Over the last several months Sujatha, HHI’s Master Trainer in India, has been working with a local non-profit whose mission it is to prevent female infanticide. Female infanticide is an unfortunate reality in India, particularly in rural and deeply impoverished areas, it is the intentional killing of baby girls due to a variety of reasons, but it mostly boils down to girls are still often seen as a financial burden and of little value to their families. Sujatha has joined forces with the female infanticide prevention program by invitation, with everyone recognizing the power of educating mothers and building the bonds of love between mother and child, knowing that the benefits will ripple far beyond that woman and baby.

Last week Sujatha conducted trainings in the remote tribal areas of Kathirvelpuram and Periyakulam. Here she led two trainings with mothers and grandmothers from the gypsy community. And, it was interesting and heartening that the fathers and grandfathers also attended, but they sat outside of the women’s group and did not wish to have their pictures taken – a beautiful first step! In this community of 150 gypsys, the mothers are all very young, few have had any access to formal education, but they obviously love their children. To attend an HHI training, they are all willing to fore go two days of wages they earn in the fields, instead they choose to learn. HHI’s training teaches them how important the earliest years are for child development and how they can improve their own baby’s brain development – this is how happy they to participate!

I am particularly humbled to see these mothers and grandmothers. It is clear that their training site may only a dirt patch, they do not have any fancy toys, books or almost any other resource but their own intelligence, thirst for new knowledge and their love! (And the beauty of HHI is that this is all that is required.) They are eager learners and they are proud to be given a training that is just for them, this is something they consider a huge privilege, regardless of the training facilities, and it causes tremendous pride.

Sujatha (wearing the blue top in this picture) is now known throughout this entire region. She travels on the local buses throughout the area to give these trainings and she has now trained 100′s of village mommies in the importance of early childhood development via HHI. It seems that she has become something of a local celebrity, all the pregnant women and the young mothers, and even the grandmothers find her on the buses and want to sit with her, talk with her, tell her their stories of how they are using their knowledge and how their babies are learning so quickly. The women are so proud and they are eager to share and to learn more. The power of education at its finest!

I just traveled to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family and for me that was something to be thankful for. But, when I see the beauty of what Sujatha, HHI and these women are creating in the most remote and deprived areas of India, I somehow feel that I move beyond thankful, I have the experience of being deeply, profoundly humbled.

See all the pictures – click here.

Also, this training for the gypsy community was so significant, as it is so unusual for such a resource to be available to this community, that the local Tamil Newspaper came to cover the story.

When I talk to people directly about the impacts of HHI’s work in orphanages, one of the things I tell them is that several orphanages I have visited have reported that, “after HHI training, children die less often.” This is an amazing and almost breath-taking claim – that when HHI trains orphanage caregivers how their direct actions, their nurturing, snuggling and simple acts of love and kindness actually can mean the difference between life and death for a baby! This was proven in studies in orphanages in Eastern Europe after World War II, that children in institutions who were only given food and water often died. What they lacked was love – what could be a more basic human need?

I was asked by a friend yesterday why I have never really publicized this profound outcome of HHI and I admitted that I was afraid that it might make HHI look too grandiose, that we were making outrageous claims and that we could somehow loose credibility. She looked at me with a bit of confusion and again asked, “yeah, but you have heard orphanage directors – several of them – tell you that babies hadn’t died since HHI’s training?” My answer, “Yes, more than once”.

Then, today’s NY Times ran a story about orphanages in Sudan that yet again showed demonstrable proof that teaching and supporting orphanage caregivers to show love to the children kept children from dying. A clip from their article reads, “Nurses are trained to hold and play with the children as they feed and care for them. Medical care has vastly improved. In 2001, 479 children died. In 2006, 186 did, according to UNICEF.”

I just received a very sweet report from Sujatha, one of HHI’s local trainers in India. Last week she was leading an HHI Training for caretakers at an orphanage. Sujatha reported that, “The children in the orphanage were watching me explaining the massage they all came with their dolls to do the massage. They asked me to stop teaching the trainees and they wanted me to teach for them.”

I can just envision all the children bringing their dolls in and practicing giving the baby massage to care for them. I am sure they had fun, building confidence, empathy and nurturing. Just another small act for greater peace in our world.

Fact – orphanages exist in most countries because of lousy conditions that exist in the world.

Fact – orphanages are lousy places to raise babies and children.

Fact – many orphanage children take care of orphanage babies.

Fact – hope exists, resiliency happens!

Sathya is 6, she lives in the orphanage and helps care for the babies

Here is a story of the above facts, illustrated by Sathya….. In an orphanage where HHI has given a training, Sathya was acting as a caregiver for a 3-day-old baby, holding and feeding her without support. While she may enjoy acting as a big sister, she wasn’t having her own childhood.

During the HHI training, I invited Sathya to come and get her very own “baby massage”. She was initially reluctant, but she was too curious to pass up the chance. She very soon was laying down, playing with a bumpy pink ball and soaking up the loving touch of her caregiver.

After the first lesson, both Sathya and her caregiver were beaming with joy and connection.

When the caregiver asked Sathya if she wanted to come in each day to the HHI Training to be her massage partner, her answer was pure and clear… may this continue long after HHI’s Trainers leave the building.

Hope does exist, resiliency is abundant and Sathya’s life will never be the same.

A picture that goes with the last post – these are the women I tried to describe in words in the last post, “Word Pictures from Orissa.”

This trip has been a whirlwind of activity – all great things are bubbling – but email/internet access was extremely difficult! So, I have been out of touch for awhile. I will catch up just a bit by sharing just a few pictures as I pass through an airport with wi-fi access.

A proud and loving father with his daughter.

A HHI training with creche center (day care) teachers.

Making eye contact, growing attachment.

 

A proud HHI graduate!

 

 

The real goal of Hands to Hearts – building bonds with love and care!