Ashram Day

As you see, it is prayer and retreat that is at the core of Ashram life and which is what the Ashramites want to share with us.

Seven decades on they are still vibrant and offer a rewarding way of life...

Badi Apa's home

Sister Lily took me to visit Badi Apa. Nothing had prepared me for the elegance and graciousness of this lady. Her home was utterly charming. She and the Sisters of the Ashram go way, way, way back to the very early days...

She had me utterly enthralled with her stories about the visits of the first sisters, how she taught them how to sew and knit so that they could use these skills in their work with women; their long discourses on village life and the Scriptures; how they dug the well in the center of her courtyard; the rooms where the Sisters tentatively took the first lessons for the local children (the seed of the balwadis was sown here)......

This is Badi Apa's courtyard:

The Heart of India - the absolute center of the country

From the train to Sihora

In and around Pan Umariya

The Mar Thoma Gram Jyoti School, Pan Umariya

Sister Saramma took me to the school the Ashram runs in Pan Umariya. I was touched by the warm welcome the children gave us, the affection with which they all greeted Sister, and the smiling courtesy with which they talked to us in spite of the most difficult conditions they study and work in.

Here are some pictures:

A view of the School

A classroom

One class is seated on the floor and the babies are closest to the camera