Video link: https://youtu.be/lKI0HtPTEd8

All students of Grade 11 were privileged to experience a 6-day trip to the rural areas, thus getting away from the ‘city life’ for a while and engaging in the beauty and sublimity of villages and nature. We were divided into batches (based on our classes), and went to different ecotourist sites near Gujarat. I had one of the best experiences at Padamdungri with my class- Pansophy.

LO1 – Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth 

Since childhood, I have been a very empathetic person, someone who’s very sensitive to others’ emotions/energy. Thus, kindness comes pretty naturally to me. However, society made me believe this important value of mine, was my weakness. Although I have engaged in acts of service in the past, the ones that I engaged in during this trip were profound. Apart from helping villagers in planting, covering their house walls with cow dung and many others, the experience of going to underprivileged schools and serving the children there was immensely special for me. That experience gave me a different, beautiful sense of bliss. I realized here that my kindness was in fact one of my biggest strengths through which I could have a huge positive impact in others’ lives. However, one area where I felt I need to grow was in expressing who I am fully without any judgement. I realised the need in me to be more carefree in life.

LO2 – Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken

We had to live in small rooms in the village and 6 people sharing one bathroom. This was definitely a challenge for me, especially since I’m so used to the luxury in the city. However, I did not complain even once but kept pushing myself to indulge into all these new experiences for my personal growth and development. Moreover, so many people living together in a room led to fights sometimes, but at the end of the day we maturely communicated and resolved all issues.

LO3 – Initiate and plan a CAS experience.

We were informed about the trip well in advance so that we’d have time to prepare for it. We had to pack woollen and warm clothes since villages get pretty cold at night. At Padamdungri, we had to decide upon games that we could play with the children. Moreover, we also helped villagers cook food for us. On the very last day, we prepared a script to perform at the village school and all children enjoyed it immensely.

LO4 – Show perseverance and commitment in CAS experience.

The entire trip was 6 whole days long which got really tiring after 3 days for all of us. From trekking to cooking food to playing games with the children, it took a lot of our energy each day. However, we had taken the responsibility to serve the school children while we were there in the village and to complete the experience of living in a village despite all its challenges. We were committed to our task and it showed in our completion as well as success of the trip.

LO5 – Demonstrate skills and benefits of working collaboratively.

Living in a village is no easy task therefore we had to constantly help each other in various ways. Everyday there were frogs in our bathroom and some people (including me) were extremely scared of those. Some of my friends, even if they were getting late to get ready, stood up when I needed help in removing those frogs from the bathroom. Other times, I consoled my friends when they were missing home. In this way, helping each other overcome their weaknesses, we benefitted from each other’s strengths. I had an important realisation- one can go far only to a limited extent individually, but one can achieve immense success collectively.

LO6 – Engagement with issues of global significance.

Poverty is a major global issue around the world, especially in the rural areas where resources are scarce. By donating to the underprivileged schools, we did our best to contribute to solving this issue in the best possible way. Also, as global warming rises, the earth is facing immense environmental issue. However, the village lives very sustainably- from using bicycles instead of petrol run cars to being heavily surrounded by nature. Less pollution and numerous trees are definitely a good sign for the environment and prevents it from getting destroyed.

LO7 – Recognise and consider the ethics of choices and actions.

We had been informed regarding the rules and regulations we needed to follow on the trip before embarking on the trip. While playing with children at school, there were times when the children misbehaved. However, we did not lose our peace but maintained our calm. We also refrained from using any abusive words in front of them which could have affected their mental health. Also, whenever we were visiting villager’s houses, we first took permission before entering their houses/touching any of their property, to ensure their sense of privacy.