Months of Incubation and dreams are born..

Months of incubation and some dreams are born…

In a city, of as vast magnitude such as Delhi. A place where only 866 girls survive per 1000 males or in other words 134 girls are killed (even before they are born) per 1000 girls suppose to be born. Lives for those who are born and especially for those who are on the streets is a nightmare you and I can’t even in our imagination dare to dream.

A girl, living on Delhi streets, by the time she is 12-13, is certain to be sexually abused. To find security she would start living with a boy/man, who in return of that security will take sexual gratification. By the time she is 13-15, she would have delivered a child and this continues for a long time, sometimes a girl of 21 years would have as many as 5 children all of whom would be living and creating another generation on the streets.

If this was a road in the life of a Delhi’s street girl with the destination being a generation more on the street, a Diversion was needed to take them to a better destination, a better future a better generation in the times to come.

In July 2009, an idea was incepted. The purpose was to break a cycle, change a path, undo the usual, and create a Diversion.

Diversion in the lives of girls, who lived in various slums and street sides of Delhi. These are the girls whose life was configured (by the society, economy and circumstances) in a way of vicious circle, coming out of which was only a dream or to be precise a forbidden one.

Catalyst, Initiated Diversion, a program designed from the inputs of those girls who lived in the jungle called the streets of delhi. The idea was to provide a complete solution, therefore not just a diversion but also a destination.

Today, we are almost at the end of the 2nd batch of Diversion. 23 girls have gone through this program. We are nurturing dreams, which are not so distant realities. A beautician, Computer literate office personnel, a factory manager, a fashion designer, an artist, a Chef and the possibilities are unlimited.

WE do not see few girls off the streets but we see a generation of healthy families leading a sustainable life with a vision to be the Catalyst creating rapid diversions from the vicious cycle of street dwelling for others.

Join us in standing on this road of societal cruelty holding a sign of Diversion…leading to a beautiful destination.

Looking at the scars can you feel the pain.. By Angelika Samuel Gier

First time when I felt the pain of burn was when I was 6 and wanted to feel the effect of molten wax on my palm. My friend and my comrade poured a lot more than What I expected and aaahhh! I pretended to be all brave and held on my tear glands, but kept nursing the burn boil for over a week.

 

Lot of us would have had similar experiences of playing with fire and the effects of it. When I was 12, I accidentally dropped boiling hot oil on my feet, again it was by mistake and was my mistake. Even today when I look at those scars I remember the pain.

 

Recently, I saw another burn scar. This scar was on the legs and stomach of a 15 year old girl. And I thought what pain she would have gone through when she got burned and I remembered my little instances of life when I felt the twinge of burn. Speaking to the girl, she mentioned “ I poured kerosene on myself and lit myself up”. None of my experiences in life corresponded to this sort of event.

 

I had a few doubts of this girl’s behavior and now I was sure she was mentally unstable and had suicidal tendencies. Therefore deputed a counselor for her and also gave special instructions to the warden of the girls house to pay special attention on her.

 

We enquired of her background and met with her parents and siblings to get to know more. We came to know that she got so upset with her father’s abusive nature that one fine day she thought she will finish it all and therefore those scars.

 

This girl, in other instances, is a fighter. She is working hard to learn, to study and also want to be someone in life. Not only that, after being burned, her body became crocked and was bent, she was not able to use her right leg. Being from extremely poor background they could not afford any physio  and whatever little her mother gathered for her treatment was put to, what her father considered to be better use, “Drinking”. But this girl pulled herself with her own hands, straightened herself and now is absolutely fine except of those scars.

 

Now, this did not correspond with why she burned herself. A girl like her would rather fight than wanting to kill herself. So after many days, when I was counseling her as she was a bit low. She told me something I never anticipated. She said, “I burned myself but I did not wanted to kill myself”. My obvious question was, then why? She said, “My father was drunk and wanted to rape me”, and showing me her scars she said “this is how I wanted to present myself to him”. I looked at her scar again and now I could not feel the pain…

Written by Angelika Samuel Gier