Tidings from Himalayas

A new recruit has joined us: Muazzam. Dropped out after class 8. No rewards for guessing why. Runs a grocery in a nearby village. His father was in the OPD a few days back, when TISA took its trainees to the hospital OPD for a live demo cum practice. Father spoke to us and mentioned about his son. So here he is. He has been coming for about two weeks.
Muazzam has lot of negative emotions associated with stammering- has little self awareness and control during moments of difficulty- leading to secondaries on face. He finds it difficult to talk about why he gave up studies- understandably. Finds it very difficult to smile while talking. He externalises his problems to certain words and holds them responsible. He used DAF on sachin's old laptop- heard and saw his recordings. Was quite moved by Julia Irani's interview video- and is gradually opening up and warming up. One good thing- his commitment is amazing: he arrives right on time, whenever he is called and applies himself to the task whole heartedly.
The photo above is that of our SHG meeting on 11th July (Sunday). We borrowed Pune group's activity: two truths, one lie- and had lot of fun. Later we had a game of observation and imitation. I and Aman, faked a stutter and imitated each other by turns. Other two, Directors & recruiters for the upcoming TISA movie, evaluated our acting skills and ranked it on a 100 point scale. We went through the entire gamut of possibilities- including our natural stuttering styles. This activity gives you some insight and control over your secondaries. But yes, it requires good facilitation and a fun atmosphere.