First Thoughts About Shanti Dan

 Well folks, our actual mission work has begun!  After a few days of trying to settle into the culture, Heide and I began volunteering.  Every morning we wake up at 4:30am, and walk about 30 minutes to the “Motherhouse” to attend daily mass.  We also get to pray over Mother Teresa’s tomb afterwards, which is very exciting for both of us!  (Let us know if you have any special prayer intentions and we will pray for you while there!) After mass we walk, take a 15 minute bus ride, and walk some more to a place called Shanti Dan - our volunteer headquarters for the next nine weeks. 

One of the views from our morning walk

Shanti Dan is a home for mentally and physically disabled girls and young women.  The girls are divided into groups based on their abilities (Flowers, Birds, Angels, Butterflies, Stars, and Rainbows) and depending on how many volunteers there are, each group gets one or two. Heide spends her mornings with the Angels (girls in wheelchairs, with very low comprehension) and Butterflies (lowest comprehending girls that don't have physical disabilities) doing physical therapy for the ones that need it and playing with the others. For a film studies major with no background in physical therapy, Heide sure has caught on quick and she is amazing with the girls.
I can tell it wears on her emotionally at times, but she carries herself with complete grace and I can already see the girls becoming attached.  I spend my mornings with the Flowers (Girls with moderate learning disabilities and some also have physical disabilities) – teaching them math, writing, and of course speaking English.  At times I have no idea how to reach them but any frustrations I may have are instantly wiped away when I hear them call me “auntie” or I see them make progress in their schooling.  I am becoming very attached to all of my Flowers and I know that will continue to grow over the summer. 

This dumpster is part of our walk to Shanti Dan

After the physical therapy, playtime, and lessons are over, next comes the more difficult part of our day – lunch and naptime.  Lunchtime is somewhat chaotic as we try and help the girls eat.  They all have such varying levels of mental and physical disabilities that sometimes it is hard to tell which girls need help and which would rather try it on their own.  On my first day one of the girls laughed at me, grabbed the spoon, and lovingly told me “Auntie, I can do it!”  They really are very sweet girls and they make us smile.  After lunch we take them to the dormitory, help each girl into their bed, and change diapers.  It is very eye-opening and a little overwhelming to stand in a room full of so many girls with obvious disabilities who need so much care.  I find myself wishing that they had been born with the same opportunities that Heide and I were.  I have to remind myself not to be bitter, but instead happy because God created them for a reason! He loves them, and so do we.  He thinks they are beautiful and therefore we do too.  I have a strong feeling that Heide and I are going to end up needing these girls just as much, if not more, than they need us. 

SO MUCH LOVE

Eli and Heide

On a side note, Heide and I are not allowed to film or take pictures while we are working.  The sisters, as well as Heide and I, want to protect their privacy!  Therefore, any videos we make will be mostly about our life outside of volunteering in Kolkata and maybe some reflections.  We will of course still write about how volunteering is going since that is why we are here!  It might get a little sappy at times but we want our readers to be a part of the emotional roller coaster.  We hope you will enjoy our videos as well as our posts, and as always – keep us in your prayers!

Photo Booth with street kids... for some reason many Indians don't smile for pictures