28th November was for us The First 4th Sunday. Wondering what I mean by this!?
“4th Sunday -Clean Sunday” is our next slogan for Amalabharatam revolution that Amma has given us.

We from Amritapuri went out into Alappad panchayat, ie the island on which lies Amritapuri. Again after morning Archana, and ‘the inevitable chai’, brahmacharinis and other girls were seen carrying brooms and gloves. All smiles and enthusiasm incarnate. Soon joined in – guess who?- the senior women of the ashram, most of them in the age group between 60 and 70. Those of the ‘essential services’, meaning juice stall and canteen and such department women, and those with tender health conditions were too happy this time for they could really spare longer time for cleaning work. Also, many western women who had returned from Europe tour were eager to participate. Though they were with Amma in Europe, they still felt missed out from Amala Bharatam work, they said!

Soon the group started from Ayurveda Research Center building. Boys went north, the Cheriazhikkal side, and girls were already on the Azhikkal side, to the south. Once again they were on the cleaning spree.

We were picking only plastic and glass. They were wastes from shops which were just thrown by the sea. For the sea side nobody’s land- that’s the attitude that makes people throw things around.

The rest was organic wastes, from the trees, not much really.

Among the plastic wastes, we got to see so much of soft plastic in the shape of wrappers of condiments and things like ghutka; and hard plastic in the shape of bottles of synthetic drinks. Neither the contents did good to the consumed humans nor are the wrappers/containers any good for nature to digest! Our eyes opened to this hard fact of our ‘lopsided modernization’ where we produce things harmful for human body and wrap them in things harmful for nature. I wished the makers also prescribed a way of disposing the wrappers/containers.

We also got to see how Nature is always trying ways to express her beauty and bounty. There were innumerable vines sprawling on the earth, just like that, with colorful little flowers. The coconut trees and the wind-trees that were planted as part of Haritateeram-green shore- also proved the point. Some wind- trees still had dews on them that were shining in sunrays, so much like the Himalayan pines!

We went past the Parayakadavu bus station and went on just picking garbage. It felt like we could go on like that till the end of our shores! So much was discarded by the sea walls! Around nine I found myself by the Srayikkad lamppost.

Work went on smooth with nobody giving any instruction. For it seemed that we all know what it is: go, pick up garbage –big and small- and put in sacks.

In olden times parents used to teach children to see the end of even a strand of hair or bit of nail when they are thrown; they should not lie here and there, but go into something like a bin, they would insist. How responsible we would grow about everything that goes out of our hands.

– Sandhya