a question like, “What will you do this weekend?” or “What time does the cricket game begin?”
• Although Hindi is the national language, it is not worth learning if you will be in Tamil Nadu or rural areas.  They stick strongly to their local languages and know little to no Hindi or English.
• When waiting in a line (aka queue), it is disrespectful to the rest of the line for you to leave any space between you and the person in front of you.  If you leave a gap, the people behind you think that you will allow someone to cut in front.  Having said this, even if you push yourself onto the person in front of you, somebody will likely cut in front.
• Little kids often have thick, black eyeliner surrounding their eyes.  The primary use for this is to prevent eye infection.
• Women are expected to live with their parents until the time they marry.  In general, it is expected for a girl to marry between 18 and 22 if uneducated, and 22-27 if educated at university.  Once married, the girl moves in with the husband.  It is the son’s responsibility to take care of his parents when they get older or if they get sick.  There are some liberal families that don’t follow this rule, but it is extremely uncommon.
• There is a law stating that it is unlawful to wed prior to eighteen.  However, in villages, especially when poor, weddings still occur as early as five years old because dowries are cheaper.
• Although it is changing, most Indian university-goers are studying engineering or medicine.  This was not necessarily surprising to me, but it was funny to consistently receive the same answer in conversation.
• Most Indian homes are made of concrete and granite and have very few windows.
• Most Indian people do not drive and have no desire to ever drive.  I wouldn’t want to drive here either . . . the roads are crazy and unpredictable.  At any time, a marked two lane road can turn into five lanes of traffic which creates consistent games of chicken!
• Trucks generally have the saying “Please Sound Horn” written on the back of their fenders.  It is actually respectful to honk as you are approaching the back of another vehicle so that they are prepared for you to pass them.  Needless to say, the roads are very loud!
• Karnatic dance is the hardest, most precise dance form I have ever tried.  Dancers precisely move their eyes, eyebrows, chins, necks, fingers, heels and toes.  Way too detailed for my dancing taste!
• India ranks second for the world’s largest diabetes population (after China).  To accompany this statistic, there are two to three sweets shops on most blocks.  Mmm . . . Indian sweets are really yummy.
• The big cities do treat the water for their residents, however drinkable water only flows to the taps a couple of hours each day.
• In a country that provides the US most of it’s computer assistance, there are very few computers, and most of them are quite old.  Even when the power is generator fed, the internet is faster than dial-up in the US, which seems impressive.
• Cell phones are the primary source for people to stay connected through texts and internet.
• When trying to get around towns, most Indians think that walking more than a kilometer is way too far.  I guess most Americans would think so too.
• Television is very common in India.  Every middle class household has had a TV for at least thirty years.  Within the last five years, the number of channels accessible by cable and satellite has sky-rocketed.  Before there were only two government-owned channels.  Now there are over 90.
• There is a “Bollywood” in every state allowing for television and movies to be produced in every state’s language.
• In the past, if a man died prior to his wife, the widow was expected to join her husband in death by being burned to death.  It was one of the highest sacrifices that she could make to the gods, insuring a higher karmic ranking (a better next life).  Although it doesn’t happen often anymore, there have been incidents in the past twenty years.
• The caste system is still a touchy issue.  In the cities and among the educated, it is not very present.  In the villages and rural areas, many people still cite example of how it exists.
• An Indian broom is only two feet long—a large handful of grasses tied together at the top.  They hunch over or squat in order to clean the floor.

• In Indian schools, students have to earn their seats.  Each year they have a final exam.  If they pass, they can continue to the next grade.  If they fail, they are done with school.  I think these exams start in third grade . . . maybe fifth.

• At night, camel owners tie the front two feet of a camel together with a long rope so the camel can wander slowly to eat and graze, but it can not run away.
• Sexy is a very vulgar term by many in India.  A more appropriate term for women is charming.
• 100 rupees per day is a very common pay wage for laborers.  That is approximately $2.

India is a very aggressive place.  The languages are loud and harsh.  The plants have evolved to have extra thorns and poison.  The ants sting and cause swelling.  The heat sucks every ounce of water out of you.  Every species has adapted to fight, barter, and bargain for survival.

In a place like India, people consistently have to strap up their courage and self-worth in order to provide for themselves or their family.  They have to run after buses in order to catch them, put their arms out in front of on-coming traffic so they won’t be run over, and bargain for a decent price on everything!  What India didn’t know was that I was born into a family of bargainers.  My dad taught me to find gold at the bottom of trash bins and at garage sales.  My mom taught me to snap my fingers before I went into a mall so that 75% off clearance signs would appear.  We cut coupons and secretly love anything second-hand.

In Indian markets, I would happily get into the bargaining game with the merchants.  It would look something like this:

“How much is this shirt,” I would ask.

“Ah, for you, special deal.  Only 450 rupees.”

“450?  That’s crazy!  So expensive,” I’d snap.

“But it’s nice quality.  Look at this fabric and this dye . . . tikka, tikka.  What will you give me?”

“Umm . . . 50 rupees.”

“No m’am!  Naie.  That is less than I get it for.  This is so much fabric and then the workers!”  The storeowner shows a bit of frustration and vengeance for a bit, I smile back, and then he says, “ How about 250 rupees?”

“Naie.  Naie.  Too much.  Too much.”  I do the traditional, Indian, sideways nod and hand flick.  Hesitate for a little while and walk around.  Then, I ask “What is your best price?”

“Ma’am.  150 at least.”

So the game could go on for a bit ending with me receiving the shirt for 100 rupees.  This game is fun for me, but often after leaving the shop, the hostel, the restaurant, or the tuk tuk, my conscious would appear wreaking vengeance on my ego-driven bargain.  Often I would think, “What about promoting fair trade?  You will buy a four dollar fair-trade chocolate bar in the US to promote social equity, but you won’t pay an extra fifty cents here for a shirt who was most likely made by someone who works for $2.50 per day?”  There are numerous times in India, where I felt quite torn between getting the best deal and supporting a worker.

The night that I left south India, the gods helped me put my bargaining ego in check.  I was in a small town called Kundapura waiting for my 2am train.  As dusk approached, I began walking toward the station.  I wanted the fresh air and exercise before the long journey, so I decided not to pay a tuk tuk 60 rupees ($1.30) to drive me the five kilometers out of town to the station.  I calculated that the walk should take me just over an hour with my big backpack, and the worst case scenario would be that I would take out my headlamp for the last fifteen minutes if it got dark.

I walked and walked, slowly, slowly and I enjoyed watching the birds, the ladies in the rice paddies, and the kids playing cricket.  After about an hour, the sky was becoming dim and I started asking locals through broken English and body language how much farther.  They said it was a long way, one kilometer.  In my mind, one kilometer is not much, so I continued to trek on.

After another fifteen minutes, large winds blew big, ominous, grey clouds to the horizon.  I asked again how far away I was, and I received the same answer, one kilometer.  Beginning to worry a bit about the time, the arriving darkness and the clouds, I looked around for a tuk tuk.  (This is a long winding rural street with very few shops, homes or vehicles.)

I found a lonely tuk tuk next to a chai shop and asked the driver how much it would cost.  He said 20 rupees.  My normal bargaining routine began . . . 20 rupees is way too much for a one kilometer drive!  He wouldn’t budge so I walked away proudly.  After about thirty seconds of stomping away with my head high, I looked back to see the driver buzzing off the opposite direction.  I was quite disappointed that he didn’t change his mind and come after me.

This left me with one option.  I needed to start walking faster.  The sky was getting dark fast, the clouds were turning black and getting closer, and I swore that I saw lightning.  I walked quickly and kept my thoughts optimistic.  In fact, I decided to begin singing . . . there’s no way that it would rain on me if I was singing!  The clouds were nearing and becoming very aggressive–tall, with deep black pockets.   I saw another tuk tuk coming my way so I stopped to get a price.  He said 40 rupees.  My ego roared!  I thought, “Are you kidding me?  If I wouldn’t pay 20 rupees five minutes ago, why would I pay 40 rupees now?”  I tried to bargain to no avail.  I gave him the good ol’ Indian hand flick, and he sped off without a second thought.  My ego was in shock; two times in a row that the driver’s decided not to fall for my smile and fake aggression!  So, looking at the night sky behind me and the rolling blackish-purple clouds in front of me, I got out my headlamp and walked . . . VERY QUICKLY.

I wasn’t fast enough.  Within minutes, the clouds were on top of me erupting with lightning, thunder and heavy rain drops.  I ran to the closest structure . . . a bus stop that was packed with stranded bicyclers, men from the chai shop down the road, and a couple of motorcycle passengers who were also looking for refuge.  I was the only woman.  I was the only white person.  I was the only one who had no idea how much farther I really had to go or how I was going to get there.  And, I was the only one who didn’t speak Kannada.

I sat perched on the far wall of this bus stand looking out at the black sky.  It was quite magical actually.  The thick lightning bolts would light up the sky, making the coconut trees across the street glitter and the backdrop turn bright purple.  I tried to stay calm and optimistic, but my ego kept yelling, “What was I thinking?  I’m stuck in this bus stand in the dark, surrounded by Indian men.  Who knows how long this storm will stay in?  What if the muddy road becomes impassible?  That thunder is really loud.  What is the likelihood that I would get electrocuted while sitting in a concrete bus stand?  Are these men aggressive and crazy and likely to rape me?  Why would I put myself in this position to save a bloody fifty cents!!?”

After about thirty minutes, the rain lightened enough to step out to see the sky and the road.  Like my knight in shining army, a yellow and black tuk tuk was puttering down the road toward me.  I hailed it and got in without asking the price.  He drove me three minutes down the road, some of it quite muddy, and I gladly paid him 40 rupees.

The End.  True Story.

• Balance spontaneity and control.  It is impossible in India to stay attached to any plan.  Buses are late, information is wrong, and expectations are consistently burst.  Do enough research to have some contacts and know of a couple of lodging options, but be ready to change your mind in a moment.  Most of the budget guesthouses, hostels and hotels are not shown online so it’s best to walk around the town and price check and room check.  You may feel completely overwhelmed by a city and want to get out.  It is very easy and cheap to leave a city quickly, so be flexible and validate your instincts.
• Balance aggressiveness, and friendliness.  There are tons of people who are authentically friendly and will go out of their way to help you or just chat.  There are also tons of people who are mean, and ready to make a buck off of you.  I’ve gone through waves between making eye contact and smiling, and looking down and scowling.  There is definitely a balance to be found!
• Nobody expects westerners to wear salwar kameez or saris.  In Delhi, locals told me they thought westerners looked weird in Indian clothes.  In the villages, the locals said westerners often look more beautiful than Indian people in their clothes.  Wear what you feel comfortable in as long as you are modest.  I noticed that most of my western shirts showed a tiny bit of cleavage and for that, I received a lot of attention.  Good rule of thumb: Indian women wear shirts that are less than one palm width from their clavicle.
• Be ready to lie about your relationship status.  I’m a really bad liar, so I had to prepare myself with my story of why I was traveling alone and where my partner was.  Always be ready to say you are married or engaged.  Having a boyfriend is not good enough because most Indian men believe that Western women will have up to twelve boyfriends at one time.  You don’t have to lie always, but be ready to.  I also brought a wedding ring to wear on the days I felt very vulnerable. (Thanks for the idea Mom!)
• When arriving internationally, you will likely fly into Mumbai, Delhi or Calcutta.  Mumbai is the most western, modern and clean, and the least aggressive.  There are western-style cafes, sidewalks, and green spaces with benches.  On the downside, it is also the most expensive for hotels, and transport.  Wearing jeans and t-shirts or showing shoulders is totally acceptable here, so it’s easy to come as you are and buy some Indian threads while here.
• Southern India is a softer, less aggressive place than the north.  There are more lush, green parks and jungles, waterways, and less trash and dust.  It is also generally cheaper for hotels and food.  I would spend the bulk of my time between Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.  Note: I did not make it to the far North and Himalayas.  I’ve heard great things!
• One of the hardest things for me while in cities is the lack of safe, clean sitting areas.  Brace yourself to either walk consistently or to find a restaurant (often dirty hole-in-the-wall) to take a break.  Most cities do not have parks, and the parks that I did find were filled by mainly men.  I didn’t generally find them appealing to relax at on my own.
• The tour books try to warn women away from all local transport.  The buses, trains and subways all felt completely safe for me.  There are almost always reserved spots for women.  I only had to stand for a long period of time, squashed against other bodies three times in two and a half months and hundreds of bus/train/subway trips!  Buses and trains can be dirty, but they are not as horrid as the books suggest.  Besides, in India, your get used to the dingy feeling on everything!  Most of the time, people ushered me quickly to a window seat in the reserved women’s section and made sure that I got off at the correct stop.
• Don’t worry about bringing pharmaceuticals and hygiene products.  There are pharmacy shops, also known as druggists and chemists, in every town.  Most of them have products that work way better than our Western products for their versions of diarrhea, fever or rashes.  If you want to know the ingredients or want something homeopathic, you should bring it.  I was pretty attached to bringing some natural things, but my pack has been quite heavy.
• Long distance travel: You have two budget options—bus or train.
  • I found both options fine, but I am an excellent sleeper.  Sleeper buses are the LOUDER, longer option, but you have more privacy with a closeable door and curtain.  The sleeper compartment was big enough for me to comfortably sit or sleep in as a 5’8” woman.  If you are much taller than me, it may be tight.  The traffic pattern in India is very swervy and stop-and-go, so it may be hard if you have motion sickness!  Some cities have a very obvious central bus stand/station where it is easy to buy tickets.  Others are not so obvious and you have to shop around at the private bus stands for the best price.  When you ask for a bus schedule, you are likely to get a response like “A bus goes there every fifteen minutes.”  Almost always, you can find a bus between any two points leaving at least every hour.  It’s amazing how many buses are going everywhere at all hours!
  • The train tickets are easy to buy at the train station or online (www.cleartrip.com).  You should buy them at least a couple of weeks in advance if possible because trains do get full during peak seasons.  They hold tickets for tourists, but a last minute purchase will possibly be higher priced due to extra charges or a higher class.  Second class, also known as three tier non-AC, has been perfect for me.  On all of the trips except one, the breeze coming into the train from the windows has been enough for me.  The only trip I would have suggested an air-conditioned cabin for is from the desert in Rajasthan.  I opted for the budget route and had sand blowing around me for over twelve hours, ending with sand in every crevice.  I have felt perfectly safe on the trains, and I have had nothing stolen.  Make friends with at least one Indian person in your cabin, and your bags will likely be safe when you go to the bathroom.
• Bring big bills to exchange.  You will get a better exchange rate if you use $100 bills than $20 bills even if you are exchanging the same amount.  Exchange rates are negotiable, and are not the lowest at the airport.  If you want to spend the time to shop around, your rate may raise by 0.4.
• Bring cotton swabs if you will be staying in Delhi.  The air is so dirty that you will need them to clean the black out of your nose and ears!
• Spend at least a month and a half in India if traveling alone, or travel with a guide.  It takes awhile to acclimate.  It took me a week before I was comfortable traveling by rickshaw on my own, a week and a half before I could cross the road without hesitation, two weeks before I was comfortable arranging trains and buses, three weeks before I had a handle on Indian markets and a month before I was comfortable interacting with Indian strangers.  I loved traveling on my own, but I would recommend a travel guide for people who do not have a long time to acclimate.
• Everybody gets sick and it’s almost impossible to trace the illness back to the origin.  Often, you were introduced to the contaminated product four weeks prior to the illness.  Add some extra days to your plan for rest!

In the past several years, I’ve become extremely interested in anthropological nutrition.  What do people eat, why do they eat it, and how is their health?  In India, I have traveled through six very distinct food cultures.  It has been very fun experiencing the different foods and styles of eating.

India has a very grain-based diet in general.  In the north, the major grain is wheat which is used in at least two meals per day, mostly in the form of chapatti.  Chapatti is like a thick, wheat tortilla that is torn into small pieces to scoop up different vegetable or lentil based gravies and stews.  People also eat a lot of white bread with butter, biscuits (hard cookies), and fried snacks like samosas or kachoris that have a white flower base for an outer shell.

In the south, people’s main sustenance comes from rice.  When eating with locals, my plate would be loaded with almost two cups of rice at lunch and dinner!  With my right hand, I would mix the rice with dal, a lentil-based stew, and sabji, a cooked vegetable mixture.  Side note:  It took a lot of practice to eat rice effectively with just my right hand.  My friends taught me a trick of balling/chunking the rice onto your fingers and then using my thumb to push the ball into my mouth from behind.  I must say that I am now a pro at eating every crumb and drop of sabji with only my right hand!

In Delhi, I stayed with a devout Jains family.  The mission of Jains devotees is to promote peace among all living things.  They want to prevent any harm, death or destruction in the world.  This translates to very strict eating habits.  Jains people are vegetarians, eating no eggs or meat, but they do eat milk, butter, ghee and yoghurt.    They choose not to eat any tubers—no onions, garlic, potatoes or ginger.  The reason is that harvesting these foods kills the entire plant and severely disturbs the ecosystem or the soil around the plants.  Insects and bacteria are displaced and killed in the process.  I am not fully sure why, but there are some plants that are harvested above ground that are also cruel to eat.  For example, eggplant was not allowed in their diets.  The most interesting part to me about the strictness of this peaceful ideology was explained to me in water.  Water should boiled as soon as it is acquired because it kills the microorganisms living in it.  The killing of these microorganisms immediately will prevent the future death of a larger number of microorganisms because they will never have a chance to reproduce.  Jains people will gladly sacrifice their personal health so that they can promote a more peaceful world.

In Sadhana Forest, I entered a vegan community.  We ate no meat, eggs or milk products.  The ideology is that a vegan diet is more ecologically sustainable, and eating animals is cruel and unnatural.  Eating a vegan diet filled with locally grown foods is much more energy efficient than eating animals.  The amount of food that is needed to feed a person is much less than the amount of food that is needed to feed a cow so that the cow can feed the human—and the carbon dioxide emitted in the atmosphere is much less with fewer animals as well.  I am less educated about how “natural” it is to eat animals, and the feelings of the animals.  Many Sadhanites believe that the mother cow or goat produces milk specifically for their young; when we take milk from them, we are putting undue stress on the animal.  It seems reasonable . . . I can not imagine breastfeeding a baby and then storing an extra liter or two each day for the rest of the family or neighbors!  Sadhanites are also very spiritual aware beings.  They think that an animal being killed would be filled with anxiety, anger, or fear.  This stress-induced emotional state would likely cause a sky-rocket in hormones (maybe testosterone) and therefore, the meat and it’s products would seem unhealthy.  We also ate very little oil, and no refined sugar or flour.  Our sugar source was called date jaggery which retains all of the vitamins and minerals of original dates.  Although sugarcane jaggery is available in the area, sugar requires a lot of water and is a large reason that many areas of the world are de-forested, so we did not want to support this industry.

At Bhaktivedanta Eco-village in Karnataka, our diet was vegetarian, eating milk products and honey but not eggs.  The interesting twist to this is that they take care of eight cows, two bulls and a goat.  Their diet, along with everything in their lives is directed by their religious beliefs.  According to the Vedas (a spiritual Sanskrit scripture), cows are considered the most sacred and pure animal.  In India, their urine is used for soil nitrification as well as ayurvedic medicine . . . yes, people drink cow urine as a medicine!  Hundreds of cow patties can be seen drying along roadsides to fuel their stoves.  Milk is used fresh, and in the form of yoghurt, butter, ghee, or paneer.  Paneer is wonderful!  It is technically cottage cheese, but usually tastes more like a tofu or mild mozzarella.  The majority of the land at the village grows rice; their many sustenance.  They are very aware of their need for protein, so lunch and dinner both have dal to accompany their rice.  Often, they will grind lentils into flour to add to their baked goods as well.  They use ghee or sesame oil to cook most of their vegetables into gravies or stews.  Like the Jains, they do not eat any onion or garlic, but the reasoning is quite different.  Onion, garlic and all refined foods are very arousing foods.  It is important to keep the senses neutral and balanced in order to be spiritually balanced.  All of the food is offered to the deities in the temple before being eaten . . . it can’t even be tasted for flavor until after offering it to the deities.

In India, woman control the kitchen.  They cook three round meals a day and they very rarely use leftovers from one meal to the next.  It’s been interesting talking to Indian people about the use of pesticides and genetically modified foods.  The Indian response is always, “Everybody knows that they should eat fresh food that has no chemicals.  It’s obvious that it should be pure!”  Unfortunately, the farms, and the water used in the farms are not so pure, but the intention and desire of the people is strong.  I’m excited to see how my diet continues to shift as I travel in the Middle East and Europe.

Bhaktivedanta eco-village (BEV) is an small community in Vollur Valley in the hills of Karnataka.  It is nestled between holy mountains that the Hindu god Hanuman dropped during a flight, and Lord Chaitanya appeared hundreds of years ago.  Sri Mookambika also created a temple at the top for pilgrims to visit to be blessed in education, music and the arts.  The mountains and valley are consistently visited by pilgrims from around India.  The BEV community consists of sixteen families who are spread around 90 acres of land.  Many are devotees of Hare Krishna living very pure lives.  The forest around BEV is conservation land, so the land is quite pristine and full of wildlife.

I volunteered at BEV for three weeks.  My service varies from day to day.  I arrived on the day of the sugarcane harvest, so I helped bundle and load sugarcane which was sent to the next village to be juiced and cooked into syrup called jaggery.  I have spent many days watering and weeding gardens that produce vegetables and ayurvedic herbs.  Many days passed as I organized hundreds of piled books into a usable library.  Some days, I help chase wild cows off the land and fix broken fences that have allowed them to get in.  I have helped harvest sweet potatoes (hundreds and hundreds of sweet potatoes) and mulberries.  In fact, my hands are still quite stained from the mulberries.  I have also helped prepare for the monsoon season by cutting and collecting large truckloads of firewood from the jungle.  All of the cooking and hot water comes from wood-burning stoves.

It is interesting being a traveling volunteer who is open to observing other cultures and practices without judgement.  The people that I’ve connected with in this village are very simple.  Many issues concerning the world, geography, and other cultures are lost upon them.  Some of their practices seem archaic and I have an impulse to teach them about the system I know, but when I listen to why they do certain things, it becomes clear that they are the experts.  They are very strong, determined, joyful, and giving.  I had a wonderful time working at BEV, and will share more stories soon.

I’m currently volunteering in an eco-village in the middle of paradise.  To get to the closest internet or electricity, I have to walk 5km out of a valley and take a thirty minute bus ride.  Because of this, I expect that updates for the next month will be few and far between.  As soon as I have a chance, I will post pictures and updates!  Love and blessings!

Yatra is a Tamil word for journey.  One of the best things I’ve experienced since volunteering at Sadhana Forest is the Monday Ecocycle Yatra to one of the local villages.  A group of Sadhanites hop onto bicycles and journey for twenty minutes with a volleyball, a cricket bat, songs, dances, and smiles to share with Indian children.  Children and mothers trickle out of homes to see the foreigners.
I wrote before about the aggression I felt from the Indian community and how I’d begun frowning and saying ‘no’ often.  This experience was amazing, because it was the first time I felt safe enough again to let my guard down and be fully happy and joyful.  The kids were amazing!

Taking Naomi’s lead, I began balancing the kids on my thighs and throwing the small ones into the sky in superman position.  They were so excited to climb up our bodies.  The older girls were excited to learn classical Indian dance from Anna, our resident dance teacher and musician.  The older boys would bring their younger siblings toward me to get hugs and kisses and then invite me to play cricket.
One of the most inspiring parts of the afternoon was to watch the Indian kids receive Tara, a five-year old Sadhanite.  Before she arrived, I had tried to lead several songs, but the kids didn’t really engage in them.  I figured it had to do with the language barrier.  Tara, though, was able to lead twenty minutes of songs, dances and games without any direction.  The girls and boys instantly fell into a circle with her and began playing follow the leader. She sang a song, and they picked up the English words quickly.  We rolled a ball around to take turns playing a miming game and they had no problem.  I’m so impressed at what natural communication, leadership and teaching abilities kids have when given the chance.
I’ve included many snapshots and videos on this blog of this experience. Thank you Nico for sharing your video with us!

Interested in more video?  There are nine videos available at http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=trishapatton&aq=f.

So, I shaved my head.  It was a gradual process.  I began with altruistic thoughts.  You see, I’ve always loved the idea of donating my hair to Locks of Love.  It’s a non-profit that makes wigs for children who are recovering from cancer.  They ask people all around the world to donate at least ten inches.  I’ve been thinking about cutting of my four year old locks for awhile, but until now, I’ve consistently chickened out.  You see I love my long hair.

I grew up believing that hair is beautiful when it is long, and that women are beautiful when they have long hair.  The shortest I’ve ever cut it is up to my shoulders, and that was CRAZY!   I often believe that I am more feminine, more gentle, more glamorous and more sexy when my locks flow down my back.

When I walked into Sadhana, I was drawn immediately to several women who had very short or extreme haircuts.  Their smiles were brighter, their eyes were filled with more light, and their femininity was stronger than most.  They had no hair to hide behind, and no history in their locks that was holding them down.

I played with the idea of chopping off my hair for several days, but it was a real struggle.  My hair moved to Hawaii with me four years ago.  That hair had fallen in and out of love, swam with dolphins, and poured its soul into hundreds of students.  There are so many hidden stories tied up in the length, many of which I cherish and desire to hold on to.  On the other hand, the organic, bio-degradable shampoo at Sadhana and the slightly dirty water of India has been turning my hair into a matted, unmanageable mess.  I battled daily for a week about what to do with it . . . keep it and try to find a conditioning concoction from our garden, or cut it and donate it to Locks of Love.

The super-sticky shampoo won.  I decided to chop it.  I am sending the footlong braid to Locks of Love from India.  I decided this is a perfect time in my life to find my inner beauty and femininity without my hair to hide behind or drape over my shoulder.

It has been fun exploring my new short-haired self at Sadhana.  I’ve had three haircuts in the last two weeks.  I’ve included pictures of each stage so far.

The first night was amazing.  About fifteen loving Sadhanites were having a very quiet, peaceful evening in the hut.  We set the intention of growth, abundance and release, and my braid was chopped off. (You can see Laura in the back proudly holding the braid after chopping it.)  Although I wasn’t sad, tears poured down my cheeks as the scissors went through my hair.  Everybody gave me hugs, sang songs and gave me encouragement.  It was beautiful.

The second cut was playful– a chance to try on a haircut that was short and edgy.  Jayden was the artist.

The third cut truly stirred the community.  My friend Laura and I decided to play with mohawks for a couple of days.  We invited the community to join, and to my surprise, we began a crazy hair phenomenon.  We shaved people’s heads for three hours totaling 14 crazy haircuts and 9 mohawks in our Sadhana community!  I never knew that so many people would use the word “gorgeous” when referring to me with a mohawk!

Everybody should have the experience of cutting their hair off to give to Locks of Love at least once in their lives.  This is not the final version of my hair.  I will probably shed the mohawk within the week . . . we will see. I hope you enjoy the photos!

I have spent the last two weeks in Delhi volunteering full-time at the Make-A-Wish Foundation.  The Make-A-Wish mission is to grant the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses.  Some wishes that are commonly granted in the Make-A-Wish Delhi chapter are to meet a favorite cricketer, to visit the Taj Mahal, or to get their first cycle.

For two weeks, I became a full-time addition to the two-person office.  Snighda Jain and Vicky are very hard workers as they manage the thirty-plus volunteers and nine hospitals.  I worked on a variety of projects especially focusing on marketing and volunteer training.

Twice, I visited a local, private hospital where I chatted and played with kids who were recovering from heart surgery.  I had the opportunity to present several kids with toys they had wished for, and to meet their parents who felt supported and joyful because of our unconditional love.  It was amazing to see the light in one little boy’s face when he received his remote control car.  It was even nicer to make friendships with the little girl who wants to become an English teacher, and the mother who wants me to keep in touch with her when she goes back to Uganda.  It’s amazing that simple smiles and stories can leave such deep impressions.

In the office, I helped with marketing, editing, and volunteer training.  I helped create the corporate proposal, the quarterly newsletter, and the editing of the volunteer manual.  I think my lasting impression will be through my work with the volunteers.  I helped volunteers with their kid-friendly communication by hosting a volunteer’s workshop.  We worked with many tools that could help volunteers make deeper relationships with kids, that could inspire a joyful, magical environment, and that could help them access the child’s most cherished wishes.

The time in Delhi was wonderful.  I lived with two host family’s and in a hotel giving me three perspectives of life in this humongous city.  Thank you Snighda for the opportunity!