Meeting children of streets on the street is never easy. Their expectations are different, their daily routines are different and also the way they see life. The circumstances had changed them to such an extent that they dont want to change now. Vedanta “Khushi” team was planning to meet these children at their own hide-out, the street. We all were wondering how do we handle them and build a communication. From interaction to hygienic point of view, to support to every thing was haunting our minds.
With all preparation we went to meet these children at Malla Talai, a locality where you will find such children running around the streets, without any focus or ambition or any fear. Most of them do not go to school and have not gone either. Some are inclined to go but there is no school in the locality.
This is where we met a black complexioned girl, who was named ‘Kaali’ by her parents and also her friends. We started a conversation with her and were not actually surprised to know that she does not remember when she had her last bath, when at all she brushed her teeth, when she changed her clothes and combed her hair. She was my favourite even though she was very less talkative.
The “Khushi” team instantly got engaged with these children and the conversation started. Deepu and Shyam wanted to go to school and were very good in their creative art. Geeta and Rakhi were more into domestic work and had no thought to education. Raja was interested in becoming big man and have a big car and house. Radheshyam was very quite as he was trying to understand what we had in mind for him. All these children were more into doing something different. Some had aspirations to do but were not sure to join our band-wagon, who was already into more than 100 children.
“Kaali” told me that she has seen colours for the first time and she would be painting also for the first time. We were holding her hand to teach her and she was looking at our faces as if something strange was happening. Strange was, we felt, no one had put-in efforts to bring-up these children and motivate them to do something different. Perhaps our presence made them feel important.
The children on the street are not by choice, but by circumstances. “Khushi” on this day, tried to inculcate a feeling of being wanted, feeling of being educated, importance of health & hygiene, and most importantly, a desire to do something different.
While leaving “Kaali” came and was holding my hand, she said nothing, just a smile, a “Khushi” on her face conveyed she was happy. Our job was done for this day.
