Day 17 - June 11 - The Beach, Kabaddi and Devamani

Hello all! This morning we took a day trip to the Vattakottai Beach, where we had a great time splashing around in the waves, building sand castles, and reading on the sand. We tossed the frisbee around and had to wade out to get it several times. We brought back some beautiful shells to give to the kids at the village. After the beach we went to a very good tandoori restaurant where we feasted on tandoori chicken and paneer and lots of naan. Everyone enjoyed themselves!

It's about time we introduced a prominent member of the CASA center staff! Devamani is a woman from the Packianathapuram who helps around with cooking and cleaning. She is a wise and opinionated woman who takes great care of us and particularly enjoys giving us advice about personal beauty and values! Although she speaks very little English, Devamani doesn't shy away from engaging us in long conversations. When Sowmya isn't present, our conversations with her can involve more charades than typically used in small talk, but she gets her ideas across. Today she lectured us on saree selection, maintaining the tone of our arms through hard labor, and respecting our elders (she called Ken wise). In the evening, Ken, I, and Caroline walked back to the village with Devamani and dropped her off at her house.

- Erin

Hey it's Harsha taking over for the afternoon events. Once we got back from the beach, Danish, Arvind, Nina and I visited the village. We had been invited the day before to come watch them play Kabaddi. When we arrived, we found a group of boys playing an Indian card game called Donkey. Once they finished the game, they took us to a field where they play Kabaddi and Cricket. They quickly set up two Kabaddi matches in the dirt, one for the younger boys and another for the men. While the kids game was full of laughter and screaming, the men's game was quiet but menacing. The men had changed into uniforms and were practicing for an upcoming match and they were all serious. No laughter. No joy. Just Kabaddi.

After the match Jebastine took Arvind and Danish back to the CASA center via a shortcut we hadn't known about. Nina and I attended the church service with the boys and girls after. The entire service involved different groups singing songs in front of everyone. There were very few older adults but the children had a great time singing. Nina sang a really nice upbeat song and I got to go up in front of the crowd with some of the older boys as they sang their own song. The song they picked had repetitions of 'Hallelujah' many times so that I could also be a part of the song. I thought that was really kind of them to include me in the song as well as the service. Especially because I am Hindu and don't speak Tamil. After the service the older boys had a Youth Meeting, which was led by the pastor and involved singing passages from the Bible. I was slightly disappointed that the group was not about discussing issues or talking about concerns and was led by a much older man. Regardless, I spoke at the end of the meeting and told the boys about the building and its significance. Hopefully they find a way to utilize the building and conduct meetings of their own once it's complete.

- Harsha

Lentil beam was poured yesterday. These photos were taken to show the curing process. The standing water on top helps the concrete settle without cracking, as it can slowly harden and dry out.