It was Republic Day a few days ago, and at the Rotary Institute for Mothers and Deaf Children, the kids dressed up in the traditional clothes of their home regions. I'm sure these regions have never been so well represented by such fabulous little people.
This kid is fresh from his first haircutting ceremony. The fathers in India are really loving-- always kissing and fussing over their small children. This dedicated dad was trying to photograph his son around the temples, but every time he let the boy out of his arms, the kid would burst into tears!
Isn't it amazing how many different cultures are within India? Our patriotic days don't even come close to matching this. If we tried to represent each state with a different dress, all we would come up with would be a bunch of stereotypes. But these little tribes and regions all have their own unique clothing, language, customs, food, everything!
All of the kids at this school have cochrane implants, or are planning to get some soon. They learn in both English and their local language Kanada. The school motto is that "God makes children deaf, people make children dumb," meaning that with the right confindence and education, there is no reason for deaf children to be left behind. Graduates from the Institute go on to regular school and become completely integrated into regular society. Many of them go onto universities in India and abroad.
These kids are from the Kashmir region.
The pink glasses and the purse- so cute!
This boy had the most amazing blue eyes. I didn't even know such eyes were possible!I was very impressed by the Swami Vivekanada Youth 
Movement, which is the NGO that provides our dorms, classrooms and food. It was dreamed up by a group of idealistic young medical students (about 19 years old) who were sympathetic to the plight of the tribals. The tribals had been living in the forest for centuries, but the government wanted to make a nature reserve and protect wildlife, so they coaxed the tribals out of the forest with promises of food, shelter and land. They were designated to a reservation and then forgotten. The tribals were barred from returning to their homeland, but they were unable to become integrated into regular Indian society because they were very poor and uneducated. The Vivakananda doctors set up a hospital in the tribal areas, and they soon expanded to provide schools and more hospitals. They have a huge organic garden to provide food for the hospital patients, and everything they create must be eco-friendly. So they use solar panels, CFL bulbs and sustainable building materials, such as a brick-making method that makes use of the compacted local dirt mixed with rock powder and a little cement, so the cement doesn't have to be shipped from far away and less plaster is used. They also mix traditional ayuvedic medicine with western medical knowledge, so they have facilities for massages, aromatherapy, steam rooms and yoga.
Movement, which is the NGO that provides our dorms, classrooms and food. It was dreamed up by a group of idealistic young medical students (about 19 years old) who were sympathetic to the plight of the tribals. The tribals had been living in the forest for centuries, but the government wanted to make a nature reserve and protect wildlife, so they coaxed the tribals out of the forest with promises of food, shelter and land. They were designated to a reservation and then forgotten. The tribals were barred from returning to their homeland, but they were unable to become integrated into regular Indian society because they were very poor and uneducated. The Vivakananda doctors set up a hospital in the tribal areas, and they soon expanded to provide schools and more hospitals. They have a huge organic garden to provide food for the hospital patients, and everything they create must be eco-friendly. So they use solar panels, CFL bulbs and sustainable building materials, such as a brick-making method that makes use of the compacted local dirt mixed with rock powder and a little cement, so the cement doesn't have to be shipped from far away and less plaster is used. They also mix traditional ayuvedic medicine with western medical knowledge, so they have facilities for massages, aromatherapy, steam rooms and yoga. 
Everything about this organization is smart and efficient. They do street performances and visit schools and villages to teach people about HIV, birth control, sterilizing drinking water, or anything else that it becoming a problem, based on information they gather from the patients who come in. The environmental head of the program was really knowledgable about organic farming. He gave us a tour and we did an hour of labor (picking up rocks). Even the little kids knew all about the plants of the farm, and were able to talk about all the kinds of plants in English. Swami Vivekananda (above) is their inspiration.
In conclusion, I've decided that Indian children take the cake as the most adorable in Asia. I think that of every country I visit, but this time I'm sure. Mongolian kids had the cutest puffy cheeks though...
3 comments:
Josie and I loved these pictures! But the one she asks for over and over is "show me Lindsey in the cupcake!"
Awww, Lindsey in the cupcake, that is soooo cute. Precious lil Josie pie! These kids are adorable too! But the cutest kid award goes to little chubby cheeked lindsey doing the potty dance!
Man, do you have to mention that in my blog? You're messing with my style, yo...
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