In this blog post, I want to focus on some positive things that have happened to me lately and all the people who helped or are helping to make something wonderful happen with their kindness and compassionate spirit.

The back burner

Some of you may be aware that I live in the bay area but originally come from the Himalayan foothills of Northeastern India, but just in case you didn’t know, I grew up precisely in that area of the world for about 16 years and love this community of my childhood years very, very dearly. Additionally, I have wanted for many years to go back and do something meaningful for some of these people who struggle very hard just to make a living and to help underpriviledged children in the region, however my busy life, career and family responsibilities have kept this as a future “to do” project.

Getting started

Well, about 8 months ago I joined the Reading Between The Wines book club, which is part of a larger group of the South Bay Women’s Social Group and it just happened that Yoke, the organizer of this Social Group was part of the 8 women in this book club. In December of last year, I asked Yoke if I can approach her group to see if there are any women who might want to participate in getting some warm clothing and other essential needs for the people in the region I wanted to help.

Kindness and compassion

After I talked at length to Yoke about my vision and what I hoped to accomplish, she and her group ADOPTED MY PROJECT as their Giving Back activity for 2011! Then she scheduled me to give a presentation about this at their bi-annual “Meet and Greet” on Jan 20, 2011.

A friend in another country

It also so happened that a couple of years ago, a friend of our family in India came to visit us here in the US with a couple of his friends, one of who was the Commissioner of the state of Meghalaya. This friend (the Commissioner) is now playing an integral part as my contact in India who is helping me in getting this project implemented

Photographs that were meant to be

On top of that, my sister and her family who live here in California happened to be in India in December for the holidays, and were able to visit the actual village and getting pictures of the people and place we will actually be helping this year. And she got back just in time (Jan 14) for me to get the photographs so I could include them in my presentation.

The kindness of strangers

So last week at the “Meet and Greet”, I did my presentation on my Adopt a Himalayan Village project and the feedback and response was amazing! Some of the ladies who attended offered donations of clothing, some offered their time and expertise, while others offered both, to get this project implemented.  Some even thanked me for reminding them of how much we all have.  I was overwhelmed by kindness. That is part of the reason I feel so strongly about creating Himalayan tours, to help connect others with the place that has such a big area of my heart.

Another amazing person I met who was also a presenter at the Meet and Greet was Dr. Rafael Lopez of Chiropractic from the Heart.  Dr. Rafael goes to El Salvador and Nicaragua every year with a group of chiropractors and donates his services to the people there who need help. He gave a great presentation of his services and offered his initial services for an unbelievable price of $197 AND then he said he would donate $100 of it to my village project! That really touched me.

Goodness surrounds us…

I believe I am surrounded by givers – certainly all the people I mentioned above are givers… I have also found that Americans on the whole are the kindest, most compassionate people I have ever seen. I am so grateful to live here. Furthermore, my friend in India is also taking time out of his busy schedule to further this cause and help others. What a wonderful world we live in – filled with amazing, caring individuals. The evening broadcast does not focus enough on good news, but we can.

What about you?

What are your experiences with giving back? Do you have a vision or idea on how you would like to give back? What is YOUR good news today?

Picture source: salaambaalaktrust.com

If you are in the New Delhi area of India and would like to participate in an unusual experience – you may want to take an inner city walk with the Salaam Baalak Trust.

This organization works with street children in Delhi, providing them with a caring, secure environment which includes five 24-hour full care shelters for children, while providing them with a means to an education, and ultimately the opportunity to live full, enriched, meaningful lives.

Some of these children such as Shamsul, due to poverty and family problems, boarded a train from his home state at the age of 11 to New Delhi where he spent one a and half years picking rags in and around the railway station before being picked up by one of the trust staff. Shamsul received an education and is now a young man earning a good salary at a media company.

This is not a slum tour, this is a walk through the backstreets of New Delhi led by your young, fully trained guide who was once living and working on the streets, where you will view the world through their eyes as they share with you their life journeys. This tour is also one of the services that we offer as part of our Himalayan Boot Camp vacations.

You can read more on the lives of these children at the Salaam Baalak Trust website and if you are interested in helping the center does have volunteer opportunities.

I would like to provide my guests the opportunity to interact and give back to the local communities in India they visit during their Himalayan Boot Camp journeys. I truly believe that it can be a rewarding experience if one has brightened the life of someone less fortunate in the community one left behind after the vacation is over.

I am thinking of providing this interaction at a couple of the local schools that cater to the more impoverished children. Here are just a couple of my ideas for my guests:

1. Take 3-4 books and have a storybook session with the children. The local children will love this!
2. An afternoon of crafts with the children using supplies we take from here that those children have never seen and can take home with them (paper dolls, painting etc – the possibilities are endless)
3. Distribute some clothes (T-Shirts?) and have some afternoon refreshments and snacks.

These are just small things but they are a start. I grew up in this area of Meghalaya, India and know exactly how much brightness this will bring to the children. I am not sure where this idea will take me but I just have this gut feeling that both the givers and receivers of this kindness will be so blessed and the memories will be amazing.

Please provide feedback – tell me what you think. I also welcome any additional ideas you may have.

Here’s to a brighter world for children!

Connie

The poor man had never met so many relatives. Nor had he been what I consider so fortunate as to taste so many kinds of authentic home-made curries!

One of the most memorable aspects of that birthday celebration was, of course, the food. This was one of those Indian occasions where a wide variety of cultural delicacies was served. My Uncle Hubert, who was quite talented at making outstanding curries, volunteered to be in charge of the dinner. Uncle Hubert immediately called three of his old army buddies to assist him, along with my nephew Oliver.

They all showed up early on the morning of November 11th, my daughter’s birthday, and set out creating a commotion, banging and clanging pots and pans and utensils and ingredients, as they put together a makeshift kitchen in my grandmother’s backyard.

All day long one delicious smell after another drifted in from the backyard, until the guests began arriving and we transferred the food from the huge pots on the wood fires into serving bowls inside.

Some of the recipes for the food Uncle Hubert and his friends made that day are included in this book: Cumin Chicken, Saffron Flavored Rice Pilaf, Slow-Cooked Marinated Beef (a specialty of my grandfather’s when he was alive), Northeastern Indian Dal, Mint, Tomato and Cucumber Salad, and Daikon Salad. The food was authentic, delicious, and memorable, made from my uncle’s own favorite recipes, adjusted to fit the occasion.

My grandmother performed the ancestor blessings for my daughter’s future – the blessings for good health, peace, joy, prosperity, and abundance. Our culture considers these essential to a child’s future. My Uncle Roosevelt, as the honored Grand Uncle, added his blessings as well. My daughter probably received more blessings that day than most people get in a lifetime.

To this day my husband and I treasure our memories of that visit. We have passed them on to our daughter so she knows all about her First Birthday Indian Feast.

In the culture of Northeastern India, a baby’s first birthday is cause for celebration. We prepare a big feast for relatives, friends, and neighbors, who all gather to wish the baby well.

When my daughter was about to turn a year old, however, I was living in the United States with my American husband. Not a single Indian relative was here, and his family was so scattered about, it would have been impractical to get everyone together in one place.

We were fairly young and didn’t have much money, but I wanted so badly to take my daughter home and show her off to my family that we did what any proud modern-day parents would do: we racked up our credit cards and took off for India, baby in tow. Here is a picture of the happy baby before our trip.

At that time, I had six younger brothers and sisters still living at home, plus my mother, grandmother (sadly, my grandfather had passed away), a multitude of aunts, uncles, and cousins, and tons of old friends and neighbors.

You can probably imagine what it was like to bring an eleven-month-old baby into this lot, where the youngest child was my brother, age seven, practically ancient in comparison to his new niece. My daughter was passed around from one person to another, kissed, doted on, fed all kinds of very un-baby-like treats that I pretended not to notice, and was thoroughly spoiled.

And, of course, there was the complicated business of planning The Birthday Feast, who to invite, what to serve, how much to cook, who would cook it; and “should-we-only-have-tea-or-have-tea-and-then-later-on-dinner,” what music to play, who will provide the blessing, and so on and so forth. You would think we were planning a wedding.

By the time my mother and grandmother were through, it was almost like a wedding, with over two hundred guests. Most people in India think nothing of this – the celebration is both a feast and a religious ceremony – but to my American husband it was all a little mind-boggling.

(to be continued tomorrow)

I went to Cassandra for help with my blog as I was totally stuck with what I call a mental blog block (she is also a blogging expert and can provide tons of ideas in a matter of minutes). So after helping me get unstuck we starting talking – I was having a totally overwhelming day (she is also a great listener) and going through the “I have to do this…” and “I have to do that..” – she looked at me and said, “Connie, change the “I have to..” to “I get to…“.

I just looked at her in amazement that such powerful little words just popped out of her that could completely change an attitude! Those words have made such a difference in my life since then and I have reminded myself so many times to say “I get to…”.

Overwhelming tasks become positive opportunities to be thankful for. For example, I have to cook tonight becomes I am fortunate to have a husband or child or family I get to cook for… I have to get these books back to the library becomes I am thankful for FREE books and movies I get to enjoy and so on and so forth.

I have passed this on to my daughters, my sisters, and my friends. Who knows how many attitudes and lives these little words have impacted. Just amazing. If you want to find out more about Cassandra be sure to check out her awesome blog and website at www.simplyfearless.com.

As founder of Himalayan Boot Camp, I envision my company as one that gives back to the community.  Being that Himalayan Boot Camp is rooted in India – in its culture, food, and the adventures India offers – I believe some of the local villages which we traverse on our Boot Camp adventures should benefit from our business endeavors and success.  Himalayan Boot Camp, by itself and through its guests, can be the vehicle for contributing, even in a small way, to the quality of life for some local children.

One way in which I propose to do this is to provide my guests with an opportunity to give something small yet meaningful.  After making inquiries, I have learned that school supplies are in great demand.  English reading books for children ages three to twelve are especially in short supply.

Willing Himalayan Boot Camp guests could bring a book or two for this age group, along with a few pencils and erasers.  At a small get-together, my guests can visit and interact with some of the local children, and give them each a gift of a book and some school supplies.  I know it would be an unforgettable moment for the child and personally rewarding for any guest who chooses to participate.

Another project which I will soon be implementing is what I call my  “Socks For Children” project (I am working on a more formal name for the project).  As you might imagine, the Himalayan foothills are extremely cold during the winter, and many children could use good quality, warm, and well-insulated socks.  In light of that, each October when I travel to India for our boot camps, I will take with me a large suitcase full of 500 pairs of socks.  250 needy children will get 2 pairs of socks each.  I am certain that these socks will mean so much and will help prevent the recipients from suffering from cold during the harsh days of winter.  Contributors to this project may be, but need not be, Himalayan Boot Camp guests.

If you are interested in being part of the socks project, send me an email to connie@himalayanbootcamp.com and I will provide more details as I get this project up and running.

I have another story about two little village boys I met while traveling through one of the beautiful remote areas of Meghalaya,India after my Oct 08 Himalayan Boot Camp. My husband and I, with my sister and some friends were driving back one late afternoon after spending the day doing some fabulous sightseeing when we came across this little village. The setting sun on this village was so beautiful that we stopped the car for a moment to take some pictures.

While we were taking pictures, I noticed two little boys standing near the side of the road, by a stone quarry, looking at us. They just looked so cute I asked them if I could take a picture. The older brother (who was about four years old), as soon as he realized we were going to take their picture, shouted to us to wait and ran to his little hut nearby and brought out this little pair of shoes that he put on his younger two year old brother so his little brother can have his picture taken with his shoes on. It was just done with so much dignity for such a small child. This just really tugged at my heart as I took some pictures of them.

This experience has really been on my mind since then, and I have been thinking that I have been so blessed and take so much for granted, I really would like to do more. Perhaps there is a way for me to help some of the children in the region.  I am still investigating one of my ideas and will update you on a future blog post. Please stay tuned!