Guten Morgen!
Well, I have less than a week left in Chennai and it still hasn't quite sunk in that I am leaving yet. I guess it probably will once I start packing! Five months seems like such a long time at the start, but now it feels like nothing.
This week has been as busy and exhausting as ever. Last weekend we went to see December Boys at the cinema (we figure that as it costs a pound to see a film here, we will make the most of it as we will never be able to afford it once we get home!) It is the most rubbish film EVER, to the point that it is hilarious because of its rubbishness. There is a fish-eating horse, the virgin Mary appears at random times and you get to see nuns cartwheeling on the beach. I don't understand how Daniel Radcliffe signed up for such a BAD film! Today we are going to see some cheese called Enchanted with our church friends. Anything will be better than December Boys!
We have done some more restaurant exploration. We went somewhere really good on Saturday evening, cost us about 10 pounds for all three of us to eat there and the food was amazing. I will miss being able to eat out for so cheaply. We have a Chinese place scheduled for today, although we keep being invited around to people's houses as they find out we are leaving soon. There just isn't enough time! Oh and we also went out for lunch with Becky (our overseer) on Tuesday. It was so nice to be able to chat to her, review our time here, hear what she has to say about what we have done. I really hope to be able to keep in touch with her- she has been a fantastic leader for us and has really helped us to feel part of the work we have been doing here. In fact, all of the staff have been amazing. I will miss them!
Church on Sunday was really good, too. We had a real assortment of people from around the world. At least eight different countries were represented as well as numerous Indian states. It is just so good to be able to worship with Christians from so many different countries. It reminds me that we are a part of something much bigger than us. There were three Chinese girls visiting, too, who are friends of Vijay who works for Oasis. They came in to the office on Wednesday to meet everyone and see the work, and we had the opportunity to hear a little about each of them and the situation in China. All three of them are the first Christians in their families. Two of them became Christians while at University. There is a huge movement in Chinese Universities atm, where missionaries befriend students and build up relationships with them until they are comfortable to discuss their faith and what they believe. The students who become Christians are them empowered to witness to their friends. They were all from secret churches that meet in homes. Apparently the government know about these churches but choose to turn a blind eye to save any more trouble for themselves. So long as they don't disturb the neighbours and continue to split if numbers rise about 20 people, there are no problems. There is still oppression and Christianity is very much viewed as a 'bad' religion, especially by the older generation. But things are changing rapidly there and God is definitely doing something. There are registered Public Churches where hundreds of people can attend, but the government do still have some sway in who preaches there and what is taught. It was interesting that one of the main problems the Chinese girls identified with these churches was the fact that there are so many people who meet on a Sunday, but there is no close fellowship on a personal level like they have in their very small house churches. Interesting- I think many of our churches in the UK have a similar problem.
I had my first experience of the Indian health care system this week. All week I have had a very swollen gland in my neck that was giving me a lot of trouble- not even sure why as I was fine otherwise. So I went to see a doctor who sees patients in a little converted flat at the end of our road. When i arrived, there were a number of people from the slum waiting with children and babies outside, but I was still seen first. Made me feel so bad! And it is strange having to pay your doctor, even if it does only cost 50p. I got some antibiotics from a little pharmacy kiosk on our road and they seem to have helped a lot as I feel fine now.
Balwadi has been good fun this week. SO MANY children have been coming! Still getting those hints about the tape player. The teacher keeps telling us that they will be very sad when they leave. I can't help but add 'unless we give you a tape player'! No, it really has been wonderful to be able to play with the kids, sing songs (they love 'Give me Oil in my Lamp' and all join in with the Hosanna chorus!), read stories, get filthy, be peed on, etc. Only two Balwadis left now. I wonder how the lives of these children will develop. Will they continue to live in poverty like their parents? Will they be able to attend school and get a job? Will they all make it to adulthood?
At Fun Station this week we had a big programme for both the boys and the girls. Over 30 kids turned up to see a fantastic puppet show done by one of the social work students who is on work experience with Oasis and then we gave them all a delicious meal of Byriani! They all turned up in their best clothes, and for one of the boys this meant a PVC black body suit with sunglasses. It was so funny! I had to stop myself from bursting out with laughter when he walked in. There was also a time for them to give feedback on Fun Station and what they have learnt. There were lots of comments about learning games, enjoying painting and the Bible verses we teach them. One boy said that we had taught him to be disciplined! That comment was probably a product of the stick incident. The kids actually misunderstood us that evening and thought that we were threatening to go home the next day if they didn't behave properly! One boy said that the Bible stories and verses had encouraged him to read his Bible more. The kids there are a real mix of religions- mostly Christian and Hindu- but they all join in with the Christian content. I think that sometimes when we ask them to pray at the end, we get a few prayers to Hindu gods, too. There have been lots of new children coming: recently we have had about 25 boys alone, plus 12 or 13 girls. Controlling them is a real job! Sometimes a neighbour will poke their head in and tell us to keep them quiet. Just try keeping 25 boys quiet! It is not possible. They have been very well behaved this week, though. We taught them "There's No One Like Jesus" and they are pretty good at it. We can sing it in Tamil, too, now! Bit of a mouthful.
The Vyasarpadi Fun Club has been rather variable in numbers, but still over 20 kids coming each week. We calculated that we had worked with well over 100 children and young people in one day this week: 45 Balwadi kids, 35 Fun Station kids, 25 Vyasarpadi kids and 10 Jacob's Well girls. No wonder we are exhausted by the end of the day! The Vyasarpadi project is going really well, with a great response to the Job Skills Programme that Oasis is running. They have even had to start a second group to accommodate all of the people who want to do the course. It helps that Oasis now have their own fluorescent green building to work in, so people of any faith feel comfortable to come there rather than a Christian church. One of the guys who translates for us was telling us that the church used to get a lot of complaints from neighbours for being too noisy, so the police would be called to come and sort it out. One Sunday morning the police turned up and came into the church to find a guy playing the drums who had previously been in prison for killing three people! Apparently he was 'surprised'- major understatement! The police now visit the church when they have complaints just to keep the locals happy, but come in for tea and a chat rather than telling the leaders to keep the noise down. I guess they recognise the change that is taking place in people's lives! The church want us to come to speak at a youth event on Sunday, but sadly we just don't have the time.
Jacob's Well is going well. I do find myself getting quite impatient and frustrated when I have to keep going over things again and again. Helen said I looked like I was going to explode when I asked them to find the area of a triangle and they all looked at me blankly! Don't think I am cut out to be a teacher. The girls keep bringing up that we are leaving soon and saying they are very sad and I tell them to shut up because otherwise I will cry! Saying goodbye to them will be so hard. We had an fun ice-cream eating lesson (!) for one of their Birthdays this week. And on Monday we are going on a trip to a theme park with them all. They are so excited! So am I to be honest.
Helen and I went to get our flip-flops fixed this week. At home, if my flip flops broke I would chuck them and buy a new pair. Here, you go to see one of the men sitting on the side of the road who will sew up the shoes for a few rupees. It shows so clearly the totally different attitude people have here. Nothing is wasted, everything is fixed for as long as possible and after that is recycled for a different use.
I had fun at the office yesterday. There wasn't much work going on as a very prominent Christian leader in the city died earlier this week, and so some people had gone home to watch the funeral on TV. Someone was even showing us photos of the dead body in the coffin that they had taken on their phone! In funerals here, the body is paraded through the streets for all to see. Takes some getting used to! Those of us who were left ended up having a water fight and I was trying to stick a kick-me sign on everyone's back. I think all three of us are beginning to embrace the Indian sense of humour which is definitely not a good thing!
There has been some bad news from the Bangalore team this week. Two of the girls have been unwell, one of them in hospital, and so they have decided to go home on Tuesday. It is so sad as they are very near the end and will miss out on the holiday which is all booked up. But nothing can be done. Alannah is still coming, so the four of us will go together. I realised how lucky we have been here in Chennai to have had so little illness. I have not needed to miss a single day off work because of sickness. Although still a few weeks in India to go!
Well that's it for now. I have so much packing to do! I don't think it will ever fit into one bag. I may post some more while I am holidaying, or maybe not. We'll see. Thank you for all the emails, post and support you have given me while I have been away!
And thank you also for praying for me and the others here.
- Please pray for the Bangalore team, that they will have a safe journey home and will recover their health. Pray for Alannah too, that she stays well and enjoys herself even though she is not with her team members.
- Pray that our holiday goes safely and smoothly and that we have a good time. Especially pray that we get confirmed seats on the trains we are still waiting for.
- Pray for the situation in China and for the Christians there, that there will be great unity among the house churches, that God will raise up new leaders and that the movement in Universities will continue to explode. Especially pray for the young Christians who have unbelieving families, that they will be a good witness.
- Pray for us as we finish everything off, that goodbyes are not too painful and that we get everything sorted that we need to.
- Thank God that my neck is doing better.
- Thank God for the work that is happening here and the people who are involved in the communities day in and day out. Pray that God will strengthen them and provide for all of their needs.
I feel like I have written a lot but said very little in this post. I expect I will post again at some point to write about my holidaying, last week in Chennai, etc etc. But if you don't hear from me before- see you soon!
Kan xxx
"I wonder why you care, God—
why do you bother with us at all?
All we are is a puff of air;
we're like shadows in a campfire."
Psalm 144:3-4
"Step down out of heaven, God;
ignite volcanoes in the hearts of the mountains.
Hurl your lightnings in every direction;
shoot your arrows this way and that.
Reach all the way from sky to sea."
Psalm 144:5-7
