Volunteering Journeys

It was the best 3 days in my life and the incredible experience for the kids from 6 to 12 years. exploring the nature, orientation, river sports and cooking on self made fire. Sleeping under the stars with tents. Geting a food from local people and wild food.

We had an absolutely remarkable time with Rainbow Voluntours. We were looking for a family volunteering opportunity and came across them in a web search. The director, Ridhi, was invariably thoughtful and responsive in our correspondence, listening to what we were looking for and matching us with a perfect situation. Our family of 6 (four kids, ages 5-13) would be teaching in a school and an after-school program, and I was worried that it would either be too much (i.e., "Here's your class for the week, best of luck!") or too little (i.e., "Sit over in the corner and watch."). It was the perfect balance: making a contribution but not being asked to do too much, with Rainbow Voluntours staff with us every step of the way to help, support, clarify, etc. I was also impressed that they didn't feed us a line about how we were changing the world in a week; I knew going in that *we* would be the ones most changed, and the staff's perspective's was the same: we were making an impact by showing we cared and sharing experiences, which hopefully meant something to a lot of people. The whole staff in Kerala -- Ridhi, Geeta, Midhu -- were wonderful, and it was a transformative experience for our family.

Kerala, was always going to be the highlight of our 5 weeks in India, I just knew it, and guess what? It didn't disappoint me. When I say we found the light, I mean that in so many ways. Literally, the light was soft and the sunsets were spectacular as the sun dipped below the skyline over the Indian Ocean. Figuratively ,the light was everywhere, it radiated from people, drew us into cafes and shops, and then tumbled us back out onto the unhurried pedestrian roads for more adventures and laughs in this beautiful city. We arrived at the VJ house late at night in mid-March after a tough couple of weeks in Kolkata, ready to get stuck and have an adventure while we worked with the Women's empowerment program. Kerala though would have none of that, and after meeting our glorious girls, Geetha, Medhu and Gina, and four other volunteers early on Saturday, we began a weekend that seemed to go on forever! Food is a big part of life in Kerala, and Gina is a superb cook, spoiling all volunteers at breakfast and lunch. It seemed important to enjoy your weekends, and every effort was made to ensure everyone had plans in place to do just that. We opted for a trip down south to the backwaters, but not on a houseboat, instead visiting Philipkutty Farm, and feasting on the truely inspired food, cooked by owner Anu, and her family. Riding back on the bus, the light did magic tricks again, or maybe I was just blissed out on what may be the best food I have ever eaten! OK, we did start work on Monday, but true to their word, the staff here make sure you are well set up as volunteers with time to plan, and a cupboard full of resources. We mostly paired up, as everyone knows that it's more fun that way, and headed out to the various sites, ours being the women's empowerment class. I am yet to be convinced that we as volunteers give more than we receive, as every day with VJ, I was challenged and every evening I reflected on how much I had learned, ( or how much light had shone on me!) However meeting these amazing women, 6 each morning, and another 4 each afternoon, I felt that it really mattered to them that we had come to spend time in their world. As many of them had tertiary degrees, ( Kerala has the highest literacy in India), and good English, we involved them in lesson planning, and ended up focusing on speaking. We worked towards doing presentations by the end of the week, and had many laughs, shared food, and all around enlightenment! I loved every moment everywhere in Fort Kochi, and am so glad I found the light!