Setrawa stories

A brand new birthday

Ten girls from Sambali are being sponsored to go to school beginning next month. The administration in Jodhpur and their private schools require basic information such as parent's name, age and birthday. When we began to collect this information we found out that 8 of the girls didn't know their birthday! Even their parents didn't know. We asked Mool Singh, the principal, what to do and he responded casually, "just  give them a new birthday". Apparently making up birthdays is common when kids start school. So the next day we sat with the girls and made up birthdays. Jitu was quite happy when we decided she had the same birthday as me. "Same-same" is an expression many of the girls use so Jitu pointed to me and herself and exclaimed, "birthdays, same-same!"

My pet scorpion

The onset of summer heat is also the beginning of scorpion season. We were sitting in the kitchen making chapattis when all of a sudden I saw a scorpion running across the floor of the main room. Usha ran to get the neighbor who trapped it in a bucket. Then to my surprise it was released into the garden inside our house! I asked Usha why it wasn't released in the bushes outside our house. I found out apparently there are lots of scorpions living in our garden! Usha said to be careful at night when I brush my teeth and go to the bathroom because the bathroom/shower rooms are right next to the scorpion garden!

Easter in Setrawa

Chocolate is virtually non-existent in Setrawa which makes it a highly desirable treat. My host family loves chocolate and couldn't believe there is a holiday in Canada where parents hide chocolate around the house for their children. On the morning of the 25th I called home to wish everyone happy Easter. It was fun talking to everyone but after I missed being part of the family gathering. When I came down from the roof Usha flew by me. This was strange because it was only 7:00 am and normally Usha sleeps in for as long as possible. She never moves that fast in the morning. However, today she was excitedly and frantically preparing for the arrival of her sister and all her sister's inlaws. Over the next few hours the house was tidied and a feast was prepared. The kitchen was full of neighbors who were helping chop vegetables, roll chapattis, and cook. It was complete chaos and rapid fire Hindi. Then a neighborhood kid appeared at the door and suddenly everything became calm and relaxed. A minute later a jeep pulled up and Usha happily greeted her sister. The men and women/children sat on mats in two separate rooms to socialize. Then we had the most amazing feast. First there were my favourite Indian sweets. In India they usually eat their sweets before their main meal (the north American kid's dream). Then piles of chapattis, rice, daal and many different types of spicy vegetable dishes. There was a potatoes dish, a spinach dish, a ladyfinger dish, a typical Rajestani vegetable dish, and one with just hot chilies! Each one had lots of spice and flavor. It is all served on a big tray and every sits in a circle sharing from a communal plate. It was definitely the spiciest and most vegetarian Easter meal I've had but it was certainly a delicious substitute.