January 26, 2023
Seeing the Human in All Things
This past week, the internship portion of the program began, and it has brought with it a new set of adventures and challenges. Team Biome spent the first three days traveling far north into the peri-urban parts of Bangalore, gaining exposure to various water-related projects including a lake rejuvenation, a water treatment plant and a rainwater harvesting system at a government school. Our team has had to practice flexibility and patience as we wait for the details for start times or locations to trickle in a day or just a few hours before it is time to head out. While I can catch myself being frustrated with last minute communication, I recognize that these are opportunities to understand the culture of India more and learn patience and tolerance for these differences. I actually hope to grow in flexibility, so perhaps this is the ground where I get to!
One of the brightest highlights of this week was meeting Shankar, a traditional well-digger. I first met him at the ground-breaking ceremony for a new water treatment plant near Sihineeru Kere lake. For most of the ceremony he stood to the side, dressed in a simple pair of pants and white-buttoned short sleeve. After the people in suits had made their remarks and took their photos, Avinash, a Biome member, called out for everyone to listen as he introduced Shankar to the crowd. Shankar had helped rejuvenate the nearby well, allowing it to be a healthy source of water for the village. His presence was humble, and his smile shy as the crowd applauded him. Later, Avinash shared with us the critical focus of seeing water issues as a social problem and not fixating on infrastructure as the fix-all. For me and the rest of the Biome team, I know this struck a chord with us and got us more excited to see the social side of this work and what it means for our internship.
The next day, I was surprised to see Shankar again at an open well that Rakshitha, our Biome guide, brought us to. He called for us to come see something on the far side of this 24-ft wide and 65-ft deep well. As we all leaned against the inclined grate covering the well, he pointed out two locations where the groundwater was breaking into the well above the water line, giving us an insight into the rising aquifer beside the well. Although this was neat for me, this caused a surprising amount of excitement for Rakshitha and Shankar. We followed him to the next well, which was a similar width and depth. Here, Shankar jumped upon the grate and climbed up to its center, the laced metal being the only thing between him and a 65-foot drop into the water below. Rakshitha, nervous of his behavior and likely imagining the collapse of the grate, called him down. He reassured her by jumping up and down on the grate and reminding her that we all knew how to swim. Then he waved for me and Sophia to climb to where he was for a photo. Sure the grate can handle Shankar, but can it handle three people? Not to worry, Shankar reminded, at one point 50 people had stood on it for fun. Doubts dissolved, the photo was taken.
On our drive back into the city, Rakshitha shared with us that tens of well-diggers had surprised her at her wedding last June, making a several hundred kilometer drive on two-wheelers to join in the festivities. As she shared, I was struck by the genuineness and kindness of Shankar and other well-diggers as well as the sincere relationship Rakshitha had been able to develop with so many well-diggers in her two years of work at Biome. Again, this gesture to the social importance of Biome’s work was made, this time with anecdotal proof of its fruits.
Thoughtfulness was not only reserved for the well-diggers either. After falling ill from food earlier in the week, I was feeling a little weak on our tour with Rakshitha. We stopped at a South Indian restaurant, and after realizing not eating was off the table, I opted for a bowl of plain rice and a cup of watermelon juice. As you might imagine, my order faced many hesitations from all parties involved. Rakshitha suggested ghee rice because plain rice would be, well, plain. The server thought he couldn’t be hearing correctly and suggested several potential additions to this meal. As the rice was served, he even tried one last attempt to get some daal for me to enjoy. However hard they tried, I stayed firm. Yet, I could not help but laugh as I looked down at my white plate filled with two scoops of steamed rice that I nibbled at with a silver spoon, perhaps their concern for me was understandable.