Equal Rights- Equal Opportunities- Progress for All

Today is the 100th year of International Women’s Day. And what a day it was. It started at 6:30AM with a group breakfast. We then boarded buses to Hegde Nagar, which is our work site. The group took a quick tour the different houses we would be working on and we had the opportunity to meet these wonderful women the homes belonged to. After the quick tour, we headed to the opening ceremonies of the build. The chief guest was India’s first female Deputy General of Police, Jija Hari Singh! It was an empowering morning. As we gathered under this beautiful tent, Carnatic music and live singers engaged us. Just as we began to sit, hundreds of women from all walks of life marched into the arena with their colorful saris and amazing spirit. They held signs, but since they were written in Kannada, we were not sure of what they said. There were various speeches both in English and Kannada from guests, children performed, and women sang. The message created by Habitat for Humanity and BIRDS (Bharti Integrated Rural Development Society: http://www.birds-india.com) for this year’s Women’s Day: Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities and Progress for All!
After this fantastic assembly, we embarked for lunch and then straight to work. I am working on home site # 12. The name of the homeowner is slipping my mind at the moment, but I will ask again today. She has four children, two girls and two boys. Her husband also lives there. The foundation has been set, but nothing else. So yesterday was spent digging a two foot deep edge around the foundation, which will help us create a base. I’m not in construction nor do I understand it so I’m not sure how this works. We were told not to take cameras to the site, so I didn’t have one, but today I’m sneaking one in. Maybe some of you will understand how this will work. The tools are limited. For the few hours we worked yesterday, I used a long pole with a sharp edge to loosen dirt. My teammate used a shovel like contraption to dig up the lose dirt and throw it into the center. The goal for our two weeks is to have the walls up. If we work fast enough, we may even be able to start the roof!
Yesterday was exhausting and we only worked a few hours. I have no idea what today will be like. It is 90-95 degrees here and no shade. We are keeping hydrated as best we can. It is time for me to head out and board the bus. It is a 30-45 minute bus ride to the site. Wish me luck!