The Lumière Observership Program: The initial jitters

musings from an observer's diary "Let us go with Fear over Faith".

I heard Deepa mention this to a project team on my first day of joining the Observership program at Lumière. These words felt like music to my ears. After having decided to participate in the program, I had been filled with many doubts- will I be able to restart, what will the program be like, and will I be able to contribute effectively? But once I had decided to go ahead, I wanted to silence these thoughts, and maybe it was my faith in myself and in the team members at Lumière who initiated me into this program, which helped me get going.

So here I was on day one with packed bags and the belief that I am being guided in the right direction. Incidentally, that day the team was celebrating a team member's 5th work anniversary. Everyone gathered around and exchanged their experiences, pictures were clicked, and a sense of warmth filled me. Listening to her journey, her aspirations, and her experiences gave me a sense of hope. The conversations were not perfunctory and seemed to hold a lot of thought and meaning.

By then, it was lunch time, and another team member walked up to me to enquire whether I was carrying a dabba. When I said I hadn't carried one today, she helped me navigate the options for ordering food and waited to accompany me for lunch. We chatted about our backgrounds, struck a chord on being the "only child" and how it shapes our worldview, and bonded over the travails of Mumbai train travel.

Everyone I made eye contact with exchanged a smile. As sunlight streamed in through the huge windows, chatter from team discussions filled the room, and cups of tea and coffee were passed around, I settled in with Faith on this new and unknown journey I had finally begun.