Spritivity Workshop with the Mentors
The aim for the Spritivity workshop with the mentors was that they should come to understand the girls’ situations through their eyes alone and not through biased assumptions (positive or negative) about the girls.
The narratives of the girls were shared with the mentors at the beginning of their workshop. The idea was that they would realize the importance of facilitating the decision-making capabilities of the girls and construct their mentoring role around it, rather than the other way around. They were mere facilitators, while the girls become the leaders of change in their own lives, and challenged the implicit power inequalities as and when they arose in the process. Having been through a similar creative workshop where they were forced to reflect themselves on their own life’s journeys, the mentors became more sensitive and aware of the important role that they can play in the girls’ lives.
Additionally, mentors often went back to their own or their mentees labyrinths when faced with communication or interaction problem with the mentees. The stories narrated by the girls helped overcome problem of difficulty of disclosure faced by marginalized populations. The narratives became guidance and information source for the mentors to develop creative solutions for establishing fruitful relationships with the girls. Their own labyrinths helped them re-gain focus and perspective when they felt lost or overwhelmed during the mentoring process.