Best of the East and West

Volunteering after months of touring is truly refreshing, kind of like taking a long, hot shower after an overnight bus ride. Of course there are no showers here, but Sadhana Village has everything else I could ask for and more. It is set in a dramatic valley 30 kilometers outside of Pune and is much more peaceful than the tourist-infested beaches of Goa or the traffic-clogged streets of Pune and Mumbai. My biggest concern before arrival was a language barrier, but that fear was washed away within minutes of my arrival by scores of questions from the curious residents, all of which were formed in perfect English! The multitude of international volunteers and educated staff have given the residents a firm grasp of the English language, which unfortunately means I probably won't learn much Hindi or Marathi.

Sadhana Village isn't a village in the usual way; it is a home for people with developmental disabilities that is structured like a community. The community was founded by Vasante Deshpande after his daughter had a debilitating accident that left her unable to care for herself. He was told by the doctors that a “rehabilitation home” was the best place for her. Mr. Deshpande was shocked by these so called homes, abuse, malnutrition, and neglect were widespread. He decided to travel abroad in search of a more humane organization, and was inspired by the Camphill Schools in North America. Sadhana Village was founded in 1993 with the aim of becoming a place where people of varying abilities could live happy, healthy and fulfilling lives. The basic premise is simple; people with disabilities have the same needs as everyone else – adequate food and shelter, opportunities to express themselves creatively, and to belong to a family and community. Sadhana Village meets these needs better than similar organizations in India because each resident's individual needs and desires are emphasized, but it is also more successful than similar organizations in the United States because familial and cultural relationships are very highly valued. In many ways it is the best of the Collectivist East and the Individualist West.

Sadhana Village consists of three main buildings, each of which is a home to ten “special friends” (their term, not mine). Each building has a kitchen, a living area, and two dining rooms. In order to cultivate a more family-like environment, meals are eaten in smaller groups of 5 residents and at least one volunteer or staff. Dividing the residents between three buildings and then into smaller family groups (albeit unisex families) gives the residents a more stable, private, and familiar environment in which to live. The staff and volunteers all live on site, which also adds to the stability of the community.

The daily schedule at Sadhana is also very stable and organized. Everyone is up by 7:30 for chai, followed immediately by a walk around the property. Breakfast is served at 9:00 before all the houses gather together for a morning community meeting and prayer at 10:00. Everyone then heads to the garden for morning work, which ends promptly at 12:00. After showers and some rest, lunch is served at 1:00. My favorite part of the day, nap time, goes from lunch until 3:00 when the afternoon cultural activity begins. Sweet snacks are served to everyone at 6:00, dinner at 8:00, and bed-time prayer/meditation at 9:00. I like the structure and predictability of the schedule, it helps everyone to be at ease and on time.

Despite the rosy picture I have painted of Sadhana Village, behind the scenes things are not running so effortlessly. An organization of this nature is expensive to operate and Sadhana receives exactly zero rupees from the Indian government. The parents of the residents pay a nominal sum each month, but the fees do not cover operating costs. International foundations and corporations only donate money for capital-raising projects, such as new buildings and land purchases, but rarely will give money for daily expenses. The international financial crisis has caused a decrease in international donations. There are only two alternatives, to raise the monthly fee for each family, which would result in some residents being forced out, or to create an income generating enterprise of some sort, which would force the residents to work for many hours of the day. It is interesting that this is the exact same problem that the Temi Community in Georgia faces, people are willing to give money for new projects and buildings, but no one wants to cover the mundane daily expenses which are necessary to keep them operating.

I hope that I will be able to help this group in a meaningful way, but I will undoubtedly learn more from them then they will from me. That seems to be the theme of my entire year; getting credit for volunteering, when in fact I am getting fed, housed, and educated for free. Not exactly a fair trade, but if they are happy with the arrangement, there will be no complaints from me.