dalbhat

Way to go, Sophie!

2012-01-30T20:35:00.000-08:00

Sophie Rust and her mother visited us in November last year. One of the places they visited was SUCHANA, a rural learning centre for tribal children outside of Santiniketan. Last week, when Sophie had her birthday party, she decided to collect donations for the school from her friends. She collected $200 and her parents matched the amount bringing the total to $400! Way to go, Sophie! Her mom reports that everyone was happy to give a little to make this a success. Thanks for sharing your birthday fun with other children who are in need. Your efforts are truly commendable!

Be sure to have a look at the website and see the good work SUCHANA is doing to support education possibilities for the children in their village!

WRAP IT IN KINDNESS!

2011-11-23T22:00:00.001-08:00

Block print wrapping paper, a photo by dalbhat on Flickr.

I recently visited Paripurnata Half-Way Home Centre for Psychosocial Rehabilitation for women after meeting some of the very dedicated people working there at a mela being organized by our friends at Ankur Kala. I was so happy to see the beautiful handicrafts being made through the rehab program here that I quickly placed an order for some of my favorite designs. I hope that we can have a lasting friendship with this organization.

As part of its effort to offer some support to organizations addressing the problem of mental health for underprivileged people in Kolkata, this holiday season Mustard Seeds is selling beautiful hand-printed wrapping paper made by the teacher and residents at Paripurnata Half-way Home.

Block printing is just one of the activities that make up Paripurnata's rehabilitation program, the women work alongside the teacher when they feel like doing this activity and try other handicrafts, etc. when they feel more inclined to do those.

If you are in the US or Japan, you can purchase 6 sheets of assorted paper at $5 plus postage. This not only helps to support Paripurnata, but all the seedlings we try to plant through Mustard Seed efforts. Please send an email to mseeds.maura@gmail.com if you are interested in making a donation and receiving some handcrafted brown wrapping paper for the holiday season.

Mustard Seeds would also like to thank FAIR shop in Brighton for placing a large order with this group. We hope everyone there likes the new designs!

Calling our Calcutta 100 Club

2011-09-10T18:31:00.000-07:00

Karuna Chitrakar

12 September 2011

THANK YOU TO

OUR COMMUNITY OF

MUSTARD SEEDS FRIENDS:

I look forward to telling Karuna this morning that we raised the money to help her do house repairs in response to the message I wrote below. Thank you for your concern and generosity, everyone. I am touched by how quickly responses came in.

=====

Last night we received a phone call from Karuna Chitrakar asking for some emergency help from those friends who helped her build her house in Medinipur some years back. Karuna is a patua, a story-scroll painter and singer who lives in the village of Nadia in Medinipur. Several years back, friends of Mustard Seeds helped to build a house for Karuna and her family. The house, however, is built of mostly natural materials which means that it is fairly impermanent.

Karuna told us that there have been heavy rains for the past two weeks and because her house is made of bamboo with a mud-straw covering for the walls, the water logging has caused the wall to collapse on one side of the house. They need to repair it right away.

We asked her what her plan would be to repair the house and she says that she needs to elevate the house with a cement foundation and she would like to build up the wall again but in bricks this time. She estimates this repair work to cost about Rs 12,000 - 15,000 (Approx. $320)

Karuna lives with her two sons, their wives and the grandchildren. The rainy season is always a difficult time.

If you would like to donate some money towards an emergency repair for Karuna's home, please email me at:
mseeds.maura@gmail.com

Remember, the idea for the Calcutta 100 Club is that we can do something for someone else by giving just a small amount – and that amount can add up to something that really makes a difference. In this case, if just 3.5 people can get 10 friends to give $10 - we have reached our goal.

If donations over the amount are received, I will keep them aside for the next such project that comes to us.

I will let you know when we have collected the money - I know that times are tough but if you can donate even $10 or ask a few people to donate $10 I know that we can help Karuna out in this time of need.

Please email me for more details on how to donate.

Mustard Seeds Joins Greenpeace in saying 'No More Fukushimas!'

2011-08-20T19:10:00.000-07:00

Mustard Seeds took part in a rally to send support to Japan and to voice the message that nuclear power is not the answer to India's energy needs.

We worked with Silence, a fair trade organization in Kolkata that provides training and employment to disabled artisans, to design special candles for the event.

dig it

2011-07-25T21:15:00.001-07:00

dig it, a photo by dalbhat on Flickr.

Enacting the Mustard Seeds Storybook: To the Local Bazaar

2011-07-23T06:01:00.000-07:00

A while back I was contacted by a woman by the name of Rita Basuray. She asked if I would give permission for she and her friends to use our storybook, To the Local Bazaar, which she came across at CIMA gallery while visting Kolkata. They had a plan to enact the simple story for a Durga Puja performance being done by their Bengali language club. After writing back and forth, we found that we were connected by a number of friends and acquaintances. Rita raised money for some of the art projects Mustard Seeds was working on and for some supplies for the budding artist, Noor Islam at Shikshamitra. The show was held and the results are amazing as this video clip shows:

We thank everyone involved. I look forward to showing the clip to Karuna when she comes to visit next! This is an excellent way to spread information on the patachitra culture and to study Bengali!

Please Send Messages of Hope to Japan

2011-04-15T06:11:00.000-07:00

message of hope by a student of shikshamitra school

Mustard Seeds has sent off its first packet of messages to Japan with beautiful drawing and simple notes of friendship and love from children in India. I continue to collect messages for Japan in various forms and let others know that the messages are being received. You can send a simple postcard or greeting card.

At the moment I know of two close friends of Mustard Seeds that are helping to get notes from around the world to people in Japan, to offer our support and let them know we care. They have both asked for our help. If you would like to, get a group of people and write short notes or make one card that you all sign and get it out in the post as soon as possible.

1) KOLKATA SEEDS-JAPAN/CHAUTARY
Mustard Seeds works with Kolkata Seeds-Japan in Nara to provide financial support to schools here in Kolkata that provide education to children from impoverished backgrounds. They have been extremely supportive and this is something we can now do for them! Here is the letter we received:

Dear Maura-san

Hope you are well. I am sorry that I haven’t talked to you since our phone call. It has been a big disaster in Japan. Because of the atomic power plant, the country is not well we are all worried about our future. Japanese people are uniting together to recover. Chautary is attending an event, Earth Day on 24th and coordinating a fund raising event at the Chautary on 29th. From both of the event, every single yen we receive from people are going to be sent to the disaster areas. I pray for people whom they are affected by this disaster for a long time.

I have a favor to ask. Could you write messages to encourage people in those disaster areas and sent it to me in Japan?

I would like to have as many messages as possible. I am going to introduce them at the event for fundraising and eventually, I would like to send them to the disaster areas with our money raised. If we can received by 24th, it would be great, but if you can send me by 29th, that’s fine, too. Please support us.

Thank you,

Etsuko Yamaguchi

C/O CHAUTARY SHOP

5-1-1 Ayameike Minami

Nara-shi, Nara-ken 631-0033 JAPAN

2) KAYOKO NADAMOTO worked with me at the Japan Environmental Exchange and Green Action in Kyoto. We both worked together on anti-nuclear actions in the early 90s. She has sent this note:

Dear friends,

Hello, how are you? Hope you all are doing well, busy with your wonderful projects. Please forgive me not contact so often. The time is just flying as like a light. I am still living in Sandpoint, a small town in north Idaho where Moose, Bears are around. I am working and studying hard. Since last month, when the great earthquake hit Japan, my birth place, I have been having hard time to concentrate my life here. I have been so frustrated not being there helping. Last night I made up my mind to do one little thing. I'd like to introduce and invite you if you want to join. I wrote a letter to all my friends, people I know around here and the world. Please give me a minute to read the letter. I wish you my best and enjoy your life.

Peace from Kako (Kayoko Nadamoto)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is the letter:

Dear Friends,

As you know, yesterday is the one month anniversary of the great earthquake & Tsunami that hit in north eastern Japan. I have received a letter from a friend who lives in Sendai city, where one of the city that affected strongly by the quake. I am so happy to learn that she is doing all right. I sent her a little card a day after the quake - not fancy just a simple card. She wrote me back that my little card that only saying “Are you OK?”, made her so happy and gave her a hope to live. I have been thinking what I can do for people in my birth country beside sending a little money.

My friend in Sendai doesn’t use a computer. I found that there are a lot of people who don’t use a computer in Japan (especially elderly people). There are millions of web sites that give them messages and news goes through online. But I have to realize that those messages reach only people who knows (or have) computer.

I’ve got an idea what I can do. I’d like to collect written messages. IF YOU WANT TO send a word to Japan, write your short message on a sheet of a paper. If you have a group of people who wants to join this, make a card (doesn’t need to be fancy) and let your friends to write a word on your card.

For those who don't live close, please mail it to me. I will translate each of your messages into Japanese, and write it beside your message on your paper (or card). I am planning to go to Japan in Mid May. I’d like to collect many messages as possible. So I can bring messages and send it to Sendai. I am sure, your message will give people a hope and a strength to go through this difficult time of their life.

Here is my mailing address:

Kayoko Nadamoto

P.O. Box 2582, Sandpoint, ID

Thank you,

Kako

=====

Lastly, I'd like to draw your attention to this blog called Drowning Hearts at Lady River which clearly shows the devastation but also shows a simple, beautiful gesture to help people.

Mustard Seeds Gets Active in January

2011-01-24T20:13:00.000-08:00

Before the holiday season had a chance to even taper off, Mustard Seeds got moving and began the year 2011 with lots of activities and planning.

In the early days of the month we had a visit from a very special friend and supporter, Michael Yamaguchi from Kolkata Seeds-Japan/Chautary. In three short days he managed to tour all of the projects our friends in Japan give financial assistance to so that he can report back on how each of the programs are going. The projects included BASHA, a school for underprivileged children living in slums around the Gol Park area run by the lovely Saswati-di and her excellent team of friends and family. Michael also visited SHIKSHAMITRA where Kolkata Seeds for the past three years has generously been providing the money to rent our space in Alipore. We visited two projects run by EMPOWER THE CHILDREN, the school and vocational learning program at Prayroyna 1 (P1) in the expansive Dhakindari slum was the first stop. Children performed a segment of their mime presentation which was done on a big stage at the end of the year, along with other schools. We were warmly welcomed here and also had a visit through the local area. Michael also visited a newer program being run in Khestopur, Prayroyna 3, which conducts a school, free lunch program and vocational skills training in tailoring and embroidery. He also loves to stop in at PRABARTAK whenever he is in town and as usual we a wonderful time there too interacting with all of our friends and the manager, Mr. Tanmoy Ganguly!

Vocational group at the Dhakindari school, P1

On the same night his plane back to Japan was going to depart, Michael and I visited PRABARTAK home in Salt Lake. Michael was given a few of the pianikas by a member of their organization who is a teacher at a primary school in Japan. He gave these out as gifts as we went from place to place. It was at Prabartak, however, that they turned into magic! Arjun, a member at Prabartak promptly started playing his tabla and another boy pulled out his harmonica. Suddenly a new boy, about ten years old, got up and started dancing. We had a full-on concert happening. Leave it to music to break the ice. After we had all become friends, we passed the pianika around and almost everyone had a go on it.

Making music and creating smiles at Prabartak

Also in January, Mustard Seeds planned two successful workshops with a volunteer group visiting Empower the Children from Connecticut in the US. On 17 January, Malini and I organized a pouch stitching workshop with young women taking part in the vocational program at P2. Each of the women had already embroidered their name and the name of the volunteer they'd be working with on that day into a piece of fabric that would become the lining of the pouch. On the day of the workshop, volunteers were paired up with the girls and the pairs set out to stitch a lined bag, add a snap and decorated the front. The results were beautiful and everyone was quite surprised that they were able to stitch quite a nice, practical gift item. The bags were presented to the volunteers, perfect to be used to hold a passport or camera!

Our proud stitchers with their finished products!

On 19 January, again in cooperation with Empower the Children and the group from Connecticut, Mustard Seeds helped to organize a presentation by the patua scroll artist, Karuna Chitrakar, at RCFC (Rehabilitation Centres for Children). After Karuna presented the scroll that tells the story of her own life story in pictures and song, each child worked with volunteers to draw a scene from their own lifestory in a pata-style story frame. Thanks to friends from Shuktara who also participated!

Learning about the pata tradition and letting off some creative energy!

We'd like to thank everyone who was involved in this flurry of new year activity - and look forward to reporting on more networkings and activities through the year ahead.

Special thank you out to Chris Rickerd who sent holiday contributions for the SUCHANA Early Learning Group in Khanjanpur and our Calcutta 100 Club. We will let you know how this generous gift was used.

We also thank Mary Hurley, Kate Goldman, Pascale Maclean and Marianne Tokita for purchasing assorted cards from Suchana and Silence and Mustard Seeds. They are our loyal customers!

In October, Catriona Takeuchi hosted a fun India Day event at her English school in Nara, Japan. After woodblock printing and a cooking class with dal and chapatti, there was a Mustard Seeds handicraft sale that raised funds to keep us doing projects back in Kolkata.

Arisa and Naoki, who run Ragamala in Nara, Japan, recently visited and handed us money from pata and handicrafts that were sold at their shop over the past year. Thanks so much for your long-time support!

A big thanks to Carol Lanigan and Moira Jones who raised money for Mustard Seeds in Ireland by selling handicrafts by Jeevika Development Society, Ankur Kala and various other small producers at Coffee Mornings they hosted and at a school fair. This money is "re-invested" into vocational programs by ordering more items that Mustard Seed friends and family can sell at fundraisers. Thank you so much for this needed boost!

Friends in Kentucky wrote to ask if they can use the story line of our children's book, To the Local Bazaar, as a small skit they will perform as part of their Bengali studies. We look forward to hearing how it turned out and have been promised photos too!

Finally, if you are on Facebook, you can now 'like' us at Mustard Seeds Kolkata too!

Reena

2010-12-07T19:21:00.001-08:00

Reena
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Her full name is Durgesh Nandini Das but at Mustard Seeds, we know her fondly by her nickname, Reena – much simpler to say.

Reena was born and brought up in Assam. She moved to Kolkata after she married in the year 1976. Her father, the Late Kali Prasanna Das, was a well known freedom fighter and an All India Trade Union Leader. The prime minister asked him to accept a nomination for Member of Parliament but he refused this offer because he didn't want to work under someone else. He was one of the first 'rail roko andolan' in Indian Railway (stopping trains as a means of non-violent protest). West Bengal's late Communist leader, Jyoti Basu, wrote a letter to him asking him to stop the railways.

With a lot of inspiration to respond to the injustices present in the world around her, Reena began her lifework in 1999. When she was living near a refugee colony that set fire one day, her father gathered up all the family belongings and began to cook food to give to those who had been victimized by the fire. Reena never forgot this act of generosity, she grew up in a home where she learned that if someone has a problem you should always help them.

Later in her life, she was working in an office on Middleton Road and began teaching Muslim street children on the footpath. She continued doing this work quietly on her own after work for one year.

Finally someone gave her support and she was granted one room from the building owner to start teaching the children there. She gathered the students after office hours and the total number of students reached 90 at that time. She now knew that this was her lifework, and that she did not want to work in an office anymore. Although she was only working part-time, she eventually decided to give her job up so she could fully dedicate herself to developing education opportunities in extremely marginalized communities.

Some people in her family told her to stop doing this kind of work and make money for her own family but she knew she wanted to continue. Around this time, she met up with our dear friend, Rosalie Giffaniello, who said she would be very happy to support Reena's important work. Now, by teaming up with Rosalie's organization, EMPOWER THE CHILDREN, and gaining a much wider support network, the two women have opened several beautiful schools: one school in Ulta Danga (vocational skills training), one school in Dhakindari (a large slum/literacy and skills training program), and one school in Krishnapur (mainly vocational skills with some literacy). An NGO near Middleton Street continues her literacy work for disadvantaged children there.

PUJA CLOTHING DRIVE COMPLETE

2010-10-24T23:30:00.000-07:00

During the week from 27 September to 1 October, 2010 Mustard Seeds conducted a used clothing drive at Calcutta International School. We had great help from Mrs. Pratima Nayar, Lee Ann Merrill, and Joydev Das who took charge of the whole operation by helping to set up the collection centre and make sure that donations were cleared from the school on a daily basis. CIS students, Joselyn, Malini and Rahul helped a lot with carrying the bags out of school and sorting.

Bundles and bundles of used clothing, still in good condition, came in each day with the help of the entire CIS school community. These were then carried out of school, taken home, and sorted in specific bundles for WOMEN, YOUNG WOMEN, GIRLS TOPS, GIRLS SLACKS, MEN, BOYS TOPS, BOYS TROUSERS, BABIES, ETC. to make distribution more straightforward on the receiving end. Lastly, a big thanks to Lalu for driving all the way from Santiniketan and back to help us with the distribution!

The clothing was then sent by truck to Suchana Community School in Khanjanpur Village (W. Bengal). Donations of clothing for teens and older people were also made to Prabartak Home in Salt Lake. More children's clothing is also being sent to Belun village and Shikshamitra school. There was such a large amount that we decided to spread it around wherever we felt it could be useful.

As you can see from the beautiful note and photos we received from SUCHANA (see below), the clothing was well received and it seems our efforts made a real difference to the children and families in the Suchana community. Don't they look grand in their 'new' clothes!

Thank you to everyone who made this effort a success. Hopefully we can make the Puja Clothing Drive an annual event at CIS!

Note from Kirsty at Suchana:

“We spent a happy morning on 24th October giving out 230 sets

of clothes to Suchana children and other family members.

These were collected, sorted and sent to Suchana in an inspiring

effort by Mustard Seeds-Kolkata and Calcutta International School.

Teachers spent Saturday making up sets for individual children and

Sunday admiring everyone's outfits. This was recycling for joy!

Many thanks to all those who donated clothes at CIS,

and to those who painstakingly helped Mustard Seeds

with sorting, sizing, and ordering.

You created a lot of smiley faces today.”

Magic School House Donations Welcome at Shikshamitra School

2010-08-07T20:51:00.000-07:00

Do you have children who have outgrown the popular Magic School Bus book series, and these books are now just sitting on a shelf gathering dust? If so, please consider donating them to SHIKSHAMITRA open learning centre in Kolkata (where I work).
http://shikshamitralearning.blogspot.com/

We have several students who have started to read at this level and are extremely interested in these books. We are hoping to try to collect at least some of the titles; used books from well wishers would be very appreciated. There is also a need for certain titles in this book series in our Education Resource Centre; they can be adapted for teacher training as well (into Bengali).

Please help us to make these books a part of our curriculum which aims to make learning fun and accessible to underprivileged children!

No donation is too small. Just pop the book(s) into an envelope or box and send them to us directly at:
SHIKSHAMITRA: An Open Learning Centre
62B Alipore Road
Kolkata 700027 INDIA

In particular, we are looking for the following titles for our library:

The Magic School Bus: And the Climate Challenge
The Magic School Bus Explores the Senses
The Magic School Bus At the Waterworks
The Magic School Bus And the Electric Field Trip
The Magic School Bus Inside a Hurricane
The Magic School Bus Inside the Human Body
The Magic School Bus The Search for the Missing Bones
The Magic School Bus Twister Trouble
The Magic School Bus The Giant Germ
KICKS UP A STORM: A Book About Weather
INSIDE RALPHIE: A Book About Germs
GETS EATEN: A Book About Food Chains

To be honest, any titles are appreciated. Thank You!
If you have any questions, you can email me at mseeds.maura@gmail.com

BOOKMARKS by DESTINY REFLECTION

2010-05-13T09:56:00.001-07:00

Mseeds bookmarks
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Some time ago, I met a woman from the States who has co-founded the organization Destiny Reflection here in Kolkata. This organization seeks to empower young women who have been trafficked in the sex trade or who are at risk of becoming so.

Seeing this as an important issue, especially in the porous border regions where Nepal, Bangladesh and West Bengal borders meet, Mustard Seeds is happy to give support to this group in the form of product development and marketing. Whenever Mustard Seeds comes across a vocational skills unit with goals and projects that echo our own, we try to identify and develop at least one product that we can produce and sell for them. Through this product, we can tell the story of the women who make these and create a network of people who want to learn more. Placing orders with the organization is one of the best ways of showing our support and creating meaningful work.

I am delighted to announce that Destiny Reflection now has an official website so please take some time out to learn more about this small, but quickly expanding organization that is working hard to address the issues of exploitation and poverty, especially amongst women.

If you wish to show your support with the purchase of bookmarks, please be in touch by email. Thank you to Susie McNaughton and Neil Haran for offering to host a small coffee morning fundraiser with Mustard Seeds in Ennis, Ireland this summer. These and other products by the groups we network with in Kolkata will be on display! Also, please let us know if there is a cooperative or bookshop that might be interested in selling these.

Earth Day Design Contest: 2010 Winner

2010-05-05T17:08:00.001-07:00

Earth Day Design Contest: 2010 Winner
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Mustard Seeds would like to thank ALL of those who participated in this year's eco-design contest. The task this year was to design a flag for Mother Earth. Our participants were from various schools both in and out of Kolkata!

The design shown here is one of the winners for design and artwork, by Akash M-B, age 11. We also acknowledge others whose designs really wowed us: Rahul C., age 9, for his original design which incorporated real leaves; Elizabeth R, age 9 for her friendly reminder to HELP Mother Earth; and Aman, age 8 who created a dramatic and colorful image of a peace sign protecting the planet. We have some nice eco-prizes for those who won and certificates for everyone who entered. These will be distributed next week.

We chose this flag because the artist was careful to describe each element in the design:
"In the flag, the blue represents water, the green represents trees and forests, and the white represents snow. I've drawn some endangered species in the places where they live. I hope you like it" His work has a bold design, a heartfelt message about an issue that concerns him, endangered species, and a well planned, succinct explanation of his work. We do like it – and would be proud to fly this flag high!

The winner for the written part of our contest is Anuja B, age 9, who took out some time to gather her thoughts on an issue she cares about, water. She shows how she tries to protect the planet:

Water
Water is a very important natural resource. If we do not conserve it, we WILL run out of this precious resource sooner or later. Whenever I brush my teeth, I think about the Earth – and turn the tap off. You may think that we have a lot of water left but you are wrong. You might not see it, but when you do a simple thing like turning a tap off you are saving a lot of water. I hope this essay inspired you and now you will also join the quest to save Mother Earth!
- Anuja B, age 9

+++++

All the work that came in is beautiful and is now adorning the walls of Mustard Seeds Library so please come have a look if you are in the area. Here are some more of the nice writings that our Earthinkers sent in. We thank them for taking the time to spend a moment thinking about this planet home we all share:

Plant Trees
I am worried that the trees are finishin on the Earth. I am worried about the Earth getting drowned in water. If global warming happens fast all the world will melt and become water covering the land. Where will we live? We should plant more trees to cool the Earth. Stop cutting trees.
-Viraj, age10

The environment around us is changing a lot. There are many things we should be concerned about, but I am mostly concerned about the pollution. This is not an issue in many other countries or places but I can see that it is in Calcutta. Everywhere I go, I see some trash around me. If this keeps on going, soon Calcutta will have trash covering the full roads! Then what will we do? There are many ways to stop this from happening. One is that more trash cans can be put in places. That way people will throw their trash in the bins and not litter the roads. The government could also make a law stating that anyone who is caught littering will have to pay a fine. The first way will probably be more effective since there are so many people in Calcutta! These were just two of the many ways we could stop having trash everywhere we go. Just keep in mind that this is just one problem and that there are many more!
-Avantika, age 12

THANKS EVERYONE!

Fair Trade Begins at Home

2010-04-18T20:34:00.001-07:00

Ankur Kala Squash
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

The number of useful products available from NGO vocational skills production units here in Kolkata is truly impressive: drink concentrates (see photo) by Ankur Kala, greeting cards, soaps, wrapping paper, matchboxes, hand-woven wash rags, spices and spice mixtures, eco-tote bags, blankets, gift items. I think we all know by now that making purchases directly from NGOs and village artisans means you are able to decide exactly what your money is being for.

If you live in Kolkata, in the summer months, you should definitely know about Ankur Kala's Jam, Squash and Pickles production unit. The women trainees at Ankur Kala produce bottles of squash in seasonal fruit flavours. I highly recommend the naturally made Lemon Squash as an alternative to any of the cold drinks you might normally reach for during the hottest months. Other delicious flavors are the Pineapple, Mango and the new Lemon-Orange Ginger combo! All you need to do is add a bit of squash to a glass, add water, stir – add ice if you like – and enjoy this deliciously refreshing summer drink cooler! You can also prepare a full bottle to keep in the fridge. An added bonus is the glass containers which are earth friendly and allow us to avoid more plastic bottles which are not recyclable. Ankur Kala will take back bottles when you are finished. For the health conscious, there are selections such as karela juice, carrot juice, and mousam (sweet lime) juice.

I order several bottles at a time and have even become a distribution outlet for those who like this product in my neighborhood and at my children's school. THey make the perfect gift for teachers as school lets out. I've sold 30 bottles for Ankur Kala in the past two months! If you place a large order, they will deliver, or you can call and order for pick up from their workshop on Park Street (close to Park Circus). It's a nice way to give this dedicated organization your support. Please place an order and spread the word!

ANKUR KALA was started in 1982 by a dear friend of mine, Annie Joseph. The organisation aims to provide impoverished and marginalized women opportunities to break free and stand on their own by developing business skills and training in various crafts and food production. Ankur Kala provides skill training in batik, tailoring, catering and the production of jams, squash, pickles, etc. The group is commited to holistic training so that the women trainees will be agents of change in society.

Opting to stay out of shops like Archies and the big shopping malls cropping up all over the city for gift items means you can use your spending power to support excellent projects and spread the word about these NGOs who are always in need of our ideas and support.

If you would like to order, please be in touch with:

Annie at Ankur Kala
3 Meher Ali Road
Kolkata 700 017
Tel : 033 2287 8476 / 2283 5990 / 6517 6649

* Ankur Kala squash is also available at Sasha Shop on Free School Street

Exercise your purchasing power by putting your money where it can really benefit locally!

Calcutta 100 CLub 2010: Supplies for the Kitchen at BALO

2010-02-06T18:33:00.000-08:00

Balo is a small, volunteer organization working in the Howrah district of Kolkata, a satellite town of Calcutta, that is in an extremely dilapidated state. Howrah is situated beyond the river Hooghly and connected to Calcutta by the famous Howrah Bridge. It is an extremely marginalized area that is known to have been the inspiration for Dominique Lapierre's famed novel, The City of Joy. Residents in the area where Balo is working to provide some basic relief and education services must cope with open sewers and garbage pits on a daily basis, along with scarcity of water taps and lack of any toilets. Most families live all together in a single brick room or shanty, with the door being the only source of light.

Balo aims to involve the local people in all aspects of its initiatives. In particular, Balo' is involved as much as possible in the training of young women from this Howrah area. Balo runs a program that provides young women with technical sewing and embroidery skills. The courses are run by a local Indian woman and an Italian seamstress, Elisabetta, who journeys back and forth to Howrah share her skills and designs. The young women are producing handmade fashion clothing and accessories, which are sold in Italy at special events and venues. The women are receiving very fair salaries for their work and are supported with livelihood needs. This activity provides funds to support the other work being done by Balo'.

Balo also runs programs to sponsor the education of children in English-medium schools and to provide nutritious meals and day care to youngsters. Recently they purchased a small flat in order to have a permanent place where healthy meals can be prepared for the younger children, especially. They are hoping to set up a kitchen in this flat and have asked help from Mustard Seeds.

For the next Calcutta 100 Club project, I'd like to propose we collect the amount they need to purchase the cooking pots, gas stove, utensils and other basic kitchen items. The estimated amount for this is Rs. 8,000 which is approximately US$ 150. Please email me if you would like to put your C-100-C $10 contribution towards this (mseeds.maura@gmail.com).

Suchana cards 2009

2009-11-09T00:07:00.001-08:00

Suchana cards 2009
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

As some of you may know, Suchana designs and prints a set of six beautiful greeting cards each year as a means of raising funds for their learning center project in Khanjanpu. Here are the latest designs, all created by students at Suchana.

You can choose from two different inside greetings: "Season's Greetings" or "With Best Wishes for Christmas and the New Year" or blank.

If you know of a place where these can be sold we would appreciate hearing from you. And, if you would like to purchase a set (or more) for yourself, please be in touch with me by email and I will be happy to get them to you right away. Each set of six costs US$6 = postage. I have a big stock of these! (mseeds.maura@gmail.com)

This year all the funds will be used to expand the curriculum at the newly built school.

There are also cute memo pads for $1 each.

Anandneer

2009-11-05T21:15:00.001-08:00

Anandneer
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

This week I visited Anandneer to purchase some of their paper products for an upcoming holiday bazaar. I was very excited to see the beautiful, well-organized workshop and other facilities at this bright space located in South Calcutta.

Anandneer is an initiative of the REACH school, developing training and employment opportunities for a very talented group of mentally and physically challenged artisans. The organization seeks to provide security for those students who have graduated from the school and are moving onto independent livelihoods.

Some of the beautiful products being made here include wrapping paper, shopping bags, and envelopes. I got a very nice demonstration of the printing techniques used to design the wrapping paper.

"Uplifting" efforts by Suchana

2009-10-21T20:21:00.000-07:00

Book Project by Students of Suchana

For those who contributed to the Suchana Centre building fund, I thought you might like to have more information on the kind of education program going on there.

You may find this article to be of interest. It is a review of the book that Suchana recently published in Bengali, featuring creative writings and illustrations by the students. The review goes on to include interviews with teachers and shows the spirit of Suchana's philosophy!

Please note that the article has one misinterpretation: it seems to say that the children at Suchana don't go to the government schools because they cannot access them - but nearly all of them do go, and suchana acts as a back up to that.

If you are interested in getting a copy of the book, you can email me or Kirsty at:milward.bose@gmail.com

Thanks to our guest

2009-10-20T21:55:00.001-07:00

tamio: diary workshop
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

A friend of ours often has couch surfers staying with her and since two people were coming from Japan she pointed me in the direction of their websites. When I had a look at TAMIO'S website I got very excited by his collage and writing talents. He has self-published his travel diaries. Ruchira and I rigged up a way for these two couch surfers to visit Mustard Seeds on the way to their couch, and in so doing... I was able to snag another guest to come visit my students at Shikshamitra.

Last Thursday, we all sat in a big circle and talked about diary writing.
How many of you keep a diary?
When would you keep a diary?
What sort of things do people write in their diaries?
Why would someone keep a diary?
What sort of things would go in a diary?
After a discussion prompted by these questions, Tamio and I passed around our own diaries and let the children look through them. Then we talked again about what kind of things a person can include.

Using a book-origami fold we turned big sheets of brown paper into small notebooks for each of the kids and then we let them start making their own collage-filled diaries. Most of the kids got the idea right off, and started making beautiful works of art but we ran out of time so I will continue the class next week.

Thanks so much to Tamio and Jody for joining us and sharing their ideas and creativity with us!

Our annual gift of rice to Basha

2009-09-06T06:45:00.001-07:00

MSeeds again
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

An update is needed on some of the recent fundraising and giving Mustard Seeds has done with the help of friends in Japan and the US:

This photo is a receipt showing our second annual donation to cover the purchase of rice at BASHA school. The money came from sale of handicrafts in Japan and donations received by well wishers. Basha runs on a pretty low budget but believes that providing a nutritious meal each day offers more than just an incentive to attend, it offers a chance at good physical and mental health too. They do not want to scrimp on the lunches provided to children every afternoon. I visited Basha in early August and was happy to see how big all the kids are becoming -- and smart too!

Also from funds collected in Japan, we were able to pay for new crutches for Ashok Sarkar who often visits our home in Salt Lake, and for Karuna Chitrakar's second eye surgery.

Thanks also to the Portland International Gourmet Society (PIGS), who raised money for Mustard Seeds at one of their monthly gourmet gatherings! This money will go toward Shikamitra's Learn and Earn Program.

Ashok Sarkar

And for those who gave to the Calcutta 100 Club effort to help get the new Suchana building up and running, here is the latest photo from Kirsty and Rahul! It's looking great and reports have it that there is a flurry of activity at the new school! I hope to be visiting very soon for a first-hand view!

Calcutta 100 Club Fundraising Update 2009

2009-05-17T18:12:00.000-07:00

A special thanks to each and every one of you who responded to our shout for funds to help build Suchana's new education resource center and some other programs happening in Kolkata. Through your most generous contributions (amounting to over Rs. 37000) Suchana has been able to achieve its goal of getting the building up before the monsoon rains. It is very exciting to hear updates as the building work takes place. It looks like the Suchana community will actually be using the new space from July! I have to say that it really was with great pride that I handed over the funds to the Suchana Committee as it trickled in, and I hope that once the building is finished we can also help them to stabilize their all-expanded curriculum and help some other important projects here – in our Mustard Seed-size way!

In the latest Suchana newsletter, Kirsty writes:

Watching this building come up is not just exciting...it’s incredible! It is the result of a combined effort by so many people –Suchana’s teachers, Committee, builders, helpers, advisors, fundraisers, friends, family, and all those of you who have helped us with donations. It’s also inspiring – this is the space where we are finally going to be able to pull together all the potential gathered over the last 4 years and put it into a structured but flexible full-time programme. That is a big responsibility – but there’s a lot of anticipation and enthusiasm here about taking this responsibility on.

The veranda roof, which many of you have specifically helped us build, is due to be completed by next week. If all goes well, we will be ‘moving in’ during the June holiday and from July, Suchana will be in operation from the new site! Through July and August we will be running our current ELG and Health programmes, and in September we will begin the new elements of the full-time programme in phases – ‘tuitions’ for middle school children; extra pre-school mornings; computer training; full-time library and supervised space for reading, completing homework assignments or working on art projects. By December, we hope to start working on extending the library facilities to new members from other villages.

Construction is never completely plain sailing though. Having finally gathered together the paper work to make an application for an electricity connection (funded by another great combined effort by the Calcutta100 Club and Mustard Seeds) we discovered that we couldn’t pay the local building tax required before an application will be accepted until after the General Election. The election has been phased and has just been finalised so if we’re lucky we can now make the application and will have electricity for our July start.

The ELG library is really flourishing, and we would be very grateful for help in expanding this extremely effective literacy resource. We have the site – now we just need more books! We especially need children’s Bengali books. Simple English books (Ages 1-6) are also useful. The books we ‘manage’ are read by many, many children!

==============

So, hats off to each and every one of you who contributed and to my sister, Margo Baker, who has been helping me with this project! Suchana is making an effort to improve its work with the older children now studying in middle school and much of this new work will be in the early evenings. Having electricity is vital to this part of the programme in particular. In the new building, Suchana plans to open up a free study room so that children can read and work on projects in the evenings – most of the Suchana students have no electricity at home. We are making this possible!

2009 Calcutta 100 Club contributions (Jan-Aug):

SUCHANA: Kate Goldman, Jan Fujikawa, Rajita Majumdar and Family, Chris Rickerd, Rick Pestana, Jean Sullivan, Mary Clock-Rust, Sagaree Sengupta and Family, Kyoko Hosoki, Domi Long, One World English School, Jen Blain & Family, Marguerite Shaddy, Nancy Anchor, Ann Overton, Stephen Mackerras, Atula Ahuja, Susie McNaughton, Neil Haran and the Nara Team (Rex Tanimoto, Catriona Takeuchi, Makoto Takeuchi, Kiyomi Asada, Mr. Asada, Fumie Fujimoto, Junko Tsuda, Darlene Itoh, Steve Nishida, Brock McKinnon)

Jenifer Douglas and Family have made a contribution to SHUKTARA, a home for young boys and girls with disabilities.

Mary and Peter Max gave the amount to pay for this school year's donation of rice for the students at BASHA school. Calcutta 100 Club covered this cost last year and when I visited Basha recently I was told that they are counting on us for this each year!

Kolkata Seeds Japan continues to pay the rent at SHIKSHAMITRA, an alternative curriculum secondary school and also sponsor the education for six of the students at BASHA.

TO DONATE: Please email me for further details.

1. US • Check payable to: Maura Hurley
Send to: Margo Hurley (Calcutta 100 Club)
285 Brewer Hill Road
Batesville, AR 72501-5228
Mark ‘Calcutta 100’ in memo space

2. JAPAN • Please send by postal transfer to
The account:
mustard seed, japan
00980-9-30045
Mark ‘Calcutta 100’ in memo space

3. UK • Post a cheque made out to 'Friends of Suchana' to :
Friends of Suchana
Clare's Forstal / Throwley Forstal / Faversham / Kent ME13 0PJ
* UK tax payers should ask Angela to send them a Gift Aid form so Suchana gets a 28% tax rebate on the donation: angela@claresforstal.plus.com

EARTH DAY 2009 with Class 4 EARTHinkers

2009-04-21T17:58:00.000-07:00

I have had the pleasure of working with some of the students at my own childrens' school in an afterschool club. We formed a small ecology club called Class 4 EARTHinkers and we have been concentrating on learning about easy things we can do to better understand the problems facing the planet and where kids fit in to make change. It's casual and fun and there is a lot of hands-on stuff too!

For the Monday Assembly at school, in honor of Earth Day, the children performed a small play called THE ABC's of Helping the Planet. The children developed their own props and variations, and all played their parts beautifully with great enthusiasm...and the audience told us that they learned a lot! Here is the play, edited a bit, in case anyone else wants to get inspired by our EARTHinkers group too.

THE ABC's of HELPING THE PLANET
A play performed by Class 4 EARTHinkers for Earth Day 2009

I think you all know that our good friend, Mother Earth, is in trouble.

We share the Earth with many people and other living creatures, including plants and insects. The Earth gives us many special gifts in which to live: trees for books, sand for building, water for drinking and bathing, scenery for feeling peace and harmony -- you name it, it ALL comes from our Mother Earth. With the population increasing we need to think about how we can protect the planet, and not strip her of her glorious gifts for future generations.

At school we can learn more about this incredible planet we live on and also learn ways in which to live in harmony. For this celebration of Teacher's Day, we will introduce a few ideas and suggestions for what kids can do to start making a difference in protecting the environment. This list is just the beginning, surely we can all come up with plenty more ideas of our own. It's time to become very best friends of the Earth!

A is for ANIMALS
Animals have feelings, just as you and I do. Just like us, they feel heat and cold, sun and rain. Just like us, they enjoy a comfortable place to live, good food, and loving attention. They miss you when you are away, and they remember things that have happened to them. With house pets, it is easy to provide these things but just because wild animals are not your pets doesn’t mean you cannot do nice things for them. You can help wild animals by enjoying them where they belong – outdoors, wild and free. Animals taken from the wild may not survive in an unnatural setting. You can plant colorful flowers to attract butterflies, be careful about using paper to protect forests where so many animals make their homes. Feed the birds. There are many ways. Let’s not let any one of the animal species become extinct due to human activity. The Earth belongs to everyone – animals too!

B is for BRUSH
Toothbrush that is! We all brush our teeth, right? Well, next time you are standing there brushing – check yourself! Are you letting precious water just pass down the drain or do you always remember to turn off the tap while brushing? It's another one of those very simple ways we can all help to save resources!

C is for CARRY YOUR OWN
It is such an easy thing to do and makes a big difference! What is it? Carry your own bags when you go to the market. Plastic bags are DANGEROUS – they clog drains, are harmful to animals when consumed, and pollute the soil and air with chemicals as they never decompose. Of course we cannot get rid of plastic bags completely but we can use them more wisely and not overuse them. Why not say, “No!” to plastic bags and decorate a bag yourself. You’ll be the most fashionable shopper around!

D is for DUSTBIN
Putting all our snack wrappers and other trash items into the dustbin shows we care, and want to keep our own environment green. PUTTING TRASH IN ITS PLACE is an easy first step to taking responsibility for the earth. Please do not litter. Especially, do not throw items off your veranda or out windows or onto the roads. This simple change – that begins with you – will help make Kolkata beautiful and clean! Put it in the bin…and grin with pride!

E is for EARTH DAY
Earth Day happens on April 22. The first one was held in 1970, thanks to a US Senator who decided to do something about the polluted highways, rivers, and air around him. That year, millions of people organized parades, rallies, nature walks, and community gatherings. People collected trash, planted trees, shared ideas, and rode on bicycles instead of cars. New laws were passed to protect the water, air, soil and wildlife. Now many kinds of celebrations are held around the world to show how much people care about Mother Earth and want to learn how to protect her...but why not make EVERY day an Earth Day??!!

F is for FIND OUT
If you are concerned about environmental problems, start to find out more by reading the newspaper and books, checking out the Internet, or contacting organizations around you who are working to make changes. You will be surprised how much there is out there – and how much fun it is to start being environmentally informed!

G is for GARDEN
You don't have to have a lot of land to experience the joy of watching a seed sprout and nurturing the plants. Make a veranda garden or find a small space outside where you can put in a few plants and tend them. It is great fun to grow something you can eat with a friend!! Helping to green our surroundings means cleaner air and more peaceful surroundings for everyone!

H is for HEALTH
Take care of yourself! If you really want to help save the earth, start by helping yourself first. Eat healthy foods (not too much junk food or sweets), sleep well and enough, and avoid too much stress. Schoolwork is important but it is not the end of the world if you aren't first every time. Try to find organic vegetables. Last but not least, LAUGH! We may not be able to solve all our problems with laughter, but we can make the world a more pleasant place to live in for ourselves and for others!

I is for IDEAS
If you are concerned about the planet, share your IDEAS with your friends, family and teachers, or write something to the newspaper. Young people have a big stake in how environmental problems are dealt with and your IDEAS and creativity could be an important voice. What’s YOUR idea?

J is for JUNGLE
The word ‘jungle’ has a romantic image (remember Jungle Book?). Unfortunately there are fewer and fewer jungles left today. If you live in Kolkata, you could take a trip down to the Sunderbans or try one of several national parks in Orissa (Simplipal) or Bihar (Hazaribagh). Maybe you will catch a glimpse of our friend, the Bengal Tiger! Exploring Nature is a great way to understand our place in the ecosystem.

K is for KEEP TRYING
Even though some problems seem very big or too difficult to tackle alone, one should never give up hope. Find people who think like you. Work together when tackling a difficult problem. Sometimes it takes a long time before you can see any results, but don’t give up. Keep trying to do at least one nice thing for our planet every day. We all need to start somewhere and if we all work together we will have a healthier world with protected wildlife and cleaner land, water and air…What on Earth could be better than that?!

L is for LEAK
If you notice a leak in your tap, quickly put a bucket under it to collect and reuse that water. Repair it as soon as possible – water is precious. Remember: Always try to minimize the amount of water you use for washing clothes, dishes, and yourself, and don't throw oil or poisons down the drains. It all comes back to us, and threatens animals and plant life in the water!

M is for MAKE
Instead of buying greeting cards and gifts, why not make your own from recycled materials you collect? A hand-made presentation always means much more to the receiving party! Collect cardboard, papers, and wrappers that might add a sparkle to what you make -- that's recycling at its best!!

N is for NATURE
You don't have to go far…Nature is all around you -- even if you live in the city. Don't forget to stop and smell a flower, note its name, watch an insect or bird move, notice the shape of a leaf, etc. There is a lot of interesting activity around you that you can learn from – so don't miss it!

O is for OLD
In these modern times everyone is telling us that NEW is best but OLD things contain memories, family history, and love that can never be found in new items that don't last. Use the things you have until they become old, instead of always replacing them with new things…and you may find that they tell a unique story in the end! After all, OLD IS GOLD!

P is for POWER
How about SOLAR? India has something very plentiful…and that's the SUN! The sun is definitely one of the energy sources of the future! Solar panels may look like futuristic, expensive equipment but new designs are proving all the time that it pays to install them. Even in cloudy conditions, they take energy from the sun, a free, renewable source that is available to everyone and causes less damage to the environment.

Q is for QUESTION
Ask Questions! To get to know your local environment you will need to ask some simple questions. For example, Where does the water you drink come from? Where does the garbage you produce go? Where are the vegetables you eat grown? Getting the answers to these will start you on your way to understanding your surroundings and will make you curious about things you can change.

R is for RECYCLE
Recycling is when things that have been used once are processed and turned into new things. Paper, plastic and aluminum are easily recycled at factories but we can do important recycling in our everyday lives too. Use both sides of every paper, keep receipts for memo paper, separate items that can be recycled by someone else and be sure you give them to a collector. Other good R's? Let your kitchen wastes Rot in a special place called a compost heap; Reduce how much you use; Repair things instead of buying new, Reuse an item in a new way; and Rethink how you do certain things related to waste.

S is for SHARING
Sharing things is a friendly way to help conserve resources. For example, instead of buying every book you want, become a member of a library. Or share your books, games, toys, art supplies, etc. among your friends instead of everyone having to buy their own. Adults and children can share a ride with a friend on the way to work or school – save some fuel. Just slowing down our fast-paced city lifestyle to SHARE some time with an elderly person, and hear the stories of yesteryear can save the planet in an extra special way.

T is for TRANSPORTATION
In rural societies human activities did not demand moving around since most people worked close to home. Urbanization (people living in cities, not villages) has changed this and we all routinely travel far from our houses for our daily business. Unfortunately this means production of noxious gases from buses, taxis, and private cars. Did you know you can do without this pollution? Simply choose mass transportation: ride a tram, bus, train – going by bicycle or just on foot is best. How can you reduce your carbon footprint on Mother Earth?

U is for USING
This one is about "using" energy – wisely. Electricity is a bright idea, a hot idea, and a cool idea! It gives us light, heat, air conditioning, and other great things. We need to be careful how much electricity we use because most electricity comes from burning coal or oil – and causes air pollution. So turn off lights, TVs, battery chargers, computers when you are done using them. Then you won't be an energy "loser" -- you will be a winner! And so will the Earth.

V is for VISION
The word vision has a simple meaning – to see. When one can SEE far ahead in time, it has a very different meaning. What we do today and what we plan to do tomorrow always has its effect on how our day will go next week. In other words, we can plan our future by doing the right thing today. If we use up all the oil and coal reserves in the next ten years, we will end up with no fuel and a polluted atmosphere ten years from now. A person with vision will reduce the use of fossil fuel and plan to produce machines that use alternate sources of energy. Let us all create an inner vision time that looks ahead for future generations.

W is for WATER
When it comes to water, "what goes around comes around" is an important saying. Water keeps all of Earth's creatures alive so we really need to take care of it. That means two things: keeping water clean and making sure we don't waste it. The Earth will always have the same amount of water but the number of people sharing it continues to grow.

X is for “DON'T” SMOKE
There is more and more advertising directed at young people to get them to take up the smoking habit but whatever you see, remember that smoking is not cool, and it is very unhealthy for the smoker and the people around them. If someone you love smokes, ask them to find a healthier way to relax and get rid of tensions – so you can relax too!

Y is for YOUTH
And don't forget YOU! The youth of today are the "citizens" of tomorrow. If we all make an honest effort to study environmental problems and work on solutions to them, we will be doing a great service to the next generation. It really IS up to us!!

Z is for ZOO
We all love a trip to the zoo but nowadays we can learn all about animals and wildlife by reading books and watching TV. Is it really necessary to keep our friends the animals, who are happiest left in the wild, in small cages in the city? You can learn more about animals by viewing them in their natural setting anyhow. Let's think about this important issue all together!

Trailing Shuktara

2009-03-21T19:05:00.000-07:00

Discovering Deaf Worlds (DDW) is an opportunity to give deaf people worldwide a voice. Founded in January 2007, this organization travels the world to learn and share stories of empowerment, inspiration and connection between international Deaf communities.

DDW's first documentary film, is the remarkable story of 18 boys and girls in Kolkata, India who were given a new chance at life after being abandoned by their families or escaping abusive homes. While many non-governmental organizations in India often overlook homeless children who are deaf or have cerebral palsy, Shuktara embraces them.

"(Before), they were written off as incapable of learning, developing as individuals or integrating into society," says Shuktara Founder, David Earp. "(Now), the boys and girls grow in every sense - physically, in confidence, in skills, in communication."

Shuktara is a home filled with love that seeps into your heart. Instead of being reckless, aggressive and angry, these kids show affection, gratitude, and support for each other. They have created a family of their own. The home is run by David Earp who has become a a good friend of mine here and his dedicated friend Pappu. They are doing fundraising to be able to purchase the house where the boys live so that they can ensure a PERMANENT house for the boys, and hopefully next, the girls.

About 8 months into the worldwide trip by members of DDW, they made it to Kolkata at last - and were introduced to David, Pappu and the boys and girls at Shuktara. They said that they were so touched by the energy of the house and the family-like environment that has been created there that they decided to return. Out of over 100 organizations in 8 countries that were visited and documented, Shuktara was the only place they returned to. They spent a total of 5 weeks with Shuktara, and two interns from Galladuet University with language development training. DDW intends to work with Shuktara from here on out--a lifelong commitment to continue providing deaf role models and language development teachers to further the communication skills of all of these children---though many of them are no longer children!

Please have a look at this heartwarming video -- I look forward to the full-length that is due out soon and will be shown in NYC and Rochester, among other places. If you have an interest in supporting Shuktara in some way, please be in touch!

Help to Build a Permanent Learning Centre in rural West Bengal!

2009-01-16T19:48:00.001-08:00

This Christmas and New Year we spent time at our friends place just outside of Santiniketan in rural West Bengal. As some of you know, these friends run a school for some of the surrounding villages, it is called Suchana. The program is very dear to my heart and I have taken part in some of the classes and planning over the years. This new year, as I took a beautiful morning walk over to the site where the new school is being built (funds providing), I made a new year resolution to get the word out about this project and raise funds to get the school built before the monsoons.

My first channel is you, my friends and those who have given to the Calcutta 100 Club before. With just $350 we can get the electricity and phone lines connected for the school. This can be done as soon as the money is raised. If we can raise my targeted $1000 through other means and widening our circle of supporters for this particular project, then we can also help to put some roofing over the outdoor verandah spaces, which will double the classroom space.

I know times are difficult, but I can guarantee the worthwhile, progressive work being done here. I am asking you to put on your thinking caps for ideas and/or give a minimal amount on your own if possible. If you can think of ways to raise money through schools, kids groups, offices, churches, bake sales, creative projects, etc. I think we can really make a significant change in this village through our combined efforts -- and I will be happy to take you there for a visit when you visit!

Again, it doesn't have to be anything too grand. I've seen that with a little bit from many, good things happen can happen – quickly. And the neat thing is that we can say that, TOGETHER, we helped create a more just, more creative, more caring learning environment for these children.

Send me an email if you don't understand any part of this project...as I tend to be very confusing, I know. Or if you want to brainstorm fundraising possibilities. My sister, Margo Baker, is collecting the money (checks made out to me which are deposited there and taken out in cash here) and keeping track of donations in the US. This information is on the Calcutta 100 Club form/School building info sheet which I can email you upon request. There is a postal transfer account in Japan and the school has a trustee fund in the UK (email me for details).

1. US • Check payable to: Maura Hurley
Send to: Margo Hurley (Calcutta 100 Club)
285 Brewer Hill Road
Batesville, AR 72501-5228
Mark ‘Calcutta 100’ in memo space

2. JAPAN • Please send by postal transfer to
The account:
mustard seed, japan
00980-9-30045
Mark ‘Calcutta 100’ in memo space

3. UK • Post a cheque made out to 'Friends of Suchana' to :
Friends of Suchana
Clare's Forstal / Throwley Forstal / Faversham / Kent ME13 0PJ
* UK tax payers should ask Angela to send them a Gift Aid form so Suchana gets a 28% tax rebate on the donation: angela@claresforstal.plus.com

I am putting this out there...with a hope for a new learning centre to sprout up in one of my favorite places, Khanjanpur Village! From there, the possibilities are endless.

Thanks always,
Maura

PS: More information (such as building updates, newsletters, photos, etc. can be provided if needed for a board or display)

Art is all around

2008-12-10T19:32:00.001-08:00

2008EX_invite
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

The news and various other media often seem to portray Kolkata as all doom, gloom, helpless poverty...one can really feel like life is all in the gutter here if you read such reports. There is a little paradise I visit twice a week (sometimes more) on the second floor, in a rented apartment and it brings me much hope and provides me with an outlet for my creativity.

Here is an English write-up for the art exhibition that has been substituting for eating, sleeping and breathing lately...and xmas preparations as well. It was written by our principal and students. I am finding over and over that alternative education...is really an attitude, a way of life. It's what I walk. I so wish that all my family and friends could attend this as I somehow feel it is about every step I've taken, every country I've spent time in, every journal entry I've written, every day I have spent cutting and pasting stuff, every envelope I've saved, person I have met, vegetable scrap I've mixed into the compost.....(you get the picture)

SOMETH!NG D!FFERENT

This two-day event at SHIKSHAMITRA is not just a “school art exhibition.”

Drawing, painting, sewing, various crafts, watching art pieces , films, listening to music, theatre, dancing – all of these are part of our daily classes.

✺ Anita Sardar:
“Drawing, clay modeling, sewing, theatre, singing, dancing are essential to studying anything because there are many who do not like to do just ‘reading’.”

Here “art” is not just two periods per week or an “extra curricular” activity. Art is everywhere all the time – on the walls, on doors, on the floor, on the blackboards. It is on paper and on cloth; and even in the exams. People think this is an “Art School.” Singing and theatre are part of English classes as well as those of Geography.

✺ Indu:
“Our school is different. If there is drawing and painting with lessons, then studying becomes fun. It also becomes easy to teach. In other schools, they give books and ask that you only write in there but we don’t do that here. We do writing and drawing – after we read anything.”

Not just paper, but clay and cloth are our constant companions. But we rarely “buy” these. Used papers, thongas (envelopes from used papers), thrown away paper boxes, old clothes are re-created and re-used for drawing, painting, stitching.

This exhibition gives a glimpse of three and half years of Shikshamitra’s total educational efforts. We hope you will get some idea of what we are trying to achieve and the role of Art in all of this.

✺ Shantanu Naskar:
“We can’t remember anything only by reading, so we draw what we love to do and enjoy. Then we “read” the drawing.”

it's about people. it's about you and me.

2008-11-20T21:55:00.000-08:00

Sharing Books

2008-10-23T07:30:00.001-07:00

After visiting Shikshamitra during her visit to Kolkata, when she conducted two excellent drawing classes with my students, a teacher at the UN International School, Chrysanthi Fairchild, came up with this simple yet effective idea for donating books to schools here in Kolkata.

It is a fun project that is connecting up kids from the US with kids here...through their love of books! Her idea was so simple -- just give out an envelope with the Mustard Seeds Library address on it and ask children to send a book or two to someone in Kolkata. It's called Kolkata Kidz Connection.

As the books roll in (and we have already received 55 of them....), I will either place them on the shelves of our home library where many local children borrow from, or donate them to NGO schools according to the level of the book.

Here is a report from a recent assembly held at her school:

Last Friday October 3rd, the Middle One students at the United Nations International School in New York City watched Ms. Fairchild’s slide show about her trip to India. Ms. Fairchild spoke about the sights and sounds of this far- away country and described the schools that she had visited: the International School of Calcutta and the Shikshamitra School in Alipore. She spoke about the lack of reading material she had noticed at the schools and how students at UNIS are surrounded by books and take reading books for granted.
She then showed the envelopes prepared by her class and explained the idea of mailing a book or two to students in India, perhaps with a message, and how a book can be so important to improve reading comprehension, develop imagination as well as inform a person. The envelopes were distributed and a large poster with a place for a tally was displayed in the lounge so that the students can keep track of the books sent.

For the NGO schools, we are especially in need of books for children ages 1-8: picture books and easy readers for up to Grade 2. If you would like to work with a group of children you know and make the Kolkata Kidz Connection project grow, please be in touch at mseeds.maura@gmail.com. The books are truly appreciate and never sit on the shelf for very long! Each book will find a proper home and an eager reader.

www.shuktarahome.org

2008-10-12T08:12:00.000-07:00

Recently I have befriended some very inspirational people working here in Kolkata. I could go on and on about how dedicated they are and how they are making a difference but I think their story and the people they work with say so much more. Here is an article that is due to go on the Discovering Deaf Worlds website shortly, written by a couple, Christy and Dave, who stayed at Shuktara. They are travelling the globe looking at deaf communities and decided to hang out with this organization. Christy is deaf and Dave is hearing. Their website is www.discoveringdeafworlds.com.

I hope you will be inspired too, as I have been over and over again living here in Kolkata, and seeing so many people reach out selflessly to bring upliftment to someone else -- in this case children who were once in situations that felt completely desperate, and who have not only found hope but more importantly a sense of true security. I hope that I can find my own mustard seed-sized way to help SHUKTARA grow, to keep this Kolkata star shining on brightly.

======

A Star of Happiness Shines in Kolkata

Shantara grew up on a farm in India the only deaf child of seven siblings. His father is unknown and two of his brothers died young from lack of medical care. His mother used to beat him and he was often ridiculed for being deaf. One day Shantara had enough and ran away. He boarded a train and arrived at Howrah train station in Kolkata where he would find a way to survive on the tracks. His source for food involved chasing down and tackling rats, crows and wild hens. With gathered newspapers from the streets, he would cook whatever he caught on a makeshift stove. Shantara was found and placed in several different home environments but always teased because he was deaf. Again and again, he would run away and return to Howrah station to live on his own. He was nine years old.

Anna was born in Tamil Nadu, South India. He is partially deaf, epileptic and has learning and behaviour problems. After his mother died, his family did not know what to do with him. His father took him on a long train ride. Anna fell asleep. When he woke, his father had left him. He was alone, confused and roaming around the unfamiliar tracks of Howrah station. Picked up by a local homecare, Anna was often beaten and drugged to a point of comatose to keep him quiet. He was 10 years old.

Sumon has cerebral palsy and is unable to walk without assistance. One day his brother took him for a taxi ride to Howrah station. He removed Sumon's clothes, rubbed him with dirt and left him lying on the ground with 10 rupees (25 cents) tied to his wrist in a handkerchief. He was 6 years old.

Rekha and Bapi, both deaf, possibly lived together at Howrah station. No one knows much about their families or their background before this time. They could be siblings, or just friends who met while fighting for survival. As trains arrived to this central destination in Kolkata, Rekha, Bapi, and several other children would race through the cabins, rummaging for any leftovers before the train departed on its next destination. They were 7-8 years old.

These are only a handful of stories from the thousands of children who end up at Howrah Station. Some of them are abandoned by families who want nothing to do with a child who has a disability. Others run away themselves to escape a life of abuse and mistreatment. Yet some families drop off these children with hopes and prayers for opportunity that someone better off can look after their child. What happens to these children when they arrive at Howrah station? For many, this will remain their lives, as they know it into adulthood, if they survive. Aware of the enormity of child homelessness in this area, many NGOs (Non-Government Organizations) and homecare facilities search for these children to place them in a home. But oftentimes those homes, as Shantara and Anna experienced, are abusive and unreliable.

So let us now tell you about the magic of Shuktara, a place of hope, stability, equality, safety, freedom and love. In 1999, David Earp of the UK, with helping hands from Alison Saracena and Brian Forst of the US began a home to take in those disabled or deaf children of Howrah Station. Immediate basic needs were met: a place to sleep and bathe, a staff to provide three meals a day, and most importantly, a loving, safe environment that will forever be there for them. Shuktara now provides two homes, one for 15 boys and another for 3 girls. Many of them go to school, and some even have jobs where they willingly share their earnings with other boys and girls at the home.

In these two homes, there is no oppression based on your caste level, no inequality because of your sex, and no discriminating attitudes towards any disability. Meet Pappu. Born in the Brahmin caste, Pappu was handed a life of opportunity, comfort, education and security. At age 19, by circumstance, he was living nearby the recently established boys home of Shuktara. He began hanging out with the boys, learning sign language, and getting more involved with their lives. In this time Pappu discovered a greater purpose for his life and, despite his family's strong disapproval, left their home to live with the boys at Shuktara. Eight years later, Pappu now manages the home, is fluent in sign language (as well as Bengali, Hindi and English), and has become an instrumental role model to his community.

Shuktara means "Star of Happiness" and the moment you step through the door, you understand why. There is so much love and appreciation from the eyes and hands that greet you, regardless of the unbelievable stories these boys and girls come from. By learning behaviours from humanitarians like David, Pappu, Alison and Brian, these children now take care and support each other. They have created their own family. A place of belonging. A place where they feel safe. And a place they feel free from the limitations the outside world once laid on them. This is the immaculate beauty of Shuktara.

CALCUTTA 100 CLUB SERVES UP RICE

2008-08-18T07:00:00.001-07:00

BASHA: afternoon meal
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Today I visited Basha, which means "nest" in Bengali. This school was named to suggest that this is a place where children can get the protection and education they need to eventually take off and fly for themselves. The school started up about one year ago to provide basic primary education and health facilities to very young children from families who live in the nearby area. The students' parents work for very low wages as domestic help, drivers, rickshaw wallahs, mechanics, etc. and often find it hard to manage education for their children.

While going over the school budget and wish list with Saswati-di, the principal at Basha, I decided to use up the money that has been sitting with me from the last collection by Calcutta 100 Club. I added a little to make the amount we needed. Every evening, the children are served a meal of rice and dal, along with some other item like chicken or an egg, etc. This ensures that the child gets one nutritionally balanced meal each day and is an important part of the school program.

Thank you to our Calcutta 100 Club! We donated Rs. 4,800 (US$ 110) to pay for the rice supply for one year at the school. Basha uses 20 kg per of rice per month at Rs. 20 per kg for a total of Rs. 400 per month. To me, rice seemed like an essential – and something we can truly feel good about helping out with. I hope that next year at this time, we can raise that money again to keep this project sustainable.

Basha has also asked for help with teacher salaries. At the moment, the two teachers earn Rs. 600 per month (US$13.75). To show our appreciation for their important work and give them incentive to continue at Basha, we would very much like to increase this to Rs. 800 (a raise of $4.57) from the Puja festival season so let me know if you have any good fundraising ideas. Their raise would cost the exact same amount as the rice for 12 months.

I was given a breakdown of all food expenses for one month at the school:

Item Monthly need Rs./kg

Rice 20 kg 20

Wheat 10 kg 18

Milk 24 l 20/l

Cook.oil 7 l 95 l

Eggs 60 pc 2.5 pc

Chicken 6 kg 110/kg

Dal 3 kg 50

Sooji 4 kg 25

Kidney beans 2 kg 50

Dalia 10 kg 28

Channa 2 kg 35

earthinkers

2008-08-15T04:00:00.001-07:00

eco-stamps
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Last week we started a small eco-club for my daughter's class. We only have about six members right now but in fact it is really nice to work with such a small, eager group. And as they say in the world of environmentalism, "Small is Beautiful!"

We brainstormed eco-vocabulary and related all the words to each other and then we listened to a poem about how seeing birds makes one feel at peace with the world. After that we made small notebooks out of recycled paper and decorated them with these eco-stamps.

Each week, one of the children will do a presentation on a famous environmentalist or environmental movement - explaining what that person did or does to be kind to the planet or what people are doing as a group. The list includes the following (and I'd love some more ideas if you have them as I would like to have eco-representatives from around the world):

Jane Goodall / Roots and Shoots
Chipko Movement
Wangari Mathai
Sunderlal Bahagunaji
Julia Butterfly Hill
Rabindranath Tagore
David Suzuki
Greenpeace
Vandana Shiva
Permaculture
Pete Seeger
Masanobu Fukuoka
Chief Seattle
Rachel Carson
Not in My Backyard
Severn Suzuki
Critical Mass

Bruno Manser
Indigenous peoples around the world
David Attenborough
Manika Gandhi

Shikshamitra Blog

2008-07-31T20:47:00.001-07:00

These days I don't report much on this Mustard Seeds blog what is happening at the school where I teach, Shikshamitra. I guess that is because I have started yet another blog where teachers and students are sharing some of the methods and activities going on there.

This photo was taken on a recent trip to the Clay Workshop where our clay teacher does the firing of the students' work. At the moment we are making terracotta ornaments as a product for the holiday season. One of the main products being made at the clay workshop are the small tea cups that are used at street tea stalls here. It was nice to see the people behind these precious works of art that get used on a daily basis, with little thought about how they came to sit in your hand serving up a refreshing little sip of tea to keep you going!

I hope you will visit our new blog from time to time too:

http://shikshamitralearning.blogspot.com

Shikshamitra is a school and resource center dedicated to finding alternative methods for both teaching and learning. It is based on Gandhian thought as well as some of the ideas of Steiner, Montessori and...Totto-chan!

Chautary and Mustard Seeds plant a few new KOLKATA SEEDS

2008-07-19T05:32:00.001-07:00

Chautary visit
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Over the past few days, Mustard Seeds has had the opportunity to host friends who have come from Nara, Japan. Etsuko Yamaguchi-san runs the fair trade shop and child-sponsor NGO called CHAUTARY. Her assistant, Kanbe-san, came along with her to research and record some of the education projects their group is interested in sponsoring in the future.

Mustard Seeds is dedicated to linking people up with various NGOs in Kolkata so that everyone can understand the sort of challenges that face marginalized classes here and work together to improve the situation. After seeing the excellent work being done in the field of education for the poor by many dedicated people, Chautary has promised to work with us from now on in order to provide some financial support, even if just a little, to various projects in Kolkata, I believe that a very meaningful seed has just been planted and I wish to thank Chautary for giving Mustard Seeds a chance to grow a little more.

Here's a rough look at the groups we visited:

Day 1/ Wednesday: We visited BASHA (Bird's Nest) which is located in Gol Park. This little school is fairly new but is already providing bright primary education opportunities and health care to children between the ages of 3-6 from the neighboring areas. The children also receive a meal at around 5:00 each day. Friends from Chautary have promised to raise the money to sponsor six of the students at Basha for one year each.

Day 2/ Thursday: Yamaguchi-san and Kanbe-san visited the school where I teach art, SHIKSHAMITRA, for the afternoon. They gave the children kaminendo (packaged paper mache) to work with, and we were all surprised to see the exciting creations made using this altogether new medium. The students were excited to learn they could take what they made home too!

Day 3/ Friday: We visited the SILENCE workshop. Chautary was impressed to see so many different crafts being made all under one roof: candle-making, silk-screening and hand-painting, xmas ornaments, and jewelry making.

Day 4 / Saturday: We went to one of the EMPOWER THE CHILDREN programs called PRERONA (in the photo above). What a great time we all had exchanging songs, dances and skits as we all got to know each other a little more.

Chautary hopes to visit Kolkata on a regular basis in order to further some of the ideas we discussed this time around.

Two young girls at Prerona show some of the impressive cross-stitch they have learned as part of a vocational skills program:

Basha students get a meal each day they attend the school:

Why not join the Teaspoon Brigade?

2008-06-23T20:45:00.000-07:00

Not too much going on here at Mustard Seeds but thought I'd include this wonderful little article that says it all to me. I am a litter gitter myself and I never stop believing that it is worth putting the stuff where it belongs rather than all over the place.

At a Roadside Vigil, an Iconic Voice of Protest

By DENNIS GAFFNEY
Dennis Gaffney for The New York Times
Published: June 22, 2008

WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y. — Pete Seeger pulled his black Toyota Highlander into the Staples parking lot here and plucked some signs from the back seat, including one with “Peace” spray-painted in large orange letters. With that, he slung his banjo over his shoulder like an old musket and marched toward the intersection of Route 9, a bustling six-lane thoroughfare, and 9D, the “Hudson Valley P.O.W.-M.I.A. Memorial Highway.”

Pete Seeger at his post at Routes 9 and 9D on June 7 in Wappingers Falls, N.Y., the site of weekly vigils against the war.
But before the 89-year-old folk singer flashed his antiwar signs to passing drivers from this no-man’s land — a patch of green about an hour north of New York City on the Hudson River — he bent over again and again, picking up litter.

“This is my religion now,” said Mr. Seeger. “Picking up trash. You do a little bit wherever you are.”

Mr. Seeger, the man behind the founding of the Clearwater Festival, being held this weekend at Croton Point Park, is scheduled to appear there on Sunday.

But for the last four years, most Saturdays he has been keeping his vigil in Wappingers Falls, usually not recognized by the hundreds of drivers who whiz by. It is a long road from 1969, when to protest the Vietnam War he sang John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance” at the foot of the Washington Monument.

“After two minutes, thousands were singing,” he recalled. “After three minutes, four minutes, a hundred thousand were singing. At the end of eight minutes, all five hundred thousand were singing.”

These days, fewer than a dozen protesters usually participate, while nearly as many who support the war in Iraq hold a counterdemonstration across Route 9. Mr. Seeger, a political activist who has traveled the world, rarely ventures farther than the few miles from here to his home in Beacon, N.Y.

On this particular Saturday, Mr. Seeger chatted easily with Chris Miller of Poughkeepsie. “He’s an ex-Army member,” Mr. Seeger said, “and they’re trying to send him over again.”

Mr. Miller, 38, served as a therapist for four years before receiving an honorable discharge in January 2006. But on Dec. 22, 2007, he said, he received orders to return to Iraq, although he is appealing that decision.

Mr. Miller said he had spent countless hours listening to Mr. Seeger’s stories, like the one about how his car windows were shattered in Peekskill in 1949 as he and his family left a performance he had given with the singer Paul Robeson, who was thought to have Communist sympathies, as was Mr. Seeger. Or the one about the Vietnam veteran who said he had come to a concert in the Catskills to kill Mr. Seeger because of his antiwar stance, but was turned around by the performance and made his way backstage to tell of his transformation.

“I smiled and shook his hand,” Mr. Seeger said. “I had my banjo. We sat down and sang, ‘Where Have All the Flowers Gone?’ ” Afterward, Mr. Seeger said, the man told him, “I feel clean now.”

Mr. Seeger said he wrote that song in the mid-1950s accompanied by the same banjo he totes around today.

As for Mr. Miller: “Seeing what Pete has gone through and always standing up for what he believed in, despite the consequences, made my decision easier to resist the war. It made me comfortable that in the long run I’ll be all right.”

At one point, Mr. Seeger looked across the highway to the knot of counterdemonstrators. “They always have more flags,” Mr. Seeger said. “But our signs are more fun.” He said he crossed the street once about a year ago and talked to a veteran.

“I shook his hand and said, ‘I’m glad we live in a country where we can disagree with each other without shooting at each other.’ He had to shake my hand. He didn’t know what to say. I even picked up a little litter over there.”

As he chatted, Mr. Seeger broke into “Take It From Dr. King,” which he wrote after the Sept. 11 attacks, in a voice as worn as an old phonograph record.

“Don’t say it can’t be done,” he sang, tapping out the rhythm on his thighs as his Adam’s apple bobbed to the music. “The battle’s just begun/Take it from Dr. King/You too can learn to sing/So drop the gun.”

With songs like that one and “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy,” an anti-Vietnam War anthem, it is easy to assume he is a pacifist. But that assumption would be wrong. His family tree is adorned with both Quakers and a Revolutionary War veteran.

“Hitler had to be done away with,” said Mr. Seeger, who served in World War II.

His 1966 antiwar anthem, “Bring ’Em Home,” resurrected by Bruce Springsteen in recent years, includes the words: “There’s one thing I must confess/I’m not really a pacifist/If an army invaded this land of mine/You’d find me out on the firing line.”

Asked whether he thought that protesting by the side of the road would help end the war, he said: “I don’t think that big things are as effective as people think they are. The last time there was an antiwar demonstration in New York City I said, ‘Why not have a hundred little ones?’ ”

He said that working for peace was like adding sand to a basket on one side of a large scale, trying to tip it one way despite enormous weight on the opposite side.

“Some of us try to add more sand by teaspoons,” he explained. “It’s leaking out as fast as it goes in and they’re all laughing at us. But we’re still getting people with teaspoons. I get letters from people saying, ‘I’m still on the teaspoon brigade.’ ”

Tattapani Clean Up

2008-06-23T00:26:00.001-07:00

june 5 : world environment day
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

On the morning of June 5th, World Environment Day, we were trying to leave Shimla to drive to a small hot spring valley village called Tattapani. The rain just kept coming down in buckets and we were not prepared for it. Just walking to the car which was parked below The Mall (only for pedestrians) would have had us completely drenched so although we set out once, we headed back to "waterproof" ourselves for that day, and the rest of our trip.

Many of the mountain towns we passed through had strict bans on plastic bags which, unlike in Kolkata, are actually enforced. So, finding plastic to line our bags was going to be a bit of a mindbender. I headed down into town from the YMCA and was accosted by a mob of young school children on their World Environment Day parade. They had faced the rain too, but it didn't stop them. I gave them a hearty thumbs up in support of their efforts and headed down behind them to find my "silver lining," all the while making a mental note that it was World Environment Day and wondering what could I do to mark it. I found my plastic supply in a bin in the back of a suitcase shop, big bags that were once suitcase wrap!

Anyhow, after putting all of our stuff in bags inside of our packs, we were ready to head to Tattapani. We arrived after coming down about 3 hours from a 2000 ft. elevation in Shimla to a 600 ft one -- to a warm climate and a beautiful rocky river that begged to have us while the afternoon away. I found my Environment Day task awaiting me here: small packets of chips, shampoos and conditioners, underpants were strewn about. I will never understand why people in India seem to take no responsibility for keeping their sacred areas clean. This was a perfect case, take a bath in a holy hot spring and throw your shampoo and underpants over the side into the spring itself, all the while feeling very religiously pure of heart.

While the kids made long canals and riverways in the sand, I spent about two hours cleaning the area up and could really see a difference when I called it a day. After dinner, the kids and I made some signs and we asked the man who ran the guest house if he could please put the signs up, along with some bins so that customers had a place to throw their rubbish. He welcomed our efforts and our suggestions and took photos of us all for the local newspaper!

My Environment Day message to the world?
Please don't trash the Himalayas:
Bring your plastic bag to the cities!

Merit Awards at Suchana

2008-05-01T05:14:00.000-07:00

Our friends who run Suchana sent us a report and photos on the awards ceremony that took place last week on 21 April. It was a nice little session with distribution of 43 very practical prizes: umbrellas were given to the youngest children so they can come to school in sun and rain; clipboards and pens to the middle groups; and English-Bengali dictionaries were presented to the older children. The prizes were awarded not only for effort, progress, and cooperation (rather than skill levels), but for student contributions to the annual show, good use of the library, and other areas. Needless to say, everybody was extremely happy.

Mustard Seeds wishes to convey a special thanks to our friends, Etsuko and Michael Yamaguchi from the Chautary shop and NGO in Nara, Japan, who made a generous contribution toward the purchase of the merit prizes awarded at Suchana this time. We would also like to thank Siobhan Wilson, owner of the fair trade shop, Kolkata, in Brighton who has given a contribution to Suchana for the purchase of Bengali children's books for the library.

For those who don't know, Suchana is a community group working in rural West Bengal, focusing on education and health. The education project (the Early Learning Group) is a group of children and teachers which meets three times a week to participate in an activity-based learning curriculum aiming to support and encourage those children who attend regular school, and provides an introduction to literacy to those who don't. Currently, over 120 children participate. The health project now works in all six of the Suchana villages, delivering primary health information in a participatory format and linking villagers in with locally existing health services. Suchana has recently purchased land close to its current location, and is making preparations to erect a multi-purpose building (or two!).

If you would like more information, please contact Kirsty or Rahul at:
milwardbose@rediffmail.com

Earthinking happening!

2008-04-23T20:15:00.001-07:00

emma: 6
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Thanks to everyone who has submitted their eco-tote designs so far. Since Earth Day is every day we plan to allow another week or so before we announce any winners! Keep them coming, folks!

Ayonika's Earth Message:

Dear Earth,
I am so happy you give us all the things like water, oxygen, and so many other things. I say thank you. All the other animals and humans say the same thing. And we will all try to save animals and trees that you have given us.
Thank you, Earth!

A WEE Little Update

2008-04-15T17:37:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to inform you that the women selected at Jeevika have started their course and are really enjoying it. I was told they were really impressed with the facilities there. Thanks to everyone who worked quickly to make this happen...especially the Batesville, Arkansas Calcutta 100 Club contingent and Shara Alexander!

Here is a note I received from Jeevika Development Society:

Dear Maura di,

Thanks for your help in organizing so many production orders and the fund for the tailoring training. The training will be conducted through the Bhowanipore Education Society.

The training will be of three months duration and will be held twice in a week. 10 girls will benefit from this training. We thank you once again for organizing 10 thousand rupees that enabled us to participate in the training. We also request you to convey our sincere thanks to our well wishers

Thanks for your sustained cooperation.

Regards,
Dalia
Jeevika Development Society

Join our 2008 Eco-Design Contest

2008-04-06T22:30:00.001-07:00

2008 eco-design contest
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

We are getting ready for Earth Day on April 22nd at Mustard Seeds Library. Yesterday the kids who came had a great time helping me with the clay I had let sit a bit to long get moist again so that we can mold it. A few managed to make it soft enough to work with and form little people and fruits. We all enjoyed getting covered in Earth and it was a nice way to start the month of April which we decided will be dedicated to eco-awareness in many fun shapes and forms.

Two years back we had a great time desiging some excellent eco-Tshirts at Mustard Seeds Library and these were hung up in the library for a long time inspiring us and visitors to do more for the planet (or maybe...to do less). The winning shirt designs were presented with handcrafted, eco-friendly prizes. This year we are asking you to design your own cloth tote bag so that you can say, "No thanks!" to plastic bags when you are out marketing.

We invite anyone to enter -- from anywhere on the planet. Just email me at so I can send you the PDF file to print, design and mail to us -- as soon as possible!

We look forward to getting entries from all over -- so spread the word and ask your friends to join too!

Send your entry to:
Mustard Seeds Library
A5 Vidyasagar Niketan
Block EA / Sector One
Salt Lake, Kolkata 700 064 INDIA

Here are some links on this topic sent in by friends:

http://www.sew-green.org/
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/07/24/2741/

Make every day Earth day...

Calcutta 100 Club swings into action for JEEVIKA Development Society

2008-04-01T18:07:00.001-07:00

Jeevika stitching
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

It has been a while since the Calcutta 100 Club jumped into action but I recently received an urgent request for help with raising some funds for an organization I have been working with for more than eight years here in Kolkata.

Women in the Jeevika Development Society tailoring and embroidery-based income-generation program in Joka have the opportunity to attend a 25-day fashion design course at the Bhawanipur Educational Institute here in Kolkata. It starts this month! A very reasonable rate (10 women for Rs. 10,000/approx. US$260) has been offered to the group to participate, but lack of funds is holding them back. Women will learn about colors & designing, how to make patterns, and running an electric sewing machine (they are only familiar with manual models): skills that could lead to further empowerment for these women who mainly come from rural backgrounds.

I am sending around information to all the members in our Calcutta 100 Club, a small effort by friends and family of Mustard Seeds to raise money when it is specifically needed for a certain project. The idea is simply that we gather just 100 friends who are willing to give at least $10.00 at a time. If we get 100 people involved, the amount will eventually come to $1000 each time, a significant amount to make a difference on a specific “mustard-size” project in Kolkata. We are not at 100 people yet but...some examples of what we have been able to do so far include buying school books for children participating in Dr. Jack Preger’s Calcutta Rescue street children education project; build a house for a village artist and her family; provide money to Sangeeta Mondal who had a very successful leg operation and is now walking.

If you would like to make a small financial contribution just this once, or want to join our tribe of 100...email me and I will tell you how. In the event that we go beyond our goal, I'd like to set the money aside as a fund for when courses such as this are available in the future. Please be in touch! Thanks always

mseeds.maura@gmail.com

Sharing Talents and Time

2008-03-16T22:07:00.001-07:00

DSCF4725
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

A few classes back, I taught a short lesson on vibration, sound, rhythm and we made a glass xylophone at school. I thought to myself after the class, "I don't know how to teach music...I wish I knew how to teach the kids some basics about music...they really need that...."

Well, you know how the saying goes? Be careful what you wish for!

The next day I was talking to my friend Rosalie who organizes a lot of volunteers who come to Kolkata to work at various schools and NGOs. She said the volunteers working with her this month were both musicians and had been doing terrific music workshops with children at her schools. One thing led to another and a workshop was organized for my students at Shikshamitra last Friday as well.

Alice and Hannah, both from England, had a very well planned out two-hour program that taught the students all the basics of making music. At the end we all put on a short performance that was recorded. They went over concepts like tempo, rhythm, pitch, dynamic, and articulation -- and then put it altogether.

Thanks to both of them for bringing this unique experience to our school! Good luck on your endeavor to do more workshops like this designed to attract a variety of participants.

Fuuwa: Community Free Space

2008-02-15T06:52:00.001-08:00

DSCF4623
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

After the workshop in Sasayama, we were all invited to stay the night at Free Space Fuuwa. When we arrived there were about 25 people around several tables that were fitted together and every person in the room brought a dish. We went around the table and each introduced both ourself and the dish we brought. Then we had a discussion about Kolkata NGOs and the fair trade movement.

I was so inspired by the sincerity at this space, which is the dreamchild of a woman named MUKAI Chihiro-san. She originally worked as a social worker but also wanted to live in a rural setting. She put it altogether to establish FUUWA, which caters to elderly and young people living in the community. If you take a look around, you can see that everyone who visits is allowed to share something and although Chihiro manages things, she is happiest when she can facilitate someone else's learning and achievements.

In the evening we all sat around, after a very long day, and drank the most delicious lemon sake drink...followed by a pot of hot tea. I didn't want the night to end, or the peace to stop flowing.

The four shoji screens behind Chihiro in this photo were done by children who live in the village. The photo doesn't do them justice, they are gorgeous.

Visiting the Rakutendo Home and Shop

2008-02-14T14:17:00.001-08:00

rakutendo genkan
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

One of the reasons for my coming to Japan this time was that I was invited by my friend Chiaki-san and her husband, Muu-san to do a presentation together. The idea is that we would combine my experiences working with children in India with their movement to introduce bean cuisine to a wider and wider audience, as a means of reducing the amount of meat consumed in the world.

We created a workshop where I introduced a few simple ideas about living in India, by showing various things from India, and then Chiaki-san introduced the food that children in Kolkata eat each day: dal and chapati (rooti in Bengali). The workshop was held up in the mountains at the Sasayama Children's Museum, a creative facility established in an old primary school that allows children to explore the world around them on many levels. It was so much fun watching three - ten year olds trying so hard to make their chapati puff up perfectly in the final step!

Mustard Seeds is very proud of the project it has collaborated on with Rakutendo and Jeevika Development Society, a womens' handicraft training center in Kolkata. Rakutendo is a vegetarian bean cuisine club that studies recipes using beans from around the world and packs kits that give the exact beans and spices needed to make the recipes. A member receives the kit in the mail each month.

About three years ago, when I was leaving Japan to return to Kolkata, Rakutendo's Bean Cuisine Club members developed a
pot cover that not only keeps food warm but allows you to take beans
off the gas burner earlier and keep the cooking going for the last 15
minutes under the pot cover. Sooooo...if 100 people save 15 minutes of gas every time they cook, it really adds up. I had asked them to put on their thinking caps to see if we could create some sort of fair trade project within the group; and I like that this product is something that also protects the environment! The pot covers are made of handloom kesh made by the Tagore Society in Santiniketan: weaving old sarees together to create incredible and one-by-one unique patterns. Even each label, a little smiling bean (thegroup's motto is "All we are saying ... is give beans a chance..."), is hand-embroidered by Jeevika, along with all the sewing on the cover itself. They are just about half way through the third order of the pot covers. Each order was for 100 pieces. That's a lot of pot covers.

Ahhhh. I love this sort of thing! Now we are working on a spice holder pouch for members to keep their spices in. Wish us luck!

Thank you to Rakutendo for making doors open for me...and so many other people.

Taking Mustard Seeds to Japan

2008-01-30T21:02:00.001-08:00

saraswati07_m&kids2
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

As I prepare to head to Japan, to do some exchange projects and presentations on the topic of Children in Kolkata, I have to review just exactly what we have been doing lately. It is always good to review the work at the beginning of the year, and this has given me the impetus to put it down in writing once again.

In Japan, I will be doing some mini-exhibitions of my students artwork on the theme, "Who am I?" as well as making dal and chappati with Japanese children, and of course, selling handicrafts! A big thank you to all my friends in Japan who have helped arrange venues for me to share my experiences and the products from Kolkata!

Mustard Seeds •••
Small efforts for Big Results in Kolkata, India

The mustard seed is an important part of Bengali cooking. Although it is very tiny, it packs a potent and powerful taste!

Mustard Seeds is a small-scale family project that runs a community library and does fundraising projects for several social development and environmental organizations in Kolkata. It is our hope that, just like the mustard seed, through our small efforts and limited time, we can participate in some of the important projects to alleviate poverty and strengthen education opportunities in Kolkata and outlying rural areas - by creating cultural exchanges, giving financial support, networking and distributing information whenever possible.

Some of our major projects include:

MUSTARD SEEDS COMMMUNITY LIBRARY/ACTIVITY ROOM
We run a small lending library in our apartment in Kolkata for neighbor children. We organize various projects for kids to take part in and keep a blog called MANGO SMILES, a newsletter the children help put together. Children can access books on the environment and other world issues at the library (see http://mango-smiles.blogspot.com).

HANIDICRAFTS SALES / CALCUTTA 100 CLUB
MSeeds believes that income generation is the best way to support marginalized people, so we continue to purchase high-quality craft items made in vocational skills programs, and continue to sell them as a means of telling the lifestories of the people who produce them. We are always looking for volunteers to help us give these groups more exposure by offering to sell handicrafts at small shops, fairs, cafes, etc. Please be in touch if you have ideas!

Jeevika Development Society provides rural women from very low-income backgrounds with embroidery and tailoring skill training and a fair wage for their work. Through the help of well-wishers, we sell their unique kantha stitched handicrafts at small venues and fairs in Japan, the UK, and the US. We also sell some of the colorful handicrafts made by street children and young adults who take part in the schooling and vocational skills program at Calcutta Rescue (founded by Dr. Jack Preger). Mustard Seeds also designs silk-screen greeting cards with a group called Silence, which gives handicraft training and employment opportunities to deaf and 'otherly abled' workers.

A few of the other groups we work to support through financial contributions (thanks to members of our Calcutta 100 Club, who give a small donation for specific projects every once in a while) inclue :

• Balia Bio-Agro Mission, is an organic farming initiative offering free education to migrant workers; Empower the Children, which also provides education opportunities to some of Kolkata's poorest children.

• Suchana, is a rural school that has been running for over three years and is ready to move into its own building. Suchana serves three villages in Khanjanpur in West Bengal by offering study-support to children in government education programs, and to pre-school learners. We are collecting funds now to help them build a proper school building so if you have a fundraising idea, be in touch!

• Shikshamitra, an alternative education model school working to address complex issues related to education in India - and show positive examples! Maura works as the arts and crafts teacher here, and helps manage the Learn & Earn Project. Several visitors have come to share their time and talents with our students. This creates meaningful exchanges that last a lifetime.

SUPPORTING TRADITIONAL ARTISTS OF W. BENGAL
To the Local Bazaar (¥500) is a children's book we published using illustrations by our friend, a village pata story scroll artist Karuna Chitrakar. It is written in English with Bengali subtitles. We have also made a postcard sets using artwork by artists from the pata tradition. We hope by making these we can bring this traditional art form to the attention of more people and help support Karuna and others like her through its sales. Last year, Mustard Seeds raised enough money to significantly support the building of a house for Karuna and her family. Thanks to everyone who put their efforts into this project.

Please be in touch if you have ideas.
If you would like to make a donation in Japan, send by postal transfer to:
mustard seed, japan
00980-9-30045

Please contact me if you would like to send support from other places and I will let you know how.

Thanks for your interest and support.

Garden sketching

2008-01-18T18:22:00.001-08:00

boloram's gadaphul
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

On Thursday, my students from Shikshamitra finally, finally, finally came to visit Mustard Seeds Library and the garden spot, Malancha. They came by bus with three teachers from our school and a teacher from the Swanirvar school in the village. It was so wonderful to host such important people in my life. After the initial settling down, kids looking at books, building train tracks, cuddling stuffed animals, we went down to the garden, and I showed them how I feed the compost heap. I showed them how we reuse the overflow of water from the tanks on the roof of our neighboring apartment building to water the garden each day and I introduced some of my favorite plants. I tried to explain how every leaf that falls, and every dead flower is recycled back into the soil. Tried to tell them why the little garden space gives me such hope.

Then each of the children found a space in the garden and concentrated on one of the plants and did their sketching activity. I also sat down to try a little sketch but my mind wandered with so much activity and the excitement of having all the kids over. I sadly had to set it down.

Right then – I remembered it. More important than the actual finished picture, the act of sketching like this, of plopping yourself down to look at something carefully and place it upon your page in some pleasing way, is such a very nice activity for learning patience, concentration and problem solving. I hope to go down and do a little myself while the garden is still in bloom and smiling with all the admiration being showered upon it lately.

We hung all the finished sketches up as an exhibition at Mustard Seeds Library for the children at Vidyasagar to add to when Sunday rolls around!

Interesting on Education in India

2008-01-09T05:07:00.000-08:00

Something we are working to aspire to at our school

Painting walls and learning

2007-12-18T16:58:00.001-08:00

DSCF3949
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

This wall and a few of the others in this flat were part of an experiment to see if one possibility for our students might be painting murals as part of the Learn and Earn project!

The principal at the school found that her walls were getting dull and gray and she came up with the idea that the kids could go wild with their artwork like we did at school. Needless to say, it can take a bit of courage to let a group of 20 kids come into your flat with paint dripping from their brushes dying to get a panel!!

Of course, the children enjoyed themselves to no end and really brought the project together once they figured out the purpose of the mural and the technique that worked best. The designs were in their minds and came out with earnestness.

As adults, though, I think we learned the greater lesson in this process: the importance of letting go of our preconceived notions and limits and allowing the children (finally) to express themselves in a totally organic way. There were a few panic points -- but it all turned out so bright and meaningul. You know that when the teachers are also being challenged and learning...that real education is taking place!

NOW we are looking for a real wall outside to cover with our designs!! Spruce up a neighborhood and create some brightness on the streets of Kolkata!

Students Reach Out at the NGO Fair

2007-12-08T00:45:00.001-08:00

DSCF3798
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

You see the two dancers on the poster hung on the back wall there? That's how I feel right now. I feel like doing a few leaps and spins.

Yesterday at the Calcutta International School, Class XI students welcomed as many as 12 non-government organizations (NGOs) to the music room, which we had always thought to be a very spacious room until now. Before people could even get their products on the table, the sales began -- with parents, teachers and students buying handicrafts from around 11:30 NON-STOP til about 4:00 pm when it finally slowed down.

This is what I call fair trade! I wanted to bring the idea of BUY HANDMADE to a population that is increasingly buying from big shopping malls, and bring the concept of FAIR TRADE to youngsters who may now understand that choosing to buy something (put their money into one pocket or the other) from an NGO actually means a contribution to a more just, more peaceful world.

People who work for NGOs are often working on very low budgets and long hours, although many understand how important it is to communicate with like-minded people and those groups working toward the same goals, it just doesn't happen because there is not a drop of spare time or resources. I was so happy to see the NGOs themselves doing a lot of networking and interacting and learning from each other. My students from Shikshamitra ran their own table selling handmade cards, bookmarks, gift tags, eco-tote bags, hand-stitched coasters and sweet basil plants. What can I say? They had a BLAST!

My heart goes out to everyone who participated in this event, and made it the success that it was: a cumulative total of Rs. 45,000 in just about 6 hours. One group, Ankur Kala, reported to me this morning that they had record sales, more than they'd ever sold at one fair! All the money ends up going toward dedicated efforts to support disadvantaged individuals who strive daily to learn skills and earn financial stability.

Everyone went home smiling and I am more than sure that several tiny mustard seeds got planted at this event -- let's see how they bloom???!!!

Lines of Communication

2007-11-23T23:36:00.001-08:00

DSCF3594
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

This Thursday at Shikshamitra we had a guest named Yuuki Uehara visit us. Yuuki works as a freelance illustrator and is deeply interested and experienced in community development. He and the children got to know one another by asking questions in English and through simple line drawings.

The kids asked Yuuki where he lived and he drew a picture of his little country house back in Japan, with orange orchards in the back on terraced mountains.

He swiftly drew a razor and his own head in the bathroom mirror when they asked him why his head was completely bald.

After interacting, all the students did simple black line drawings to express something to Yuuki about their own lives. Communicating through pictures turned out to be the theme of the session, though we didn't know that until we ended.

And THAT, my friends, is the nice thing about alternative learning!

Holiday Cards 2007

2007-11-17T05:02:00.001-08:00

xmas_array
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Things moved a bit slowly (as they will in Kolkata) but this year's card designs are just hot off the press -- and I need to sell them.

All these designs are $1 each
(paid by check; postal transfer in japan; plus postage from India which is usually quite reasonable). Most of the cards featured are printed on handmade paper at Silence and hand-painted to provide further income generation opportunities. Silence is my favorite local fair trade organization, training and employing those who are deaf and 'specially abled' workers. They are the real McCoy when it comes to Fair Trade and I am proud to support them and acknowledge their efforts in my own small way! .

This year, I must say a huge thank you to two very creative and generous people in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Rick and Brenda Beerhorst, who volunteered their woodblock print artwork for the Nativity, the Flying Dove, the Ornament, and the Hope Bird.

There are also beautiful cards made by Calcutta Rescue (the embroidered elephant), Ankur Kala women's support organization (the red mandala and blue snowflake), and the students at Suchana, the school in rural West Bengal that I often visit and help out at sometimes (the set of 6 designs).

Please email me at mseeds.maura@gmail.com if you are interested in prices for the other designs, and getting cards sent out to you next week.

By the way, Rick and Brenda also shared designs for 'The Children's Series' featuring quotations by Rabindranath Tagore on the back side which I produced for sale at Alcha in Santiniketan

For other designs and some better photos: see http://www.flickr.com/photos/tik-tiki/sets/72157594306594451/

Kolkata in Brighton

2007-11-13T08:13:00.002-08:00

A good friend of mine from college days, and from my hometown too, opened her shop this past weekend in Brighton, UK. The shop is dear to me because the concept all started when I sent a hand-embroidered card to Siobhan several years back -- and she wrote back asking if there were other handicrafts as beautiful as the card to be found in Kolkata. I began introducing her to several NGOs with production units and Siobhan gradually started developing a plan to sell the items where she now lives in Brighton, strictly adhering to fair trade rules and regulations. Three trips to Kolkata later...the culmination of almost three years of collaboration is that the shop opened over the weekend. Congratulations to Kolkata Shop -- I am hoping that many, many people find out about the incredible fair trade handicrafts coming out of Kolkata by entering through your doors!

If anyone knows someone in the London-Brighton area, please be sure to invite them to stop in for a browse if in the neighborhood. They won't be disappointed at the variety and quality...and every purchase is full of hope for the hardworking artisans back here.

I'm so proud of you, Siobhan!

Kolkata
8 Grantham Road
Brighton BN1 6EE
United Kingdom

Tel. (01273) 565105

Break for the Holidays

2007-10-09T21:07:00.001-07:00

Tagore by Noor
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Yesterday was the last day of school before Shikshamitra begins its holiday break for Durga Puja and Eid, and all the other small pujas in between.

I brought in lots of paint brushes and paint, telling the children we needed to clean the school up before leaving. They were elated to know that I meant we were all going to paint the walls that have become very dingy and gray over the past three years. The results were colorful and uplifting! After we finished painting we all went for ice cream at the house of a teacher who lives close by. What a great way to end a long session of hard work. Enjoy the holidays everyone!

Puppets and Patas at RCFC

2007-09-11T17:47:00.001-07:00

at RCFC function
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

On Sunday, we held a joint event for a group of 30 visitors from the Unity Church in the US. The event was held at RCFC and brought together several projects: Rosalie's Empower the Children brought school kids to welcome the guests, the children from RCFC well-rehearsed, perfectly presented puppet show of Hansel and Gretl, and I brought Karuna Chitrakar along from Mustard Seeds to demonstrate how patas picture scrolls are made. Finally, all the visitors made a little pata-style painting with a child, rolled it up and tied it to take home. It was a unique experience for everyone. The fact that it was held at RCFC was a wonderful coincidence as I have been wanting to visit there for a long time. I could feel Jane Webb smiling down at us all, proud of the good energy being put out in the world from the little campus in Behala. Coming home, Karuna told me that she also knew Jane Webb and used to go sing at her home before she moved to RCFC.

Jane's room is kept there just as she had left it.

Block printing at Shikshamitra

2007-09-06T18:17:00.001-07:00

noor's prints
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Yesterday Ratnabali came to "play" with my students doing the Learn and Earn program at Shikshamitra. She taught them how to do block printing onto rice paper in the hopes that we can make our own wrapping paper or make patches for our eco-bags. The kids also thought that they could make pretty gift bags from these.

Ratna works for the organization Anjali, which brings structured art therapy programs into three government-run mental institutions right here in Kolkata. She spoke to my students about the people she works with and helped the children to understand them a little better: they also need food, clothing, love, human rights and education...just like you and me.

After Ratna left, her message rang out in our class. Do your work with ENERGY! What a fun day we had. Every time a child finished their paper, Ratna boomed out with words of praise and happiness. I'm not sure who was having more fun, the kids or her!

Thanks for bringing your energy into our classroom. We are going to try to build a proper pressing table in our class on Tuesday, as suggested for doing proper printing.

Dr. Seuss September

2007-08-30T20:36:00.001-07:00

dr seuss
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Our highlighted display at Mustard Seeds Library this month is Dr. Seuss and Bapu has done a nice job of getting it all ready for those members who drop by this coming Sunday. There may even be a reading!

44 children's books and every single one of them G•R•E•A•T. I need to do a sequel to 'To the Local Bazaar...'

Making friendship bracelets

2007-08-22T20:05:00.001-07:00

MSeeds: Friendship band workshop
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

As the rakhi celebration (where brothers tie a small decoration onto their elder sister's wrist as a symbol of their bond) is coming up soon, we had a mini-workshop to learn how to make decorative, knotted friendship bands.

Thanks goes out to "Pinky-di" and Baliraj who came a long distance to show us how to make the bracelets. Pinky-di, who wanted to become a nurse, learned how to make these at school and sold them to raise money to be able to take her Madhymik exam. She is now working as a doctor's assistant here in Kolkata. She and Baliraj are experts at crafts like book binding, glass painting and quilling and we hope to have them visit the library again soon!

eco-totes

2007-08-13T06:19:00.001-07:00

DSCF2177
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

refuse plastics with an
ECO-tote
by mustard seeds

My sister found these tote bags (literally hundreds of them) in a thrift shop in arkansas at 10 cents a piece this summer and bought a whole heck of a lot of 'em. We are jazzing them up to promote the idea of "carrying your own bag" to the market ...so less plastic ends up on the streets here!

This sure was a nice way to spend a very rainy monsoon Monday. Hashi and I were stitching and pinning all day. When Girl arrived home from school, she helped me with the labels as we already had an order for six of these.

Refusing plastics, by always carrying an extra bag inside your daily bag, is one of the easiest ways I know to help this planet!

Saturdays at Prabartak Home

2007-08-11T08:01:00.001-07:00

prabartak
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Not far from my home in Salt Lake, there is a government-run home for people with epilepsy and other disabilities and every Saturday my friend Rosalie does a two-hour class there. Her class is not an English class but an amalgamation of all sorts of learning to get the children involved and interacting, and gaining a new understanding of the world around them and far beyond.

In 1999, Rosalie, an American speech therapist spent her summer vacation vounteering at one of Mother Teresa's orphanages in Kolkata. She was schocked that disabled children were left in their cribs all day or on the floor without any stimulation or educational opportunity whatsoever. Without hesitation, Roasalie took an early retirement from the New Jersey Public School System and returned to Kolkata to develop the special education programs these children required!

Rosalie now runs Empower the Children , an organization which gives formal structure to the work on-the-ground in Kolkata. ETC works to provide security and opportunity to Kolkata's most vulnerable children, including the disadvantaged and disabled children living on the streets and in the slums-- for whom basic needs are often beyond the financial capabilities of their families.

I am so happy to have Rosalie, and her surge of ever-expanding good ideas, here in Kolkata on the NGO front. Visiting her class at Prabartak Home, one of the eight ETC projects, is always a great source of inspiration for me as a teacher...and as a human being.

Today we learned about elephants -- those majestic gray mammals that roam the West Bengal forests. Rosalie had a beautiful plasticene elephant to show to everyone and some photographs of elephants in their natural habitat. These were passed around as she talked about their LARGENESS and their ROUGH skin and how they sometimes do WORK in forests. She told them how the mother and baby walk - with the baby holding the tail and each student got up to try this with a friend. She talked about how elephants actually walk on their tippy-toes...and then all the students gave it a try. They all tried throwing inflatable hoops on an inflatable elephant. Taking part in the class and having a turn at each topic is a big part of the class and everyone (rightfully) gets excited. Each class ends with a craft and often the components of the craft have been prepared by students in schools in the US as part of a volunteer program (Rosalie likes TOTAL involvement!).

Today each student got a cute little cardboard elephant. First they glued on the rough skin (a swatch of paper that had elephant skin on it); then they added a swatch of fabric that was the elephant's blanket; lastly, they added the head dress (some tassles). The craft requires motor skill coordination and a fresher on things that were presented in the lesson.

Classes usually end with a lot of music and dancing - and hugging!

She has an excellent class on teeth and Tibet also!

Good luck to Rosalie for all that you do. I hope that our collaborative efforts will also be successful.

Field Trip to Karma Kutir

2007-08-02T07:54:00.001-07:00

DSCF2005
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

As a culmination of our course on cloth, the Moon Group of the Learn & Earn Project at Shikshamitra went to visit Karma Kutir, another Kolkata NGO specializing in batik dyeing.

We piled into two taxis and made our way over to Gol Park, where Karma Kutir is located by the Ram Krishna Mission. We were first given a demonstration of the batik dyeing process outside on the roof, and how the wax is put on the cloth to create designs. The women at Karma Kutir were extremely kind to us and gave us a warm welcome and an unforgettable experience to carry back home with us.

Shikshamitra students were each given a handkerchief-sized cloth and got a chance to try their own wax designs. They brought along their design notebooks to get ideas. Once their designs were down, they went back outside to dye the cloth. Everyone exclaimed, "Oooooh!" when the colour magically appeared as the handkerchief was dipped into the dye and turned a surprisingly bright color. The last step was taking off the wax in a vat of hot water and hanging up to dry.

As you can see from this photo, we had excellent results and a very fine outing!

Kids for kids!

2007-06-15T07:40:00.001-07:00

Summer FUN 080
Originally uploaded by dalbhat

Last week, while all the cousins were here together, we put together a Lemonade Stand offering two kinds of lemonade and chocolate chip cookies. To our surprise, a lot of people stopped to buy the refreshments and encouraged us on. The five kids who took part each made $2 at the end, and decided to donate the remaining $8 to Rehabilitation Centres for Children (RCFC) in Kolkata so that other kids will benefit from their successful sale too!

RCFC provides free medical treatment and schooling in Kolkata for disadvantaged children with polio and other orthopaedic problems.

I will take the donation to the Centre when I return in July -- thanks so much for your great work!

Coasters and bags for sale to support our Learn and Earn Project

2007-05-15T09:30:00.001-07:00

While I travel in the US I am carrying the very first handicraft products developed by the children I teach at Shikshamitra in Kolkata.

In order to launch this afterschool skills training program, which will offer exposure to underpriviledged students who want to expand their vocation possibilities, we are asking for a donation of $5 or more. You will receive an eco-friendly handloom, hand-decorated tote bag made as the first sale-able product by the older children participating in our Learn & Earn Project (the Moon Group) or a set of handstitched coasters handstitched by the Sun Group, who are the younger students.

The children are developing stitching and design skills with CLOTH as the theme. Everyone is very excited about the new program and looking forward to feedback I bring back with me. We had our first sales to well wishers in Montana.

Please be in touch by email if you would like to make a donation or support us somehow from where you are.

BIG THANKS GO OUT TO:
* Margo, Jocie and Chase Baker
* Julie Dozier and the Staff of Batesville Family Practice
* Sarah and Jennifer in Bozeman, Montana -- our first sale!
* Leslie in Memphis
* Tony in SFran, who gave us a digital camera so we can try out some photography classes at Shikshamitra too
Enjoy your products and send us a photo if possible!

Earth Day 2007 at Mustard Seeds

2007-04-22T16:22:00.001-07:00

Earth Day 2007 at Mustard Seeds
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

It was a nice day at MSeeds Library yesterday. First Karuna arrived with her new picture scroll on 'the problem of plastics," which I had asked her to paint. She found this to be a difficult topic, and asked her son to help her paint it too. The results were folksy depictions on an issue that strikes a real serious chord in me – littering. The pata features scenes of people at the tea stall, people in cars and buses, on trains littering plastic from the windows, and people burning plastics not knowing anything about the dangerous dioxins they release into the air. There is also a crocodile trying to swim away from a load of plastic that is floating in the water.

Our April display highlighted some of the best books on environment. One member, Momo, came in with a great poster on reducing consumption and proper disposal of trash and another smaller boy told me that he had cleaned up one small area of our campus so that he could make a secret clubhouse there. Children made magazine beads and worked on their blog. When everyone left, Bapu finished up his foresty Earth Day mural which he has been painting on the wall of the verandah. Malini and I made two Earth Day cakes for her class, now studying rainforests. It was a magically spontaneous Earth Day for our little community

Organics from Balia Bio-Agro Mission

2007-04-20T00:51:00.001-07:00

Organics from Balia Bio-Agro Mission
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

On Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Bhaduri from Balia Bio-Agro Mission stopped by to pick up a donation for Godhuli, the Adult Learning Center run through this organic farming initiative. He brought this delicious array of produce from the farmers there as a thank you -- I only wish that I could share it with you all too!

Mustard Seeds presented Godhuli with Rs. 8000 (approximately $200) to help sustain this organization's efforts to address deep-rooted (pardon the farming pun here) problems in BASIC education opportunities for all levels of society. A special thanks to Chris Rickerd, whose quick-hearted donatoin set this meeting into motion, and to friends in Japan who contributed generously in November.

Fundraising for Godhuli and RCFC, the children's center, will be the focus of the next Calcutta 100 Club project. If you would like to make a small contribution of just $5, the idea is pretty simple. With 100 members paying $5 twice a year...we make a total of $1000 per year which can be used for specific projects that can be accomplished with this sort of "mustard seed size" financial push!

MORE ABOUT GODHULI:
GODHULI is an adult education centre located in Nadia, West Bengal. Tarun Bhaduri, who manages an organic farming initiative in this area, organized this school approximately a year and a half back. It is open from 5:30 to 9:00 every night except Wednesdays and Sundays since there is an evening market which farmers sell at. Currently there are 29 students: 8 men and 21 women. They are learning basic literacy and can all now sign their names and write their address in order to sign important papers. They can all count up to at least 20. They are all day laborers, working in the fields which are gradually turning over to organic. A teacher's salary is Rs. 1000 (approx. US$ 20). There is one teacher working here at present, Mrs. Maya Mondal. They are also in need of teaching aids and materials such as pencils, notebooks, sample books, etc.

GODHULI
C/O Mr. Tarun Bhaduri
Village Jagganathpur
P.O. Purbabishnupur
Dist. Nadia
West Bengal 741223

Making a contribution to Rehabilitation Centres for Children (RCFC)

2007-04-13T23:37:00.001-07:00

Making a contribution to Rehabilitation Centres for Children (RCFC)
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Recently I received the following email from the folks at Rehabilitation Centres for Children (RCFC), an organization we have tried to send support to since I met the founder, Jane Webb, over 10 years back. She was such an inspiration to me that I used her name as my daughter's middle name. Jane died of cancer about 9 years ago.

======

Dear Maura,

I would like to take this opportunity to write to you about RCFC once again. We are very proud to have your name on the list of donors and we hope that you will wish to continue helping us in whatever way you can.

Started by Jane Webb in 1973 for rehabilitation of orthopaedically handicapped children, we are still continuing the services relentlessly. We are doing 25 operations per month and patients are coming from remote areas of not only West Bengal but also from Bihar Jharkhand, Orissa, Bangladesh. Around 50 to 60 children are staying at the centre for treatment.

RCFC is now suffering from an acute financial crunch. All the services are continuing but we are facing great difficulty in meeting the expenses since no fund is forthcoming from our foreign donors almost over a year. We are managing both ends with great hardship with our strong determination and goal of services to the children in order to give them a chance to live a purposeful life.

At this point of time I would seek your help for some donation as you deem fit for medical rehabilitation of orthopaedically handicapped children undergoing treatment at the Centre. In the past you have always been kind enough to donate to RCFC on several occasion. We fervently appeal to you for help and would also request you to approach benevolent donors to extend their helping hand to generate fund for the welfare of this Centre. (All payments should made in favour of REHABILITATION CENTRES FOR CHILDREN)

Kindly note that donations of RCFC are exempt from Income Tax under Section 80G

Please help us to continue the work Jane started by giving us your financial and emotional support.

Thanking you once again and we look forward to your esteemed response.

Yours Faithfully,
A.B.Choudhuri
Sr.Vice President

==========

I had been hoping to visit the centre but as it is quite far from where I live, I asked RCFC to visit us to pick up the donations I collected from the coin caddies and kind well-wishers in Japan. Mustard Seeds was able to donate Rs. 7000 to RCFC and with the remainder, we have become Lifetime Members so that we can stay abreast of the work being done at RCFC. Also, children at the library donate from time to time by dropping coins into the coin caddy that sits on the shelf; we for our little stamp collectors, we also collect used stamps and sell them at the library. This money also always goes into the caddy. Today we gave Rs. 110 from the children and have started the collection again by placing the empty coin caddy back on the shelf at the library.

Special thanks to Adarsh Sharma, Noriko Takemura, and Hiromi Yamamgami in Japan for their efforts to collect contributions for the treatment of the children at RCFC. A very special thanks to Mary Ohdai who has been handling the mustard seeds postal account in Japan.

http://www.avinner.com/578.html

Rehabilitation Centres for Children
59, Motilal Gupta Road
Kolkata – 700 008, West Bengal, India

Cheque should be drawn in favour of "Rehabilitation Centres For Children"
Bank account number for foreign donation
Name of the bank: Standard Chartered Bank
Bank's address: 41 Chowringhee Road, Kolkata - 700071, India
Savings Bank Account Number: 332-1-00-6193-8

Learn & Earn at Shikshamitra

2007-04-12T17:33:00.001-07:00

cloth_frontboard
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

There is a new program just being started at Shikshamitra, the school where I teach in Alipore. It's called Learn & Earn. For the older children in the school, the pressure to start thinking about how they will make a living is already on and they have lost some of their interest in pure academics. The Learn & Earn program hopes to expose them to various trades and handicrafts after school, so that they might find a niche which they feel comfortable in.

The program began this week. The older kids will come in two days a week afterschool to participate. CLOTH, as you can see from our bulletin board, is the focus. At least for the first two months. On Tuesday, we held a small exhibition of cloth: cloth puppets, wall hangings, clothing, cushion covers, bags, pouches, ornaments, etc. It came together very nicely, especially as some of the children also remembered to bring something in for the display. One boy brought in his sister's embroidery sampler, and another brought in a small hanging she had in her house. We discussed the connections we have to cloth, and how emotions can be attached to pieces of fabric. Sudeshna showed us a quilt her mother made for her using Sudeshna's very own frocks from childhood. After the discussion, the children got to work making their Learn and Earn notebooks, covered in scrap fabric. On Thursday, we began one of the first production projects. We will focus on creating unique products that may be for sale. To start we will be making some patches to sew on bags which I hope to sell in the US this summer to raise money for this project so we can buy supplies and get the kids set up to start producing and selling for themselves.

We are also looking for donations of CLOTH, any old clothes or fabrics that people want to discard will be recycled here.

Some other possible exposure experiences will involve paper, clay, food, etc.

Wish us luck in this endeavor!!

Boi Mela

2007-02-24T07:36:00.001-08:00

boimela07_noyoga
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

This year, the KOLKATA Book Fair was held in SALT LAKE...practically in our backyard! Yes! I found myself at the Salt Lake Book Fair four times -- I was never able to achieve this when Boi Mela was held so far away on the Maidan!

Searching out bargains and requests from Mustard Seed Library users, the kids and I always spend a long time inside National Book Trust and Children’s Book Trust, two government-subsidized publishers, selling a huge array of children’s books in both Bengali and English (at incredibly reasonable prices like Rs. 13 a book). Both our family and friends enjoy the treasures we find at Boi Mela long after the stalls are broken down and the well-tromped upon area where it was located... is breathing again.

MUSTARD SEEDS • CALCUTTA 100 CLUB

2007-02-18T03:56:00.001-08:00

Visiting Karuna's House
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

A House for Karuna!

While visiting the US last year, my sister Margo and I mapped out a project for the Mustard Seeds fund-raising effort called Calcutta 100 Club. Our aim was to financially assist the village patua artist, Karuna Chitrakar, and her family in building a sturdy-but-simple mud house on some land that she acquired several years back in her village of Pingla, Naya in Medinipur.

Margo collected approximately $240 from her friends in Batesville, Arkansas and I sold some of Karuna’s paintings and other Indian handicrafts to raise approximately $600 for Karuna and other organizations in Kolkata while I was in Chicago and Florida (and Japan in November).

Planting another Mustard Seed -- The following people helped to build a house!
Margo Baker and Family • Suzanne and Charlotte Schaeffer • Tad McNulty • Mary Clock • Sandy Taylor • Gayle Ross • Beckey Dickey • Robin King • Linda Baker • Jayne McClure • Charlotte Finney • Cindy Kallshick • Sue Ellen Dial • Angela McMahan • Robin Martens • Melissa Cooper • Pat Collins • Rehana Huq • Jan Fujikawa • Deborah Bachmann • Yukie Kaneshiro • Rashmi Ramaswami • ˙Helen Tsatos

Karuna worked out the details of the house construction, while coming back to us to report her plans. In the end, she decided to take out a loan to make it a bit bigger than what was first planned. Her family is already able to live in their house; but the mud walls need to be done later.

We (our friend Bikram, Hiromi who was visiting from Japan, Joydev and I) visited them in mid-January and were treated to sweets, a huge lunch, and a walk about the village!

Mustard Seeds seeks to introduce the traditional art form of pata scroll painting to a wider audience in the hopes that both the paintings and the painters can persevere. Support and encouragement to rural artisans and their traditions is another aim of our small efforts toward empowering people outside of the big cities. Thanks always for your interest and support!

========

For the next fund-raising effort we will collect for GODHULI, an adult education centre located in Nadia, West Bengal. Tarun Bhaduri who manages an organic farming initiative in this area organized this school approximately one year ago. It is open from 5:30 to 9:00 every night except Wednesdays and Sundays since there is an evening market which farmers sell at. Currently there are 29 students: 8 men and 21 women. They are learning basic literacy and can all now sign their names and write their address in order to sign important papers. They can all count up to at least 20. They are all day laborers, working in the fields which are gradually turning over to organic. A teacher's salary is Rs. 1000 (approx. US$ 20). There is one teacher working here at present, Mrs. Maya Mondal. They are also in need of teaching aids and materials such as pencils, notebooks, sample books, etc.

GODHULI
C/O Mr. Tarun Bhaduri
Village Jagganathpur
P.O. Purbabishnupur
Dist. Nadia
West Bengal 741223

Mustard Seeds Library February

2007-02-11T19:49:00.001-08:00

Mustard Seeds Library February
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Every month we put out a display of books on different themes at Mustard Seeds Library. Bapu is in charge of this! Here is our February display showcasing books on Friendship and Love!

Hiromi De-zines

2007-02-10T18:07:00.001-08:00

hiromi_dzines
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Our friend Hiromi was visiting for about three weeks in Jan-Feb.

She is a member of the Bean Cooking Club at Rakutendo (http://www.rakutendo.com), an organization/shop in Kyoto, Japan that promotes vegetarianism by cooking and eating beans. They study bean recipes from around the world and distribute recipes and bean-spice kits each month to members.

Recently Mustard Seeds accomplished a neat project with Jeevika Development Society, a women's skill-training project, and Rakutendo. They developed a pot cover that not only keeps food warm but allows you to take beans off the gas burner earlier and keep the cooking going for the last 15 minutes under the pot cover.

Sooooo...if 100 people save 15 minutes of gas every time they cook, it really adds up. I like that we were able to develop a product that isn't just something to buy, but something that also protects the environment!

The pot covers are made of handloom kesh made by the Tagore Society in Santiniketan. Old sarees are woven into new thread to create incredible, completely unique patterns. Each label, a little smiling bean (the group's motto is "All we are saying is Give Beans a Chance..."), is hand-embroidered by Jeevika, along with all the sewing on the cover itself. You can see a photo of the Nabe Cover on the Rakutendo website!

They are just completing the second order of 100 pieces to sell in collaboration with WWF in Japan!

Here, Hiromi is designing the next product, a spice holder for members to keep their spice packets (which they receive each month with their Bean Cooking Kits) neatly in their kitchens. These wall pocket pouches will use jute and hand-woven khadi...and will of course have the smiling bean on the side!

BLOGGING at the library

2007-01-06T17:22:00.001-08:00

A few of the members of Mustard Seeds Library got excited about blogging and have set up their own blog using the name of the newsletter we used to print sporadically, Mango Smiles. The site is planned to be filled with pieces by the kids themselves, and it is they who set up the account and have been doing the input all by themselves! We really look forward to news from all the Mustard Seeds members so that we can publish it on the blog. Spread the news

Have a look for yourself:

http://mango-smiles.blogspot.com

Letter from Kathmandu

2006-11-05T03:56:00.000-08:00

We recently had a visit with John Brandi and Renee Gregorio, two poets who live in El Rito, outside of Santa Fe. On the very last evening, we had the pleasure of hearing three of their poems. This one seems a good one to post before elections in the US.

= LETTER FROM KATHMANDU =

Friends, let us wake with disbelief,
bare our souls, tell our stories, lose our eyes,
become vagrants of the Sea.

Let us seek the heat
of the kernal that feeds in the dark,
and step aside of men whose twisted lips
pretend to lead, but are not real
in their pursuit of war.

I’ve already seen years
of massacre, hydrogen light the night,
children with ruined eyes, tortured by what
no one should ever see.

Let us leave our security,
open our memory, bring flowers
from the storm, write letters that become
sanctuaries, so that we ourselves
may become sanctuaries.

Friends, a dream
runs up to me smiling. I call on you
to see in the dark, to finish
the song inside you.

- John Brandi

Dress up !

2006-11-01T16:43:00.000-08:00

Mustard Seeds Halloween 1
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Although Halloween isn't much more than something the kids had read about in books, it didn't take long for Mustard Seed Library members to get into the Halloween spirit. We all made our own Jack-o-lantern bags and then thought quick about a costume: we had a Native American girl, a purple fairy, Harry Potter and Hermione, a pirate and a swami guy with an incredibly interesting goatee style! We even did a bit of trick-or-treating that felt like the real thing to me.

After, we raided the shelves and pulled out all the Mustard Seeds Halloween titles for the kids to take home -- and read up more on this newly found festival of fun.

Boo!

A real get-away

2006-09-21T02:29:00.000-07:00

Emerald Gecko Hut
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

We were visiting the Andaman islands for the past five days. We flew into Port Blair from Kolkata which took a little under 2 hours. We went to visit a small cove, which is the only beach on this main island the first day.

The second day, after purchasing our tickets for the boat to Havelock island, we went to see the Cellular Jail built by the British to lock up India's freedom fighters. The jail was later taken over by the Japanese. The galleries and museum were of great interest. Later that afternoon we left Port Blair and made our way to the coasts of Havelock.

Havelock is part of the very beautiful and remote island chain that extends from below Burma and leads into Sumatra. We enjoyed ourselves to no end, staying in bamboo huts, collecting shells, gliding on the huge waves of the Bay of Bengal, and riding an elephant on the beach (the footprints were enormous).

The huge array of trees are part of gorgeous native rainforests and when the monsoon rains would pour down at night on our little thatch roof, I felt exhilarated knowing that this was all that protected me from nature's forces. It sometimes felt like we'd be swept into the ocean when a huge gust of monsoon wind came with the rains.

Despite the tropicalia, this environment actually reminded me several times of childhood summers spent at Crystal Beach on good old Lake Erie.

LOOKING FOR CHILDREN'S BOOK IDEAS

2006-09-10T22:20:00.000-07:00

Recently I met a very dedicated woman here named Rosalie who is originally from Brooklyn, New York. She comes to Kolkata eight months out of the year to teach underpriviledged children at various locations throughout the city as part of an NGO she started to address the problem of education. The other four months are spent fund-raising in the US. Her NGO, Empower the Children , uses activity-based classes that all include a story and a craft.

She visited Mustard Seeds Library in the hope that she could find books about certain class topics, and I was surprised that we didn't have too many of them to offer! She is specifically looking for children's story books with these themes:

bird
drum
fish
glasses
guitar
heart
jack-in-the-box
jaguar
moon
nose
necklace
pearl
quilt
rattle
snake
unicorn
vegetables
vine
yoyo
yarn
worm

I thought some of the mustard seed friends and family might be able to help her out. If you can suggest titles for children's books that talk about these particular themes, she can purchase them or if you would like to donate them for her use, you can send them to her directly. Just send an email (mseeds.maura@gmail.com) or post a comment if you have book titles or want to get an address to send a new or used copy to Rosalie directly! I'll pass any ideas or books onto her.

POST - IT!

2006-08-07T04:02:00.000-07:00

Mustard Seeds Alternatives Shop
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

GREETING CARDS, POSTCARDS AND PAPER ITEMS

Do you still enjoy sending a handwritten letter; thanking someone with a card; or remembering someone on special days?

As a means of support to several smaller NGO producers and artisans here in Kolkata I help design and sell a variety of beautiful handmade greeting cards, postcards, and other paper products. The prices are reasonable and provide motivation to the groups who continue to develop and create new products.

Some of the cards have been silk-screened and hand-painted by Silence, a group that trains and employs deaf and disabled workers. Postcards are prints of original pata village artwork. There are also uniquely hand-painted cards by an organization called Anjali, bringing art therapy to three mental institutions in the city. Other groups include Ankur Kala, Suchana Early Learning Center and Calcutta Rescue.

This past weekend we opened up a small card and gift area in the library. Every item on sale is made by these social welfare groups working here in Kolkata to give people training and employment. Proceeds go straight back to the groups.

If you are in need of Durga Puja or Year-end greeting cards, watch here for some designs, or just inquire by email. There is also an 8 card variety pack available, for a donation of $20 (thanks to everyone who has sent their support so far!)

If you would like to see some of the cards or know of a place where I can sell them, please be in touch.

mseeds.maura@gmail.com

Mustard Seed Philosophy

2006-08-04T19:03:00.000-07:00

M Seed Tree
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Basically, I still believe that "small is meaningful."

As individually beautiful as the people who create them

2006-05-05T07:55:00.000-07:00

anjalicards
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

These cards were painted by people participating in the Anjali Programme in government-run mental institutions in West Bengal.

ANJALI was born out of a desire to realistically implement some of the recommendatons of the National Human Rights Commission towards improving mental health care and treatment in India. The long-term aim of ANJALI is to create a user-friendly institution that would function as a democractic healing speace for campaign, advocacy, and care of the psychosocially disabled. Its ultimate misssion is to initiate and help implement systemic reforms in the sphere of mental health care and treatment in India.

In addition to these cards, Mustard Seeds has started selling greetings cards by various other NGOs and health organizations which implement card-making as creative therapy and means for employment. Please inquire about purchasing a Helping Hand Variety Card Pack.

Another Earth Day rolls around at MSeeds

2006-04-23T06:10:00.000-07:00

eday_tokaiT
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

This year the kids at Mustard Seeds Library joined in on the Earth Day T-shirt D-Zine Contest and I must say we got some pretty exciting entries. This shirt, designed by Tokai Mukherjee, was chosen as the winner. But it has to be said that everyone is a winner if they are thinking about the EARTH and what they can do to create less of an impact on her -- on April 22nd!

eday_cake
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

After turning in the T-shirt entry forms we baked our own banana-carrot Earth Day cake decorated with lemon icing and flowers from our garden. Then of course, another round of our annual HAPPY EARTH DAY TO YOU!

Thanks to our environmental activist friend, Amanda Suutari, for sharing these nice Earth Day quotations with us all. We have them posted on our Earth Day display in the library:

- We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. ~Native American Proverb

- There are no passengers on Spaceship Earth. We are all crew. ~Marshall McLuhan, 1964

- You can't be suspicious of a tree, or accuse a bird or a squirrel of subversion or challenge the ideology of a violet. ~Hal Borland, Sundial of the Seasons, 1964

- Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realise we cannot eat money. ~Cree Indian Proverb

- Environmentalists have long been fond of saying that the sun is the only safe nuclear reactor, situated as it is some ninety-three million miles away. ~Stephanie Mills, ed., In Praise of Nature, 1990

- I conceive that the land belongs to a vast family of which many are dead, few are living, and countless numbers are still unborn. ~A Chieftan from Nigeria

Card Corner at Aalcha

2006-04-13T19:44:00.000-07:00

cardcorner
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

When I heard that my friends at Aalcha were planning to open a lending library and bookshop I asked if I could get in on the fun.

Keeping in touch through cards and letters is something that seems an inherited gene in my family so setting up a small card and stationary corner seemed obvious to me. I am hoping that more people can keep alive the art of letter and postcard writing, even in the midst of this internet/email heyday we are living in.

Products are mainly sourced through NGOs and artists so you just cannot go wrong if you buy your greeting cards and thank yous from here. Beautiful handmade diaries, notebooks and gift bags are also available.

Located in Shyambati in Shantiniketan.

PEACE and JAPAN'S ARTICLE IX

2006-03-29T05:24:00.000-08:00

shikshamitra_peace2
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Article 9 of Japan's present Constitution states the Renunciation of War but it is currently in danger of being amended to take up arms. This is something that worries many Japanese people who have always been in support of remaining a neutral country. Creative activism is happening throughout the islands to protect this anti-war clause.

Recently my friend Yoshiko, a peace activist in Japan, wrote to ask for children's drawings from India for the Peace Art Exhibition to be held in April in Nara.

I decided to take Yoshiko's request and her message of peace to the school I volunteer at, called SHIKSHAMITRA. We did three discussion / art sessions with different age groups and some very wonderful thoughts and drawings came out of each. The children, many of whom cope with difficult domestic problems, were enthusiastic about envisioning a more peaceful environment.

"Arms do not ever protect a nation or its people..."

This exhibition is an opportunity for people all over the globe to think about Peace and Japan's Article 9.

How does your garden grow?

2006-02-23T16:36:00.000-08:00

malanchafeb
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Our garden plot, Malancha, is in its peak season right now. It keeps changing its look and expanding whenever I get time to go down there and work on it. Italian basil is growing like spitfire right now and I look forward to making some pesto. The mali at the kid's school gave me some cuttings, some of which are doing great. This is a fun way to acquire new plants!

Pata

2006-01-19T04:12:00.000-08:00

tsunami
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

After December 2005, many patuas illustrated their impressions of the tsunami disaster in their scroll commentaries.

This is one frame that describes the tsunami from a patua's perspective. Many of the scrolls show a huge godlike creature crying at the top with tears flowing down from the heavens, heads with their eyes closed are floating in the waters, and birdlike carriages are flying about carrying people -- the helicopters rescuing victims in the affected areas.

Painting by Karuna Chitrakar
Medinipur

bai lou

2006-01-16T05:35:00.000-08:00

bailou_4
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

An exhibition at Artisana at 13 Chowringhee Terrace introduced unique contemporary weaves by the bai lou studio.

The studio was started in March 2002 by a young couple with plenty of color, design style, and saavy.

Handmade, handwoven textiles, including scarves, bags, quilts, and sarees are some of the bai lou products. The two have been working closely with weavers in villages near Phulia to meld obviously contemporary designs together with traditional weaving skills -- creating a wave of refreshingly new weave selections and possibilities.

No two products seem to look or feel the same.

www.bailou.net

THANK YOU!

2006-01-07T02:51:00.000-08:00

mustard1
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Thanks to the following list of people who have helped us in a variety of creative ways to raise money or further Mustard Seed activities....

Kyoko Hosoki & Hiromi Yamagami at JEE in Kyoto selling products; Chiaki Takashima & Rakutendo members for working to make a fair trade pot cover for their bean cuisine club; Siobhan Wilson for taking a keen interest in the groups and trying to start a business up focusing on them; Laura Ford for her "maural" support; Carol Lanigan & Moira Jones in Dublin who started the Coffee Morning Movement to sell products for groups here over coffee; Ringo Hanada, Adarsh Sharma, Yukie Kaneshiro, Martha Hurley, Kenske Nakamura for their financial contributions; Ann Overton for library materials; Kawamoto-san, Arisa-san, Naoki-kun and Nick-san who sell products at their restaurants; Trina Takeuchi and Family; all the Mustard Seed LIbrary members, the NGOs here, and to my whole family!

For those who always wondered, this is what mustard looks like growing on the field!

Panchachuli Women Weavers

2005-12-20T07:03:00.000-08:00

pashmina2
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Last week I heard a talk given by a representative of Panchachuli Women Weavers cooperative who have made a name for themselves by making pure pashmina products.

In 1997 funds were received to start a training program for about 150 women in the villages around Almora to teach them spinning and weaving wool and natural fibers available locally as a sustainable form of employment. In order to empower the women of this area, who were used to toiling in fields and raising cattle and being dominated by menfolk, it was necessary to chalk out a program encompassing basic and advanced training, along with infrastructure and facilities for common production centers where women could work.

Training was imparted by master weavers from the tribal communities on the Indo-Tibet border where weaving of fine wool was a tradiational occupation. Although the program was first opposed by the men of the area, eventually the women gained the support of their families and with substantial income gains brought home by the women, the whole socio-economic dynamics of families and the community turned around. The women are truly empowered. Panchaculi women and their families, moreover, have been able to swing th evotes in favor of particular elected candidates.

By the end of 2000 there were 400 women trained in various skills and the Danny Kaye and Sylvia Fine Kaye Foundation provided the funds for importing sophisticated pashmina processing machines from Scotland, for building a complex comprising seven large weaving halls, rooms for spinnng and processing of wool, stores for raw materials and finished products, administrative offices and four buses to transport women from their villages to the production center and back.

Between 2000 and 2003 another 300 women were trained and Panchaculi became a brand name in the local market, domestically and abroad.

Panchachuli procures the bulk of its wool, namely pasmina and lambswool, from the highlands of Tibet where founder Ms. Mukti Dutta and women employees go trekking over in 22,000 ft. high passes to buy wool from Tibetan nomads around Lake Manasarovar and Mt. Kailash. They are officially recognized traders by both the Indian and Chinese governments, who have allowed them access to these restricted areas.

Women also work with nettle fiber and oak silk procured locally through traditional methods of growing and processing, and have plans to work with hemp fiber.

I was particularly impressed with the beauty of the natural colors, the soft texture and the delicately intricate weaves. This photo is a display at Sasha where the Panchchuli Women Weavers are currently exhibiting their products til Dec. 24.

Merry Christmustard!

2005-12-19T18:07:00.000-08:00

ms_xmas
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Close your eyes and look inside yourself. There you will find the gift you can give to your friends and your community...and the world.

But in the meantime, it's time to play Secret Santa gift exchange at Mustard Seeds Library!! While sipping hot cocoa, kids exchanged small gifts with their friends and sang Christmas songs. In the evening we took it out on the streets, doing two rounds of carols in the parks of our apartment complex -- It certainly was not a silent night.

Time to focus

2005-12-10T03:54:00.000-08:00

goataura
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Around this time of year, one starts thinking about winding up the year that's finished and planning what to do next year. Recently I wrote up a short statement about Mustard Seeds that explains to a certain extent what we are trying to achieve here. I'd like to share it with all our fellow mustard seeds!

Mustard Seeds is a conceptual project for community-based action on a small scale started by Maura Hurley and Gautam Basu in a suburb of Kolkata, India. The name comes from the mustard seed spice which is an important ingredient in regional Bengali cooking. Although it is a very tiny seed, it gives a potent and delicious flavor to dishes that just wouldn't taste the same without it. Mustard Seeds aims to do small-scale, peopel-to-people projects that connect those living inside and outside Kolkata.

Mustard Seeds began in 1997 with the help of friends and family outside of India who donated books and financial contributions. The very first project was setting up a children's library and activity space in one room of their flat for young people in the neighborhood. With school and study pressure being so high in Kolkata, children feel happy to come to the library and browse through the book collection, go wild with paints, write a poem, do a craft project, or have a story read to them. The library has organized coloring contests, poster contests with environmental themes, visits to local social welfare projects, and always has a big Earth Day celebration in April. Children help maintain a small garden space, Malancha, that used to be a garbage heap and raise funds for a children's rehabilitation center in south Kolkata, RCFC.

Besides the library, Mustard Seeds self-published a children's book entitled To the Local Bazaar with a simple story that uses illustrations by a traditional story scroll artist from the village of Medinipur. Sales of this book and the postcard set that was also printed give a little more support to this artist and her family. More books that use traditional artwork are set to be published too. Mustard Seed also creates outlets for some of the budding fair-trade producer groups in Kolkata to sell their products while at the same time spreading the story of women's and rural development issues in this region.

Among various projects, currently Mustard Seed members sell jams and pickles for Ankur Kala, a women's center in Kolkata that trains destitute women to become skilled and self-empowered. Greeting cards made by physically and mentally challenged individuals at Silence and Asha Niketan, two organizations that work to make people with disabilities lead more independent. lifestyles, are also available at the library as well as cards from SUCHANA, The Uttor Chandipur Early Learning Group located outside of Shantiniketan. Profits go right back to the groups that produce them to sustain their important work.

Through numerous small networkings, Mustard Seeds works to encourage others to get to know more about the many worthwhile NGO efforts going on in Kolkata through the sale of products, written commentaries, or visits to the actual sites. Mustard Seeds does not aim to become a huge organization with a central office, but instead to inspire other individuals and families to do something on a small-scale that makes a difference to another person. Why not become a Mustard Seed yourself? What blooms where you are planted is a creative and never-ending process!

Feel free to contact us.

Jane Webb

2005-12-06T07:35:00.000-08:00

maura_jane
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

On this day, in the year 1998 we lost a dear friend of ours, Jane Webb. Though I only knew her for a short time here in Kolkata, her loving smile and true compassion for others inspired me beyond words. Jane, who became an Indian citizen just before she left to find her spirit, was the founder of RCFC (or Rehabilitation Centres for children). Mustard Seeds has been organizing small fundraising projects to help keep Jane's important work going strong. This is me with the statue of Jane that was put up on the RCFC grounds in Barasat, in south Kolkata.

Rehabilitation Centres for Children was registered as a society on 24th April, 1973 in Calcutta, India. The aim of RCFC is the treatment and rehabilitation of orthopaedically handicapped children from underprivileged families, so that these children will be able to live a fuller life and take a normal place in the society instead of being neglected, dependent, emotionally disturbed and frustrated.

Jane was the Founder Secretary and Director of the Centre. Her vision and continuous struggle for helping the disabled children to stand on their own feet is slowly but surely realised. The seed she planted with love, care and dedication more than 25 years ago, is now a grown up tree blossoming with flowers and evergrowing branches. RCFC has taken a solid root and is now a pioneer institution in the service of orthopaedically handicapped children from deprived homes.

Jane was quoted as saying, "We bought a house with a large garden in Barisha, on the outskirts of Calcutta with money donated by the German philantropic organization Christustrager Waisendienst (Aid to orphans); we repaired the house, cleaned up the garden, and started slowly. At first there was one child named Gopal from Siliguri who had lost a foot and it continued steadily after that.

Initially, we had very little idea as to how we would go about our mission or of the existing need; it was a new kind of venture for all those involved and in those very turbulent times. We found gradually that it was not always feasible to arrange for children's treatment outside the Centre; we faced too many problems as more and more children were brought to us. So, we set up an operation theatre in 1981 with attached X-ray unit. We had already been running the immunisation clinic for prevention of polio and other diseases. In 1993 our mobility aid and applicances manufacturing workshop was established. RCFC has a well-equipped 90 bedded hospital, an operation theater, X-ray unit, a physiotherapy department, a well laid out mobility aid workshop for making orthotic and prosthetic aids and a child development department which provides basic education and craft training during the treatment.

In addition to the above, there other extra-curricular activities like dance, music, drama and drawing. The craft classes include cane work and basketry, clay modelling, pottery, terracotta, mat-making, sewing, knitting, embroidery, tie-dye and batik. The overall aim of these classes is to make children develop their natural abilities and confidence. Talented children may also find a avenue for earning from the vocational trades learned at our Centre. Our involvement in various fields has increased manifold.

Simultaneously, we are expanding our activities and services to remote areas . On 23rd January, 1998, our new centre in Bolpur was inaugurated by Shri Somnath Chatterjee, MP. It was at his suggestion and insistence that the Government of West Bengal donated us land at Kalikapur where our centre stands. The Centre has been named "Miblou Jyoti Mahal" and the fund was donated by Miblou, a Swiss voluntary organization.

RCFC can be contacted at:
Rehabilitation Centres for Children
59, Motilal Gupta Road
rcfc1@vsnl.net

A special place...

2005-11-13T01:38:00.000-08:00

asha_medroom
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

I hold a very special place in my heart for an organization called Asha Niketan, introduced to me by Shyamali a long while back. This is the meditation room on Pottery Road in Tangra, one of two homes for learning disabled individuals that is run under L'Arche, an international federation of communities for people with learning disabilities and assistants.

At the Open House for Asha Niketan last night we got a tour of the second house which I had never seen before. When I asked if there is a meditation room in this home too, we were brought here. The batik hanging on the wall was done by members of Asha Niketan and symbolizes the inter-faith beliefs of this organization and all those involved. No matter who or what your God is, you're sure to be able to communicate here. Meditation is held two times a day and all attend. The beautifully decorated pages in the book on the stand has prayers from various holy books to inspire love, harmony and courage.

"Whatever their gifts or limitations, people are all bound together in a common humanity. Everyone is of unique and sacred value and everyone has the same dignity and the same rights. The fundamental rights of each person include the rights to life, to care, to a home, to education and to work. Since the deepest need of a human being is to love and to be loved, each person has a right to friendship, to communion and to a spiritual life".

Asha Niketan strives to make this all possible for some very wonderfully creative individuals.

KARMYOG is what they do...

2005-11-09T05:03:00.000-08:00

Medium Gift Bags_Karmyog
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

I recently found this wonderful little shop that puts your rupees to work in a most meaningful way . If you are in the market for very special greeting cards (Xmas card designs have just been put on the shelves...), wrapping papers, gift bags or boxes or any other paper products, then there is a shop at 12B Russell Street that you must stop in at.

"Karmyog" is a boutique of intricately hand-crafted paper products made by girls who have spent their childhood in welfare homes but who now have to step out in to the world to fend for themselves. The word Karmyog has two parts: "work" and "yoga" so in other words "work as a form of yoga, or path for living." The Karmyog trust offers these young women the means for becoming self-sufficient through vocational training that allows them to earn a living and lead independent and meaningful lives.

Why buy mass-produced and impersonal greetings from Archies (the Hallmark shops of India) when you can both give a gift to a friend and to a girl in need with a purchase from Karmyog?

It certainly feels like good karma to me!

Karmyog Showroom
12B Russell Street
Kolkata 700 071
9830050847
2229-5924
info@karmyog.org

ALCHA in Shyambati

2005-11-08T05:37:00.000-08:00

alcha_1
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

This is the bright-eyed breakfast duo at Alcha, a newish open-air cafe in Shyambati, Shantiniketan. They whip up a beautifully served plate of eggs, toast and hash browns with brewed coffee in the mornings. But things turn Tamilian on the menu in the evenings. A unique little spot to hang out at.

There is also a chic little "lifestyle shop" attached to the cafe that showcases local but all-new weaves, potteries, and natural fruit drinks!

For people who come to visit Shantiniketan from the big city the mud and bamboo decor at Alcha is sure to be a soothing contrast to the developments happening in Kolkata.

FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS

2005-11-01T04:40:00.000-08:00

diwali_1
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Right now in celebration of Diwali, the festival of lights, SASHA shop is holding an exhibition/sale of exquisitely crafted dokra and terracotta diyas (oil lamps), hand painted candles, diyas, etc. If you happen to stop in when some of the candles are lit and flickering, you'll catch the spirit of this warming celebration.

There are two producer organizations in particular that stand out for me. SILENCE is a certified fair trade self-help movement for those who can neither speak nor hear, only visualize, and others who cannot go anywhere, except in their imaginations -- and yet who aspire towards self-sufficiency and acceptance as contributing members of society.

ASHA NIKETAN runs a workshop which creates a variety of candles in porcelain or terracotta containers, tie and dye articles, greeting cards and other items. In the open spaces around the Asha Niketan buildings, community members are also involved in horticulture. The workshop earns some revenue from the sale of these products which supplements donations for the L'Arche International community established in 1973 to create a home atmosphere for mentally challenged people.

The good work being done by so many here in Kolkata constantly inspires and amazes me.

Face Painting at Mustard Seeds Library

2005-10-31T03:26:00.000-08:00

hallow2_05
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Going along with the Halloween theme at the library this past Sunday, our guest, artist and teacher Atreyee Dey, helped paint up Mustard Seeds' faces after a morning spent putting in seedlings into the Malancha garden space. We are celebrating Kali Puja and the Festival of Light, Diwali, in Kolkata this week.

puja vacation

2005-10-11T05:10:00.000-07:00

bapu&goatie
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

ahhhhh. we are on vacation as the festival for Ma Durga takes place in the city all around us. we visited pandals, ate street food, and met friends outside in our housing complex last night. mostly we are enjoying having nothing to do at all really.

Puja Exhibition

2005-09-20T18:16:00.000-07:00

DSCF1713
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Puja is the shopping season in Kolkata and many NGOs organize events. Last weekend, Sept 16-17-18, the women at Ankur Kala opened up their training center for an Open House-cum-Exhibition. They invited other organizations to exhibit and sell their work too. Groups that particpated included Asha Niketan, Mass Welfare Society, Paripurnata Half-Way Home, and Indian Council of Rehabilitation & Sports for the Disabled.

This photo shows the patua folkartist Karuna Chitrakar entertaining both the hosts and guests with her beautiful songs and pictures. Ankur Kala hopes to learn about this traditional art and adopt some of the designs for their own products.

I hope this sort of networking expands and grows even stronger in the NGO sector here.

Balia Bio-Agro Mission

2005-09-17T19:13:00.000-07:00

tbhaduri
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

The man on the right is Tarun Bhaduri, who is supporting farmers in Balia (located about 2 hours north of Kolkata) to make the changeover to organic farming. His organization is called Balia Bio-Agro Mission. The man on the left is currently working on developing herbal insecticides. At the Farm Weekends at SASHA, this group is supplying city consumers with healthy organic rice varieties, dal varieties, mushrooms, and spices.

Mr. Bhaduri became interested in bio-farming through a very personal experience. When he was hospitalized for by-pass surgery many of the farmers donated blood to keep him going. Two years later when flooding created havoc in this area the farmers turned to him for advice. He told them to work from their own stocks of seeds and fertilizers and don't go into debt. This is when they began to practice natural methods -- and once things had gone back to normal, the farmers themselves pressed for his support in bio-farming. This exercise brough out of necessity made them understand that bio-farming could bring high yields and did not damage the environment like chemicals did.

Balia Bio-Agro Mission products will be on sale on a regular basis at SASHA. It is up to consumers to decide what sort of farming they want their money to support.

Balia BIO-AGRO MISSION
( An organization for Organic & Sustainable farming and Social Welfare)
Regd. under Society Registration Act 1961 of Govt. of West Bengal
CHAKDAHA- BONGAON RD. VILL. & P.O- BALIA, DIST.-NADIA
PH.NO - 03473-248631 / E mail Id - tarun_bhaduri@sify.com

CHILDREN'S BOOK

2005-08-29T21:00:00.001-07:00

local_bazaar_cover_ad
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

To the Local Bazaar

The market place in India is full of color and fascination for children and adults alike. To the Local Bazaar uses a village art form to illustrate a shopping trip to the bazaar by a young girl and her mother. In this book, the pata style, which traditionally uses framed pictures in a scroll that is unrolled to tell a story, has been put into a contemporary children's book format. A lyrical Bengali subtext has also been included along with the English ryhme story. Just like the market place, this book is sure to appeal to both the young and old!
(For ages 3-6; 10 pages)

Pictures by Karuna Chitrakar (patua of Medinipur, West Bengal)
Words by Maura Hurley Basu (runs Mustard Seeds Community Library/ Activity Room in Salt Lake, Kolkata)
Published by Mustard Seeds, an independent family project that supports traditional artists, and a variety of social and charitable programs in Kolkata.

If you would like more information or to purchase a book, contact: mustard@vsnl.com

In Kolkata, the book is available at SASHA fair trade for contemporary living at 27 Free School Street

Letter to the Editor

2005-08-16T08:23:00.000-07:00

autorick
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Something in the air

Dear Editor, The irresponsible attitude of the state government towards air pollution in Calcutta is just incredible (Govt dumps clean-air date, again, Aug 9). For how long will the government drag its feet? Until some foreign investor with deep pockets finds it uncomfortable to breathe in Calcutta? I guess not, because they don’t take the bus or auto-rickshaw. They drive into their AC rooms directly from the airport, in their AC cars over the new flyovers. How about a court ruling making it mandatory for the transport minister and the chief minister to breathe the foul air in the city by pulling the shutters of their cars down when they travel in the city? Or even better, make it mandatory for the duo to take auto-rickshaws to office every day, sitting directly across the exhaust pipe of a bus. I can guarantee that this alone will make sure that the deadline is met before the pujas.

Yours faithfully,
Gautam Basu, Calcutta
15 August 2005 / The Statesman

KEWPIES

2005-08-12T17:53:00.000-07:00

DSCF1593
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

When friends visited recently we took them out to Kewpie's which was started by Minakshie DasGupta, the author of Bangla Ranna: The Bengal Cookbook. Kewpie's serves an authentic Bengali meal in the traditional style using terra cotta plates and cups with banana leaves under the food. We tried an array of Bengali favorites, like dal with coconut, eggplant with yogurt sauce and fish baked in banana leaves.

FARM WEEKENDS

2005-08-12T17:48:00.000-07:00

sasha
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

This is a project we are trying to start at SASHA to get small producers a better market in the city. The first one is on Sept. 2-3-4. So far, some nice groups have been lined up to sell jams,pickles, peanut butter, fruit juices, etc.

SHIKSHAMITRA

2005-07-28T04:29:00.000-07:00

swanirvar_1
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

Finally i had the chance to visit Sudeshna's school and her wonderful students at the newly named Shikshamitra, which translates into "friends of learning." We begun the day with songs and I taught two English classes using techniques I picked up in Japan. They really would enjoy any materials for the school if you can contribute. They especially need a full time English teacher!!

Sudeshna Sinha
c/o Shikshamitra
Ananda Flat 7H & 5G
116 Southern Avenue, Kolkata 700 029 INDIA
Email: sujit568@cal3.vsnl.net.in