When Eurasia Foundation bought the land where Tinh Truc Gia=TTG was created, ALL our vietnamese friends said : Oh so far from town ! Oh so isolated ! No one will want to come to work here, it is much too far !
Remember Mrs Trinh ? …and of course they all said : oh all these tombs…..
Someone from education departement with whom we had already created many projects for special education in Hue had visited us in Switzerland
where we, at the time, lived in a Camphill community. He « understood » what we wanted to do in Hue for adults living with disabilities and helped us find a land for such a pilot projec : A prototype for a different lifestyl, a
living and working community and training center adapted to the needs of people living with disabilities.
Tho and me had visited the land and right away we knew…THIS IS IT ! yes it was a bit « off
the track » yes a bit far…(oh my god 7 minutes from towncenter with a bike)…for us this did not seem far at all (In citys in the west people can have 1h to communte to work !). Tho and me we could see the potential of this land
right away !
As things needed to go « fast » with the buying of the land, I called my lovely sister Gitti and her husband Bob and said : Eurasia needs money to buy land for a community for adults living
with disabilities …we need the money « tomorrow »…and she did not ask much…just felt our enthusiasm and deep conviction that this was the right thing to do, trusted us and…sent the money « right away»
so we could go ahead and start this wonderful adventure… ( My sister and her husband will come to the 10 year TTG festivities, we should never forget without them TTG might not be !)
Today Mrs Trinh sent me the photos
of a group of school children from the Province who came for a day immersion in our community life, working in the various vocational training workshops, in the garden, practicing Mindfulness all along in all activities, and being guided in all this by our
lovely TTG team but also the youngsters living with disabilities
Since we started the « Empowerment 1 project »* a few thousand school kids have come to TTG for such an immersion into ecological lifestyle,
immersion into social work, mindfulness and community life…yes a few thousand ! Empowerment is fully part of the Happy school ELI project! They walk "hand in hand" ! This is Happy Schools from Kindergarten to University in Action!
Students from various Universities, students of psychology, of education but even economy also come for such « days » of Mindfulness in TTG…I call it days of Mindfulness as we invite them to experience
nature, experience our interdepence with people living with disabilities and as we practice Mindfullness in all activities
We encourage them to discover the incredible beauty and contribution to society of people with special needs. TTG
youngsters help us create a life that is wholesome, slower and deeper and much more mindful than « normal » crazy busy mindless life…
Integration of people living with disabilities into society is crucial as
they are an important part of our humanity since the beginning of time. Integrating people living with disabilities into « normal « life is a noble wish…but not always easy…our modern lifestyle fits well for young intelligent
healthy people who can read/write, use computer, are fast and competitive…all this is very difficult for people living with disabilities…also finding friends for them in this very isolating modern lifestyle is very very challenging !
But in TTG we practice inclusion/integration through bringing the « normal » people into their life…so many young people yearn for a more meaningful mindful and ecological lifestyle !
Many
volunteers from all over the world come to TTG and become friends with TTG youngsters…many visitors from all over the world come to TTG tea house, buy their delicious jams, buy their wonderful paintings, incense and ecological cleaning products !
TTG youngsters are part of society through a healthy economy that respects their needs and capacities
I guess TTG youngsters know/meet more people than their families ever did. They meet people from so many different countries,
meet students from Kindergarten to University who come to learn from them ! That’s what we call EMPOWERMENT !
The many ELI (Eurasia Learning Institute) training courses in TTG are so apreciated and « famous »
for the high knowledge and the longtime experience of the ELI trainers but we know the ELI trainings are special because these trainings take place IN TTG and TTG is an important factor of experience of what ELI trainers are talking about !
Its not only words…it is a practice !
It is being served by the TTG community, working in their garden, joining a sharing evening in the community that makes every ELI training unique and transformative !
This week we will welcome about 800 kids in TTG from various schools in Hue City, next week many Kindergarten children from Hue…all want to work in the biodnamic garden as one of the highlights of their experiental learning .
We
need more LAND! IT IS URGENT !
So we launch the « Empowerment 2 » project trying to find more « training « land for these important integrational inclusive experiences for TTG youngsters
and « normal » children from Kindergarten to University ! And for all of us who look for a more just inclusive ecological and Mindful life !
In 3 weeks we will celebrate the 10 years of TTG !
No one thinks we are too isolated now ! Mrs Trinh said to me the other day : it is getting much too crowded in TTG !
The « world comes to us» and the inclusion is happening more than we could have ever dreamt !
In gratitude