From the unconditional love of ashram children, to personal stories of struggle and empowerment, to inspiring leaders working to educate youth and preserve cultures and traditions, the Mount Madonna School seniors who recently visited northern India experienced many enriching moments during their two-week learning journey.
They saw some amazing sights like the Taj Mahal and the Golden Temple of Amritsar; and also engaged with other students from a wide variety of backgrounds including villages, urban schools, and the Sri Ram Ashram in Haridwar. By meeting and interacting with others from such different cultures, they learned a great deal about themselves, as is evidenced by the writings they shared via the trip blog (excerpted below).
Students were accompanied by Values in World Thought faculty Ward ‘SN’ Mailliard and Shannon Kelly (’92), alumni Devin Kumar’s (’06), Hannah Meade (’08) and Trevor Forry (’09), as well as Santa Cruz Sentinel photographer Shmuel Thaler.
Sharing their journey from around the world were the thousands of blog viewers, who were captivated by Thaler’s beautiful photos and Kumar’s revealing video clips chronicling what the group experienced and learned together on this unusual journey, including thought-provoking interviews with Samdhong Rinpoche, former Prime Minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile; Sam Singh of the Pardada Pardadi Vocational School for Girls, and His Holiness, the Dalai Lama.
We hope you will join us at Mount Madonna School on Friday, April 19 to hear first-hand the seniors’ candid reflections on their learning journey. A reception is offered at 9:00am in the Library; the presentation follows at 9:30am.
“Even after two decades, the Values program continues to be an evolving process – these journeys are powerful opportunities of often unpredictable experiential learning,” comments Mailliard. “This doesn’t refute the importance of preparation, content, discipline, and measurable outcomes. Rather it adds an extra dimension to the schooling process, reflecting the way in which we learn new things throughout our lives. I have the joy of seeing the students discover their own deep lessons, ones that I could not have imagined.”
“I am often at a loss when it comes to describing our experiences on the learning journey,” explains Kelly. “There are so many components and levels: the group, the individual, the environment, the gestalt. Something happens while we are abroad. Transformation seems too simplistic of a word to use. The blog is our attempt to include the reader at home, as much as we can, in this metamorphosis.
“Each person on the trip experiences every interaction differently and he/she expresses these experiences in many different styles,” she continues. “Some are narrative, some take a psychological approach, and some use poetry to describe their feelings, but each person shares his/her own very raw and honest reaction. My role as [blog] editor is to try to help the writer tease out his/her meaning so that the reader can experience the essence of what is being said. I often joke that if I am doing my job well, I am invisible. Ultimately, it is my hope that the reader can begin to understand the truth of what is being experienced.”
Following are examples from the India blog illustrating some of the depth of the students’ experiences.
Some say travelling allows us to better examine ourselves. This idea is frequently based on comparing/contrasting our natural situations with more foreign environments. Today while listening to Sam Singh, the founder of the Pardada Pardadi School, a different perspective of this idea was raised. He said that he became more aware of himself while living in the U.S., because of the questions he was asked. As the only Indian in his peer group, he was seen as the supreme authority on anything Indian. By having to explain the happenings of India whenever something noticeable happened, especially if it was bad, Sam Singh better internalized the problems facing India. Looking at the state of India and his place there inspired him to start the Pardada Pardadi School.
When we travel, no matter the reason for our trip, we represent where we come from. We look at where we come from more thoroughly because we must explain ideas or phenomena that we have a given understanding of to those that don’t. This gives us the opportunity to reexamine our background and our relationship to it and be more aware. Hopefully we can make something from this awareness. It may not always be as obvious as Sam Singh’s example, but looking at how we explain ourselves to outsiders can help us learn more about ourselves. – Graydon Griffin
She said that in her experience, nothing is more powerful than a woman’s love. She said that women of our generation don’t have to fight anymore; we need to be proud of the strength we have and be empowered in who we are. I think Rinchen Khando articulated the lessons India has taught me over these past two weeks. Although I have never before seen such poverty, I have also never before seen such love. This love has been shown to me at Pardada Pardadi, Sri Ram Ashram, Tibetan Children’s Village, and the Dolma Ling Nunnery. Through visiting these amazing places I have learned that helping people is not impossible or hopeless, it comes through loving them. – Amber Zeise
“What is the question that if you knew the answer to would set you free?” My brain decided to ‘flat line’ as five students from Pathways World School looked at me eagerly. They were awaiting my answer after “democratically” electing that I should go first. After a few moments the wheels slowly began to turn…. What have I never understood?… And there it was, ”What would set me free is to understand why some people are born into privilege and others into poverty. Why is it that some suffer and others do not? How is that fair? Well, I know life isn’t fair, but still, what decides the circumstances into which you are born?”
I hardly even realized what I had said until the silence that followed. As the Pathways students stared at me, I thought perhaps I had said something wrong. I quickly ran over what I had said in my head and I realized that I had not misspoken. Perhaps mine was just a question that has not been considered enough. – Joseph Frediani
After our discussion ended we participated in an activity called, “The Giving of Gifts.” During this activity we let others know what we appreciated hearing from them. I made my rounds, and complimented all the kids in my group on certain things they said. After I felt that I’d given plenty of gifts I headed toward a group that was socializing and was interrupted by a boy that had been in my group. He came to give me my gift. What he told me made me feel great about being there and gave me a sense of purpose. He said that he is usually a little shy in big groups and that not many of the kids there know him that well. But getting the opportunity to discuss the topics in that environment helped him feel like he could open up. He admitted to feeling sad when we finished our small groups and joined the circle because he had been having such a good time, sharing his opinions. He thanked me for helping him feel comfortable sharing his thoughts. I felt thankful that I had the chance to do so. It is a very rewarding feeling when someone lets you know that you have changed his life, even in a small way. I think that was the first time I’ve heard that from a stranger. – Vyvyanne Mackey
Looking out the window on the train ride from Delhi to Haridwar, I watched the world transform around us. The landscape fading into a consistent and vivid shade of green; the level terrain giving way to hills, gullies, and wetlands. Trees and flowers became more numerous and showcased the lands’ natural beauty. Villages grew farther apart and seemed to become more hospitable. Though there were still crowds and trash, the brick buildings were more even, better maintained, and spaced out to allow some breathing room. It all seemed cleaner to me than the villages near Pardada Pardadi. About twenty minutes outside of Haridwar, I caught a glimpse of jungle and mountains. My heart raced and excitement rushed through my veins with every hurried beat. I had a feeling of arriving home after a long journey.
At the ashram, the kids welcomed us eagerly. Despite a slight language barrier, we quickly made friends and within an hour, I was already asked when I would return to the ashram. Most of us were grabbed by one to three of the younger children who held our hands and showed us their home. Later, we played soccer and Frisbee with the older kids and spent a good deal of time eating aloo tikkis, drinking chai, and socializing. I have never before met such an outstanding collection of individuals so full of life and love. Each one was kind, cheerful, friendly, and grateful. It was amazing to see a place where such a standard was consistently met. The bonds of friendship and the closeness of the community truly make Sri Ram Ashram a paradise on Earth. – Daniel Fust
People here at Sri Ram Ashram are great at creating community. This seems to be built on finding commonality. Even though we are from such different parts of the world, this was surprisingly easy to do. For the boys sports has been essential to the male bonding. Every time we have a free moment they are on the field playing cricket, ultimate frisbee, or basketball. For the girls, it’s things like a shared love of animals, or a new braiding technique, or a shared interest in another culture. – Karina Fox
During our interview with the Dalai Lama, he talked about how important his own peace of mind has been in dealing with the loss of his country and the terrible suffering of Tibetans. He discussed the importance of maintaining compassion for people in order to cultivate your own peace of mind. The Dalai Lama is an example of someone who is at peace with himself and the world.
His message of compassion and peace was important to me. Whenever I lose hope about the world, I will remember the courage of an 11-year-old monk who crossed the Himalayas and the compassion and forgiveness of the Dalai Lama toward the very people who have forced him into exile. Cultivating these qualities is the route to peace. – Bryson Smith
There they were. Their smiling faces finally bringing our long journey by train to an end. The ecstatic children of Sri Ram Ashram ran alongside our bus as we pulled into the orphanage. While exiting the bus, we were instantly greeted by the embraces of many little children. There were no barriers between us and the new faces staring up into our eyes. Each of them possessed an air of innocence that made deep connections instantly attainable. One by one we exchanged names and at that point, it was time for play. We were openly accepted into all of their activities such as playing Ultimate Frisbee with the older kids and swinging on swings with the younger ones. These simple games brought much joy to both us and the kids. It is experiences like these that humble a person. It is amazing to be surrounded by people that have the ability to take you from your materialistic, stressful world and pull you toward theirs. These kids were able to aid me in succeeding immediately in something that I have struggled to achieve on my own: they showed me how to live in the present. – Sanika Lakka
To read more, visit the students’ blog at http://www.values.mountmadonnaschool.org/category/blogs/india-2013/
You are also invited you to visit ethicality.org to see some of the work that has already been started.
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Photos copyright, Shmuel Thaler, Santa Cruz Sentinel
Contact: Leigh Ann Clifton, Media & Public Relations,
Nestled among the redwoods on 355 mountaintop acres, Mount Madonna is a safe and nurturing college-preparatory school that supports students in becoming caring, self-aware and articulate critical thinkers, who are prepared to meet challenges with perseverance, creativity and integrity. The CAIS and WASC accredited program emphasizes academic excellence, creative self-expression and positive character development. Located on Summit Road between Gilroy and Watsonville.