MY FAVORITE PLACE

I am having an absolute blast here. I hope everything at home is going well!

Today we taught the girls about nature and had them paint on these pages that said “My Favorite Place”. They drew pictures of their houses and of rivers and mountains in India. I realized that if I were to paint a picture of my favorite place just as they had, our pictures would be very similar. India has become one of my very favorite places.

Rupali led me over to the stairs today and insisted that I sing One Day for her. I went to grab a ukulele to play while I sang, and Paula, Rachael and Katie came along. We started singing One Day and more of the girls came over. We sang more songs while just sitting on the stairs. Pretty soon all of the group was there. We would sing a song and then the girls would sing a song. This experience touched me so deeply. No matter what language the songs were in, they were so moving and beautiful. Those simple stairs are one of my favorite places.

I never knew that my heart could be so full and break at the same time. Saying goodbye to the girls tonight was so difficult. They will be leaving for their homes for holiday tomorrow and we won’t see them before they leave. I wish that I could take them all with me back to Utah. All of their personalities are so unique and I love each one of them. They make me laugh and smile constantly. I am so happy when I am with them. I can’t believe that our time with them has gone by so quickly. We sat and cried, gave a million hugs, and exchanged little things with the girls. I have never written my name on another person’s arm so many times, haha I felt like a little celebrity. I can not fully express the way I feel about these amazing girls and about India. I will definitely be leaving India with a new perspective and a new love.

This school in Chamba with these incredible girls will forever hold a place in my heart as my favorite place.

Much love,

Lindsay Westra