Ch-ch-ch-changes (turn and face the strain....)

Nothing this past week has been quite as…lively, I suppose, as the mouse incident. I am totally okay with that.

This past week I’ve mostly been trying to get used to the fact that this is where I am living, and will be living, for the next few months. As of this Thursday, I’ll have been in India for a total of one month. This month has been going by both fast and slowly. Work feels like it has gone by fast. It doesn’t feel like I’ve already been with Deep Griha for three weeks. I think getting used to a new environment though, and not feeling like a total tourist (which may or may not ever happen here) takes much longer. So, here are some of the things I’m trying to work on, to get better at living in India. 

1. Patience

Nothing happens quickly here. Traveling, meeting up with people, restaurant service, getting a reply about anything…it all just takes a. lot. longer. Convenience isn’t really a concept here, for the most part. They say patience is a virtue, so I’m working on it.

2. Not being so Type A.

Prior to traveling to India, I didn’t think of myself this way. I knew I was a planner but I also liked to think of myself as “chill, go-with-the-flow” kind of girl. WRONG. In America, maybe I am (or maybe I’m just delusional). I like to do lists, knowing what my schedule is going to be for the day, having meetings planned ahead of time,  etc. These were all things that were easy to do in the U.S. Things just don’t function like that here. Time is relative. There are lots of impromptu meetings and events. Life is much more spontaneous. Once again, I’m working on it. 

3. Getting used to the developing world 

            Parts of Pune are very developed. In some parts, while they seem “developed” or in the process of becoming so, you still see things that you would never see in the U.S. Things that are still there, but less overtly so. This past Friday, for example, I went to Pune’s red light area for the first time for a Deep Griha program. Some of our staff performed a street play about HIV, and many volunteers passed out informational pamphlets on HIV transmission and proper condom use. This was the first time in my life I had knowingly seen women living in this situation. Obviously these are things I know exist. I came here to volunteer knowing about the problems in this country. But seeing it is much different. I wouldn’t call it shocking. (Side note, people keep asking me if I’m “shocked” by life here, like I’m going to see something and suddenly get hit with a stun gun.) I think I would call it soul-rattling.

            People asking for money is a very common occurrence. Usually after saying no a few times its not a big deal. Today however, I actually ran away from a lady asking me for money. There’s this lady in Koregon Park who always carries a baby around with her, and my friend Golnaz pointed her out to me one time and told me how she always has a different baby with her when asking for money. Lo and behold, there she was today, with a different baby. After saying no about 10 times, and being followed for about a block I was feeling pretty uncomfortable (despite it being daylight and there being plenty of people out). The only thing I knew to do was run. She tried to grab my arm as I began to run to the nearest rickshaw, but I think running away caused enough of a scene that she decided to go somewhere else. Running may have a bit of an overkill, but I really don’t like having people follow me, and I wasn’t about to pepper spray a baby (yes….I carry pepper spray.)

On a lighter note, I also joined a running club! It’s the only way I’ve found to get in long distances safely, and its been a cool way to meet some new people. Been hankering for those endorphins.

I don’t have too many pictures as of late. But here is one of the many parades that went by my neighborhood on the final day of Ganesh festival this past Wednesday, along with a lake I went to with some volunteers yesterday, and some men chilling with their chai outside of my office.