Co-Existence: The Truth is One, the Paths are Many

Tuesday evening, our team got together to watch the inauguration of our 44th president. We had just finished a Rotary meeting and afterwards rushed to the Sayaji Hotel to witness the event on TV. We were running late so we must have looked a bit crazy to the hotel guests; there we are in our red, white and blue GSE uniforms running around looking for any available television where we could see Obama’s speech. We finally settled on a flatscreen in the lobby. It was such a surreal experience. With our National Anthem blaring through the TV speakers and Hindi music being played loudly in the bar behind us, not one of us could help but feel emotionally moved. This experience triggered a question in my mind.

How could 6 individuals, so very different from one another, be overwhelmed with the same deep emotions at the exact same time? Was it a twinge of homesickness? Was it the significance of seeing America’s first black president being inaugurated? Was it Obama’s powerful words about change and acceptance that moved us so deeply? Was it the realization of how blessed we were to be experiencing such an historical event in a country so very different and so very far away from our home? It could have been any or even a combination of all these things. The amazing thing is that despite our differences and the many variables involved; during that speech we all connected on a much deeper level. We experienced history together 10,000 miles away from where it occured.

Even though we are only two weeks into our GSE program in India, we have noticed an increase in this trend of us all being on the same page at the same time. We have started finishing each others’ sentences. We can tell when one of us is upset without anything needing to be said. We all laugh at the same things, or at least we all find the same things funny. What’s most amazing though is the fact that in a country that is so diverse, and in a group of six that are so different from each other, we are all feeling, learning and growing together. I read somewhere once that, “The truth is one, the paths are many”. Our team is living proof of this. We are all experiencing the trip in very personal ways, so our paths are technically different. However, at the end of the day, we are all human, and as humans I believe we are innately good and constantly searching for truth. Truly embracing this concept has allowed us to consistently find and focus on our similarities rather than our differences. As a result, we are becoming an extremely strong and unified team. India itself represents this concept perfectly.

Since I’ve arrived I’ve decided that India is “co-existence at its finest”. What other place in the world has cows and cars sharing road space? Catholic churches next door to Muslim mosques? Highly educated citizens in mansions neighboring poor villagers in tents? And all existing in peace! With minimal conflict! And the fact that India and its people are growing stronger every day proves that open acceptance is NOT a weakness, it is actually imperative for positive growth to occur.

So, you take this incredible internal experience of growing as individuals within a group, combine it with being in a country that truly exudes unity amongst diversity, and top it off with witnessing our first African-American President communicating his similar vision of a strong and peaceful America… it’s no wonder we were all overwhelmed with emotion!

With this newfound understanding of our group synergy, I’m going to go out on a limb and speak for everyone when I say, thank you. Thank you to everyone reading this who has helped and supported us on this amazing journey so far. For us to witness the inauguration of a president so in tune with everything that we believe about acceptance and truth in a country, which embodies this concept, has been a blessing that the 6 of us will cherish forever.

So, again...thank you.