“And rain down Your LOVE on us…”

I’m on a train AND it’s goin’ medium paced AND…

But in all seriousness, I’m on a train in India, pretending I’m a 1st year Sadhu on my way to “Rajwarts”! [Hehe…get it?]

I’ve never traveled by train internationally before so let’s just say I’m pretty darn stoked especially since I’m reclinin’ next to this GINORMOUS window.

And now, what you’ve all been anxiously waiting for…

Y.W.A.M. Varanasi Week 2!!! :)

So this week we all continued to do what we were doing last week. I still had the [mostly] pleasure of teaching 3rd grade. This week was all about DINOSAURS! And Gondwanaland AKA Pangaea AKA the fatty mass that supposedly was comprised of all the continents until Earth’s heated plates shifted everything a gazillion years ago. We got to do all sorts of pretty rad science experiments [which were mostly improvised due to lack of supplies] such as making our own fossils and excavating a chocolate chip cookie. On Thursday, the kids threw all of us teachers a lil’ party to say thanks. They “secretly” had been planning it all week. My students were the rings leaders. They made us special cards and drawings and even a guitar for Aunty Shea. It was super cute.

On Tuesday we all had the chance to go together to the leper colony down the street and around the corner from Wallaby School. Back in the day, it was a totally pimped out facility sponsored by the government for the lepers and their families. Now it has virtually no funding and is run by a former Hindu priest [they’re EVERYWHERE!] who has the disease himself.

Each morning the men “dress” their wounds—the priest takes a small scalpel and cuts away the parts off flesh that have become infected. Many are missing fingers and toes. One man didn’t have a foot. After the wounds were cleansed with iodine, I had the opportunity to wrap them in gauze. It was a very difficult yet undifficult thing to do all at the same time. I don’t want to write about it now, but please ask me about the experience once I’m home. It’s definitely a face to face conversation.

Later that morning we went to visit 93 juvenile delinquents in a local state facility. The boys are convicted of drug dealin’, murder and rape. BUT no one knows if they actually committed the crimes they were sentenced for or were just homeless street kids guilty by association. We awkwardly sang a few “Jesus songs” for them which they somewhat enjoyed and then acted out “Daniel and the Lion’s Den”—our go to story sketch. The real thrill of the afternoon though was when we played “Lion, Hunter, Lady” [the Indian…slightly “inapro-pro” version of “Rock, Paper, Scissors”]. Hunter beats Lion. Lion beats Lady. And well, Lady beats Hunter. I was the girl winner and had to face the boy winner in the finals which is apparently hilarious in an all-boy Indian Juvy. Sadly, I lost it for the Americans, but still had an…er…interesting time.

We finished the day watching the Y.W.A.M. Varanasi children’s ministry staff in action as they led a VBS centered on Noah’s ark to local village children and then we massaged and jammed with the widows employed through Hope Arts [the “Dutch” bakery and handicraft company that provides lonely Indian women with a means to support themselves].

So yeah. It was a pretty cool week. For the most part.

We struggled a lil’ bit as a team this week, but we really had EVERYTHING against us…

1. Week 6— by now any group of people would be a tiddle bit sick of each other
2. Andy’s House— we’ve been living right on top of each in the bottom floor of a Y.W.A.M. missionary family’s house who are currently on furlough
3. The HEAT— did I mention last time that it is hot?
4. Pedro & Friends— a 3rd of us were out for a couple days with parasites and bacterial infections
5. Vulnerability— God’s growing us especially in ways unanticipated which is always what is best but also always what is REALLY hard

BONUS! We miss Kristin. A LOT! Flat Kristin just never seems to cut it…

On Friday we took a redeeming Sabbath Fast. I love how Jesus is still always saving us from ourselves.

Prayer Requests
-Wallaby School—4 teachers just resigned!
-Leper Colony
-Juvenile Detention Center
-Hope Arts
-Simran, David and Laxmi—my 3rd graders!
-Y.W.A.M. Varanasi missionary families [Margreet & Kym, Sangkim & John, all the “Church Planters”, etc.]
-Individual & collective growth according to God’s will
-Sisterhood
-Health
-Safety

Yesterday I finished A Simple Path by Mama T. I’m ecstatic for the chance to work at one of her homes. Don’t worry, Dad, I mostly like won’t become a nun and live in the slums of Calcutta for the rest of my life, BUT I can’t say I haven’t thought about it…

O.K. Bye!