Does everyone in India have 20/20 vision?

It turns out that three of my stitching lady friends needs "cheater" glasses. 

Few people in India wear glasses. I suspect that it’s not because they don’t need them, it’s because the cost of having your eyes checked and then purchasing lenses is pretty steep for many people.

I don’t see a lot of people squinting here, so I wonder if they just don’t know how poor their eyesight is and how much more it would be improved if only they had glasses.

I read somewhere that, until the invention of the printing press, people didn’t know they couldn’t see. But when trying to read the new documents made available by the invention – well, they couldn’t make out the letters.

Well, that’s sort of my experience here.

Last year. I watched some of of my stitching lady friends struggle with some tasks, such as sewing a straight line. I wondered if maybe the problem was their eyesight. So, with the money I raised in the U.S. for their tools, I purchased four pairs of “cheater” glasses – something we take for granted in the states, but here they are at a premium. Out of the seven Stitching Ladies, three saw their vision improve to the point that threading a needle, even the old-fashioned way, was a simple task.

Oh, by the way, I also brought along self-threading needles. No more licking the end of a thread and trying to carefully poke it through the eye of a needle. Yup. You just lay the thread horizontally over the top of the needle and gently pull down – voila – you’ve thread the needle. Just like the seam ripper, they were amazed at what’s available out there.

Chan spent some time with the women talking about the importance
 of keeping good inventory records. They may not use Excel, but their method
 serves them very well, he said.

Reconnecting the seams of friendship

The Stitching Ladies of Nayi Asha are so happy to learn about
 and now own seam rippers.

I’m back in India until the end of March and reconnecting with my beloved stitching sisters of Nayi Asha. They were happy to see me, and I was happy to see them.

Thanks to those who attended fundraisers that my U.S. stitching friends held, I was able to bring these women much needed supplies. I am introducing the tools slowly, so that I can teach them how to use them properly. As with me, you get so used to doing things a certain way and when someone shows you a new way, it takes time to make the change even though you know it’s for the best.

First up was the seam ripper. These women were so excited about his handy tool. As one of my quilting buddies so aptly once said, “The seam ripper is my friend.” I sure learned that when trying to do my first and only paper-pieced project. The stitching ladies say this tool is so much better than using a razor blade.

Anyway, I sewed some swatches of fabric together, and had them practice (correctly) how to rip a seam. I then showed them a Youtube video that, again, emphasized the proper way to use a seam ripper.

Sixteen doctors from England are biking through parts of India, including
the Himalays. They stopped at Nishtha to learn more about the NGO, and purchase
bags from the stitching ladies.

Since I’ve been here, there have been two groups of Europeans visiting Nishtha, the NGO which sponsors the ladies. These visits provide an opportunity for the women to sell their bags. I was so happy to see them display their bags in a pleasing way (something we worked on last year). I have been also teaching them some English phrases and they are quick learners – sure better than me with Hindi!

Thank you again, to all of you who contributed to these efforts. I’ll keep you posted.

Lee Ann