umm... what week is it?

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December 19, 2010

We had a good week weather-wise, although we got one incredible rain that lasted for a good portion of the day on Wednesday- I took a video, so I’ll try to upload it to my FaceBook- it’s pretty much a minute of me and some of the ‘normal’ rainfall we get during monsoon season. Thankfully, monsoon season is coming to a close, probably in the next couple weeks… although we have been told that the past two years have had disrupted weather patterns, so really, it’s anybody’s guess.

Sunday morning we awoke to the noise of “Hey! Hey!” outside our window. B got up to look, and saw that there was a bullock team pulling what looked like a plow across the wet field behind us. We got up, dressed quickly and went out to find a team of three village men in the field, with our host and another man (whom we later learned is the headman of a nearby village) on the banks of the rice field. B started taking pictures, and we talked with the men for a while. There were three old women who were also here to work, although we were told that there was supposed to be six. We got some pics, then ate a breakfast at the GB (I had an egg sandwich with 2 eggs, to get more protein). While we ate we chatted with our hostess about how the talent of how to plant and foster the rice seedlings is a dying art: kids would rather go to the city, and farming is hard work, with many risks, for little pay. Later, our host came in to tell us that the women were planting, so we went back to watch, and get more pictures. B got a lot of really good pictures, though, even slogging through the field to get close-ups. You can see them on her FaceBook under one of the “Auroville” file folders.
The headman asked about the camera, and how much it cost: $1700 US we told him. They probably think we’re crazy, although B tried to explain it was for her work “It’s like you buying a tractor,” she said to the headman “this is my tractor.” I am not sure how much was understood. I told our host that we were still paying it off, since B lost her job right after we bought it.
Later that afternoon we hung out with our French friend- he is going back to France for a month (or two, depending on the visa department), so we resolved to spend some time with him before he left.

On Monday I started work at Revelation. This is a reforestation project that specializes in water harvesting and aquifer replenishment, and reintroducing the native Tropical Dry Evergreen Forest (TDEF) of this bio-region. Many of the trees, such as Sandalwood (white and the even more rare red), Ebony species, Teak, and others, were taken as seeds from sacred groves around local temples (with the priests’ blessings) and now the area is a lush, thick riot of wildlife and greenery. I worked in the garden for two days, transporting and sometimes transplanting these precious little green lives. It’s humbling and enriching work, and somewhat back-straining at times too!
The founder of Revelation still works the land there. He is French, and had begun his project about 28 years ago. He has a practical knowledge of forestry and water management that is amazing, and he has had a succession of Tamil students, one of which (the latest- he takes one at a time) I will probably be working with on a regular basis.
On my first day I was early, showing up on time- I had been told 8am, so there I was. Sitting on the porch. Waiting in the morning sun, listening to the birds and watching squirrels run around in the banyan tree. I have since been told that 8 am means ‘leave your house at 8am.’ Got it. We sat on the porch a bit before starting, while the Revelation unit founder and leader sipped black coffee from a large glass bowl. We talked abut the rain, and that led quickly to the aquifer: a favorite subject of his. Since it is important to understanding AV, I’ll explain what I have learned so far:
In short, the aquifer here at the AV plateau is four layers (in descending order): red clay, pebbles & stones, white clay, limestone. The clays are barriers; the red clay is on top, forming part of the topsoil and covering the pebble layer. The pebble layer, due to erosion mainly caused by over-farming and deforestation, is exposed. Revelations’ leader (from now on just R- not his real initial) calls this “AV’s open/exposed aquifer.” The white clay is a primarily impermeable barrier between the two water caches, with the limestone being the next layer of water storage for the land. The exposed pebble layer, R told me, is a major source of water table loss. He related that when he first arrived at AV, he could lay on the exposed pebbles on the land, and in a short while get up and all his back, foot to head, would be wet from the water coming up from below due to evaporation.
Another problem here at AV is construction- when people build, they do not take care to plan the flow of the water, and with the water table so precarious and exposed in places this can cause problems, such as water run-off blockage, leading to flooding. This happens a lot at new construction here, because the pebble layer is so close to the surface the weight of these stone buildings create a dam through pressure. The developers of AV planned some of the buildings without accounting for the water flow, so we get flooding at new construction, and worse, pollution going directly into the aquifer and contaminating the supply. Since then, two major factors have affected the aquifers, in a good, and the other in a bad, way: one is the water harvesting that has been happening in AV. The building of dams and water harvest pits has done much to replenish the water table, although this results in water being used more, both in AV and in the villages that share the water supply. He claims that before, on the plateau, only 10% of the water seeped back into the pebble layer, with the rest running off the hard dried clay into the sea. Now, R says, 100% of the water that falls on Revelation is harvested back into the pebble layer. The second factor is in Pondicherry, with the construction of more industry over land where the limestone layer is exposed, resulting in pollutants going directly into the secondary, larger aquifer.

Here is something else I have discovered this week: I have to try really hard to get the Tamil people to let me do physical labor. On Monday I went to move a wheelbarrow full of seedlings (in their plastic bags of soil) across the nursery, and my partner (the student I mentioned above)- smoothly interposed himself between me and the handles I was about to grasp, explaining that it was heavy. Now, picture this: he is maybe 5’2”, and slender, telling my 6’ tall self it is too heavy. I let him take it, but then, later, snuck a barrow-full out on my own: he was amazed, and half muttered to himself “Its not too heavy…?” After that we worked together taking equal turns with the heavy things.
Since then, in the garden at Verité (my other workplace), I have encountered the same thing- I almost spent my day picking tea leaves, rather than weeding and moving compost, because my ‘boss’ there, a Tamil gardener, had to be explicitly and repeatedly told by his/our boss, a Hungarian woman, that I am there to do physical work, too. It’s amazing and it says something to me about the relationships here that is a bit different than I was led to believe. On the other hand, these local people have steady jobs that pay better than they would get elsewhere, but still… it is too early to judge, but… well. We’ll wait and see as the year goes on.
This other place I’m working, Verité, is mainly a guest-house complex with a focus on workshops and classes. These consist of many different practices, from the Hawaiian massage technique of Lomi-Lomi (which I want to learn) to various forms of yoga and meditation and dance… The gardens are ornamental in the guest complex, and practical in the rear, along with an orchard. They are still learning how to best use the land and care for the trees they have (our boss-Hungarian has only been in charge less than two years), although the Tamil gardener’s teacher used to work this very plot of land. It makes for an interesting dynamic of information exchange, withholding and experimentation. Good fieldwork. I work there Thursday and Friday.
This leaves me the afternoons and weekends free. Soon, B & I will possibly begin Djembe lessons, and maybe take on a yoga course too. B has been visiting Svaram, a musical instrument making and sales place near us. They have a primitive clarinet that is haunting- I offered to buy one for her, and so we went to see if they are for sale yet. They are, but they have no reeds, so B is going to try to find a source of reeds and do an exchange of reeds for instrument… awesome. I may even try it, if I can be convinced I wont break it…

I spent some time this week working on my writing- what I mean by that is I am interested in the idea that the medium you write with affects the way you write. We have talked about this in school (especially in Myrdene’s class and soirées) so I wrote for one day in my journal, and I noticed, going over the notes to transcribe them into the computer, that even when I switched pens there was a change. I’m going to contact Myrdene and see if this is something she is interested in for future classes, although if anyone else is interested you’re welcome to contact me. It’d be a cool study, I think.
I also penned a rough draft of a beginning of an idea for a paper perhaps, although I’m not sure who would want it, called “The Beginnings of Agriculture and the Metaphysics of Fear”… so, yeah, AV is good for my creative side too. ☺

Friday, after work, I took the bus to Sadhana Forest (SF hereafter-they have a FaceBook page- look ‘em up). SF is celebrating its seventh anniversary, so they had a day-long party with workshops and food and a movie, plus more food. All the food is vegan, and very satisfying. B went for the whole day, but I got there after the workshops had ended. Still, I got to go on the tour of the land (led by the founder) and see the film. Before the film, though, there was a presentation- a sort of ritual celebration with shawls and flowers given out and names announced. The family that started SF is very entrenched in the local villages, which was obvious by the respect that they not only got, but gave to the Tamil villagers present. It was kind of heart-warming, especially since it was continuous and not just while on stage: these people really knew each other. There was also a SF-specific version of ‘the Secret Garden’ put on as a play, featuring two of the SF children and several different adults. It was interesting, to say the least. The film was La Belle Verde. I recommend it- although it was not always my cup of tea, for my own reasons (does EVERY fictional enlightened culture from outer space HAVE to have a connection to Jesus? Really?). We got back home late- past 11pm, and spent the weekend relaxing, although I think the vegan food had some peanut, because Saturday was partly a festival of migraine management. Ah, well, I got over it with the help of rest and Excedrin…
Sunday is today, and it looked like rain. We headed out anyhow, but I didn’t get this blog done until the late evening, when we came back home. It is now pouring out, and we are ready for another week.
Again, and thankfully still, we are healthy and happy. Thanks for reading, and those of you in the colder climes try to stay warm (I don’t miss the snow, not one bit)!
Peace & lovin’ to you all,
Stacey & Beryl

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