The below is an article by Laxmi, who is currently working on a rural health communication project in tribal Maharashtra. This provides an insight into her journey to where she is right now and what 'seva' means to her. There are some links below for further information about the programmes she mentions.
Service. Do you remember those feelings of seeing a new place for the first time? This wonderful anticipation of discovery along with this underlying feeling of not knowing where you are. My relationship with service has been a little like this. I initially thought that service, or seva, was about other people and what I can do for them, only to find out over the past few years that it's been about me all along; Me and the potential of this Me to connect with other humans in a way that has meaning and purpose. This small seed of seva was planted into my curious mind by my earliest inspiration and teacher – my Granddad. To me he was everything that made sense, an embodiment of humility; he gave himself away to family and strangers alike without wanting anything in return. Why? Simply because he believed that this was his duty as a part of what he considered his extended family, whether that was his community in India, Africa or UK.
Community. Growing up, this word has occupied little space in my mind, except that I knew I had more than one. I spoke English easily with my community at school, yet remember the ever so slight flinch on my Dad's face every time I spoke English, instead of my mother tongue language – Gujarati, at home. During my university years, I believed myself to be an independent young woman with her own mind, yet became easily frustrated each time a well meaning aunty told me that the traditions of our community do not allow girls to enter religious spaces when on their menstrual cycle. Even still, these frustrations and differences were a normal part of life for me. Only after losing my granddad and a few years of pondering in an open-plan office, did I decide that I want to go and explore the reason behind why I had several communities - India. Although I had visited India from a young age, this relationship revolved around shopping, food, hotels, quick obligatory visits to the homes of distant relatives and air conditioning. It is only after I spent some time volunteering with an NGO in Ahmedabad that I realized that my connection with India was about something else - the coming together of service and community disguised in a funny thing called love.
Love. This NGO was no ordinary place. The idea of 'coming from a space of love' was deeply integrated into the Manav Sadhna philosophy and actions. Here, I was fortunate enough to meet someone who was to become a kind and patient mentor for me and one of the founders of Manav Sadhna – Jayeshbhai. Jayeshbhai believes in the power of small acts of kindness and this was visible in everything he did. I had arrived with a quietly confident attitude that I can change the world, but this lasted no longer than 5 minutes as I stepped into a whole new world, surrounded by hard working staff and volunteers buzzing around after their Saturday catch-up meeting. From holding daily sessions with young girls to simply just talk about anything important to them to spending time with rag-pickers who were managing to save 5 rupees a day towards their goal of becoming self-sustainable, these four months have been maybe the closest I have come to sharing myself with others in a way that went beyond the self and beyond the term 'experience' itself.
Sharing. I came across Connect India by chance. After some months into a new job in social research, I started to feel restless and at the same time determined that my journey should not stop because I am not in India. I had heard of Connect India through a mutual friend and contacted them with the intention of exploring the possibilities of engaging in service related projects in the UK. After initial discussions with the Connect India team; Meenal Sachdev and Dharmesh Mistry – co-founders of Connect India and a constant source of strength and spirit, I was given the opportunity to co-facilitate a programme for young British Indians to explore India through the lens of development and service – Learning Journey. Learning Journey was many things – a platform on which other young people could explore their own capacity, but also a space in which they can challenge their own beliefs and understanding of the world. Through interaction with local inspirational leaders and communities, as well as reflection and discussion sessions, I believed the Learning Journey was an opportunity to plant that seed of service in others. It was an honour to be a part of this group of open and inquisitive minds, their questions, their challenges and beliefs and their journey.
Belief. I am now in the midst of the Indicorps Fellowship, a choice based on challenge and a belief in change. I am based at a health NGO called SEARCH in the rural forests of Gadchiroli, Maharashtra, where my project has been to devise communication tools to give health messages amongst the local tribes and villages. As I weave in and out of moments of belief, hope, frustration, fear, never has that infamous quote by Gandhi made more sense to me – 'be the change you wish to see in the world'. From comforting patients in times of uncertainty to rationalizing the importance of good sanitation with a family in the village, there have been many times when feeling from my heart was much more important than thinking with my head. I read somewhere that you should "love your life for everything you are not sure about, as it will still challenge your being". Seeing and being a part of inequalities here has challenged me to my core and at the same time pushed me to think about who I am.
Uncertainty. Leaving behind a corporate career in London felt like one of the easiest decisions I have ever made. Maybe because, it never really felt like it was true to my spirit or in other words it never really made me feel alive. The challenging part seems to be when I look forward, even for a moment. There are feelings of uncertainty combined with excitement. It is difficult to say how I have changed as a result of these experiences, whether Manav Sadhna, Learning Journey or the Indicorps Fellowship, but the one thing that I feel clear on is that I am more than what my degree certificate states, I am more than where I have worked and I am more than what God I pray to. I am a part of something that is much bigger and I too, like my Granddad, have a duty as a citizen of this thing called humanity to be sensitive to what is going on around me. It may be an obvious place to end, but "If not us, then who? If not now, then when?" – Winston Churchill.
Further information:
Manav Sadhna – The NGO where she experienced the "coming together of service and community disguised in a funny thing called love".
"Living Service" Jayeshbhai video – captures the lifestyle and thinking of how he lives his message with the power of small acts of kindness.
Connect India – UK based organisation that runs Learning Journey.
Indicorps Fellowship – One-year grassroots immersion service projects in India.
SEARCH – The NGO in the rural forests of Maharashta.
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