Change A World

Today was an incredible day, just like it always is in India. I was given the opportunity to attend the "Moot" leprosy colony today. This colony is known for its remote location and lively occupants. Medical attention is not something that is too necessary there, however, the company and human interaction is what they long for. Twelve of us took the hour bus ride to the colony. We all had our own expectations we had gathered from past visitors descriptions of their experiences. As excited as I already was, I never anticipated all of the wonderful things I saw today.

The first woman we met was Saroja. This tiny woman has suffered from the affects of leprosy for almost 70 years. The disease has stolen so many things from her, including her right eye, one leg, and all of her fingers. Her petite stature and frail bones force her to pull herself on all fours from one place to another. Saroja has spent her life in the same 1 mile vicinity with a husband who has beat her. Although they no longer speak, she still feels the need to care for the man that she once loved. She is given a small amount of beans and grain each month from Rising Star, but every day you will find this small woman crushing this food in metal bowls and leaving it out for the birds. It takes her 30 minutes to move 20 feet to the well in order to collect water for these birds. Saroja has hardly anything, but chooses to give everything to the only creatures that have less.

Jayraj was the second friend I met in the small colony. By far, he is the happiest human being I have ever met! He is so funny and is always laughing. He loves to dance and always made sure everyone else had their smiles on. He is an incredible example to me of how possible it is to find something positive in even the most difficult circumstances.

After we got to know everyone we started playing music, jenga, and dominoes! Everyone in the colony loved it and I couldn't stop smiling :)

Saroja was the bomb at Jenga! Every time I'd go for one she'd move my hand because she knew I was going to ruin it! haha


Codiserie threw dominoes at everyone's towers that we made in order to make sure that hers was always the tallest. She had the best sense of humor :)

Moot was my favorite colony. I learned so many things in such a short amount of time. Because of their example, I'm hoping that I can find happiness in my life like they have in theirs, no matter what the circumstances may be.

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The theme for Session 6 at Rising Star was "Change A World". For three and a half weeks now I have had this phrase on my mind, trying to pinpoint what that really means. What does it mean to change a world? I know. I came here thinking I would make an incredible impact on these children's lives, but the changes I saw weren't what I expected.

As I sit here in the middle of a tile floor, I'm struggling to see my computer screen through the cloudy haze of tears welled up in my eyes. I spent my last few hours tonight, playing with the children and tucking them into bed. The little ones go to bed at 8 so I saved just enough time to hug each and every one of them before I had to say goodnight. As I hugged each one, the memories of my time with them ran through my mind. I began sobbing as each one looked up at me and said "I love you" and kissed my cheeks. When I got to one of the last girls, she looked me straight in the eye and said, "You remember me?". At this point the light tears turned into a steady stream of sobbing, but I managed to release a few words between sobs. "Of course I'll remember you. I'll always remember you." Sweet little Ramia placed both hands on my cheeks and wiped the tears from my face. These little girls probably won't remember me even a year from now, but I will remember them for the rest of my life. I pray for each of these girls every night. I pray for their safety, their future, their education. I dream of the lives that they could have and what they are capable of. Although I'm not a mother and won't be for a while, I truly felt that tonight I knew what it felt like to love a child more than life itself. I wish I could describe the sweet spirits that have touched my heart for the last 21 days. I came to India to do something. My job here was to make them smile. Whether it was swinging them around, reading stories, or dancing with them, I was here to make them laugh when the world was falling apart all around them. Someday I won't be able to fix things so easily for them, but for now I can. Each smile was a victory in my eyes. I did my job and they did theirs. A world was changed, and that world was mine.