Phoenix emerging: The Youth Centre starts anew

Every day it’s been evident to those of us who cycle past that there is a hum of activity; bikes are parked outside, rubble being cleared by volunteers, items are being salvaged. The YC is adapting itself to a very new environment. The destruction was a traumatic time with a visible raw legacy, but people have rallied to support the YC. Adults are staying to create a sense of safety for the remaining youth. The kitchen was destroyed but a makeshift replacement enables Vijaya, who has been at the YC since its inception, to continue making lunch and teas. People have brought food and there has been a non-stop procession of baking. “We’ve had a lot of pizza and we aim to continue the pizza nights,” Lili noted.

There have been two very well attended events in the YC. Firstly, Omar and David hosted a presentation for the youth about their Dream Weaving approach to planning. “We sent a text out to the youth and they forwarded it. I was expecting 15 people to come”. The repeatedly forwarded text meant that eventually hundreds of people turned up at the Youth Centre to listen and with a wish to participate in city planning. Lili observed, “People care deeply about being a part of the process. Luckily we had a vegan pot luck already planned, and enough food was brought to host people with.”

Two days later, on 18 December, there was a community gathering. Annually around Christmas time there is a fair, with food stalls and music, and they had originally been planning for it on 17/18/19 December. Lili comments that they wanted the “community to witness the destruction that took place and a decision was made to put something together”. That ‘something’ became a late afternoon and evening event called ‘Gem of the Forest’ with the symbol of a phoenix on the poster. It started with a chanting invocation, and then the soulful voice and music of Rando and Bullet Proof Funk had many people dancing. This was followed by the Genius Brothers who sang three songs with a short memorial silence. They skill fully walked the tightrope of solemnity and fun that the occasion demanded. Finally, Johnny and Jesse produced a youth adaption of ‘Beauty and the Beast’, fittingly titled ‘Katharsis’. Hundreds of people enjoyed a special Auroville night in the forest, with a fire, massages being offered, children running around excitedly, with pizza being baked and people catching up with friends, YC t-shirts being offered and flowers being given on arrival. It was a night both of pathos and joy that hit just the right note.

The YC and youth have been given a “wake up call,” says Lili. “We want to participate in planning. We are educating ourselves to know how to express ourselves and each other about the processes, structure and decision making methods of Auroville and how to move forward.”

Prior to the destruction, over fifty youth, with the support of Paul Blanchflower and other adults, had presented the ATDC with a new Crown road plan for the YC. “In this plan, near the current stage, a plaza was planned as a public space for and by YC with art and theatre.” The art would “make everyone feel welcome; Aurovilians, our neighbours, bio region kids. We are adapting to the ground realities of the destruction and putting a new proposal in place.” Given her theatrical training, Lili is particularly keen on the plaza concept, where theatrical performances could take place. She also mentions how important it is to be in a forest, how arborists have taught youth about trees and watersheds, particularly the Bliss Forest Stewards. She wants a Vocational Training Centre where local crafts and skills can be taught, especially those indigenous to the bioregion. Lili makes a plea for the YC and youth “to be allowed to make mistakes”, and that spirit of generosity and maturity is surely one that the community can embrace.

When you walk under the ‘Peaceful City’ archway, you come across one of the original caravans in which idealists came here in the late 60s from Paris, with the energy to turn a barren landscape into a restored and blossoming greenery. The symbolism of this historic vehicle that is now divided from the Youth Centre by a gash in the forest is painful. Hopefully this symbol from our pioneering origins will remind the youth, our future Aurovilians, that restoration is possible.