The children were comfortable with us instantly and were so excited to see that we had come back. Though the language barrier was difficult to overcome, we found ways to communicate through artwork and music. They all loved to dance! And even though we weren't as good, they tried to teach us their choreography. (Our in-country partner Prachur, however, showed us all up on the dance floor.)
The hardest part was leaving. Yesterday we could promise that we'd be back soon, but today there was no such promise. The kids seemed to know that, and they walked us through the streets of their village back to our bus, holding our hands all the way. As we walked we passed small apartments, some without doors, some with open doors but only one small room filled with many children beyond it. One boy, no more than 7 years old, pulled on my hand, pointed to an elderly man sitting in the dirt road outside one of these apartments and introduced me to him as his "didi" (older sister). When I asked who the man was, he said it was his dada (grandfather), and that he lived with him in that one room, furniture-less house. This put our petty complaints about too much spicy food, mosquitoes and heat into perspective.
Though the circumstances were rough, the kids were bright and happy. It broke all of our hearts to say goodbye. We can only hope that we've had an impact on their lives that was half as profound as the one they had on ours. After a physically and emotionally draining day, we practiced our Bollywood dancing with the Urban Dance Company. Our dancing was a bit rough honestly, but we had fun.
We miss you all so much and can't wait to see you in 9 days!!
-Inshira
P.S. - We have so many more photos to share, but like with a lot of things in Delhi the wifi is unpredictable. We are posting from Mrs. Willingham's phone and she had these few photos on her phone. We will try to upload more photos from her camera and laptop when we find a hotspot.
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