Going from a nearly freezing Romanian fall to a hot and sweaty Indian winter can leave you with a bit of whiplash. So much is different than it was two weeks ago, that it’s taken almost as long to process it all. Luckily it’s all been pretty good.
After a 24 hour jaunt around Qatar, we landed on India’s fragrant soil. My team, now consisting of six new people, spent one night in Hyderabad before boarding a forever-hour bus ride south to the country. The air is full of spices, the people are full of smiles, the autos are full of people, and the water will certainly give you diarrhea.
After a night of sleep-sweating, we jumped right into this month’s ministry.
Each day (minus our off day), we head out about an hour’s drive to a different rural village. Picture the “man village” from The Jungle Book and you’d be right on pointe. We are always greeted by a handful of disheveled kids with wide grins and multiple inquiries of “sista, brotha, sista,what is your name?”
After sitting for a while at the local pastor’s home and letting our whiteness show by dousing ourselves in sanitizer and bug spray, we head out to pray for people at their homes. It almost feels like we are on tour with Jesus and, honestly, people are super into it. I can see why missionaries like to come here. I’ve never felt more like a celebrity and have never had more food shoved in my face in appreciation. It’s not a hostile culture, but a grateful one and one where you can leave a person’s home knowing you at least added something positive to their day.
Anyway, after about a thousand home visits to everyone in the village, we head back to the church to put on a service. Armed with nothing but a tambourine, we do our best to turn slow, WASP-y worship songs into something with an exciting beat. Sometimes we are even successful. We then move on to testimonies. Two of us will share our life stories and how the Lord has moved in our lives and changed it for the better. It’s pretty humbling to stand in front of about 50 people who are 475858364858462537475 miles from the nearest Target and who face sickness and (what we would call) poverty every single day and tell them how life was tough and Jesus transformed it.
One thing that has been interesting is finding the universal truths within our stories. Not all on my team had a similar background, and certainly the backgrounds of those we are speaking to are so vastly different, that we probably couldn’t even imagine it (even after a viewing of The Jungle Book 2). However, the common threads of unworthiness, shame, loss of hope, redemption, being chosen, being loved at your darkest, and being called for and all of your difficult things being used for a purpose are common themes in the story of all humanity.
After sharing our stories, one of us will do the preaching. I never thought I’d be adding “preacher”, to my resume. When I picture a preacher, I picture the dad from Footloose who doesn’t want the youth to dance, not an awkward 26-year old with square glasses and a goofy grin. After the message, of which who-knows-how-much is properly translated (sometimes our translator has a tough time with dinner conversation), we get to pray in’ yet again. People come up asking for prayers for healing, for their studies, for nothing in particular. They just love to be prayed for and have great faith in the God that we serve. It’s pretty impressive.
As beautiful as this all is, it can actually be pretty tough and emotionally draining. Growing up in a western and affluent culture, pain and suffering is “politely” hidden. With nowhere else for it to go, these villages have it on display. Not to be looked at or showed off, the pain and suffering here just…is. In one of the churches lay a man dying of cancer. Skinny and frail, he just lay there, sitting up occasionally, then laying back down. Women come in with visible tumors and blindness. Children come in with “brain problems” and leg problems. It is an honor to be walk beside them, but it is also pretty heavy to process.
There are some aspects of India in general that have been a bit tough as well…
Since we are in the country (although, there are still ample amounts of people), the culture around here is ultra-reserved and ultra-conservative. As a woman, I must always have my legs covered down past my ankles. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve put on an Ankle burlesque show for the locals while sitting in a chair or lifting my skirt to keep it from the mud. I am a bonafide harlot around these parts with how much ankle I flash on a daily basis.
Women are also not supposed to touch, laugh with, or really make eye contact with men (and visa-versa with men to women). Being on a co-ed team with fun and playful people, and also just being an all-around generally friendly person, this has also proved tough.
Then there’s the hand issue. We are only to eat, relate with, and relate to our right hand. The left hand is the hand of dishonor (aka: the poo hand). Every meal, I have a moment of panic and I have to really process and think to make sure the proper hand is in use.
The Indian winter is also a fun one. Yesterday it got to a chilly 90F with about 47586% humidity.
With all that, I caught the “whygodwhytakemenow sickness” that India is sometimes known for. This is super fun, when traveling to villages where your toilet options include a bucket or a shower drain (p.s. go with the bucket).
Despite all these things, India really is a magical place. The people are kind and as beautiful as the land they live in. The food (when one is cured of the sickness) is incredible and the sights are something to behold. I am enjoying the time here (even the tough stuff), and I know that we are exactly where we are supposed to be. We are doing our best to bring Jesus and leave good wherever we go, and are learning some incredible things from some incredible people along the way.
Thank you so much for your prayers and support through this journey! I am happy and blessed to announce that I am fully funded for the journey! This means that, if you are a monthly supporter, you can log onto the World Race page and discontinue your monthly donations. If you’d still like to support me for things not covered in the trip expenses (medications, equipment, misc field expenses, a latte at Christmas) you can do so through PayPal! My PayPal ID is: [email protected]
The work is hard, but the reward is great. I miss and love you all!
