I apologize for the disconnect!

I apologize for not updating my blog the last few weeks I was in in India. We had some power shortages, and life got pretty hectic there by the end. I did journal fairly consistently, however, and I would love/will share more with anyone who asks!

Also, I am planning on at sharing at Grace Evangelical Church on August 15th about some more details of my trip for anyone who is interested!

7/06/10 Saturday

Saturday morning Christianna and I spent almost the whole day with the Roja girls. Because [little] Mala graduated recently there are only two girls left in the house (though other girls who’ve graduated attend the school still and are more active with the jewelry-making). We helped finish up some minor chores and then it was time to go shopping! The girls convinced us to buy some material to have “sari’s” made for each of us, and we got some toys for the kids. It has been so sweet to witness these girls’ generosity that they have towards one another. One of the girls spent a good half hour asking for our opinions as to what was a “pretty dress” for a friend of hers who is turning ten in just a couple months. She haggled over prices to get the best deal and even bought the girl a set of matching jewelry to match. Then, after we got home (and although it was her “day off” she spent a good few hours stitching up some of the loose ends and making the dress as beautiful as it could be). She also asked us to dye her hair with henna (which looks like straight up Georgia clay when applying) and to which she left on her hair for THREE hours to give her shiny black hair a reddish tint! Yes, my hands look a little diseased from the color, but it was a lot of fun, and I’m glad we could do something for her. The girls even cooked lunch for us, and we enjoyed conversing about their lives, looking at recent photographs, and even playing a few round of “Connect Four”. By the time we got home, Christianna and I were a bit beat, and although we started a movie to help us “unwind” we both ended up falling asleep nearing the beginning of the movie! (This actually happened two nights in a row! Haha) It was a great day with the girls, and I am so thankful there were no big discipline issues that arose and that we had such a pleasant time together! Jesus, may it be this good if not better the next time! Thank you!

7/04/10 Thursday

School in the morning and left after lunch to go work on more stuff for the improved micro-enterprise line Ruhama. Christianna and I worked on an even larger box of jewelry and finally got it done after a few hours!

Also did laundry for the first time! I will never again take for granted a standard washer and dryer because this involved a four + step process involving getting our own water!

7/05/10 Friday

Had a dynamic Bible study with the girls out at the Malstead’s home and got to talk a little about pain/hurt and healing and learning to understand God’s goodness no matter the circumstance. Talked about Job, and even got to pray for Orion (a horse who was potentially dying but has been so vital to the horse therapy program) and who was a leading focal point for our discussion. We did not see any immediate healing but a few days later, I found out from Anne (the director for horse therapy) that he is actually making some improvements! Had lunch and jewelry time with the girls, along with a “toning” jazzercise class!

7/02/10

Ordinary school day with the girls! I loved it though! Too bad I can’t remember anything too poignant about this day!

7/03/10 Wednesday

School with the girls at Smyrna.

Had to skip jazzercise to work on naming/organizing/and shipping off a ton of jewelry for Greg to take with him to England!

Dinner with half of the Palms, and we played speed Scrabble where I came in last place! (Um, hello English degree; where are you?) Yes, Katherine I needed your mad “banana-gram” playing skills! We had a fun time though!

MIA--Day 2

6/31/10 – Monday

So thankfully “Mondays” are my day off, and I definitely needed it to “recoup”. I was able to read and catch up on the mountain of blogs I had yet to upload, and Anik (the director of Aftercare) even stopped by and prayed for me and brought me some fresh green grapes to munch on! I also laughed the night away, as I found out Christianna brought home two baby chicks that were dyed neon orange and hot pink. Let’s just say they were not the healthiest of chicks and without a mother hen to keep them warm, we had an interesting time deciding what to do with them. . .

And a trip to the hospital we go!

6/30/10 Sunday

Well this was yet another infamous Sunday. If you could pray for me, please pray for me especially on Sunday! J I woke up and went to church, and was just leaving when it started pouring down rain. India is currently in its rainy season, but Ooty is unique because it is the meeting place for two monsoons, so we gets lots of rain! For about half an hour we stood under the overhang, but because Annette needed to get home because she was making lunch for all of us, we decided to sprint just 50 ft. to the Sunday School building behind the sanctuary. However, as soon as I got there, for whatever reason I felt more lightheaded than I have felt in a long time and I fainted. Now whether or not it was a combination of the elevation difference, or the fact that for the previous two days I had been pretty inactive, or it was an attack, I don’t know. The odd thing is that by this point I had been in Ooty for 3 plus weeks, so I think I was acclimated by this point, and I am a pretty active person, so sprinting a number of feet ordinarily is not an issue at all. On top of it all, I found out later that Annette (who has lived here for years) even mumbled under her breath as she propped up against the Sunday school wall “Gee, I hope I don’t faint!”. . . Well, unfortunately for me, although I was leaning slightly against the wall I fell straight backwards and landed really hard on some stone. Because I convulsed for a few seconds, they did not know if I had had a concussion or if my body was just trying to brace such a hard fall, so they decided to take me to the hospital.

The next five hours involved an hour-long drive (that ordinarily takes 5-10 mins but because it was the last “vacation weekend” for many people before school resumes again the streets were packed more than ever) painkillers, prayer, finding the humor at the mayhem they call a “hospital” and trusting that God is bigger than all of this. There was no water in the hospital for me to drink, so Christianna had to go buy a bottle so I could take some medicine, and although my neck and head were really hurting, they did not have any ice packs available to me (so Christianna had to leave again and pay a bartender for some ice)! The doctor was very friendly and helpful; however, I can’t quite say the same for the nurses. Upon setting me down in the hospital bed, I was crying because I was in pain, and they mocked me and told me to “stop crying”. . . They openly made fun of me, the foreigner, and whether it stemmed from anti-American sentiment or for whatever reason, they openly made it known that they were talking “behind” my back. They continued doing so for the whole 3 hours I was there, and eventually asked if I could “understand what they were saying” and scoffed at the fact that I indeed did not know any Tamil; upon answering them, they told me that I “should learn” and then walked out of the room. . . They seemed to take their jobs very lightly, and were even giggling as they injected one of the needles into me, causing it to move around and hurt quite badly. It was not just me they were rude to, however. I felt terrible for a little Indian boy, whom they kept brushing off and who was clearly in a lot of pain; they literally would look at him and look away. . . They mocked Annette’s German accent, they were rude to Christianna (who is another American) and I’ve heard more “unpleasant” stories from others who have even endured giving birth in the hospitals in India! (Can you imagine cats and dogs running up and down the aisles as you are giving birth?!)

Now why am I telling you all of this? I do not want to sit here and gripe and complain, but I wanted to paint a very specific picture of what everything looked like as to show you how powerful the message I felt the Lord was telling me to do. Saturday when I was having my quiet time, I read the passage in the New Testament where one of Jesus’ disciples asks him how many times to forgive his enemy/neighbor. He presents the idea of seven times, and yet Jesus astounds him with his answer. “Not seven, but seventy TIMES seven”. . . We are supposed to forgive as the Father has forgiven us. . . And persecution is GOING to happen; it is inevitable for Christians, and although the media does NOT reveal this openly, Christians are indeed the most persecuted people on the planet. If you don’t believe me, I challenge you to do your homework and see for yourself.

Anyway, By this point (if you have read any of my previous blogs) you know that when I feel the Lord is really trying to get a message across to me, He repeats it to me often consecutive days in a row. Well Sunday morning, (just a number of hours later) the SAME message was touched on at church. Immediately I felt my attention was being grabbed a hold of, and I whispered a prayer. “Uh-oh Lord, what are you trying to teach me?” I couldn’t think of anything or anyone specific that I needed to forgive for something but then shortly thereafter I felt like he quietly told me “I am about to give you quite a few opportunities to forgive and exhibit my grace”.

And He did! He sure keeps His word, doesn’t He?! Haha. Thankfully, I began to really feel better by the last hour I was there, and the I made it explicitly clear that I wanted to go home. Kevin made my night by buying me a giant coke and a peacock feather fan (one I had mentioned I wanted to buy) and Jayson was kind enough to pick us all up and drive us home (even though he had just been preoccupied all day helping his wife and 2 of his kids get ready to go back to the US for a couple months)! Lastly, the whole price of “universal healthcare” paid off this time, because my whole cost for everything was only about 1000 rupees, which is roughly a little over 20 bucks. There was no receipt to prove I had paid, no release papers to sign (and everything they did write down was hand written on scratch sheets of paper and a small notepad) but I was free and feeling a lot better!

A while ago, my mom asked my dad what the 3 things in life he treasured the most were, and he answered by saying his relationship with God, his family, and finally, his mobility. I would have to completely agree with him, because I would almost rather be dead than to be unable to move, or dance or run. . . This is all to say, I could have ended up in a MUCH worse condition, and I am SO grateful that I am okay. .I have even since been back to “jazzercise” and really enjoyed it! Thank you for the prayers, my friends! His grace is sufficient for me, so I am prayerfully learning to be gracious with others. (But let me go ahead and apologize in advance for when I blow it!)

“God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and saw all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.” ~ Matthew 5:11-12

The mighty jungle!

5/28/10

Just an ordinary day :)

5/29/10

Today Kevin, Christianna and I rented a taxi and drove an hour down the mountain to a getaway/resort place called the "Jungle Retreat" where we went on an "Indian Safari"! The drive was a lovely one indeed, but imagine a bunch of drivers and traffic who already disregard traffic laws and sharing a mountain?! It was intense, but I just tried to find the humor in Indian driving yet again. We arrived fairly early and enjoyed an Indian lunch ( yet with garlic bread?) We spent time playing 20 questions and I enjoyed hearing about Kevin (Mr. Ross's) job as a judge for the Minnesota Court of Appeals! I totally let lose my secret fascination with law and picked his brain for a good solid 3 hours! It was so exhilarating! Then, around 4:30 we headed out in our jeep (which is yet another obsession) and headed out for our 3 hour venture! We saw an assortment of animals, ranging from monkeys, Indian "bison" (though they look just like cows) a different species of squirrels, wild boars, and elephants in the wild! We were hoping to spot a tiger (because apparently the night before there had been a sighting) but tonight was not our lucky night. The funny thing about this "Indian safari" is that that it took place on a national highway. Here I was thinking it would be like an "African safari" and we would get to go "off-roading" but the government doesn't allow it! (However, they make exceptions for large vans to be able to? I don't get it.) Anyway, we had one interesting encounter with a whole family of elephants that were casually feasting away on some grass right next to the highway! I found out that many people actually die from elephant attacks, so we didn't get too close (unlike some other foolish people who literally were only feet away and could have been crushed at any second had the elephants been aggravated). We didn't get back home until late, but it was well worth it!