A letter from Anu in India..Please Read~

I just this moment received this email from my dear friend in India, Anu...which many of you know
if you have traveled to Gokulum in Mysore to eat her wonderful food and or use the Internet as well..Please take a moment to read it...it would mean a lot.
Thank You on behalf of Anu~


My dear friends,

Today (12 February 2008) was my second experience with English-Kannada-English translation for one of the Non Governmental Organisations (NGO), Odanadi. Many of you know about this organisation. My first experience was with Operation Shanti and I know that many of you know about this wonderful organisation and that some of you have worked with Tracy Kunichika, the founder and Director of Operation Shanti.

First of all, I am so grateful for the opportunity given to me to be translator as it has affected my spirituality like a bolt of lightning. It has made me realize that a lot of us, actually, have no reason to complain about most things in our day to day life, families, relationships, money, comfort, cleanliness and a whole lot of other issues that we think are constantly affecting us.

In the course of translation on both occasions, I learnt the most devastating reasons for women and their children to end up on the streets. Women being turned out of their homes because their husbands had found someone else, or that she had not borne a male child, or then she failed to get more money for her in-laws from her parents, even after paying a dowry (complicated for some of you who do not know how this vicious system works), and many more. Unfortunately, these are the reasons that plague women not only in the low strata of society, but also amongst the middle classes and above. Whereas in the middle and upper classes of our society, either women are educated enough to fend for themselves, or their parents accept them back into their homes - but this is another saga - those that are very poor and illiterate, cannot afford to even feed their own poor illiterate daughters who usually return to their parents after unfortunate atrocities, with a child or two in tow. Many of such unfortunate women saddled with small children are turned away by parents and in-laws and left to fend for themselves. With no home, no money and no support of any kind, such women either take their own lives (not willing to compromise their honour) or come down to cities in search of work or to beg, in order to feed themselves and their children. Most of them do not even know their rights as women or that there are 'help lines' and shelters for destitute women all over India. Those that approach the police encounter other humiliating problems, which we will not go into at this point.

Many of us women have, at some point of time, encountered some sort of sexual assault, on the streets, in lonely places, and even in the sanctuary of our own homes by known or unknown people. I shudder to think what a woman who comes from the security of a home, straight on to the streets, would encounter...

Can you imagine what little children, who are their mothers' only baggage and possession, would be going through, during the day and at night...

Most of us cannot.

Almost all people that live on the streets seek solace in cheap alcohol and cheaper spirit based chemicals. They easily become addicts. To satisfy their addiction, and feed the little mouths that are constantly hungry they resort to prostitution for meagre amounts of money; taking on as many 'takers' as they can in a day. Some make a living out of begging as well (actually turns out to be more lucrative as the money is earned easily). Many of them sell flowers, fruits and vegetables on the streets on a minimal scale earning as small amounts between fifty to a hundred rupees (less than three US$) a day. Most of the women, children and even men living on the streets contract TB, STDs and/or HIV & AIDS to name a few major sicknesses. With no support of any kind or home addresses, they fail to get medical aid even from free Government hospitals. Most of them succumb to these fatal illnesses rather painfully. The quality of their lives has in fact, no quality at all.

The purpose of my writing this mail to all my friends is to humbly request each one, to spend a few minutes in trying to empathise with these very unfortunate women and children. Please know that each one of you has been blessed with education, literacy, awareness and sustenance. The women and children I am referring to have had perhaps our share of suffering as well. Let us do something about it now. Let each one of us, in our own small way make one small commitment to this most genuine cause. You may like to look around in your own home towns where (I'm sure) there are the very unfortunate people. Please extend your hand in compassion. Material help is not everything. Even spending a few minutes with such unfortunate people would give them the strength to go on. Those of you, who wish to know about or join hands with Operation Shanti and Odanadi institutions, please visit their websites.

http://www.operation-shanti.org/index.html
http://www.ashoka.org/node/2553

Those of you who would not mind circulating this note to your friends with a personal touch and request, please, please, do not hesitate to do so. It would be wonderful for some of the most unfortunate people in the world to have your blessings.

Yours,
Anu
Anu's Bamboo Hut, Mysore