Thoughts on culture

(Amy) Our laptop is not allowing us to log in to Blogspot--it says cookies aren't enabled, but it seems to me they are-anyway, so still no pictures.

I thought I'd mention the complete contrast as we drove here from the airport this morning in class/wealth. We drove by many plastic tarp "homes" with poorly clad children digging in dirt in front of them. We passed corners full of men waiting for jobs, and many very underprivilidged people walking on the streets with the dogs, cows and goats. However, at bus stops we saw well-dressed people waiting to go to work and school kids wearing uniforms and shiny shoes. The girls had their hair carefully plaited with bright red ribbons holdng their braids in.

When you read the magazines or watch the tv here--the people look nothing like what I just saw on the street. They seem to have 2 cultures- the one they are trying to portray as "India"- Bollywood, Westernization, technology-- and the actual India.

In the Indian newspaper on the way to Bangalore from Mumbai I read an article about a couple who wants the government to allow them to donate the organs of their mentally-challenged 5-year old because he is such a burden on them and his organs would be better used elsewhere. This is how disabled people are viewed.

There was also an article about how 2 girls were attacked on Diwali by an entire village with axes and knives, and then their bodies were creamated on the spot--the whole village had tried to hide this.

I had read some comments on one of my adoption groups that we should not say we are "saving" these children when we adopt them. But today, driving by the people that I saw--I know that I will be giving Sweeti a much better life than she would have had here. And, I'm sure that her birth mom/family knew this too. We can't wait to meet her and all the other kids-- including your girls, Brooke and Jennifer--tomorrow.