Village Life

We got to visit a village so that we could get an idea of what life is like for rural people.  By all appearances, village life does not look like an easy life.  The people of this village are poor, but by no means destitute.  This is not in any way a slum.  The houses are small and simple, and it was super interesting to see and hear about the ingenious ways they have of dealing with everyday problems.  A couple of examples:

Many of the houses in the village have roofs piled high with thorny branches.  The reason:  monkey repellent.  Those troublesome rascals will pull the shingles right off your roof and you’ll have a huge leak if you don’t do something to keep the little buggers away.  

Can you guess what these are?  Anyone?  They're cow pies.  Or buffalo pies, depending on what kind of critter you own.  With the number of cows they have in India, it’s no wonder that they had to find a use for all the gifts they leave behind.  Cow pies are a hot commodity in India.  You do not steal your fellowman’s cow pies.  People carefully collect them, dry them and use them for all kinds of things. 

Cow dung is burned for fuel and use it to fuel their outdoor ovens for cooking.  Mmmmm, I’m sure that’s some good eatin’.  They also use them it as insect repellent.  Our guide KD told us that when he was a boy, his mother would mix cow dung with water and wash down the kitchen in order to disinfect it and keep away the insects.  Some people even paint the walls of their homes with it to keep their homes bug free.  So there’s your good housekeeping tip for the day.  Oh, the things you learn when you travel!

As we walked through the village, we came upon some ladies standing outside their home.  They are sisters who are married to brothers and each one has a little baby.  Their dress was different than the usual saris that we’ve seen everywhere.  This combination of long skirt, long-sleeved blouse and long head scarf is called lehnga choli, which is common in this region.  

In this region of India, it is common for a woman to cover her face with her head scarf when she is visiting or living in her husband’s village; however, her face can go uncovered while in her own hometown.  The woman with the yellow headscarf alternated between covering and uncovering her face.  She was shy but was trying to be friendly.  Her sister, on the other hand, was very outgoing and even invited our entire tour group into their home so that we could see what a traditional home is like inside.  

This is their courtyard.  I’d say it was maybe 25 feet long by 15 feet wide at the most.  

And this is the inside of the house.  I stood near the front door to take these pictures.  I shot the first picture to my left, the second picture to my right. 

As you can see, it’s very small.  It probably wouldn’t be so bad for just one married couple with a baby, but KD told us that around 15 people live here!  We were wondering where on earth everybody sleeps.  We only saw one bed in the house and one small cot in the courtyard.  Must be cozy to say the least.  My apartment at home looks like a mansion by comparison.  I’ll try to remember this place the next time I feel like my home is too small.  #RealWorldProblemsvsFirstWorldProblems

We finally left these ladies’ home and continued our walk down the main street of the village and we arrived at the village’s version of a 7-Eleven.  

They were all out of Slurpees, so we kept moving on.  

This is the communal latrine.  

And this large pit is a kiln  Some of the people in the village are potters and create dishes and figurines to sell.  In fact, our lady in the orange veil above brought out an assortment of figurines made by her family that she sold to some members of our group.

We were a definite curiosity to the people of the village while we were there.  People gradually began coming out of their homes.  I’m guessing it was in the hope of being photographed.  Most Indian people, young and old alike, seem to enjoy being photographed by curious Americans and will make sure to put themselves in your line of vision so you don’t miss them.   

All in all, it was very interesting to see the way many people in rural India live.  I think my greatest takeaway from the experience (aside from the many uses for cow dung) is that despite having so little, the people seemed truly happy.  They  aren’t lamenting their lot in life or yearning for more.  They are content with where they are and what they have and their smiles beam as brightly as their outfits.  KD says that this is true for most Indians.  All I could think of as I walked through this village was 1 Timothy 6:6-8.  These people, although Hindus, seem to have mastered it.  I’m going to file this experience under "Life Lessons."