Mira's Jewelry Blog: LADLI, No Place Like Home

Eileen had heard about Ladli in Singapore from a friend who supported it. It was the highlight of being in Jaipur, a truly heartwarming place. You can see this is NOT institution-like whatsoever. It is calm, clean, simple. Here is a woman refreshing the entrace- big, bold colorful flowers painted on the ground. A large central courtyard is a meeting place with the activities all around it. They sent a car to pick us up. I read only now that they warn visitors that if they try to take a rickshaw or taxi they may not get there, as there is no commission to be paid to the driver. I suppose when they find out, they either won't take you or drop you quickly.

As we sat in the courtyard, we could see children in the schoolroom, actively listening to the very animated teacher. It was a small enough classroom that you could see each child was directly engaged. Sipping tea, we were told the stories, almost too hard to believe of the life of the children as it was for them on the street, and what Ladli offers them now. It was almost too much to take in. Of course there are too many children to be taken care of here, so these are the lucky ones. However, there is a van that is sent out to various sites in the city holding fresh water and food for children who are still on the street who still have to make it on their own. Water is scarce for drinking, much less bathing and this van saves children's lives every day.

The children were all so happy to see us, but they did not lose their focus.

Happy and friendly, they did not seem distracted by us. As I went in to work with the kids, Eileen vanished, later I could see her completely engaged with and surrounded by gorgeous children..they had lunch in the courtyard, very clean, very nourishing food. They sat cross legged eating on a mat on the ground, knowing that they were very lucky to have this meal.

You couldn't help falling in love with these girls. Those eyes.

We were shown this room where not only jewelry, but other crafts were being done.

So organized, quiet and you can see, so much individual support and attention. It was amazing. So if you have any idea that they are somehow working these kids to death, you can see that they do this for fun and creativity. They have much of their work displayed on the walls, and more in the office. I took a look at it, and made some suggestions about what kinds of techniques they could use to make their pieces look more intricate and professional. They were so excited to learn.

Here I am back at a table showing them a technique. Several of the girls then came up to watch and they all took some wire out and started to practice. In seconds, they were doing it better than I could.