Hi everyone!
I hope you are all doing fantastically at Uni/College/School/Work/Whatever you might be doing. Keep on sending me those emails, even if I just reply telling you to read my blog! I love to read them but have so little time to reply.
So the news from last time... I did make a list this week of all the funny things that have happened but I forgot to bring it to the internet cafe, so I will tell you the ones I can remember!
I discovered an ant infestation in the kitchen and they ate my delicious biscuits. I was not happy!
I got to ride on the back of a motorbike!
I saw a VERY large rat.
I was eaten alive my mosquitoes (okay, so not very funny).
We found a fake Christmas tree in our flat which the last team left!
I caught and killed a large cockroach.
There were so many but that's all I can remember for now...
Anyway, we have had a full week of work now, so there is lots to tell you! Last Sunday we went to a large-ish church down the road from us called 'Powerhouse'. It seemed really good- all in English, great teaching (given by a guy who knew Brother Yunn, for those of you who have read the Heavenly Man), modern worship. It is held in a cinema! They were really welcoming and I was impressed by what they believe and how they live it out. I think we are going back tomorrow! There is also an American guy there who works for YWAM and has set up this American diner called 'Sparky's' as a very innovative way to do missions. The congregation get 20% off so we went there for Sunday lunch and it was AMAZING! I will have to take photos to show you. It was just so nice to feel normal and be able to talk to people who speak English and look like you. Normally during the week the only foreigners I see are Helen and Sabrina, although they are lovely! That's my rave about Sparky's done. We will go to a more traditional church while we are here, just to visit, but this one looks good for regular attendance.
On Monday we arrived at the Oasis office (a quick auto ride away) for the prayer and worship we have with them every morning in Tamil and English. I was expecting to be looking around projects and being told what we would be doing, but instead we were given our timetable and told our first class to teach was that afternoon! The organization here is quite frustrating at times, especially for me who likes to know what is happening and when in advance. But I am getting used to sudden changed of plan and not being informed until the last minute of what I am doing. Improvisation is very much necessary! So I will tell you about the different things on my timetable, but there are actually only two days this week that we have followed that timetable. It all makes life more exciting!
There are three slum communities we are working with. One is called SM Nagar and is 30 mins away by auto, another is called KK Pettai and is 40 mins away by auto (it is a rag picking community right on the sea and was severley affected by the tsunami). The last, SD Puram, is right near us- we walk through a section of it on our way to the shops.
Three mornings per week I am spending one hour in the Balwadi nursery. This is for kids up to about 4 years old who are from the local slum community, SD Puram. There are usually about 25 of them and only 1 or 2 teachers! I am not used to working with such young children and it has been a challenge to keep them entertained with songs and games. Lots of them seem to be in need of medical care and spend most of the time crying, although there are also lots of very bright children who pick up what we teach them so fast. We are hoping to bring lots of toys and colouring stuff here as their resources are so limited.
In the afternoons, we will be going to either KK Pettai or SM Nagar to run fun clubs for the kids for a couple of hours. One member of staff comes with us for this, but we are responsible for organising and running the clubs. We have only been once or twice to each as most of the staff will be away next week, but after that this should become a regular part of our work. The children range from 2 - 14 years old and seemed thrilled to see us the first time! Apparently they get up to 50 kids at each club. The areas we have to run the clubs are sandy pitches that are covered in rubbish, so that will be a challenge, but the kids don't seem to mind. I am really looking forward to this aspect of the work- the communities in these areas are so poor and in need of transformation. Shelter and medical care are the primary needs in these places, and, ultimately, to hear and experience the love of Jesus for them.
In the evenings (7pm) we spend half an hour at the fun station for the SD Puram kids who are attending extra lessons to help them catch up with school work. We play some games or do painting with them for half an hour before they start learning. The club is run by the Oasis football coach, Vijay, who lives just around the corner from us. They gave us such a wonderful welcome! They were so thankful to us for coming from our 'great' country to their 'poor' one (their words). We all felt so humbled afterwards. I know I will learn and receive far more from these people than I could ever give or teach them. The people here treat us like a celebrity because of the colour of our skin- Sabrina has adopted the phrase, "Beep if you see a white person", when we are walking down the street! The people really are lovely and friendly, but seeing us is still quite unusual for them. I shake so many kids' hands just walking down the road.
Also just around the corner from us is Jacob's Well, a centre where girls who have dropped out of school can learn tailoring to make a living. In addition to their tailoring classes, we are spending 2 hours there each day teaching them Maths, English, Life skills, Hobbies and Games. The three of us are solely responsible for these aspects of their teaching which is quite overwhelming for us! I hardly knew where to start. There are 11 girls we teach, between the ages of 14 and 18. They are mostly Hindu with a few Christians and a couple of Muslims. They have VERY basic English and I still have almost no Tamil, so teaching is very challenging. But they are lovely and have warmed up to us since we have been here. If anyone want to email me some guidelines on how to teach English as a foreign language, that would be useful! And Mer- I hope that explains the GCSE Maths stuff! We do have some resources out here, but they aren't great. We don't have a translator atm, but I have asked for someone to come in during life skills as there is no way we can teach that without Tamil. Please pray that someone will become available! I am also hoping to get some of you girls from Alton Harvest Church to do a pen-pal correspondence with them. Watch this space!
There is one other potential area we will be working in: Vyasarpadi. We visited there on Thursday. It is a refugee camp, although quite well developed- not the image that would probably spring to your minds. However, it is a very rough area with a lot of gangs and fighting. The auto drivers were reluctant to take us. Oasis are the first organization to agree to work there, I believe. They are working hand in hand with an amazing church, the 'Good Samaritan Jesus Prayerhouse'. Please pray for the guys there! God has done some amazing stuff. This little church is right in the centre of the camp and is surrounded by a temple and mosque. The Christians there have had a lot of persecution in the past. The stories that the pastor told us were amazing! I was reminded that, if you are a Christian, these guys are also part of our church family and we need to be praying for them and supporting them. Anyway, I was really touched by what I saw there and am hoping to be able to start going there in a month when Oasis have started to run classes in the church. The people are much more open to education and sport as means of outreach. And don't worry- Oasis are looking after me well and wouldn't send me anywhere I was in danger! I don't want any concerned emails.
So I think that is most of the work! We are also helping the girls at Jacob's Well to make Christmas cards to sell. Initially I was a bit annoyed about this, but then was reminded of how important it is to do the little and apparently unimportant jobs as well as you would do any other job. It is a great chance to get to know the girls and helps them to view us as equals if we are working alongside them.
The work has certainly been keeping me busy! There is very little spare time to do anything right now, but that should get easier once we are into the swing of things. I just discovered that the guy next to me in the internet cafe is a theology and biblical studies student who is hoping to go into cross-cultural church planting next year. Random conversations are very easy to have here! Anyway, yes, very busy. I have also felt quite homesick in the mornings this week. I am still surprised to wake up in India! I miss friends and family quite a lot, although the diary that lots of people wrote in has been a real encouragement! So many times whatever is written is SO appropriate it is scary. I miss the comforts of home (cold water on tap, a duvet, my sunny bedroom, nice food, etc) and also being able to go for a run (am going to join the gym! Women can't go running here). Also the beautifulness of England. But I will stop reminiscing now. I am so glad I am here and am enjoying it hugely, despite missing home. For you guys who before I left we were talking about what it means to live your whole life for God and surrender everything- being here brings new meaning to that! I have a great admiration for long-term missionaries.
Gosh this is almost as long as the last post. I will try to tie up the loose ends! I am sorry for those of you who are not interested in the Christian side of my experiences. I guess that is the part that excites me most so I write about it first and forget to tell you all my travel stories! I am getting good at bargaining with the rickshaw drivers now. Oh yeah- there is a butcher on our road and every day it looks like they have a dead, skinned dog on display. We also have a bit of a pluming problem in our flat, and had to have the plumber come out. He arrived with only a pencil and asked us if we had any tools! Duh. This weekend is also some Hindu festival so there are loads of flowers and stuff around. More funny stories next week I hope!
So, some prayer points:
- Continued good health (has been great so far!)
- That the three of us will continue to 'bond' well.
- That our work will be underpinned not by planning but by prayer (and maybe some planing...)
- For the provision of a translator for key skills.
- That we will be able to communicate why we are here despite the lack of Tamil. Never again will I take being able to share the gospel for granted!
- That my Tamil learning efforts will progress quickly.
- That homesickness will be minimal.
- That the flat's plumbing will get sorted out!
Thanks so much everyone. I love to hear your news so keep me updated! And feel free to forward this to anyone who you think would like to read it.
Take care,
Kandace
