Indian Instinctive

Why India can inject you with a sense of mental and physical renewal.

Why not teach? 

Sod it if you have no idea how to even write in a straight line on a whiteboard or try to conduct a erratic orchestra of children. You don't want AC and you don't want a warm shower, you want the real damn thing. But maybe a fan. 

You can't dictate in India. It dictates you; traffic, mosquitos and wisdom. Then again you meet others who just ride the wave of chaos, and hey if you get the class to take one new thing out of your lesson then everyone wins. The wave is warm and friendly. Ride with it.

Community Centre Chaos and Love. 

There's an incredibly bland flavour of life until arriving in Southern India. Smell, taste and sight are enhanced upon heavily like some passionate cocktail of fruit, drains and sweat. 

The location of Fort Kochi is not really  'off the beaten track' , because being in South India, it has been colonised by just about every European super power. You meet a lot of people who know English and generally speaking, you are pretty safe. 

So what will make this experience different to just visiting a European settlement in Asia? 

The Answer: Listen. 

And by that you are learning just as much as your students each lesson. Whilst the program I joined with Volunteering Journeys was English Teaching, everyone has the opportunity to partake in other programs in the afternoons. Attending Women's Empowerment was just as rewarding. 

Using your instinct is a skill that is vastly developed upon in India. You're caring for yourself and others with the most basic necessities. The same questions go through your head every day to care for the situation your class are in. This develops a sense of mature responsibility.

Living without choice, materialism and luxuries for a month allows focus on looking after your body and those surrounding you. There's no other distractions, if a gut feeling tells you something you listen, you start saying yes to your body and no to your mind. Anyone who bothers to work in 35C+ temperatures with a large responsibility will develop new priorities of how to get up every day and face the world differently. Your ego is discarded pretty fast in India. This is healthy. Not soul destroying or confidence crunching, but simply a cleanse of what you don't need to say or do. 

Whilst the locals treat western culture as a huge luxury, it feels like the release of some horrible burden (weird right?) here I am complaining about privilege. Well yes I am, because it's not real. Not out here anyway. When you return home the sense of luxury acts as some sort of annoying irrelevant thing that you can actually live without. 

What is existent and very much present is:

. Amazing adults and children and who ground your mind and soul. Often the children are wiser than you!
. Good (Great, addictive) food made with love. 
. People who actually want a real, two-way conversation. 
. Respect. Even if they think you're absolutely mad. 
. Generosity, which again should be two way, but it is astonishing what Keralan people do     for others they care for.  
.  Most of all fun, smiling, joy. Lack of grumpiness is very eye opening and optimistic. 


Kerala in many senses, is a step away from Western reality. Upon visiting Munnar, a four hour drive from Fort Kochi, this became more apparent. The luscious greens can be defined not short of paradise. On a seven mile trek through the mountains, at a cooler 25C and without any hustle from the city, this is an escapism. 


Munnar has one road full of hotels and restaurants, but with the freshness of the air and the surrealist skies you certainly feel off the beaten track because of its alienated atmosphere. Even if you're sharing the town with dozens of other visitors it is a very natural place to settle. There is no peace like it. 

A full body massage at the hotel was a next level experience. Whilst lying there my ears were surrounded my noises outside of chanting, as if Bladerunner (1985) with the oriental lady floating around on the space ship has decided to talk to you for an hour. Obviously this is more likely to be a Muslim or Hindu call to prayer as well as audio advertisements. Yet all the echo and tone of those speaking or singing it, like the landscape surrounding, is exquisite. 

Munnar: The
Emerald Heaven

Back to Fort Kochi, the Women's Empowerment class seemed to blossom everyday alongside the plants and trees surrounding us in the Spring/Summer season. Not only did this class give us a chance to understand the day-to-day lives of women from different religions and backgrounds but also a teaching of their family values and morals which are so prevalent in Indian culture. These women are not only strong, but the wisdom they hold is priceless. For some, this afternoon class for an hour and a half was their space space for self expression before having to return to busy family life. For others this was the only place where they could safely express their real emotions behind the heavy responsibilities placed on them all. The conflict between family duty and employment is burdening for women. Whilst Kerala has the highest wages in India for women, the gap between their counterparts is also the largest. I had met women who were married at 19 and a minor few who had jobs until their late 20s before becoming pregnant. The message for us as mentors for English and other life skills was not to change what they live by, but to discuss the element of choice rather than expectation. At times this was treading on thin ice, it is not possible to overthrow tradition and what the vast majority of women are doing. The main understanding to take is that, these women want other women to talk to and nothing all that much more. Just by communicating, this gives everyone a gift to learn and listen. 

Women's Empowerment + View From House

Having contact with each generation in India was the most insightful. Yet again it is another reason to teach. Comparing conversations with children to grandparents there are similarities that we have in the UK. Some of the students as young as eight were using WhatsApp and Facebook, perhaps belonging to their parents, to communicate. Whilst India has much stricter internet rules than others, there is still a stream of activity and information that the youngest generation are now open to. Since retuning home, it is great to see that the younger individuals I met are taking full advantage of technology to stay in touch and share their ongoing lives with mine. But of course they aren't as glued to the screen as we see children at home. 'Play' was by far the most popular word at the community centre each morning. Whilst the burning heat was scorching the playground to death it still didn't hold the children back, you can't help feeling that this type of organic childhood is being lost in richer countries. 

Extensive periods of 'play' seemed to also help the children's creativity. Each lesson was a balance, they want to physically let go and spread out, play games, laugh and be together in teams. The results from doing this often was positive. It created a huge bond between volunteers and students which made a resounding faith in the whole project. Their imaginations are an incredibly powerful fuel, which was a pleasure to witness.

My last class at VELI.

Maybe it is the same with all children and women you teach at the end, that there is an unimaginable bond that connects with these communities so much easier than at home. True, one must meander around everyone's individual needs to gain trust and acceptance. However, until I visited Kerala I had never witnessed so much respect, realness and love. 

I miss you all xox