January 10, 2024

Mixed Feelings

My day started poorly; I woke up early with a now usual ill trip to the bathroom, only today I was unlucky enough to watch UW lose the championship. Thankfully, this poor start was followed by a visit to a Parikrma school. After learning about the 2,000 students and countless family members being helped by Parikrma, I was given a warm and energetic welcome from the fourth grade class. For an hour I was arm wrestling, participating in magic tricks, and playing rock, paper, scissors for what was a genuinely fun time.

Later in the day, after my first experience with a banana leaf meal, I arrived at the Diya Ghar school. After a brief visit to the school, we ended up walking to a slum community near the school. Trashed littered the road, cows and chickens roamed free, and the buildings slowly turned from cement to iron sheet. Regardless of the surroundings, it was one of the warmest welcomes I have received in India; community members brought out chairs for us, slowly gathered around us, and were open to any questions we had. We were welcomed into their homes and given a short tour of the trash separation facility in the backyard of the slum. What I saw was staggering to me; I have never been to a place so different than where I grew up. I felt a wave of sadness and anger wash over me during the visit, but as we left, the conversation we had with the community stuck with me. When asked about their aspirations, members stated that they were content with their living situation and viewed it as the “middle-class” life they want to continue in the future. This does not mean that there are no problems worth fixing in that community, but my emotions subsided and my opinions changed. During the long drive back I was left with my thoughts reflecting on what their content with the slum meant to me. My view of what a happy life is has been shaped by my American culture, and understanding that there are different definitions should change my view. If people are content, I should be content with that, but still, the conditions in the slum do not sit well with me. I do not fully know what to make of the slum, but I know I have been left with mixed feelings.

By Adam