Cherish the Luv with teens
Kindness

Orphanage Teens Learn to Express Themselves Through DJing #WATWB

July 28, 2017 /

Welcome to July’s installment of the We Are The World Blogfest, where we share positive stories on the last Friday of each month. The basic rules are:

  • Keep the post below 500 words.
  • Link to a human news story that shows love, humanity, and brotherhood and share an excerpt.
  • No story is too big or small as long as it goes beyond religion and politics.

Thank you to this month’s WATWB co-hosts:  Simon Falk, Roshan Radhakrishnan, Inderpreet Uppal, Damyanti Biswas and Sylvia Stein. 

 

The Olon Orphanage makes regular appearances on this site (see all posts here). It is one of the happiest places I know. I love spending time there.

I was thrilled to see this story in the Huffington Post. Cynthia Cherish Malaran (DJ CherishTheLuv), a breast cancer survivor, recently spent three weeks in Ecuador. She was introduced to the orphanage by Erwin Musper, who works tirelessly to improve lives at the orphanage.

Cynthia came to teach young girls how to DJ. From the article:
“Actually, I taught these young teens how to express themselves creatively and loudly, under the guise of DJing. These girls have been traumatized. Silenced. Teaching them how to express themselves gives them the green light to ask for what they want. To say ‘no!’ To ask for a raise at work. It can change their life. Even save their life. I went there thinking I had something to teach them. But actually, they taught me… I came back a few days ago,” Cynthia reports, “and I was looking at all these sad, unhappy faces here in our awesome New York City, and I was so confused. I came back and realized we have everything. We have everything and yet, we’re not happy. The girls at the orphanage have the bare minimum, yet they are so happy. Why? Because they have each other.”

Huffington Post - Cherish the Luv
Cynthia teaching DJ techniques
Image from Huffington Post

Later in the article:
“I packed my portable Pioneer mixer, thinking ‘OK, I’m going to gift these kids ME,’” Cynthia laughs. … “And then you realize it’s you who has the deficits, and they gift you so much knowledge, understanding, eye-opening love. I think in the past 2.5 weeks, I’ve gotten hugged more than in the past two years.”

Cynthia shares how teaching the girls– products of rape, abuse, neglect, subject to silencing– how to express themselves was profound in so many ways. “I don’t speak Spanish; they don’t speak much English, but music is the universal language, and rhythm transcends words. The kids had never heard a song sped up or slowed down before, they were totally shocked! I didn’t want to teach them how to be a DJ, but how to express, how to experiment, how to feel free.”

Cynthia with teen girls at orphanage
Cynthia with some of her DJ students
Photo from Huffington Post

Cynthia and Erwin made a wonderful 30 minute video about the orphanage. You can view it here.

We are the world blogfest

See other great WATWB stories here.

I am a US Expat in Ecuador. I grew up on a Minnesota farm, worked in IT in California's Silicon Valley, then moved to a coastal Ecuador fishing village. My goal is to share Ecuador with you, one snippet at a time. Topics include attractions, compassion, ecotourism, Ecuador products, everyday Ecuador, and flora and fauna. Please let me know what you would like to read more about!

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