Hi Again!
I have just noticed that there are two large spiders at war just above my head- nice!- and little bits of web and flies keep falling on my head.
So another week has passed, and so quickly! My birthday was a really good day. Sabrina and Helen had been plotting and scheming (as I expected) and informed me at the last minute that we were going to Anju's house (as we often do). There were a few of the people we know from church there and I had a cake, nice food, some gifts, etc. It was a good evening! I then stayed up until a ridiculous hour talking to people on the phone.
This week has been quite different. We only worked on Monday! At Fun Station I was asking the kids what dreams they have for the future (we are doing the story of Joseph) and a lot of them want to be doctors, police men, teachers, etc. We now have this new weapon to persuade them to study- "If you want to be a doctor, you have to study hard!" We told them on Monday that we wouldn't be there for the rest of the week, but that they should still come on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday because someone else would be running it. Yesterday Eunice told us that none of them turned up because they knew we wouldn't me coming! It makes us feel appreciated, although really isn't the ideal situation! Apparently, if it wasn't for Fun Station, none of them would turn up to tuition classes.
Tuesday was the first day of Pongal. This was a kind of Hindu harvest festival, but has become secular now. On the first day, they cook this dish called Pongal and it has to boil over while they are cooking it as a symbol for abundance in the coming year. The second day is Madhu Pongal (cow Pongal) where they decorate all the cows and basically have bull taming which is very cruel and not nice. The third day is 'going out' Pongal- there is terrible traffic as everyone tries to get to the beach! Anyway, we had Tuesday off and were supposed to be doing planning so we could be free this weekend, but I had a terrible cold and spent most of the day moping and not able to concentrate. Not a great day.
On Wednesday we picked up the three girls from Bangalore at the station and got ready to leave on our retreat. It was good timing- I was feeling quite exhausted, partly from being sick! Becky came with us along with our speaker, Herbert, who works from Scripture Union. She was very secretive about where we were going and wouldn't tell us much apart from that it was nice but basic. So when we arrived at the most beautiful holiday resort near the sea, we were stunned! I will put up some photos. It was like paradise for us, especially as a contrast to our accommodation for the previous few months. I think arriving there gave us more of a culture shock than arriving in India.
We spent three days there, having meeting together with Herbert who talked about destiny and used the Bible characters Jacob, David, Peter and Ruth as examples. I thought he was a very good speaker and really enjoyed our meetings. The main thing brought out was the need to be obedient to God, no matter what he may call you to, even if you don't always know more than the next step ahead. It was a challenge to all of us. We also shared our testimonies and listened to Herbert and Becky's which were very interesting.
We went to the beach while we were there, ate far too much and even got to go swimming in the outdoor pool! It was so nice. Just to live in luxury for a couple of days. Talking about our time here so far and looking back does make leaving feel imminent. I wonder if going home will be a similar shock to the system? Anyway, the retreat was a really good time to just relax and have time to think and not worry about termites and changing the water tank and washing up and planning lessons and all that stuff. I feel refreshed!
The Bangalore team are staying in Chennai until Wednesday, so we are going to do some shopping today with them and hopefully go to see 'I Legend'. It is nice to have their company, although I feel very 'obvious' going around in a big group of white girls! We have very much settled into our two teams.
This may well be my shortest blog yet as I cannot take very long online today cos we need to get off and do things while the Bangalore team are here.
So a few prayer points:
- Thank God for the retreat time and how much we all benefited from that.
- Pray for our visit to Bangalore next week, that we stay safe and enjoy it.
- Pray that we sort out these holiday plans!
- Pray that during our final 5 weeks in Chennai, we really throw our all into the work and look for ways to finish well.
- Pray for health in general- I have lost my appetite since the Gobi incident and my cold is far too persistent!
Thank you so much, I hope you are all keeping well- I hear there is a nasty bug going around.
Take care,
Kandace
"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." Psalm 119:105
