Day 8: Music to regenerate

Today was my first real day on the Jordan tour, and everything flowed so smoothly. We performed two concerts at the Save the Children training facility; firstly for a group of children and then for the staff. The children were super enthusiastic which really spurred us on, especially during the upbeat songs. Everyone was smiling and clapping and some even dancing, creating a tremendous amount of energy in the room. The atmosphere with the staff was much calmer, with a serene meditation session and soft music. Some of the reactions were very touching as everyone felt cool and some had tears in their eyes. The welcome we received from everyone and their enthusiasm throughout was really encouraging and I’m already so excited for the rest of the tour!

-Nooria (UK)

Day five: musical statues and high fives

Our group of about 8 young people started the day with a joyful workshop with the young boys of the group F CFS (Child Friendly spaces).
Working with 60 boys from 4 to 11. We also had a small group of really small kids about 2 years old.
Once again this workshop allowed us to work on our skills of spontaneity and improvisation when we realized that we didn’t really have a translator 🙂
It’s amazing how the language barrier is not an obstacle preventing the children from feeling the power of collectivity and the silence of meditation.
It was so beautiful to see the amazement in the staff when the kids sat in mediation in pin drop silence. One little 2,5 year old girl sat crossed legged in mediation for long time. One of the staff came to me excitedly pointing that out and saying “that is real meditation”.

In the afternoon we had a workshop at the base camp with save the children staff. It was really nice to recognise many of the faces again since some of them had joined our workshops last April or had been translating for us on the previous days. The staff workshops are also so much fun and really joyful because they allow us to go much more in depth about mediation and how they can use it in their daily lives and so on. The highlight for me is always the moment just after the collective mediation when people share their experiences and have this amazed, relaxed and calm face expression. I feel the unique but in a way similar  experiences really encourages the group and strengthens their bond to each other. I was so excited when two people in our group (who had been to our workshops in April) mentioned that they have been meditating with the children and that they experienced that it really works and changes the children even the naughty ones. Some of the kids came back on their own accord wanting to meditate 🙂

All in all we had lots of fun and it’s so joyful to see how we are so quickly building a bond and friendship with the save the children staff and how they are welcoming us and mediation into their lives so easily.

Anjani Hackl from Austria

Today we went to CFS N, the program was for little boys; somehow the children appeared to be restless here, the program started with warm-up games, accompanied by the cheerful cello music played by Emma. We followed this with the meditation exercise for the boys, the staff and volunteers who worked with the boys. Most of the staff and some of the children really enjoyed the meditation, but some children were unsettled. Meditation was followed by drawing activity, and then the boys had a break of playing outside.

A staff explained to me a collective drawing by the little boys: two smiling circles meant ‘boy and girl’, ‘This is a flower’, then she pointed out a figure of a person with a line on the neck – ‘this person is the president of Syria, and the line means cutting-off his head’, two boys drew a person and a animal – ‘this person is the president of Syria, the boy said that he is a donkey.’  Soon, the noise in the playground became louder, as the children started to fight with each other with fist and stones.

‘This is a newer site, and many of the boys here saw a lot of killing and violence.’ Later in the day, when we returned to the Save the Children base camp, other staff told us. ‘They are more difficult, they do not listen to us.’

After the break, we decided to play a milder game (musical statues) to calm them, and then did another meditation. It was much calmer this time with the cello and a shloka. The staff told us that the boys enjoyed the meditation, and that it’s really good for them.

In the afternoon, we arrived at CFS A.  Location A was one of the first sites Save the Children established in Zaatri. The program was for little girls, and some of them were toddlers. Compared to the boys, the girls were gems. We had the meditation after the warm-up games, and all of them could feel it. We had them close their eyes and meditate to the music of the cello.  After the last note of the music, we slowly opened our eyes – a staff sitting next to me looked at me with serenity, many girls said at once that they felt very happy and calm inside. Their eyes were sparkling.

Then we played musical statues with them, which soon turned into a free-style dance with Ceilidh, merry-turn-around, laughter and hugs. As we danced in a big circle to the music, the atmosphere was filled with joy.  After the program, on the way back to the base camp, we were together with the staff from location A, we looked out the window, the same dusty layout of the Zaatri camp looked so different. ‘I really enjoyed the meditation‘, she said to me, ‘It was very beautiful,’ she said.

Then I realized that the wish I had in the morning came true – ‘Please let the children and the people we work with today feel the silence within, and have a beautiful experience of meditation.’

Inshallah.

Sheng-Chia from Taiwan/UK

Second Day of Adventures

CFS Group Child Friendly Space

Team: Anjani, Sulu, Shalini

After having started the day late, we got lost in Zaatari. Our driver did not know where we were supposed to go for our workshop. We went to numerous child centres at the camp, until at last we were told we were expected.

But we had been expecting some mothers and youths. Instead we were greeted by about 40 boys, shouting and bursting with energy. Time to start improvising!

So we decided to play games with them. Luckily we had some very helpful Save the Children staff members who helped us divide the kids into groups.

These boys are scruffy, with dirty clothes, and hair unkept, dirty noses, but when they smile their entire face lights up. They are so innocent and cute. There are some though that never smile, and just look at you sadly.

After playing some ice breaker games we proceeded with doing arts. The idea was for everyone to draw what made them happy and what they hoped for their futures.

Most boys wanted to be pilots or join the army. There were a few that could write English words, which they showed us proudly, One boy, Mohammed wanted to know how we spelt our names. A few boys kept telling us “nice to meet you” and “what’s your name”.

Finally we made it to the meditation. At first it was difficult to get the kids to quieten down, they all kept giggling. But after doing the realization exercise, there was a moment of silence, where the boys were actually meditating, that went on for a few minutes. Us girls were quite surprised, cause you could see they were feeling something, the experience was real.

Once we were done, the boys all wanted to have their photo taken. Perfect for us as their faces had an added glow. These boys have nothing, yet their expressions are so heart warming.

Next stop: not mothers and teens… but 53 little girls. Who ever said girls are calmer than boys got it all wrong. These girls were full of energy. The staff divided them into groups and each group had an older girl looking after the little girls. When we asked them to draw what makes them happy, or what they want for their future, nearly all the girls drew a school with the flag of Syria. One group had a daisy chain of people holding hands.

The meditation exercise was also a bit tricky with the girls, but once again some of them really got it. You could see from their faces that they were meditating and experiencing silence of some kind. And nearly all the girls felt a cool or warm breeze.

Once again at the end, we were bombarded with requests to take photos. Anjani found herself carrying a baby and surrounded by little girls, all smiling and doing  peace signs with their hands.

Somehow the sessions just seem to fly by! Working with these children is so much fun and so rewarding. They leave an imprint in your heart.

Oh and Anjani has officially been renamed Janine. Watch out for that name on this blog.

Shalini, from England

 

It was my first day on the tour and as we arrived to Zaateri camp, we saw the appalling conditions and the hardships the refugees have to go through, which really touched me, and at the same time outlined the importance of teaching meditation at this place.

The first group of people we had a workshop with consisted mainly of men in their thirties, and the “icebreaker” name game, however childish it is, cheered them up and made the atmosphere much more relaxed. After another game we started the meditation part and most of the men seemed to have really enjoyed it! We didn’t expect they would be so interested and they kept asking questions about the subtle system and some were even taking notes.

The second group was different as we had around 30 giggling kids who came after playing football and were a bit agitated. They were really nice though, and after trying the meditation they really felt the impact and were happy to when they felt cool breeze not only above their heads but also above other kids’ heads.

Anton, Czech Republic

Eleventh day’s the hardest

We woke up not quite fully rested, all these late nights on tour clearly took their toll on all of us.

This day would be one of our busiest: three concerts, first at an Amman drug clinic then at the Bishop’s School for the kids we had held a workshop with the day before and finally at another kindergarten at the Zaatari refugee camp. The day wouldn’t be over after that though as we had a workshop planned for young adults at Ajloun.

We had a new and faster bus driver so we arrived at the first venue quite in time and were warmly welcomed by the director and a high ranked Rotarian in charge of much of the clinic’s funding. Without much ado we set up what we had and began our half hour concert which was well received by all despite its shortness.

It was a good beginning into the day and we happily set off for the Bishop A. School to give the kids the concert we had promised them the day before. Rather spontaneously we had added the Zaatri concert to our schedule; there was actually no time whatsoever but little refugee children always come first so we kept the Bishop’s School concert as short as was possible to get to the camp in time.

We did arrive at the camp eventually, as usual only after asking for directions multiple times, but when we arrived we were greeted like superstars and treated as such all the way to the end. Once again we had the great privilege to sing for these amazing kids. With heat and dust in the air and no electricity we yelled our songs out as good as we could manage, it was great fun and we saw even the elder women enjoying our music. Sadly everything must come to an end and we left the city of tents only slightly behind schedule to make our way to the final destination of the day.

Ajloun and the surrounding area is arguably the most beautiful place in all of Jordan and we had lots of time to enjoy the scenery as the bus took a one hour detour. We arrived almost 1 ½ hours late but again were greeted with smiling faces and set off to our work immediately. While the group was large and the attention wavering at first, as the evening continued everything became as usual: the young men and women became calm and quiet and in the end we were all very satisfied and happy with their experience of meditation.

By the time we got home there was not much anyone could do besides fall into their beds with music in our ears and joy in our hearts.

-Shrirangha from Austria

EIGHTH DAY, THE HEART OPENER

8th April 2013

At Zaatri Refugee camp

We rushed out of the guest house early this morning to meet up with the volunteers from “Save the Children” who then showed us the way to the Zaatri refugee camp. We are working with them for several more days following this, which is amazing! We had three concerts in total – two at the Zaatri refugee camp and one for the SOS Children’s Village in Amman.

On the way to the refugee camp, Niraja and I were wondering whether or not we should perform dance with the little energy that we had from lack of sleep and breakfast; but, as soon as we entered the camp and saw the kids, we immediately agreed to perform. They were way too adorable and irresistibly cute. We were all “aww-ing” in the bus as we got closer.

At first, the kids were a little confused as to why we were there. Some of them opened up very quickly and started interacting with us while the other kids were entirely unfamiliar with the idea of people performing for them. The program started off really well. Anthony did a great job getting the kids to settle down by playing the “clap” game with them where they repeat after his claps and actions. After one song, Niraja and I performed our dance followed by a quick children’s meditation and more songs.

During the last few song performances, some of us stood up and took some children to dance with us. We could tell that they really enjoyed dancing with us. They were smiling and clapping along. Some of the kids ran up to us after the program and gave us big hugs and kisses on the cheeks. We embraced them with all our hearts and returned the kisses. Both the morning and afternoon sessions in the refugee camp were filled with this same joy and laughter.

Personally, I have never had this kind of experience working and performing in a refugee camp. It was one of the best programs for me so far. One of the girls, Almirah, came up to me, took me by the face with both her little hands, pulled my head down to her level and gave me two kisses on the forehead followed by a massive hug. It was a real heart-opener and that is something that I will never ever forget.

After having a good lunch, we regained our energy and headed to the SOS Children’s Village for our final concert of the day. We performed in an open air theater with a much better sound system. The crowd wasn’t as enthusiastic as our first two crowds, however, they did join us dancing when we played Scottish music and Emma taught everyone a dance.

Sometimes I wonder what our audiences are thinking about when we perform, what are their reactions inside, do they feel a difference? Then, I think to myself “Insha’Allah”, a word I learnt recently which is an Arabic phrase for “God be Willing”, it is best left to God.

Shan Shan Lim from Malaysia

(Side note: We are still gathering and uploading photos from this day so please check back later for the albums!)

Syrian Refugee Camp on our Seventh Day

It was a really intense day…but full of amazing moments that I will definitely remember for my whole life! 🙂

As has happened previously, we were not fully on time for the program in the Syrian refugee camp in Jerash (near the Syrian border). Nevertheless, we were warmly welcomed by the volunteers working in the camp, and surrounded by smiling and shouting kids we made our way to the hall where the program was to take place.

We were really appalled by the low quality of life and all the hardships these people have to go through, and it was not surprising that all the kids were overly energetic, nearly obnoxious. They were shouting so loud along with the volunteers who were shouting even louder trying to calm everyone down, that I wasn’t sure if we were gonna make it. However, after the first song I started feeling that we had drawn their attention and it was clear that they were ready to work with us.

We did manage to make the kids keep quiet for some time and Jivana led them through a different version of our meditation exercise. We involved them by singing different parts of the word AUM  so they could copy, while holding their hand on the heart and then on the top of their head. The feeling in the room changed so much after some time and the next song was received with a lot of enthusiasm and joy. The people were singing along, dancing and smiling…the experience was flowing and as we were singing the final song, some of the people were holding their hands on their heart with their eyes closed and even tried to sing along!

We left the camp shortly after feeling really fulfilled, but exhausted and overwhelmed by the intensity of the event. The meditation had been really profound and our concert was very well received. We hope that many of the people will keep this joy in their hearts, and that it will help them in their lives and with all the troubles that they face.

– Anton from Russia

On our seventh day of the tour, a group of five people firstly went to the Almansour School, where we organized a workshop for a group of 25 girls. All of them experienced the meditation and  the girls were very sincere and cooperative  and they were just so happy to see us. When we asked them to do a group exercise how do they see the world and themselves in the future, they gave us very mature answers such as they want to become doctors and engineers. In general most of them wanted to have peace and freedom in their country. They were indeed a very appreciative group which I would love to visit again.

After we went to the SOS Children’s Village in Amman, which is a home to more than 150 children who are orphans or abandoned. We were leading the workshop for around 25 boys aged from 9 to 14 years and at the beginning we had a difficulty to entertain them and attract their attention. At first we needed to make a great effort just to make them to seat down and to listen for 30 seconds. After almost 15 minutes when we finally managed to explain to them how to do a simple name game exercise and in order to continue we needed to establish a basic ground rule: No kicking, no scratching, and no biting!

Somehow we managed to get to the meditation part of our two hour workshop. I was not sure how we will manage to keep them quiet enough in order to do the exercise, but I was pleasingly surprised when Rania started to lead it in Arabic. Even the loudest and the naughtiest ones followed the exercise until the very end. They completely joined in raising each other’s inner energy and telling me how cool they feel on their hands and on the top of their head J In two hours the boys changed so much you would not recognize them. After the meditation exercise they stopped kicking and biting each other and they drew us some beautiful pictures which we will take with us back home.

– Sakshi from Slovenia