Tariq Aziz and other important people

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Eighteen-year old Tariq Aziz has a smile that, if it could, would probably stretch the entire way around his head. As it is, he is rarely seen without a sunny, beaming grin and a “Hallo Shannon, how are you?” for me. Tariq is one of the Salaam Baalak Trust City Walk tour guides, giving people insight into the life that he once led on the streets of New Delhi and his journey to becoming the inspirational, strong, funny and kind young man he now is.

Tariq grew up in Nepal, the son of a fruit and vegetable distributor and a housewife. Around the age of 5 or 6, his father began drinking, and within a few years was a full-fledged alcoholic who didn't save the money that he made, spending it instead on alcohol for himself. By the time he was 8 years old, his father was beating Tariq, his mother and his older brother on a fairly regular basis, for no reason, often while drunk. When Tariq was 11, his older brother left home to study away from their town and Tariq became the main target for his father's violence. The slightest mistake – and often no reason at all – would see Tariq being severely punished. After one particularly bad night, he decided that he would run away from home (keep in mind that he was 11 years old at this point). He packed his school bag with some clothes, took some money from his father while he was sleeping, and in the morning, after saying goodbye to his parents as if he was going to school, he got on a bus and came to New Delhi.

Tariq decided that he would use the money he had brought with him to buy some watches which he would then sell in the train station. He slept in the station every night and, as train stations in India are not exactly known for their high security, his watches were stolen one night while he slept. As he sat crying about his watches being taken from him, a police officer came over and asked him why he was crying, and when Tariq told him what happened, the police officer beat him, as sleeping in the train station is illegal. Thus began Tariq's life on the streets.

For the next year or so, he bounced around between different odd jobs, working for some time in a tea stall cleaning glasses for a dishonest employer who blackmailed him into working for no pay, collecting bottles and rags to take to the recycling facility, stealing food from luxury train cars, and doing some begging, although he never liked asking people for money. Any money he earned was spent immediately, on gambling, cigarettes, arcade games, Bollywood films, and other small diversions – the life of a child living on the streets is one in which there could be possibly no future, and so any money has to be spent immediately since there is no way (and no place) to save it. After several months of sleeping in a train station or on the streets, renting a blanket for 5 rupees a night during the cold winter months, Tariq came to learn about Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT), and he began visiting the railway station contact point for daily lunch and informal school lessons in the mornings. He met volunteers and social workers who saw his great potential and he was soon recruited into being a peer motivator, helping other children access the services and programs that SBT offers.

After a while, he started sleeping in the temporary shelter home, Aasra, at nights and working at the contact point during the day. He was then placed in a government childrens' home, where he wasn't given any education and was beaten frequently, but luckily, he knew where to turn, and was soon back at SBT. The organization contacted his family and he went home to Nepal for 6 months, but was so behind in school that he soon left again, returning to Delhi and to a place where he sensed he could have a better future than the one his family could offer him. He began living in a permanent shelter home, attending school regularly, learning English, and growing into the amazing person he is today. Tariq dreams of someday becoming a computer programmer, having his own place, and possibly getting married (but probably not for a very long time). He has taken every opportunity to educate himself in anything and everything possible, becoming a City Walk guide to improve his English and communication skills (apparently he was very shy before becoming a guide, but I find that incredibly hard to believe!) and taking a photography workshop offered by the lovely Joern and Wolle, my German friends.

There is a “Wall of Fame” at the main office of SBT right outside of where I give my computer lessons, where almost every morning I hear Tariq (or one of the other amazing young men who are tour guides) tell people who are taking the City Walk tour about the children from SBT who have gone on to become fashion designers, choreographers, engineers and scholarship recipients from respected Indian universities. He says every time, “Right now I am not a success story, but maybe someday my photo will be on this wall. Maybe in 5 or 6 years.” I always feel like shouting out to him that he IS, currently, and without any shadow of a doubt, an incredible success. He took himself out of a damaging and abusive home life situation, came to an unfamiliar city, survived life on the streets with his sense of humour and humility and grace, was smart enough to know where to go to get help, and not a day goes by when I see him that he is not an outgoing, bubbly, shining example of the type of person I want to be. Tariq is a daily reminder to me of the resilience and potential of children and what can happen if everyone is given equal opportunity to access education and a safe space to call home. I am grateful to call him my friend and grateful that he has taught me so much in the very short time I have been here.


Tariq was one of the guests at a very wonderful wedding I attended on Monday last week with the Germans and another volunteer and her boyfriend as well as the City Walk guides and other staff from SBT. It was my first Hindu wedding and the food, decorations and company were all beautiful. I successfully wrapped myself in a new sari and sat enjoying pakoras and samosas while meeting tons of teenagers, all of whom have now added me to facebook and continually “poke” me (reminder to myself: this is what happens when you hand out your email address to teenagers in Delhi).

It was a bittersweet week last week, as it was the last week that my wonderful, funny, amazing and kind (and handsome hahaha) German friends Wolle, Joern and Sebastian were in town. Almost every day saw me over at their flat, cooking or helping Wolle shop for Christmas presents for his friends and family (it feels really weird doing it in early November, but if we want things to make it home in time.... we actually probably should have sent things home about a month ago hahaha!) and pretty much every night staying up way too late with those bad influences playing dice or cards and drinking beer. Although I had to say goodbye to them yesterday morning and it was sad, it was also joyful in a way because I am reminded again of how these incredibly meaningful connections and relationships can be made in such a short period of time – we only knew each other about 3 weeks but it felt more like 5 years, and the parting gifts I got from them were three amazing people that I look forward to seeing again at least once (apparently it is some German saying that “Everybody meets twice”, so I am very much looking forward to running into these beautiful people again).

Volunteering has been as usual, with its big triumphs and seemingly insurmountable challenges. My afternoons are spent at a shelter home where many boys cannot go to school and so my task is to give them non-formal education, which translates into me saying “No hitting! No fighting! No touching! No cheating! No hitting! No hitting! Stop fighting! No touching! Say sorry! No hitting!” for about 2 hours every afternoon. I think a big part of the problem is that the boys don't get a chance to run around outside and blow of steam, ever, and spend their days and nights inside the same shelter home. It is for a variety of reasons, many of them understandable, like the fact that there is no green space near the shelter, the neighbourhood is not the best, there is not enough supervision for all the boys, etc... the list could go on. But I believe strongly that they need fresh air and that plopping them in front of a tv for the afternoon is not conducive to cerebral development. I am happy to report that 12 of the boys under 11 have joined a soccer league and will spend Wednesday and Sunday afternoons playing with other children from NGOs around Delhi, and I get to accompany them to their practices for the next couple weeks!

I have sort of abandoned any formal teaching of English at the Apna Ghar and am instead focusing on activities that get their creative and cooperative juices going, like painting and making jewelry and playing games together and on Friday afternoon I passed a great 45 minutes playing “Duck Duck Goose” with them in an empty room at the shelter (it led to me getting kneed in the back but it was all worth it when even the older boys came in and everyone was laughing and playing together and cooperating!). I see so much potential in so many of these boys and I really hope that the issues that are keeping them out of school right now will soon be resolved so that they can grow into the shining stars I see in all of their eyes, and so that maybe in a few years one of them will be showing a group of tourists a picture of Tariq on the SBT “Wall of Fame”, telling them that one day, maybe their picture will be on that wall too....

So much spicy love from India!!
Namaste,
Shannon xoxoxoxoxo

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Photos

Tariq
Holding this REALLY messed-up looking doll we found that was someone's Diwali present

City Walk Boys
All the City Walk guides and the happy couple.

Height
One new thing I learned: Germans are all tall.

Wonderful boys
Tariq, myself and Shivram, a new guide-in-training

Sooooo many girls!
And most of them are my new facebook friends hahahaha!

Ritik
Aaron, our future son is going to be a soccer star, so we should probably start getting those adoption papers in order soon...

Practice time!
Seriously, I thought I was going to erupt with joy when I saw them in their uniforms.

Tea time!
My favourite new thing to do: Tea tasting!

Byyyyyyye guys!
Playing two games: one of them is called "put on scarves" which I invented, the other is dice, which I lost a lot.

Fascination
Probably the best picture my camera has ever taken. Pure amazement

Scarves madness
Sorry ladies, he is unfortunately taken!

Goat shopping!
Unfortunately, I learned later that these are all destined for the dinner table.

Comments

[Thomas Nietmann]

Gifts
Hi Shannon; Like the comment title, your blog entry was a wonderful gift I opened today. I am inspired by your writing, and the life you are living! Keep up your great work and beautiful perspective!!!! Thomas

[ShannonLees]

Thank you so much Thomas - it is because people like you are reading and responding that I keep writing! I really, really appreciate it and I will continue to try to produce words that are worthy of your praise!

[Abhinav]

wonderful writing
hi Shannon, you have got wonderful writing skills You are very positive, you take all those things so positive about my country which other foreigners hate. Thank you for being positive.