Discovering the world and myself

In the summer of 2010, I spent three months volunteering in rural village in South East India. The village was called Kanchipuram and there I helped build a school to teach children about the importance of road safety.
There were several life lessons that I learned while living in the local area with my fellow Indian workers. The first lesson I learned was the importance of a strong community. Living in the suburbs in America, I lived a very independent life. Food, clothes, and the rest of the goods and services can either be bought in a grocery store or online. The houses are spread widely apart and I rarely see my neighbors. In India, your survival was dependent on the community you lived with. When your farm did not yield crops or you needed capital to purchase equipment, often it was only the community you lived with that could offer you the necessary resources.
The second life lesson I learned during my time in India was discovering both the depths of despair and the heights of hope that humans can go through. At a school I visited to teach English, there were children who had no shoes or school supplies. In addition, the school was located adjacent to lake so polluted, it glowed neon green. It was a heart wrenching moment to see children, who by no fault of their own, not given any opportunity to grow and mature. At the same time, their mothers were beginning on to be given access to microfinance and starting their own small business. Not only was this making them self-sufficient from their husbands and challenging the historic role of women play in these communities, but they were able to send their children to school thereby stopping the cycle of poverty.
I have been witness to desolate despair, unbridled hope, and boundless community strength. These encounters have been instrumental in shaping how I view the world and leading to me to life of travel and social impact.