The Jimmy Carter Work Project- Habitat for Humanity- IndiaBuilds……
There are some events that occur in your life, some things you do or some people whom you meet, that change the way you look at things and change something in you….the IndiaBuilds experience was one of those events in my life…
Just a brief- IndiaBuilds is the ambitious five year project launched by Habitat for Humanity International and The Jimmy Carter Foundation to provide safe solid and affordable housing to a 1000 families in India over the next five years...the project was kick started with a hundred homes being built in Malavli (Near Lonavla i.e 2.5 hrs from Mumbai)..in this one week..
It was my privilege to be a part of this build and it is thanks to my organization..Citigroup which is also one of main sponsors of the IndiaBuilds campaign. I volunteered for a day at the site and it was an experience of a lifetime…
Up at 4.30 am, we reached the site at 7.30 am..and what a sight…it was a huge area…with construction activity for the day already started early in the morning…and all the workers were volunteers and home owners themselves..with very little paid help…We were registered and then allotted to our houses..(To clarify Citigroup is sponsoring and building 12 houses..entirely through employee volunteers)
I was allotted house numbers 85 and 86 belonging to Savitri and Mangal respectively.. reached my house to find a lot of activity underway..the previous days volunteers had built half the walls and put the doors and windows…I was handed over to Andy..our house-leader (again a Citigroup veteran from Texas)…I recollect his opening words "The bottom line is we’ve got to finish the walls by the evening, so that we can put the roof up tomorrow. The bottom line is we’ve got to stop work at 4:30 pm, so that we can spend half an hour cleaning up the place. The bottom line is that the owners are right here with you, and remember you’ve got to do a good job because they are watching."
With this he handed me over to Jo ,who became my guide for the day. She showed me how to build…how to make walls…how to lay the concrete blocks dead straight, and fill in the crevices with cement…Now that was something…I had no clue that laying bricks had so many technicalities to it…and what with all the measuring and checking the level with the bubble instrument…Gosh!! Jo soon left me and Ritu to do our walls – going off to do her own rows. Felt like a small child ,happy and excited and proud whenever I got a straight line on the wall…all three bubbles in the centre…full marks…
We had our master mason Shivaji (local professional)….with his experience an skill who would back up for Andy , who was everywhere doing all the important jobs..some measuring, going through plans..laying rebars whatever whatever..We all worked hard…very hard…lifting concrete blocks, laying them, filling cement, checking alignment….the walls needed to be up….at any cost..
We had the home owners with us(Just to clarify…HFH does not believe in donating houses free of cost…it’s not BHEEK…the home owners get a concrete strong home in a good community at a affordable cost of Rs 75,000/- payable in EMIs over 8 years). Mangal was very sweet…she was there ready and eager to help with anything. I got along handsomely with her because I managed to speak broken marathi and communicate. She was getting loads and loads of cement for us, cleaning up the house periodically as the cement fell and doing lots of other odd jobs…well our other house owners Savitri and her husband were not that friendly..Mr Honsulal was always criticizing our work..making us undo and redo a number of times…we did not appreciate it always ..but then it is his home and he had a right to demand…and that was respected. That was my first lesson!
After a while , being amply tired, I saw my watch…and it was just 10 am..Gosh..this job is so tiring… We had a very senior person from Citi US working with us in our house and I have to add a word on his humility. He gave me my lesson 2: However much you rise in life..be down to earth, be humble…you might be the best at your job..give someone else the credit and respect for being good at his..
We worked and worked till 12pm till we got an announcement for lunch for our house and then headed towards this huge tent, where Mini Punjab was catering to food for all the thousands of volunteers, home owner families, workers and everyone on the site. It was so well managed and it was great sitting and eating alongwith people from different parts of the world, from different strata of society and different walks of life. Understood also how great food tastes after a hard days work… Lesson 3 relearnt..the world is really a global village..distances and differences are in the mind..
After lunch a short trip to a store where different NGOs were selling their products.. of these one caught my eye..and heart too..”Equal Exchange” a co-opeartive incorporated in the US that buys different products from farmers and markets them, to enable farmers to get a fair return on their produce. They buy tea, coffee, cocoa etc from various parts of the world and sell them in different countries..sadly though they are not present in India yet. But what caught my attention was the volunteer representing the NGO. Her enthusiasm was amazing. She was not selling her products..she just had to distribute them. She was calling everyone and giving them samples of tea, coffee and chocolates..and she was doing it with a lot of enthusiasm.
Then back to work..well I forgot to add that during work I took 5 minute breaks in between to click some memorable snaps..
Back to work, laying bricks, filling cement, cleaning, laying U blocks, helping with odd jobs..There was a gentleman with us from Habitat- Australia , he must be 70 years plus..and I have never seen such energy levels in people 15 years younger also. He was climbing ladders, walls, lifting bricks, doing all the hard tasks which suited a young person. He gave me my lesson 4: You age if you want to age..else nothing can stop you..but yes need to keep the body fit. At the age of 70 plus, he’s come all the way from Australia to volunteer and build houses in India in scorching heat…hats off to his commitment to the cause!!
The houses seemed to be coming up well. End of day was nearing and all walls were up..ready for the roof to be laid the next day..Then I got my dose of fun…Lazim…a group of loacal village guys and girls had organized a Lazim dance which they went around the entire site doing with huge drums..and me and my friends joined in…it was great fun!! Dancing behind the professions, trying to copy them…hands and legs were aching, we were tired…but who can say no to such great music..well it ended in our very own jungle dance with all college children joining in…Good Fun!
I went to call Jo for the dance…but she refused…saying the wall she was working on needed to get completed…Lesson 5: Commitment, dedication…Jo this is my salute to your spirit..if you ever read this.
Well we danced for 20 minutes and got back to work..now starting the final touch up of the walls, wherever the cement was not put properly, wherever it didn’t look good…inside, outside..some of us started cleaning up. Picking up all the plastic bottles, any junk, all the scattered tools, etc. Andy sat with the plans to check on the progress and I acted interpreter between him and Shivaji while they discussed. Finally we started work on painting the windows, where the glass would be placed the next day..we were painting them green..and it was fun..
And then it was 5.30 pm and announcement to wind up…I was sad…I didn’t want to go..I wanted to see the house to completion..I so wanted to be a part of that..but then..that’s life..so well, we left..after some photographs of the house team..I am waiting for my colleagues who go on Friday to get me pictures of the completed house…
I did not leave before getting invited over by Mangal for a snack once her house comes up…I also acted interior designer for her in deciding where to place the cupboards and TV.. The one day act gave me a lot of pleasure and satisfaction.
I met good people and made some friends. And to witness, within the space of a few hours, a patch of land transformed into a house with walls and rooms is quite special. Seeing the smiles on the face of the home owners as their house is coming up is heart warming… I can say with a lot of satisfaction though that I made some walls of a House that a group of dedicated volunteers built….
If you have the opportunity to participate on a build, don't think twice – do it! I feel privileged to have been a part of this build, and I am looking forward to the next opportunity to get involved.
The journey back was ridden with contemplation and reflection about what I was doing in life and how I was doing it…how could I improve, how could I contribute….and this will be my state till I get some answers…
Well I forgot to add:: Highlight of the day was Steve Waugh working on one of the houses and highlight of the previous day was Brad Pitt!!
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