Today was the first time that the preschoolers got to see their parents since coming to Shanti Bhavan. I'll explain in detail in a later story but basically what happens is a social worker, a doctor, and a psychologist goes to villages and finds children to bring to the school. If the parents trust them and agree to the education, the children pack their little belongings and are taken to Shanti Bhavan. This occurs at age 4. The children only see their parents a few times a year. Today was the first time that the new ones have seen their parents since they left their village, roughly 3 months ago. Since these children come from the "poorest of the poor," traveling to Shanti Bhavan must be quite an experience for these families. They come from all over Tamil Nadu and are transported by the school to the site. Just because they are little 4 year olds, the parents were allowed to bring biscuits and chocolate for their children. This allowance was announced in assembly the other day and all the older grades booed and groaned because their parents are not allowed to bring anything with them during visits.
I was pretty busy all day planning my classes for the next week, but I took sometime out to go see the preschoolers with their families(I had to the littles ones are ridiculously cute). I asked Miss Asha, a relatively new Indian teacher who is super friendly, to go with me to see them in case there was a need for translation. The little ones were playing with their parents in the cherry grove on campus and as soon as we got there everyone kinda stared at us. I was with some other volunteers and since these parents are from very remote villages, I doubt they have seen Caucasians before. The most social preschooler(I can by no means spell her name) automatically ran up to us with the usual and proper "Good morning Miss! I asked if her parents were here and she called out. Her mother and sisters came over dressed in the best attire. Her oldest sister was dressed in what looked like to be an old princess Halloween costume(most clothes in India are random donations) and I couldn't help but saying that I loved her outfit and she looked like a princess. However, I forgot that she didn't speak English so Ms. Asha translated and I got a shy little smile. Seeing the sister, however, made me think about how only one member of the family goes to the school. There are no siblings at Shanti Bhavan and thus I feel bad for those family members that are not here. They are not receiving the same opportunity as their family member and will lead completely different lives. Here at Shanti Bhavan these families actually drank clean water, had a substantial meal, had electricity, etc. It is so different from their lives and yet their own child is experiencing it.
We spoke to a few more preschoolers and met their families(I wish I would've taken more pic but I felt awkward pulling out my camera to document their meetings). I cannot get enough of them. Their teacher taught them the "See you later alligator/In awhile crocodile" saying and its so precious to hear them say that as you leave. I heard some of the kids didn't really know what to do with the parents and kind of looked at them with that "ShouldI know you?" face. Others were extremely excited and had trouble saying goodbye. It is such a difficult situation but Shanti Bhavan is the best place for them to grow up and break the cycle of poverty in their families.
