Kamayani, Associate Jeevan Saathi since November 2005
Perhaps like many, my first step is often guided by what I do not want and then thinking about what I want. And that is how I decided to move back to India; as an associate Jeevan Saathi with AID, to work full time on development. Luckily for me, my other Jeevan Saathi, Ashish, also wanted to move back and the transition to India was smooth.
It was interesting to be back in India after my two-year stint in the US. But once I was back I was restless, unsettled and still trying to find out what I wanted. My first year traveling and learning about the Hundred Block Plan (HBP) in Bihar was an eye-opener. But for various personal reasons I decided to move to Bangalore with Ashish.
I feel at this point that I have run away from Bihar – the sheer injustice of society there, the low status of women, the missing middle class, like me, that is forever opting for greener pastures. Even the warmth with which I was received in each village on my sojourns, the care with which I was treated even in the poorest and harshest situations, could not keep me in Bihar. Though, for all the same reasons I think that one day I will want go back there.
Reflecting on the time since my return, I am happy to be back, to be working with marginalized communities on issues of learning and education, and dreaming of going back to where I started!
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