A new library for the Leprosy School

We get lost three times down the narrow, twisting roads, before finally arriving at the pink school behind the rumah sakit (hospital) in Tangerang.

But the search has been well worth it. The children of the leprosy village greet us with beaming smiles.

We arrive to attend the grand opening of the school's first library. Lena Paul, our relief society president, guided the project which involved cleaning and painting a storage room to convert it to a library. And then collecting and donating bookshelves and books.  

We enter the classroom and take turns reading a book from the new library. A missionary from Solo reads in the photo below:

We sing "Popcorn Popping" and "Primary Colors." But the favorite, by far, is "Head, Shoulder, Knees, and Toes."

Then the library tour! Oh the joy. The students file out of the class giggling with excitement, holding hands, smiling.

Then the strangest thing happens. The students stop just outside the library door. They pool at the bottom of the staircase. At first I think, "What's wrong?" Then I look closer. The children bend over to  remove their shoes as a show of respect. They line their shoes carefully on the ledge and enter the library.

A first look at the library.

Here, this darling boy puts his shoes back on after coming back from the library.

Following the library tour, we hand out a small bag to each child. The contents are simple: a pen, a sharpened pencil, and a small notebook. But you would have thought we were handing out tickets to Disney Land. Many of these children have never actually owned their very own pencil and pen before. 

What makes this moment even more special is the knowledge that the pens and pencils have been donated by Karen, my dear friend. Handing each pencil to their outstretched hand is like handing them love from my friend on the other side of the world. 

We walk to a stall at the edge of the school grounds to buy some bottled water. Packaged peanuts, bags of krupuk chips, boxed juices line the stall's shelves. A group of adults ask to take pictures with us. While one man holds his phone to take a picture, I notice the fingers on his right hand are missing and stunted to the middle knuckle as is the index finger on his left hand - a sure sign of leprosy. We converse with them. We shake their hands. They are the parents of the children at the school. 

As with all things here in Indonesia, although we have come to celebrate and to give a library and school supplies to this community, we leave with full hearts. 

My heart is grateful for children's smiles, for handshakes, for books, for a friend whose children sharpened 650 pencils to give to people thousands of miles away, and for the opportunity to meet a group of people who have so much stigma and physical pain but also have so much joy. 

Sometimes the World Comes into Focus

There are moments in my life when events and experiences seem to trigger something in my heart and soul. And it is as if there is a tangible click. Often, these moments help me see the world in a new way, and I see my place in the world in a new way.

These past few days, such an experience occurred.

One of my colleagues in the high school English dept, Shana Gilbert, used to be a producer of documentaries. This past week she got a call from a former student who was shooting a short film that will be shown at the Global Citizen concert in central Park at NYC on Sept. 28. (Click on the link to watch a PR video on the event).

The filmmakers originally planned to make the film in India, but with Visa complications, they needed a new venue. With my Shana's support and a quick script rewrite, they jumped on a plane and arrived in Jakarta Friday night.

I was mostly on the peripheral of this whole experience. But I did get to bring two of my English classes to a presentation and Q&A session with the filmmakers. We listened to Jonathan Olinger talk about the filming process and watch raw footage of the film.Their short film is about an Indonesian mother in the future (the year 2045) who tells a bedtime story to her daughter about what poverty used to look like. Then the film flashes back to the present (2013) where we see a young girl living in the slums of Jakarta and her challenges.

In the raw footage we saw poignant scenes of a young Indonesian girl born with all the disadvantages you can imagine. She was beautiful on many levels in the midst of crumbling buildings, laundry strung between tin shacks, and barefeet on dirt floors. Her genuine smile and equally genuine hurt represented humanism and optimism in the most humble circumstances.

While watching the film, something inside me clicked. The young Indonesian girl in the film represented the poverty I see and accept every day here in Jakarta. And somehow seeing it on film made my heart break. You see, I have the luxury of teaching and philosophising about global controversies like poverty and women's rights in a nice, clean classroom knowing that when school is finished I will return home to a house with running water and electricity. Education isn't a bonus, it's an expectation. Food on the table isn't even in my top list of 100 worries. Access to good medical care is guaranteed. I have so much to be grateful for...and such a responsibility to give back.

I felt extremely inspired by the filmmaker, Jonathan Olinger of dtj.org, who as one of my students said, "Restored my hope in humanity." In a very simple way, he has dedicated his life to make a difference in this world. I was inspired by his story and his calm passion about what our world can truly become.

On Sept. 28, 60,000 people will watch this short film in NYC and 1.5 million more will watch in live via the internet. But it's something I see every day in Jakarta. In a moment of rare clarity I realized how powerful even the smallest change can be.

It's not about the NYC concert. It's not about film. It's not about teaching or students. It's not even about these ambitious, but attainable, UN Global Citizen goals. It is about one person having a vision for what our future world could be and deciding to make a difference right now.

Just a few pictures:

On the set of the short film (future 2045 setting).

 On the set in the slums of Jakarta:

In the classroom, hearing Jonathan talk about his experience as a documentarian (I'm in the back row):

Now when my students or my own children ask the question, "What can I do?" I have a concrete example.

There are good people in the world doing good things.

They inspire me to be better and do more.

The world has so many thunderous problems. But it also has so many amazing people.

We just need to choose to act.