Happy New Year: 2010

So, here it is: the first blog of 2010 on the 10th day of the month. I apologize to regular readers (if there are any) for not writing more often. But you can expect more frequent updates this year. And that's a promise I hope to keep.

Life has been rather hectic for the past few weeks. I had gone to Kolkata on the 23rd to celebrate Christmas with Amie, Mitali and Raj. We had a great time. We attended a party, had lunch at a nice Chinese restaurant and saw a movie - Avatar. Time just flew by and soon it was time for Amie to return to the project. She left Kolkata on the 26th. I stayed on and returned to the project with Neera on the 30th.

Neera Kapoor is one of Dakshinayan's trustees. And this was her first visit to the project and Jharkhand. We travelled via Bolpur by train and taxi and so were here on the same day a little after lunch. Too late to see the school (a few kids were attending school even after the exams), but since she was staying for such a short while, she got a few more hours to enjoy the peace and quiet of the project. Neera did get to meet the children on the 31st -- the last day of the year.

On the 31st we had a bonfire in the evening. We drank Pepsi Cola and stuffed our faces with very tasty pakoras that Bhola had made. It was cold and so it was good to sit near the fire and chat. We went to bed at 10:00 and greeted the new year the following morning which was chilly and windy. No school that day, but the children showed up to celebrate the new year by having a picnic on the campus. They brought their own rice and dal and vegetables and cooked themselves khichri. Amie, Neera and I spent the whole day catching the sun.

Neera and I went back to Kolkata on the 2nd via the same route -- Bhola's taxi to Bolpur and then a train to Kolkata. We parted ways at the station. Neera went to the airport to catch her flight to Delhi and I went home to Mitali's. Neera's flight, however, did not take off till dawn the next morning! There was too much fog in Delhi and most flights had been delayed or cancelled.

I stayed on in Kolkata and waited for Dani and Tak who were expected to arrive on the 4th evening by train from Goa. As it turned out, they flew into Kolkata on the evening of the 5th. So on the 6th Dani and Tak, Mitali and I took a train to Bolpur and drove to the project and arrived soon after nightfall.

We took it easy on the 7th. On the 8th we had re-admissions and that kept me busy all morning. Out of the 86 children who were with us last year, 58 children got re-admitted for this academic year. Since we won't have class 5 this year, there should have been at least 80 children seeking re-admission. I wonder what happened to the rest. Perhaps they will show up tomorrow when we are going to admit new chidren. As things stand, we now have 8 children in Nursery (we'll take in 12 more), 18 children in Class 1 (we can admit two more), 9 children in Class 2, 13 in class 3 and 10 in Class 4. Since we have now switched to Hindi medium, we may be able to take in a few children in Classes 2 and 3.

So that's how things have been so far. It's a Sunday today. A lazy day. Everyone woke up late. But became active soon after. Dani, Tak and Amie have gone with Bhola to Roldih and other villages to inform parents about tomorrows admission. Mitali is trying out the new travel pillow she has acquired while sitting on the swing chair that Dani and Tak brought for me. I'm writing this blog and wondering when I'll get another cup of tea. Perhaps I should yell out to Shanku to make me some tea. He came back to the the project on the 8th. Some of you may remember that he used to work in Roldih when Chandan was the coordinator. Bhola had him recalled because Suman has become a little "unreliable" of late. Bhola feels there needs to be a "back-up" just in case Suman decides to go AWOL again like he did in the days following Christmas!

Kartik, who is now a "teacher" along with Radha and Raiman, spend a lot of time on the project too. It's nice to have him around. Unfortunately, none of the other kids from last year's Class 4 come around. I'd be happy to give them English lessons every day and I've already told them.

Anyway, that's all from me for today. Hope the 2010 has started off on a good note for all of you.

Children receiving their report cards.