I Believe in What I Do; I Do What I Believe

I believe that I have a special purpose in this life, and part of that purpose is to help others; to make the world a better place. When I first traveled to Ethiopia in 2007, I was profoundly touched and I knew my life would never be the same again. I knew that service would become a very big part of my life; and it has. I know that I cannot solve the very big problems at the core of the poverty that I have seen nor will I ever make huge changes written in history books. But I feel good about what I have done so far.

Aum and I. 

From 2007-2009 with other Rotarians, we brought school and medical supplies to children in Ethiopia and Uganda. In Ethiopia in 2009 I brought 100 school uniforms to the Joy School for Autistic Children where my daughter and I volunteered daily for two weeks. In 2009, with the help of my friends and fellow Hawaii Rotarians and business clients, I also raised funds to build a grinding mill in Kalang, Northern Uganda that has given an entire village a living and has eased the lives of many women who had to walk very far to grind their grain or just do it by hand. In the spring of 2010, while I was living in Uganda for three months, these same Rotarians, friends, and clients helped me raise $5,200 to pay the school fees of 27 high school aged children, mostly girls, who could not afford to attend school. Most of them were orphans whose parents were killed in the war with the LRA or their parents had died of HIV or other illnesses. For every girl that we put though school, we are saving her from a life of poverty, prostitution, and we are setting her up to raise confident and educated children. My daughter and I volunteered daily at St Jude’s Orphanage in Gulu, Uganda where much help was needed just holding and playing with the many babies and children. My stories are just beginning.

Shika and I.  She lives at the Ashram

Now I am in India where I have been volunteering at the Karuna Vihar School for Children with Special Needs. I have had an amazing experience. The staff is so experienced, patient, and they truly love each and every one of those special children. It is truly a safe haven and superb educational facility worthy of our support and contributions. Two weeks was just not long enough, and it was sad to say goodbye to the children and staff.

Jo Chopra and I.  She started the Latika Roy Foundation

I have this incredible gift of making great friends very easily. I entered this country as a foreigner, and I became like family to the Ashram that I lived at for 9 days. It is sad to say good bye; but knowing that I will return someday makes it less so. It took such courage to get all the way up North in this valley near the Himalaya Mountains on my own. It will take some courage to get back to Delhi on the train and to get from the very busy train station to the Delhi Airport. It is a long 52 hour journey home without the comfort this time of a hotel stay between the train and plane ride.

Spice Jars in the Kitchen

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The kitchen at the Ashram

I take from this place, Dehradun, and from this Ashram a new found peace in my heart. I have learned to settle my mind a bit through yoga and meditation. I vow to only look forward (not too far) and not look back anymore. It is time to move on. I will continue to live my life very well. I will serve the less fortunate which will improve their lives as well as fill my soul with joy. I will be a good example to my children. I hope they know how much I love them and that no matter where I am in the world, I am always be praying for them, thinking of them, and bragging about them!

The auto taxis are everywhere!

I have the best friends in the world; all over the world! I would like to give them all a big thank you for their support and love. I am also so proud to be a Rotarian and it has changed my life in many ways. Rotary is truly what my life is all about: Service Above Self.

My LAST day at Karuna Vihar!!

Going for a walk today!

I will so miss these children! In the two short weeks that I have been here, I have formed relationships with so many of the staff and the children at the school. They have been so very hospitable and kind to me. They share the different foods they bring for lunch with me, and they invite me to tea, they are always happy to see me. I feel very much at home here with them.

A "farewell" picture :( 

The children are so sweet. Some are a handful, but they are still so sweet. I have loved every minute of being with them. Yesterday I missed going to the school because I had some banking to do and I toured the Forestry Museum.  I now know everything there is to know about tree funguses and bugs. :) I REALLY missed the children at the school though!  I am just going to let the pictures speak for themselves. A picture is worth a thousand words….

Manju is the "Fish Class" Teacher.  She is Amazing with the KIDS!

A tube to crawl through!

I will miss you Karuna Vihar of the Latika Roy Foundation! I will return someday!

Playing on the therapy ball...

Indian Celebration “Karva Chauth”

Beautiful India Women!

This is a day that the women of India fast for the whole day; take no water or any drink. They do this for the wishing of long life and health for their husbands. They dress in their finest clothes and jewelry. They are truly beautiful. There is a ceremony in the evening where the ladies come together and give an offering to their mother in law of fruit or money or some small thing like that. These offerings are taken to the temple and left for the priest to pick up.

When the moon comes up, which it did in Dehradun at about 8pm, the woman has to look at the moon, then look at their husbands through a sieve, then touch his feet in love. He then gives them some water and food to drink and cuddle time begins ! It is really a very sweet custom that occurs every year at this time.

I was invited to Manju’s house to celebrate the evening with her. Check out the lovely, lovely dresses they are wearing!

A Birthday Party for Nysa

This is Shivika and her 3 year old daughter Nysa and I.

On Sunday, I was invited to Nysa’s 3rd birthday party at her home. She is the daughter of the physical therapist at the Karuna Vihar School. We have become friends. It was great to be invited to something so local and personal. The music and atmosphere was so jolly. The food was delicious, and the family was so very kind.

This is just a sampling of the beautiful saris that all the Indian women wear.

I want to pause a minute and try to describe the beautiful Indian ladies that surround me. Their Saris are elegant and stunning. The pants, the tunic, the scarf all match smartly in brilliant colors and materials and patterns. They are bejeweled from head to toe: several earrings, forehead jewel dot, nose ring, necklaces, bangles on their arms, and rings on their fingers, ankle bracelets that jingle when they walk, and toe rings. I can’t help but stare at their beauty and elegance. So much care and time has gone into the heavy makeup of their eyes. They are truly the most beautiful women as a whole that I have come across. I appear, I am sure, as quite plain to them in my simple slacks and shirts with very little jewelry or makeup on.

I forgot to mention that I spent another afternoon on Friday with my young friend, Karan, who took me to the top of the mountain to Missoorie on his motorcycle the first day I arrived in Dehradun. This time we went to a huge and beautiful Buddhist Monastery. You can see how beautiful it is in these pictures. I walked around the perimeter of the statue and twirled the “things” without skipping even one, as is customary tradition. We had lunch as well, and it was a great afternoon. His hospitality amazes me, and as I know he will be reading my blog, I want to thank him for really showing me the very best parts of his beloved city Dehradun. Because of him, I have seen many things in Dehradun that most tourists don’t get to experience. Thank you, Karan.

The Streets of Dehradun.

The Great Buddah Statue at the Buddhist Temple.

It is Monday now, and I have had the worst headache for two days and it worries me as I am rarely with headache. I thought perhaps it was from too much sugar Saturday night, but too much time has passed to be the sugar. The pain goes away during yoga and meditation exercises, but it immediately returns when it is over. Even Tylenol or Excedrin will not relieve it. I am also very tired and sleep 10-11 hours every night. It’s probably just a small bug, but when traveling, even a small bug becomes worrisome. I hope it is gone soon. Today, Monday, I went back to bed after walking and yoga to write my blogs and rest instead of going to the school and interacting with the kids. I don’t have the energy today for that. I will now finish this typing and then go to the resource center where I have internet and will check my email and post by new blogs and pictures.

A different view of the Buddhist Temple.

I send my love and thoughts to my children and to my friends all over this world. I hope all is well with all of you. I miss you.

Rotary Club in Dehradun

I made first contact with Rotarian Sameer Berry, President of the Rotary Club Dehradun Central, on Friday afternoon. Another Rotarian picked me up at the Latika Roy Center and we drove to the office of President Sameer Berry. I met about 4 other Rotarians and we chatted and had tea for a couple of hours. One of the gentlemen in the group belonged to the Lion’s Club organization, and he invited me to his meeting that very night. I was also invited to attend/speak at the Rotary Club on Saturday night.

Rotary Club of Dehradun Central President Sameer Berry and I.

The Lion’s club meeting was spoken in Hindi, so I did not learn too much there. The food was excellent, and I met many wonderful people. I was introduced and told the audience my purpose for coming to Dehradun and a little about myself. I was told not to reveal that I was a Rotarian, which was a bit hard to remember because Rotary is such an important part of my life! I talked a bit about Latika Roy Foundation and all the wonderful work that they do. I am by no means a spokes person for the organization, but I sure know a good and needy organization when I see it. The Lion Club meeting was 9pm to 11:30pm; much later than our meetings in the US!

Exchanging the Rotary Club flag.

Saturday night I went to the Rotary Club Dehradun Central meeting. I was picked up by President Sameer Berry at 7:45 and brought back at midnight. The meeting was conducted in English, so it was very interesting. They have 5 Rotary exchange students here from Germany for one month and there was a presentation on Germany given by one of the students. Last year, 5 of the India students participated in an exchange to the homes of these German students. I spoke for about 15 minutes about my Rotary experiences doing polio immunizations in Ethiopia, my service in Uganda, and my volunteer work at Latika Roy in Dehradun. I sure would like to connect Rotary to Latika Roy Foundation because it is such a great cause. After the meeting, we had a most delicious meal, and of course, as I mentioned in an earlier blog, the famous fried honey that I couldn’t stop eating!

The Dehradun Clock Tower in the middle of town.

A view of the slums along a river in the mountains.  This scene is common in every Continent.

President Sameer Berry picked me up on Sunday afternoon for a drive around town and into the mountains. He showed me some of the slums in the city, which is common to every city in the world. I also saw the six sided clock tower in the middle of the town. The clock tower is the symbol of the town and is on the Dehradun Rotary Club flag, which they gave me at the meeting. I forgot to bring my Kapolei flag for them, but I told them I will return next summer with it. After the drive, we met other Rotarians at a private club for drinks and conversation. They are a great group of Rotarians. Their biggest project is the adoption of a school in the area and the formation of a brand new Rotaract Club there. They are raising funds for the repair and improvement of the facilities. We exchanged ideas about how my own club raises funds and conducts their meetings. I had a fantastic time and exchange of information. Rotary is all over the world, and it is like having a family everywhere you go !

My New Home: Shree Seetaram Ashram

I moved into the Shree Seetaram Ashram on Friday afternoon, as it was becoming the center of so much of my activity, and it was a far walk from my guest house. I was uncomfortable walking back to my guest housein the dark after yoga every night, so accommodations in this simple place seemed like a good idea. An Ashram is a popular place that people go for yoga training and for holistic health, healing and peace. The rooms are very simple and there is no TV. Instead of watching CNN, I now am reading my books when I have spare time. I like it.

My schedule is quite busy here. I get up at 6am and walk with others in the tea gardens for 1 or 1 ½ hours. We then take a few moments for tea. Then we have an hour of yoga and meditation. After yoga, we take our baths and then share breakfast together around 9:30 or 10:00 am. Than it is time for me to go play with the children at the Kahruna Vihar School for handicapped children. I stay until 1:00pm, then walk to the resource center and interact with the administrative and awareness group of the Latika Roy Foundation. I also check my email and update my blog at this time. Evening yoga begins at 5pm, then another walk, then dinner. Sometimes I am so tired by 7:30 or 8pm that I fall asleep until the new day begins with the same schedule at 6am.

This is my room on the outside.

The yoga I am learning is the Kriya Yoga training. There are exercises and stretches for every part of the body, including the eyes, the mouth, neck, shoulders, chest, arms, stomach, legs, and even the internal organs. All the stretches and the exercises, though, are preparing the body for only one thing- meditation. That is what yoga is all about. It is training the mind to focus on the inner peace of yourself. With lessons twice a day, I am learning to settle my mind and I am actually learning so very much about the spiritual side of myself. Yoga is not a religion, nor are the chants related to a religion. It is all about inner peace and coming to God; it’s about letting go of affliction, organizing your inner self, and then filling it with the love and light of God. It is all truly beautiful. I know that I was brought here to learn this and it will help me throughout my life.

A temple in the Ashram.

A room at the Ashram is very simple. Things are different than the U.S. For my bath, there are two faucets; hot and cold. To merge the two together, there is a bucket. I run the two waters into the bucket, and pour it over me with smaller scoops. I lather, then rinse by pouring the water over my head. It’s quite refreshing, actually, and doesn’t waste much water. The first night here, I discovered my bed was a board with a blanket. I slept better than I thought I would, but requested a mattress pad for the board, and a thick quilt to stay warm. Friday night brought a violent storm, and with the storm came the cold weather. It is now quite chilly in the mornings and evenings and cool during the day.

Food is delicious at the Ashram. It is all vegetarian, spicy, and so delicious. I have never seen so many different ways to prepare vegetables. I am also discovering new vegetables that I have never tasted before. Spices are used very generously, and sometimes eaten by the handful in raw form to freshen breath or aide digestion. The other night, after a meeting, I experienced the most delightful sweet thing I have ever put into my mouth! It looked at tasted like fried honey! I honestly thought it was sweets from heaven. I couldn’t stop eating them, and I definitely ate too many. I woke the next day with a sugar headache, as my body is not used to eating sugar anymore! It was worth it though, and I would probably over indulge again if they cross my path in the future. I can’t remember the Indian word for them-maybe “Gelob”-but for me, it will be fried honey. I have had no meat here. I could seriously become a vegetarian if I could learn to cook such wonderful dishes with all the fantastic spices. Yes, life is good here with walking, yoga, excellent food and company, volunteer work, and of course, my Rotary friends. 

Latika Roy Foundation...Why I am here!

Latika Roy Foundation


As I mentioned in my last blog, Latika Roy Foundation is a safe haven, a resource center, an early intervention center, an educational facility, and a vocational center for handicapped children. It also educates the public and ensures that the rights of all handicapped people are identified and protected in India. I spent my first full day there today with the staff and children.

This is the school for kids 5-15 that I spend my mornings. 

The cattle really do go where they want to go and do what they want to do!

I am walking to and from my guest house to the Resource Center and Kahuna Vihar School each day. Yes, I do get lost. When that happens, I either backtrack to the last place I recognize and turn a different way, or just ask a passerby. Asking is not always successful as many people don’t like to talk to strangers (he he, I’m the stranger), or they don’t speak English. I like to have the address of where I am going written down so that they can read it and point me in the right direction.
                                    
                                    Manju is the lead teacher of the "Fish" class.  This is my favorite!

Snack time

My day started unexpectedly at the Vocational Center because I was lost and just happened to run across this building that I recognized from the sign. I met the staff and the kids there. This is the place that handicapped kids 14 and up are taught a vocational skill. I visited the candle making area and purchased some beautiful candles. I was very impressed. Some of the young adults were inside putting the candles into bags for purchase. They are also taught to cook, make envelopes, and sew mobile phone bags, purses, quilts, and other handicrafts.

Ball therapy is fun time! 

Taking turns jumping on the trampoline!

After some time at the Vocational Center, I went to the School, where kids 5 to 14 get to interact, learn and play with other kids. I have to take a minute to express how impressed I am with the staff at every facility I have visited at Latika Roy. They are amazing people; so full of love and energy for the children. I spent the afternoon singing, clapping, playing, laughing, jumping and dancing with the most awesome, happy kids. I can’t even put into words how much fun I had. This is why I am here; to share my love with these children. I want to bring awareness to the important work that the Latika Roy Foundation is doing here in India. My goal will be to connect Rotary with the Latika Roy Foundation as a source of funding. I am meeting my first Rotarian today at 3:00.

Today we made playdough from scratch! 

P.E. is fun time!

After the children went home at 1:00, I went to the Resource Center where I can get wireless internet to check my email, update my blog, and do Face book. On my way home at 4:00, I visited a yoga place and signed up for a Yoga Class every evening at 5:00! I hurried home to change my clothes and attended my first yoga class. Yoga here is a bit different than I thought it would be. Maybe he was being nice to me as it was my first day? There were lots of breathing exercises, meditation, and chanting; not enough stretching and exercising. I hope it is different tonight. The stretches that we did felt fantastic and I was exhilarated and relaxed when I left. It was dark now, and I had to find my home in the night (another adventure). Oh yeah, when I asked about how safe it would be to go jogging on this certain path, I was told my only danger might be from a leopard, so I probably should not go alone. Guess jogging on that path wont be part of my schedule! I tried, and dont like jogging on the dirt roads. Maybe it will only be yoga for two weeks. Anyway, I fell asleep at 8:00pm last night and slept until 6:30 am. Guess I was tired! I can hardly wait for my new day to begin!

Blocks are good for many things! 

The greenness of this place reminds me of Hawaii.  It's a jungle here.

2010 INDIA....Welcome to my next adventure

Mark Twain says, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” I live my life in this way; I have no regrets. I am a survivor, an explorer, a server of others. I am happy. I am changing the world for a better place; one small step at a time.
It took 36 hours to get to India, but I made it! Whew! They were long flights made easier by making friends, talking, watching movies, reading and sleeping….everything life is all about.

Welcome to Robber's Cave, Dehradun, India

I became friends with Penelope, a stewardess from Florida, and she was telling me stories and cautioning me to be so careful in Delhi. Not long ago, three Americans (2 men and 1 woman) arrived in Delhi, got into a cab, and were driven into an alley where they were beaten and robbed and left. She warned me to text to someone the cab number, name of driver, destination and ETA before I got into the cab. So I was already a bit nervous about leaving the airport; I had to catch a cab to a hotel near the train station, as I needed to get on a train early the next morning for Dehradun. Problem: Who would I actually text? Who could save me? And besides, I noticed I didn’t have service on my phone, so I just pretended to be texting and just commented to the cab driver that I was texting my friend that I was coming to meet him…he he he…problem solved! Actually, I was very safe and never ran into ANY problems. But you know what? Traveling alone takes a lot of courage! So many things can and do go wrong as you will see as you read my story. I find myself in difficult situations all the time, and I notice that I am often truly blessed and guided by a force higher than my own. I give my thanks to God each and every morning and night that I am kept safe. I have so much to learn and so much to give. This is already an incredible journey; I already feel my life changing.

Up to my thighs in water at Robber's Cave!

Other visitors in the cave

My first night was spent at the Goodwin Deluxe Hotel for 1,800 Rubies so around $45 depending on the exchange rate. I was given 42 Rubies/$1 at the hotel; better than the 36 Rbs/$1 at the airport. Delhi, India is 15.5 hours AHEAD of Honolulu. My days are your nights. It takes me 3-4 days to adjust. I woke up for the day, Monday Oct 18th, at 2:30am. My first day in Delhi is a very long day. I got to the train station early to get my ticket to Dehradun, about 150 miles north of Delhi. It was not good news. First, I found a porter than could speak English very well because I knew I would need an interpreter. He took me out of the train station (made me nervous) to a tourist office to buy the train ticket. Why? I still don’t understand that one. “Sorry,” they said, “no train tickets to Dehradun for 3 days. Go back to your hotel.” No, No, No, this cannot be. I must get to Dehradun today. They are expecting me. They are waiting for me. “No,” they said again, “you cannot go today.” HHHMMMM, what to do, what to do? I knew I needed to get on that train and that there is always more than one way to do something. If one way doesn’t work, try another. I just needed to get on the Shatabdi Train to Dehradun! So here is my ingenious plan. I bought a ticket to another city (Meerut) that the train would be stopping at that was between Delhi and Dehradun. My thought was that if I could just get on the damn train, I would stay on it and maybe they wouldn’t kick me off, and then I could pay the difference while on the train. It took lots of courage to do this. I knew I could be put off in Meerut, but I also knew that would be closer to Dehradun. This story turns out good. I was allowed to stay on the train, I paid the difference, and I arrived 5.5 hours later where I was met by someone sent by Latika Roy to pick me up. I had arrived!

A beautiful Sunset...

This is the mountain I am going up!

I am staying at the Asha Guest House which is walking distance from Latika Roy. There is no internet here, so I went to a cyber café to let family know I had arrived. I was introduced by my hotel staff to a young man, Karan, who would take me to the internet place on his motorcycle. When I was done, I asked him if he might take a few minutes out of his day to show me Dehradun on his bike. Little did I know that we would be returning about 6 hours later! I had an amazing GRAND tour! First we went to a place called Robber’s Cave. We had to walk up the river (thigh deep) and through the cave to get to the beautiful waterfall. What an amazing experience! You can see from the pictures it was so beautiful! Now we are wet, riding a motorcycle and going up a very tall mountain to Missoorie, about 7,000 feet above sea level. The temperature began to drop as we climbed higher. Dehradun is a lush green, thick tropical jungle-like climate just like Hawaii. Much of the same foliage exists: mango, papaya, pineapple. I saw brown monkeys sitting by the road and lemurs jumping in the trees! It took at least two hours to get to the top and by that time I was a frozen mass. I had to get a shawl to get warm. Missoorie is a beautiful town of shops and restaurants at the top of the mountain. It was amazing, and I couldn’t believe I was there. We had a light dinner before returning. The food in India is VERY, VERY spicy. I love it, but my stomach is still getting used to it. I was facing a long cold motorcycle ride down the mountain, but as we descended, the air got warmer, and I changed from a shivering mess to relaxed and warm. I couldn’t believe my incredible luck to have this young man, Karan, show me his city in such a way. I had an amazing day.

This place is lush, green and tropical...hot too!

These are Lemurs, not monkeys :)

Tuesday morning I met the staff and children of Latika Roy Foundation, and they got to know me a little. It is a wonderful place full of wonderful people. Latika Roy Foundation is a safe haven, a resource center, an early intervention center, an educational facility, and a vocational center for handicapped children. It also educates the public and ensures the rights of all handicapped people are identified and protected. I am just barely starting to understand the depth and importance that this facility has in all of India. I am so honored to be here to learn and serve for two weeks.

I can't wait to tell you about my first day at Latika Roy Foundation!