Building Your Future by Helping Others
We are changing people’s lives. We really are…
I just spoke with one of our volunteers for the first time. When Tapasya DAS applied, she wrote that coming from such a poor background in India she treats working on our project as an honour and an amazing opportunity. Since then she has been the most hardworking transcriber. Taking on more than we were asking, sending it back faster than she promised. And that is on top of her full-time job.
Last year, when Tapasya couldn’t go to Europe for the project she applied to because of the pandemic, she was sad and lost. In the dark days of the lockdown, she didn’t really know anymore what to hope for and how to continue doing her job day in — day out, without a glimpse of a better life. Now in the call, she said: “There was only one good thing about 2020 for me — you. And this project. It gave me a purpose. It gave me back my optimism.”
A girl full of dreams and humility, she loves literature and writing. For transcribing she has been choosing stories from all over the world to see how people there were doing. “It’s like travelling the world for me.” With all the differences people have, there is still so much that we all have in common. And the stories we collected truly show how much closer we are to each other than we think.
“There are many news and articles about the pandemic, but nobody is asking the questions you do. And especially not from the simple business owners that live right next door. This is really unique and much needed.” She translated a few of those interviews into Hindi so her family could understand them. Since then, her family is sending us their love and words of gratitude.
Sometimes I get so caught up in day-to-day activities that I forget how important what we are doing is for our volunteers, for each of them individually. Often living in small towns away from shiny skyscrapers and trendy words, they don’t get the same chances as others. At their young age with less than modest family means, they have to accept the limited possibilities that are around them.
But despite all that, they keep looking for opportunities. Like the one, we are giving them through our project. And when they get it, they make sure to give their all to it, do more than asked or expected, better, faster. And they enjoy it and truly value the chance they got.
“Since I joined the project, I met so many volunteers from other parts of India. Even though we are doing everything remotely, it makes me feel part of the team.”
They follow their heart and do what they can for others. Living in a small place with her parents, Tapasya still brings home stray cats and dogs to give them food, shelter, and care.
And above all, they keep dreaming. And there is a girl in a simple home in Calcutta right now who hopes to get a chance to do a PhD in literature in Europe and then come back home to open a little bookstore where she can devote herself to writing… and baking homemade muffins for the many people who will come to enjoy her store.
*** About the Project Tapasya is volunteering at
To help small businesses and self-employed professionals overcome the challenges of the pandemic and reactivate the economy, in June 2020 we launched the Lockdown Economy. It is a global non-profit grassroots social-economic and educational movement. The United Nations has recognized it as an Acceleration Action for the Sustainable Development Goals.
You too can join us on this journey https://lockdowneconomy.org.
