{"id":3523,"date":"2021-06-25T10:54:31","date_gmt":"2021-06-25T06:24:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adventure.auroville.com\/?p=3523"},"modified":"2022-05-06T12:44:06","modified_gmt":"2022-05-06T08:14:06","slug":"the-man-on-wheels-selvam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventure.auroville.com\/index.php\/2021\/06\/25\/the-man-on-wheels-selvam\/","title":{"rendered":"The Man on Wheels: Selvam"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cI was 9 years old when my family moved from Sanjeev Nagar to a place next to Celebration community, in Auroville. They came for work \u2013 my parents were appointed as caretakers. Life was pretty hard then, with all of us struggling under one tiny thatched roof. My brother and I were sent to a government school in Pondicherry, but school life never attracted me and I longed to be back in Auroville before the evenings. I would eagerly climb the bullock cart \u2013 sometimes full of compost! \u2013 that rode towards the garden at Discipline community. I made two friends there, Catherine and Dorla, with whom I spent my time playing, while the cart driver worked in the garden. Sometimes I would assist him and it felt good, the feel of the plants and trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I was 12, I left school and joined the Discipline community garden to work, which was a way to collect a bit of pocket money. Soon, Discipline community became my home. I started spending late evenings and nights there. After work I would sleep in a keet hut, counting the stars in the sky for long hours. Later I shifted permanently to Auroville, but I failed to persuade my family who went back to the village.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I must have been 14, when I met Dominique Parizotthe, a French man living in Revelation. He used to run a library for kids. When we began to get friendly, he voiced that he strongly disagreed with me working. \u2018Boys at your age should be learning,\u2019 he said. He helped me to clear a small loan from Discipline and he was determined to educate me. He got me enrolled at an evening school, Meenakshi Amma\u2019s \u2018Ilaignarkal Education Centre\u2019.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I soon opted out of it, wanting to get back to garden work. But Dominique put his foot down and enrolled me in yet another school at New Creation, hoping this time I would stick to it. At the school here Babu and Sugumar, were my first teachers, and were very much a mother-like figure to me. I enjoyed learning with them. Later the determined Dominique <\/strong>talked to Sanjeev and got me enrolled at Last School. During my free time I would accompany Dominique and the pool of workers in building up the Horizon Community. Assisting the landscaping team, was actually my first school towards \u00a0creativity. Presently, I share a brotherly relation with Dominique. He lives at Simplicity and me at La Ferme. I believe it is now my turn to look after him and I am doing my best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n