Farewell

Fortunately I was well enough to make the final day at the village. The morning consisted of finishing one more roof. The afternoon was our farewell party. We were given some traditional Indian clothes which felt like wearing plastic bags since they were made out of polyester. This was a far from great combination with Indian heat. The volunteers also received henna tattoos. This was my first time getting henna, so I thought it was pretty cool.


Polyester garb


Henna Hand

The ceremony consisted of many people giving speeches. Habitat for humanity people, village people, other people, and of course some volunteers. Overall I was more concentrated on the hundreds of mosquitoes buzzing around while I wore no bug repellent. At this time I was wishing I was on malaria meds. I wish I could have said some words. But honestly, I couldn’t think of anything. My real feelings were not very strong, but I knew if I spoke I would have to say something profound. Afterward, on the bus back to the hotel I thought of something that I could have said, although exaggerated in feeling but still true to a degree. This is what I thought:

"I would like to say something profound for the profound impact this experience has made on me, as I am sure others would agree. Unfortunately I can't think of the words. We came here to build houses and I feel everyone helped build a home for us here. By that I mean, we were welcomed warmly like family. There is a saying that says, "Home is where the heart is." I think for all of us, a little bit of our hearts will always be in Chevuru. Thank you."


Dancing the final day.

That night we packed up and rode the long bus ride back to Hyderabad through the night to catch our 10AM flight back to Delhi. I couldn’t sleep.