Life On The Streets – Its harder than I could grasp

All over Kolkata (Calcutta) we saw amidst the colours and the culture a people almost forgotten. On nearly every street you can find boys, girls doing anything they can to make a few rupees. Partnering with a day centre for street boys we began to build friendships with these incredible kids and learn from their stories the importance and need for a loving family.

Most of the street boys we befriended (or who befriended us!) had run away from home because of domestic abuse, one boy telling us how he was beaten and locked in a room without anything to eat for five days. With no parental guidance and love they’ve grown up having to fend for themselves; every day and every night brings dangers of its own.

When they’re not at the Life Connection day centre many collect bottles from the trains and train tracks to recycle for money. Some boys in Kolkata have lost their limbs or their lives in this dangerous environment. From this harsh life you could expect the worst kind of attitudes from these boys but we were moved and will never forget the kindness and a generosity of the boys.

Unbelievable Generosity Despite Poverty

On more than one occasion they purchased for us food when they saw we were hungry or a bottle of water when we were thirsty. To me these gifts were without exaggeration more precious than gold, how many bottles did they have to collect just to have a small amount for the food they just bought me? I savoured every mouthful which was more appreciated than any ‘michelin star’ delicacies I could ever eat.

In India, God taught me a deep lesson about family. Each hour on the street is one where the boys can be tempted to do drugs, be kidnapped for slave labour or sliced by broken bottle for the rupees in their pocket.  The importance of loving parents could never be more clear. The protection and guidance many of us have growing up is something we take for granted but they crave. As a teen my dad always told me ‘No matter what you’ve done you can tell us and we still love you and will help you through it.’ These boys don’t have that, they just have to survive.

Indian iPhone Images

Sanjay- Quite the character! Photo credit: Gabriella Fritz

Caring For The One – Sanjay

Mother Teresa once said “Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time and always start with the person nearest you.’

In Calcutta we felt this was a lesson we learned through one of the street boys, Sanjay. Excited he allowed us to interview and film his life, we quickly realised how hard it was to actually find him in the right places at the right times.  Sanjay had no watch and an ever changing plan of where he would go next to collect bottles. This meant we had to find him in a million people passing through India’s largest train station. To me and the team this was a story in itself as we showed how much we cared, we kept trying, kept loving, not giving up on him.

Thailand – The Power Of Family

In Thailand we saw the encouraging steps in the transition from institutional/residential care towards foster families. In a government initiative partnered with Care for Children many residential care workers are being re-trained as family placement staff. With permission we were able to meet and film five foster families. The footage we captured was then used to show how transformative and important a loving family can be. The finished project was shown at a Bangkok conference by Care for Children to inspire care givers and families across the nation!

Cambodia – Best Option For Un-parented Children?

In Cambodia we have been meeting with a variety of experts who have further opened our eyes and ears to some of the better solutions for looking after unparented children. We have continued to learn about how orphanages/institutions should really be one of the last options to turn to for children. One expert put it this way “If I die I want my spouse to be supported in caring for my children, if we’re both not around, the children should go to another member of family…..If we wouldn’t put our children into orphanages, why should we think its ok in another country with someone else’s children?”