The team arrived in India safely Sunday night with no complications. We were able to get all of our luggage and safely arrived to our home. It’s beautiful; we have running water and electricity (most of the time!).
Monday was a busy day, which started off with rickshaw rides into the market place where we tried Indian food for the first time. Some girls were surprised at the spice, but it was delicious! The rickshaw drive was really interesting and we learned how to barter, which is a talent that needs to be learned for some of us. For the most part, the market has a lot of things that will supply our needs in case we run out of stuff. It is where we will be getting our groceries and some girls already got fabric for their punjabis or Indian attire. We also got our dinner in the market from a street vendor and met some children whom we befriended. Everyone here treats us as if we were celebrities because we are the only Americans walking around in the market place. It takes some getting used to and is almost flattering. It’s interesting to see how curious the Indian people are about us.
Tuesday was our first day in the field. We were able to visit a leper colony and an orphanage that one team will be at during their time here. The leper colony was small but very inviting. As soon as the people saw us they were excited and welcomed us in. They even made us Chai Tea and let us sit on mats with them. This colony had some children and we were able to play with them. At the orphanage, we were able to play with the children and eat with them. They had a whole presentation for us, which was very impressive. They sang songs and then we had play time. Then we got to help them with their school work. Later on in the day, they sang Happy Birthday to one of the girls on the team. It was very thoughtful.
Tuesday night was our first Indian meal made by the hosts. It was rice and chicken and very tastey. Some girls weren’t used to the Indian spice and we were told that this spice was really mild. We are wondering what the “real” spice will taste like.
Wednesday was another day on the field and we visited another leper colony and orphanage that the second group of girls will be going to during their time here. This leper colony was diffrent from the first. It was in the slums and had a different atmosphere. This colony had a lot more children who took a lot of attention. This colony seems a little bigger than the first one we were at and the individuals there had more severe physical conditions. The orphanage we went to had 17 children. There were American girls living there as teachers, which was different because they spoke English and actually understood us. The children danced and sang for us. We definitely felt welcomed.
Wednesday night two of our team members made dinner for us and we stayed in the house and had worship. It was nice to wind down and take showers. We have working showers, but the water is cold! We are still very thankful that we can get clean. The weather here is surprisingly cold too. We are all wearing sweaters, even to sleep.
Today we went to the last leper colony and orphanage that the third group we will be working with. We made a mistake of taking chocolates into the leper colony. We did it with good intention because many people go to this colony and exploit the people there, making promises to them and never keeping their promises to these people. The people at this leper colony then, are more weary of Americans so we brought the chocolate to ease any tension that might be there. The children in this colony totally swarmed us wanting chocolate, but we did our best to keep the chocolate for the adults.
We were able to intercede with a few people in this colony. One woman had lost her 25-year-old son because he drank himself to death just a few weeks ago. She was still crying about it when we visited her today. We were able to sit with her and console her and give her some company. Another woman said that she had a headache, which opened the door for us to ask our Father to help her. One man who we have built a relationship in the past with was there and his health is improving from the last time we saw him.
Next we went to the orphanage, which is a miracle we were able to be there. This orphanage has about 140 kids ranging from ages four to 17. We were able to bring a presentation to the kids. We sang with them, brought a skit and testemony. We were even able to hear some of the kids’ testemonies, which were very impressionable. We helped them study and lastly played with them before we left. A lot of children have lice at this orphanage so were are bringing them some treatments on Tuesday. One girl was sitting there helping the other pick the lice out of her hair. It was really something to see how they help each other out in everything. They are truly a family.
We are enjoying our experience in India. This is the first week and already we are seeing so many things that are changing us. Please ask our Father for good health. We are all doing pretty well so far physically.
