The ‘Festivals of Lights’ widely known as Diwali. Diwali is a five-day festival for Hindus, Sikhs and Jains. This shows the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. Last Sunday The Sreepur Village family celebrated Diwali with great enthusiasm. All of our children, mothers and staff attended the festival and thoroughly enjoyed it.
During the morning with the leadership of our resident artist, Milan, our ‘little painters’ group decorated under the big water tank with artworks. It was an awesome activity of colour and patterns. All the children gathered under the big water tank and they waited excitedly to see the finished effort. As you can see it looked marvellous!
The second phase of preparation began from noon. Beside paintings, our mothers and staff decorated under the big water tank with diyas, candles, and earthen pots. Those celebrating Diwali light traditional earthenware oil lamps called ‘diyas’ which are said to help Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, find her way into people’s homes.
The prime celebration started in the afternoon with a cultural program. Our older girls performed dances and our mothers sung the songs. The festival was enlightened by the different performances of our staff. The main attraction of the event was lighting the diyas and candles. The big water tank area, admin office, clinic and the main gate were illuminated by hundreds of diyas and candles.
Our Overseas Director Pat Kerr also enjoyed the festivals with children and mothers by lighting the candles and dancing.
Life can sometimes throw unimaginable challenges at us, but it's the human spirit's resilience and determination that can lead to remarkable stories of triumph.
Lia's life is a testament to this spirit, marked by adversity, courage, and ultimate success. Lia's story draws parallels to other stories of perseverance, and highlights the crucial role of organisations like Sreepur Village in transforming lives.
Out of the blue, at the tender age of 13, Chia found herself sitting on a bridal stage, about to marry a man who was 35 years old. Her parents had arranged the match, finding the man from their nearby locality in Bhairab.
He was a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) businessman who occasionally sold vegetables and fruits on the street. Chia's aspirations and youthful dreams were abruptly interrupted by this sudden marriage. Instead of books, she found herself with kitchen utensils in her hands. She went from feeling like a princess to becoming a servant overnight.