Wednesday 3 December 2014

I love my forehead..


(Selfie with a Cow, Thiruvalangadu village, India)
By now we should all know that no one is perfect. As much as we hear this phrase all the time, most of us do not believe this. You can start with admitting your imperfections and even applauding them. I usually know where my strengths and weakness lie, where I can improve and when to make space for others to take lead. Endeavouring to be good at everything is incompetent, ‘aint nobody got time for that’. There is nothing wrong with saying ‘no’ sometimes, or else you will end up over committing and making fake promises to people. I have started committing to things I actually enjoy instead of piling every little thing on my calendar for the sake of other people. Working with the health team in the village has given me the opportunity to work with young girls and lead Women's Confidence Class lessons.

Leading a Women's Confidence Class in our Youth Resource Centre in Thiruvalangadu village was a rewarding experience. I am passionate about women's rights issues and promoting gender equality, and I planned my lesson about body image with full enthusiasm. Body image can include a person’s thoughts and feelings about their weight, shape, skin colour, size, height and their appearance more broadly. Television and magazines portray an ideal body image that causes people from around the world to question their looks and lose confidence in themselves. According to All Party Parliamentary group on Body Image, 42% of girls and young women feel like that the most negative part about being a female is the pressure to look attractive. Two people could look identical but have a very different body image as a result of peer groups; media, family and the society and culture in which we live in. Personally, I think we should build a positive and healthy body image for the future generation. My lesson for the girls was successful; I included self esteem activities to boost confidence levels. Overall, all the girls enjoyed the lesson and fully participated in all activities.


(Women's Confidence Class, India. 18.11.2014)
(Rakish's sister, Thiruvalangadu village.India)


(World Toilet Day, Thiruvalangadu School. 19.11.2014)
 Social media is playing a big role. Twitter is a great example; young girls' pictures are always analysed and fully criticised on their timelines. Some girls are now more concerned about little things like the shape of their eyebrows and the size of their forehead. (By the way, I love my forehead, sometimes I pull my Hijab back to show my forehead!) Social media has a huge effect on young people’s confidence and this can not be ignored in our society. 

 "To lose confidence in one's body is to lose one's confidence in oneself " Simone de Beauvoir

World Toilet Day. Thiruvalangadu Village, India.

The health team have successfully celebrated ‘World Toilet Day’ in Thiruvalangadu village, India. World Toilet Day is a United Nations (UN) observance, on November 19th, that highlights a serious problem – the ‘silent’ sanitation crisis is a ticking time bomb which affects billions of people around the world. This international day of action aims to break the taboo around toilets and draw attention to the global sanitation challenge. The issues surrounding sanitation is bigger than I imagined; according to the UN, 1 in 3 women worldwide risk shame, disease, harassment and even attack because they do not have safe toilets. Furthermore, the absence of adequate toilets in schools can lead to a higher rate of girls dropping out of education, as well as risks the health and safety of female students. 
(World Toilet Day, Thiruvalangadu School. 19.11.2014)

(World Toilet Day, Thiruvalangadu School. 19.11.2014)
(World Toilet Day, Thiruvalangadu School. 19.11.2014)
(World Toilet Day, Thiruvalangadu School. 19.11.2014)
Developing countries should prioritise improving sanitation; 2.5 billion people practise open defecation or lack of adequate sanitation facilities. Unfortunately, poor sanitation leads to 700,000 child deaths from diarrhoea each year. Restless development is working extremely hard to prevent such problems, and the health team have done a great job in raising awareness about the importance of World Toilet Day....

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Thursday 20 November 2014

Overwhelming love..






(Children's Day, 14.11.2014 Thiruvallur, India)
So far, humanitarian and journalism work has to be my favourite things to do in life. I find them both to be compelling and fulfilling. Being a humanitarian is an incredible opportunity to contribute, even in a small way, to improving the lives of those born less fortunate. Yet it also offers individuals the opportunity to learn from these amazing people who are so inspiring. The most rewarding part of being in Thiruvalangadu village is spending time with the children.When we organise events and after school lessons in Restless Development's Youth Resource Center, kids from around the village attend and I just love seeing the smile on their faces.  

I was lucky enough to celebrate Children’s Day in India with the kids in our village. This day in Hindi is known as ‘Bal Diwas’. In India it falls on November 14th every year and for good reason;  it is Pandit Nehru’s birthday. It is a day of fun and frolic - a celebration of childhood, children and Nehruji’s love for them. When India gained independence, he became the first Prime Minister of free India. As tribute to this great man and his love for the children, his birthday is celebrated all over India as Children’s Day.

We were invited to our local school in the village to join the kids and the teachers to celebrate this phenomenal day. The kids looked adorable, some of them were wearing formal all white attire. It felt satisfying helping the teachers who were conducting competitions, telling stories and giving awards to the children. During this day, I genuinely could not stop smiling; I received overwhelming love from the kids. 

(Narthavada Village, India. 20.11.2014)
(Children's Day, 14.11.2014. Palayanur Village, India)
(Children's Day, 14.11.2014 Thiruvallur, India)
(World Toilet day, Thiruvalangadu Government school. India 19.11.2014)
(Children's Day, 14.11.2014. Palayanur Village, India)
(Children's Day, 14.11.2014. Private School , Manavur, India)

Celebrating Children’s Day with the Indian kids was divine and extraordinary, but my mind was with my sisters and brothers in Somalia. Somali women and children have been living in the harshest of conditions for over two decades. Unfortunately, my country is one of the hardest places on earth to be a child; there are many serious obstacles for children to overcome. Recently, Somalia saw a positive movement in terms of politics, humanitarian access and food security. However, despite these developments, the majority of children continue to suffer some of the most of severe vulnerabilities and deprivations in the world. Fundraising for different charities that have a base in Somalia is part of my way of helping the children. (ilaahey ha caawi dadkeena iyo dalkeena). 

Indian Hospitality

(Arun's Mum, Thiruvallur Town, India 14.11.2014)

One of the most defining characteristics of Indian culture is hospitality. We have been lucky enough to have been invited into the homes of national volunteers on our team. Getting an invitation to someone's house is common in India, so do not appear to be taken aback or surprised: accept the invitation cordially. We made our way to Arun's house on Friday night after work around 5pm. We were all excited to go to his house and meet his family. In India, revealing clothes and exposed skin are frowned upon and will make everyone in the house uncomfortable. Since we all wanted to make a great impression on Arun's family, all the girls dressed conservatively.

 

 (Arun's home, Thiruvallur Town, India 14.11.2014)

Just like a Somali home, in India, footwear and feet are considered dirty. In most homes, footwear is taken off outside the main door and the house is entered barefoot. Before going in the house, we respectfully left our shoes outside. Arun's charming mum was waiting to greet and welcome us into her stunning home. I was ready to shake her hand but she gave me a big hug. India is still a very conservative nation but hugging and kissing are slowing becoming common practices. We all enjoyed the vegetarian food and ended the night with songs and of course Chai tea. (Halal food for Ladan, yummy). Overall, I must say that Indian hospitality is legendary and once again I was honoured to spend time with these lovely people.

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Ladan Takow