I have been frantically trying to finish all of my internship work. As excited as I am to get home - to family, friends, snow, and Christmas cookies (not to mention, a belated Thanksgiving Day meal promised to me - mom's the best) - I still have a lot to do to complete my internship. And so far, things are going really well! At first, I wasn't so sure how this whole experience would pan out, but now that the end is in sight, I am pretty proud of what has been accomplished.
I have been working really hard on completing the Teacher's Manual and curriculum content, and for the exception of a few edits and a final binding of the book, I have finished it. I am pretty happy with it, given it took me a lot of time - I think the whole thing looks nice. My hope is that the teachers will be able to use it in their classrooms; after all, that's the whole purpose in creating something, right? So that it will be functional and user-friendly?
Yesterday was a really great day in the wonderful world of, Sarah's Internship. It was the day I met with several mothers in the community to discuss menstruation and menstrual issues. I thought it would be really important (given how close SVYM likes to keep the community and the health/education efforts connected) to get the mothers/female family members involved in the topic. I have had the chance to work with the teachers and students very closely in the school, but meeting with the mothers would bring in an important element to the coverage and scope of my project.
Through a conversation with them yesterday afternoon, I learned a lot about their own menstrual histories, and found out that they are much more willing to let teachers do the talking when it comes to anything regarding puberty than taking the conversation/engaging their daughters about it themselves. The women in this community feel really uncomfortable dealing with it all, and their knowledge on the matter seems very limited.
Nevertheless, we sat around in a circle discussing the importance of teaching young girls menstrual health and hygiene. Dr. Sridevi helped deliver the messages from my power-point in Kannada, and I was able to observe the faces, the conversations, and watch the whole concept of discussing puberty out in the open unravel before my eyes. ...and what a concept that is, in India.
After meeting with the mothers, alone, we brought in all the female teachers of the school and all of the 6th-10th standard girls. They came piling in the one large classroom and sat with their eyes fixed or Dr. Sridevi standing at the front. "How many of you remember meeting with Sarah before? What were we discussing?," she prompted the room staring back at her with nervous and shy-looking faces. "Menstruation," they recited back to her, as if it killed them to say the word. Everyone talked, in a mix of Kannada and English, back and forth about questions they had regarding the topic, how much more (or less, I suppose) comfortable they feel discussing the issue, and how their mothers - the same women sitting right behind them - could get more involved/be more helpful in the transition from girl to woman. Although there was a lot of nervous energy in the room, I was happy to be in a setting where women, of the same community, were talking (ACTUALLY TALKING) about an issue that is deemed so taboo. Not just around this country, but around most of the modern world. Still...
All eyes fixed on the front of the room, as Dr. Sridevi answers some questions from the audience
Both girls and mothers, alike, asked questions regarding the physical changes that take place in their bodies
It was even wonderful to see one of the older girls offer an answer to a 6th graders question
After one school block of Q&A, the girls were dismissed from school but the mothers remained in the room. It was great to see a follow up discussion take place. Although I could sense many of them were still uncomfortable, they seemed happy that something was happening. After all, every single mother in that room had said: I had NO idea what was happening to me when I got my first period. It was kind of like trial and error, until I learned what to do. I am happy, and proud, to at least say that I was able to stimulate some conversation for their daughters. Hopefully no girl who goes through the Viveka School of Excellence in the future will ever feel as ill-prepared for this change as those mothers did.
After the mothers had left, I was able to present my manual (and the accompanying teaching aid: a flip chart) to all the female teachers at the school. We sat, yet again, in one large circle. I spoke to them about what I have learned, and showed them how I compiled a teaching manual, organized by grade level, to help them feel more comfortable and prepared when talking about these topics with the girls. They seemed happy to have something. I know most of them could use a little push of encouragement in talking about it... after all, it is a tough thing to discuss. Even I got a little red in the face. Nevertheless, it is important and the conversations need to take place.
And through it all, I hear the best news of my internship so far yesterday. I had contacted a few companies that manufacture sanitary napkins in India and asked if they would be willing to make a donation (large or small) to the school I had been working at. Some of the girls are fortunate enough to manage the (fairly expensive) purchase each month. Others however, are not as lucky. In India, where 74% of the population lives in rural areas AND where 70% of the people live on less than $1.00 a day... it is often unreasonable to purchase sanitary napkins from the stores. Not to mention, in rural areas, there are no shopping centers to speak of, so the girl has to work up some courage to ask for them behind a glass counter from an older man who likely owns the corner shop. You can see why this is an issue...
Anyhow, two years ago there was a scheme through the government and community ASHA workers (accredited social health activists - basically like a traveling nurse and health teacher) in which one sanitary napkin company would provide ASHAs with low-cost pads to disperse to girls. Given that several girls do not have access to these products, and instead use other, horrible, methods of absorbing their blood each month (literally... the worst you could think of: fertilizer, dry wall, wet blankets, old saris...) this would be one way to help girls afford the most sanitary and hygienic product available to them on the market. The plan sounded wonderful, but like many great plans involved with government help, the scheme did not take off. Long story short, I was contacted by Johnson & Johnson (yes... THE international company) via telephone. A woman intercepted my email and told me she wants to help. She is making a donation to the school - it is awesome news! Now the girls will have an emergency stash they can count on at the school.
Things are certainly moving along. It's nearly the weekend here... and I leave Sargur on Tuesday. Then, it's back to Mysore for one last week of India. Although I am getting pumped for the holidays, and for the prospect of returning to Syracuse, I am so happy to know that my last 4 weeks shaped up into something I can be proud of. Even if just small changes in one community, I truly believe that talking is the first step to doing... and who knows? Maybe this will become something of a trend, throughout India and, perhaps, the world.
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