Posting by Suzanne Fortnum

Simplicity in commodities and abundance in people, these are two things that come to mind as I reflect on my first week in India. What these people lack in possessions, they make up for in heart. As we visited our internship sites this past week, we were greeted with huge, friendly smiles and refreshments that were safe for us to eat and drink. I can’t remember the last time anyone had put so much thought into ensuring I would be comfortable and feel welcome. They have what seems to me so little, yet what they do have, they are more than willing to share. There is so much to learn from this culture. The people of India live entirely in the present. They are unconcerned with the fortunes or misfortunes of yesterday. What the future holds doesn’t matter because it hasn’t arrived. These people live entirely in the here and now. In school each child writes on one small chalkboard, when it is full, the board gets erased. The child begins again. Each morning women draw beautiful chalk drawings outside their homes to begin their day, knowing that they can appreciate the beauty of the drawing for today only. Tomorrow it will be gone and another in its place. At the internship sites, the women would spend the entire day showing us around, if we let them. Amount of time is unimportant, only quality matters.