The most fantastic first day !

In just twenty minutes, the Loving Community taught me something 18 years had failed to. It taught me that it was just so easy to fall in love. Perhaps that is why the community itself is called the Loving Community, for they love one another just so effortlessly and would love you just as much if you visited them sometime. Leaders from families with such fighting spirits and beautiful smiles would surely be compassionate and willing to learn; I thought and started to believe as I began the workshop with the children.

Sitting in a circle with the 12 children, Chris and their Anganwadi teacher Aruna (an inspiration, for having achieved so much at just the age of 19) I revealed to them the purpose of my being there. One shot thought I said, to which I was faced by puzzled faces. A small talk on what a shot was and a literal translation of what thought meant in Hindi helped clear off this confusion and we were all good to go further. With a quick description of what the children were supposed to do, I showed them the flip camera, which one child found just so complicated to pronounce. ‘Silip’ camera she said to which Chris said, not slip it is flip. F-lip. The more the children tried to correct her, the more she said Silip louder. All 12 including the little girl herself laughed at this failure to say flip, with Aruna, Chris and I joining in as it was just too funny to resist! Deepak, the eldest of the 12 children, after looking at all the features concluded that it was easy to use, even volunteering to help the younger ones.

So, on Friday, that’s the end of the week, each of the 12 are going to show me their favourite of the five shots they have been told to take of anything that they find beautiful, bothering or amusing. I am looking forward to it! I am sure they are too!