Adapted To My Environment.
Although it’s riddled with grammatical errors, my Gujarati is finally understandable, I think. Coming to Gujarat – my parents’ native place – and not knowing Gujarati was mildly embarrassing. My weak Gujarati and my non-Indian name made many people question my Indian authenticity. But last week, on two occasions, I was forced to speak Gujarati in impromptu fashion in front of a large crowd. By no means did it sound natural, but I was able to speak confidently and clearly convey my message.
The students at the Behrampura UMEED center celebrated Environment Day last Thursday. They sang, danced lectured and performed to the theme of preserving our environment. It was all student-run, so I was startled when I heard, “Rick Sir, will you please come and say a few words?” Given no choice (and actually kind of excited to test my Gujarati), I spoke to the 100 person audience (and the kids from the Behrampura slum who were spying through the windows) about littering. Usually, when I speak to students, I have to repeat myself or have someone help translate. This time, I was somehow able to package 10 complete sentences and clearly talk about why they should throw their trash in the garbage and no on the street!
Environment Day.
Then last Saturday, Natassia, Kathleen (a new intern) and I accompanied Tarun (an employee of the CVU from Behrampura) to a screening of the domestic violence video. Arriving to the slum early, a large crowd of people gathered around us — most likely because Kathleen is white, tall, blond and generally foreign-looking. To mitigate the awkwardness and inquisitive stares, I began speaking to the group about domestic violence. Surprisingly, it started a lengthy dialogue. This was the first times I was able to discuss a sensitive social subject with slum residents without the assistance of someone who knows English.
Domestic Violence Screening in Sarkhej.
Both experiences were extremely satisfying. Too bad I only have 12 more days to use my Gujarati…
finding rickshaw. 