On February 23rd I did another Runda feeding trip. We met at java at 10:30 and came back at around 12:30. This time a lot of people didn't actually show up for the trip, perhaps due to conflicting schedules or work. However, there were still at least 10 people present. We fed around 1200 children on this trip, and everything ran very smoothly.
When we arrived we helped to unpack the food, as usual. I unloaded a lot of bread, cookies, milk and candy, and then helped to make the food bowls for the elderly. There were quite a few other people (not part of Interact) present as well, including small children. As we were unpacking a man came over to a group of us and gave us all candies, which was really sweet. We took the bowls up to the elderly men and women, receiving gracious smiles and happy coos in return. I saw a lot of really thin cats around, their bellies swollen, which was really sad, but they were fed by some of the men.
Afterwards we all took our seats and the children started coming in. I was handing out biscuits, and I loved seeing the excitement on the kid's faces as they saw the chocolate. It was eye-opening to see what the kids were wearing - some were dressed in, what were essentially, rags, whilst others were coated in dust and dirt. At one point I saw a tiny girl on the back of her sister - she had a nosebleed and her hair was dirty and sticking in all directions. She clung to her sister's back, almost in fear, and watched me warily out of the corners of wide eyes. I cannot begin to comprehend what these children must of experienced thus far in their lives, and my ignorance frustrates me. Yet it is also what drives me in my service - this continuous grasp for comprehension.
After all the children had passed by the adults started coming in. For some reason there were a lot of drunk and desperate men present during this feeding. They shoved their way agressively to us, pleading for more when we gave them their helpings. I found this terrifying, simply because the raw hopelessness in their faces made me understand what they would be willing to do to survive. Near the end of the feeding a fight started to break out between an indian volunteer and one of these men, but luckily no one got hurt. The men with sticks drove them away, but it did lead me to question the quality of the security at these events.
To conclude, this trip was as enlightening as ever, but perhaps more brutally illuminating than usual. I was more able to put myself in the shoes of the people around me than on previous trips, though this was not necessarily accomplished in the most positive way. I constantly walk away from these interact events with a newfound clarity, and it is because of this that I cannot wait for the next one.
No comments:
Post a Comment