Mitali arrived yesterday morning and she brought the rains with her. Within hours of her arrival we had the first shower. Then another in the afternoon. And since last night it hasn't stopped raining! The temperature has plunged to 24 degrees with a wind chill factor of perhaps 20 degrees. It's cold! When she arrived she couldn't have believed that it would get cold. Cold? It could be cooler, but cold? I don't believe it, she said. But now she does.

Despite the overnight rain, we had school today. There were some absentees, but not many. And having Mitali helped. She taught English, Science and Maths in class 3 and Maths in class 4. I got an extra period in Class 4. After school we had computer classes. The children are really fast learners. Mitali was amazed at their confidence and ability to open documents, type and save their work.

No one else, alas, showed any interest. Bhola did. He came and observed what the children were doing and then asked if I could teach him too. Gladly! But then Bhola is Bhola. He's enthusiastic and curious about everything.

Someone suggested I provide incentives to the others to learn. I disagree. The opportunity we are providing is incentive enough. You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink! Young students in Godda are willing to pay good money to learn how to use a computer. In fact, recently many "computer schools" have mushroomed in a lot of small towns like Godda. These centres are minting money by teaching people the bssics. And here we are providing people with an opportunity to learn for free! If they don't wish to avial of this opportunity, it's their loss. I'm also willing to offer free internet access because I pay a flat fee for unlimited usage. In fact, once the children and others know how to use the computer, I do intend to hook them to the net. But one step at a time.

Because of the rain, nothing much happened on the project besides school. I've been spending my time chatting in Mitali about the project, Bengali music and also a bit of gossip! It's nice to have someone to talk to. We haven't had a fight as yet, but I'm sure that's not far away either!