Meethi Baathain, Meethi Yaadhain (Sweet exchanges, Sweet memories)

Spending three weeks working with the incredible PRASAD Chikitsa has been a completely eye opening and inspiring experience for me.

It has been amazing to document all I learned in this past month, from writing my very first blog post to reminiscing and reflecting on everything I’ve experienced in the last month, as I write my last post about this marvelous stay.

Reminiscing about the mornings I spent volunteering in the Nutrition Program

From passing out medicine to teens not much older than I am . . .

. . . To serving milk to the children who stole my heart . . .

. . . To hearing inspiring stories from the women of rural India . . .

. . . To meeting other girls my age, with their lives so different, yet strikingly similar. . .

. . . To learning from light-hearted children about embracing our differences. . .

. . . To being reminded by them of the beauty of simplicity. . .

. . . To admiring the thriving fruits and vegetables in the family gardens, these sweet memories and experiences will stay with me forever, influencing my life perspective even back in San Diego.

I’m delighted to be able to share the beauty of my time here with so many people around the world. Spending these past few weeks volunteering in Tansa Valley, India has fueled my passion for philanthropic work.

I’m very grateful to The PRASAD Project for this incredible experience, and for the extremely friendly and welcoming nature of the PRASAD Chikitsa staff and volunteers.

Thank you to the very special people who made this visit possible. Tahe dil se shukriya!

I would like to end my incredible journey of discovery, sweet memories, and sweet exchanges all documented through this blog, with a sweet anecdote, about Arya, the three-year-old, whose smile touched my heart.

I wrote about her and her incredibly sweet and simple way of going about her life a few posts ago. She was admiring the polish on my nails when I saw her, and she asked me to bring her some the next time I came. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to see her again before leaving India, so I decided to buy two bottles of nail polish (magenta and sparkly blue), and leave the bottles with a note for her with PRASAD, to give to Arya the next time they saw her.

A few days ago, one of the staff members of PRASAD Chikitsa, was delighted to inform me that Arya had received the bottles, and sent me some photos of her with my gift!