I've been putting off this post for awhile...
I've been home for almost two months now and am still adjusting to being away from the kids and all those who became my family while I was in India. I can honestly say that not a day goes by that I don't think about and miss India. Not just Rising Star, but India itself. The shockingly green rice fields, the most delicious mangos you will ever eat, the colors, the noise, the culture, the people....in my 11 months there I came to love every facet of that country. This quote is cited often by Rising Star volunteers because it perfectly sums how most of us feel about India:
As much as I love India by itself, my love for the kids and people at Rising Star exceeds this by about 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000....whatever that number is. From walking around campus meeting kids at every turn, to sitting outside on a bright afternoon to watch the boys play cricket. From late night dance parties to those quiet bedtime conversations and story times that I will forever miss and cherish. It's all those little moments and so many more that added together to create an extraordinary 11 months. To enumerate all that I learned and gained from this time is impossible--one, because it's hard to put into words unless you have been to Rising Star and experienced it for yourself and two, I haven't even discovered all that I took away from those 11 months. It seems that every week I find something new about my perspective and myself that I gained as a result of my time in India. It's a never-ending list that I am sure I will continue adding to for many years to come.
The one thing that I can most easily identify as having taken away from India is an unending love for what I now like to call, my Indian family. The kids and staff have solidified their places in my heart and will never leave. Sadly, there are some that I most likely will never see again in this life. Even those that I do see when I go back to visit, I know that I will never be able to re-create my time in India--new children come, kids graduate, people change jobs....it will never be the same as when I left. But thankfully, I will always have the memories and that place in my heart. I will always have their voices and smiling faces to think back on and remind me of one of the most significant, and special times in my life.
Vanakkam
I've been home for almost two months now and am still adjusting to being away from the kids and all those who became my family while I was in India. I can honestly say that not a day goes by that I don't think about and miss India. Not just Rising Star, but India itself. The shockingly green rice fields, the most delicious mangos you will ever eat, the colors, the noise, the culture, the people....in my 11 months there I came to love every facet of that country. This quote is cited often by Rising Star volunteers because it perfectly sums how most of us feel about India:
“There are some parts of the world that, once
visited, get into your heart and won’t go. For me, India is such a place. When
I first visited, I was stunned by the richness of the land, by its lush
beautiful and exotic architecture, by its ability to overload the senses with
the pure, concentrated intensity of its colors, smells, tastes, and sounds…I
had been seeing the world in black and white and, when brought face-to-face
with India, experienced everything re-rendered in brilliant Technicolor.”
–
Keith Bellows (National Geographic)
As much as I love India by itself, my love for the kids and people at Rising Star exceeds this by about 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000....whatever that number is. From walking around campus meeting kids at every turn, to sitting outside on a bright afternoon to watch the boys play cricket. From late night dance parties to those quiet bedtime conversations and story times that I will forever miss and cherish. It's all those little moments and so many more that added together to create an extraordinary 11 months. To enumerate all that I learned and gained from this time is impossible--one, because it's hard to put into words unless you have been to Rising Star and experienced it for yourself and two, I haven't even discovered all that I took away from those 11 months. It seems that every week I find something new about my perspective and myself that I gained as a result of my time in India. It's a never-ending list that I am sure I will continue adding to for many years to come.
The one thing that I can most easily identify as having taken away from India is an unending love for what I now like to call, my Indian family. The kids and staff have solidified their places in my heart and will never leave. Sadly, there are some that I most likely will never see again in this life. Even those that I do see when I go back to visit, I know that I will never be able to re-create my time in India--new children come, kids graduate, people change jobs....it will never be the same as when I left. But thankfully, I will always have the memories and that place in my heart. I will always have their voices and smiling faces to think back on and remind me of one of the most significant, and special times in my life.
Vanakkam
Beautiful, Kenady Ma'am. Miss you!
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