Diary from the wild west

Monday – We flew out from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj, 600km. to the west.  This is the area most of our girls come from.  Nepalgunj is an oppressive place.  It is hot a steamy , the people are surly , so unlike Nepalese people generally.  There are spindly donkeys dragging along carts, Equally spindly  rickshaw driving  sweating as they drive their passengers to their destinations.  The street is shared with large carts drawn by two large buffaloes , goats, dogs and all manner of other strange vehicles ,    We had a travelling companion, Binod, who is a Maoist politiian and journalist.  We is a lovely man, who himself is a Dalit (untouchable), who has fought for 20 years for the Badi People to try to improve their circumstances.  He wanted us to see some other Badi   villages and to understand better just how terrible their plight is.  Another Badi lady came with us, Rama.  .  It was approx.. 3 hour  trip by van.  On the way, we stopped for lunch.  A row of grubby old buildings by the roadside offering food (of a sort)  With the exception of Raju, Binod, Rama and Grahame, the rest of us(5) decided that a packet of potato chips would suffice, not looking for a dose of food poisioning.  We wondered why the chips were so yukky as the packet was sealed, till we read the expiry date, 2003.  They must have been hanging in the little shop for years

Continued;……

Training begins

Sunday   -  Today I had my introductory class with 14 young women in preparation for caring for our abandoned baby  project (Miriam Project)  I had a lovely little interpreter who had only been a Christian for one year.  After a little coaxing,the girls began to open up and  talk about themselves a bit.  Krisha told me that after her father died when she was five, she had to break rocks to try to make money to help the family.    We begin the official training next Sunday as we have to leave for the west tomorrow.  Margaret started her cooking classes with 20 girls also.  They had a great time making fondant and making a mess.

Robyn

Dairy from the wild west

Today is Tuesday,  but I need to go back.  Our internet let us down again just before we left Kathmandu, so we couldn't write.  Last Sunday, I had my introductory class to the women who will be looking after the abandoned babies.  14 turned up. Mostly young.  Two have children of their own.    We all had a good time together and our official classes begin next Sunday.  Margaret started her classes with the cooking and had 20 girls.  Stoves, equipment, etc. have all been purchased and everything is set to go.  Also a generator for the Tusal hostel, where the classes are.

Monday 10th, we flew out of Kathmandu , 600 km. to the west. We had a travelling companion, Binod.He is a Maoist politician, who has been campaigning for the Badi people to  20 years.  He is from the Dalit caste (untouchable) himself, and was involved in the revolution.  He is also a journalist.  He is such a lovely man and is passionate about helping the Badi women.  We arrived in Nepalgunj in the morning.  It is a horrible town.  Near the Indian  border, oppressively hot, spindly donkeys dragging  carts along, equally spindly rickshaw drivers sweating as they peddle their way along the street with passengers in tow.  The chaos is shared by buffalos, dogs, goats and all manner of strange vehicles.  We headed out to see a Badi village that Binod wanted us to see.  On the way we stopped for lunch.  There was no way any of us were going to eat there.  A squalid row of buildings out in the country.  Grahame did brave it and have rice and dahl but the rest of us decided that a packet of chips would suffice.  Upon opening the chips, we were surprised how stale they were as the pack was sealed until we read that the expiry date was 2003. They must have been hanging up in the sun in front of that little shop for years.

We finally arrived at our  village.  A small cluster of little shacks with straw roofs and mud walls.  There was a little area covered with a few sheets of iron were we had our little meeting.  Binod and another Badi lady Rama,  spoke to the villagers.  The women were there with their bright saris and snotty children and the men also.  There was a noticeable absence of girls from 10-20.  They were all away being trafficked.    Out of 800 people in this group of people , 300 are in the sex trade  There was a journalist there taking photos and getting his story.  The article was in the paper this morning, and it was positive about our involvement in rescuing the girls.  

6am and not rearing to go.

Sunday,9th  September

Yesterday  was a full on day.  We all went to Hosanna church in the morning, to the second service, which commenced at 9 a.m. and went till 11.15a.m.   The worship singing is something else, and we all enjoyed it.  The preaching seemed passionate and direct(but have no idea what it was about).  Afterwards , I saw my little sponsor girl, Bimala, Her eyes welled up with tears when she saw me, and she clung to me like a little koala.  There were many of our precious little girls there and I spent a lot of time getting more kisses and cuddles.  The highlight for me was to see one of our girls, 15, who had been rescued from a brothel in India, being involved in the church taking up the collection.  She looked so beautiful, little face fresh and smiling.  What redemption our Lord brings to these lives.  What hope and blessing.  It was hard to compose myself and I watched her performing her service for her Lord.  We all had lunch at the Bakery Cafe, all employees are mute with the exception of two, one is a midget, and the other able bodied, who help with any confusion that might arise.  They all know us by now, as we always go there and we always get a smiling reception.  We have lots of fun with them and they act out all sorts of funny things and make us laugh.  Without this work, their lives would be very different.  The afternoon was spent in our flat with Raju and his team sorting out our programme.   We are all so diverse this time, it has been complicated planning to fit it all in.  We are all still a little weary but I really enjoy watching our new team members taking it all in, and I see it with new eyes again also.
Our Internet wouldn't co-operate last night, hence the early morning  jottings. We begin our various trainings today.  The girls and women who have been rescued from the brothel in India we will see tomorrow, I think, when we fly to Npalgunj tomorrow, 600k. from Kathmandu.  Some are apparently only 15 then up to older ones.  I am longing to see them and just put my arms around them.  Internet permitting, I will write again tonight regarding how our training went.

Robyn  

Katie and I have been here 2 days but it seems like weeks. It is the most amazing experience. The colour, noises, smells, dirt,crush of people everywhere. Robyn meet us at the airport and we had out first on many crazy taxi rides. No road rules, no left or right side everyone drives anywhere with their hand on the horn all the time. I have had to shut my eyes many times as a bus comes straight toward us. it is hard to look around which is what i want to do because you have to watch where you are walking. Everything is on the ground and it is uneven with puddles of (I don't know what) everywhere. I am loving everything. We had a meeting with the teachers yesterday  and I now know what is expected on me. I will just do my best. It is good to have Graham and Robyn here with us as they have been so many times before and they ease our fears. Our expectations of ourselves are too high. Today is a day of lesson preparation and I will  feel better after that because I will be more prepared. The Nepalese people are beautiful. Open and friendly and meeting so many at church yesterday was wonderful. Cuddles are normal and the children are incredible.
I am so looking forward to our trip the next 4 days to the villages. We will see the real Nepal.

Trish             

Here we are again.

Once again, we find ourselves in our flat, with a new team.  Everyone is trying to learn about the power     schedule, what needs to be locked, where to hang up our washing etc. etc.  We are all pretty wasted tonight, hoping we will be more alert tomorrow.  Four team members arrived yesterday at noon,  Grahame and I arrived at 8 p.m. last night, and two others arrived at lunch time today.  Some of us went for a walk  down the  main street to change money and see the Buddhist  temple, and Katie, our expert photographer, has had a field day with all the colourful sights, mangy dogs, bright saris, bags of dried chillies, spicy curry,and other mysteries.  They have really enjoyed being assaulted with sights, sounds and smells.  Raju apparently has a meeting with the Prime Minister tomorrow; he never ceases to amaze us with the contacts he has.  We go to church tomorrow and we are looking forward to seeing our little sponsor girls and giving them a big cuddle.  In the afternoon, we have a planning meeting to finalise our time here.  We all have different tasks, in different places at different times.  I will write again tomorrow.  My poor jet lagged brain is having trouble thinking.

Robyn.   Friday, 6th September.

Homeward bound

It is Saturday afternoon.  We went to church this morning to say goodbye to our sponsor girls.  It is always sad. We will be back in 5 months, but to them it probably seems a long time.  Then we called into the Tusal hostel to say our goodbyes there.  There was no interpreter, so there was a lot of smiling and awkward attempts at conversation.  But love was in the air, and that is the main thing.    Sameer, the young man who is coming in the middle of the year to do a year at Crossways at Mueller, was our interpreter during the training.  He is absolutely brilliant.  He doesn't only translate words, but he gets every emphasis, every gesture.  He is a fine young man.  Also, Ratchina, Raju's PA, did some interpreting also.  She is a lovely gentle young woman.   Well, we head off tomorrow about lunch time.  We are not looking forward to 14 hours in the plane, plus stopover.By the end of 5 weeks we are feeling pretty weary.  There have been many highs, and many moments  when we were ready to pack up and go home. There is frustration, irritation, joy, moments we will never forget.  I guess it is a bit like labour;  it has it moments, but when it is all over only the great events, the precious people, and the joy remain.  Nepal gets under your skin.  Once you meet these people, see how God is working in the most amazing way, life is never the same again.  I guess most of you will see Grahame and Raju over the next month as they tour around.  If you haven't met Raju, it is worth the effort to meet him.  He is an incredible man, giving his whole being for his people.

Bye for now,

Robyn

Foot washing

One of the lessons in the course is Christ as a servant.  As a visual lesson, we broke the class into three groups.  One with the men, and two groups with the women.  Then we knelt down and washed their feet.  I have done this before in last January's course and it is the most wonderful experience.  Because these people are "untouchables",  for a westener to wash their feet is beyond comprehension.  Some weep softly, some become almost beside themselves, some find it so difficult to let us touch their feet at all.  Then they want to wash our feet also.  The relationship that is built by this simple act is indescribable.  There is a lady called Sarita.   She is a Badi woman, and when she was 14, she was sold into prostitution. For 14 years, she was used and abused.  When the revolution was happening here, she joined a Maoist group, learned how to shoot a gun, and planned to kill the men responsible for her horrific life.  She roamed around at night seeking vengence.  Then she met a pastor of the local church, and he led her to Christ.  Now she works with the church to rescue Badi girls.  She spends a lot of time in the villages caring for them, and telling them about the Lord.  She was at the conference and what a beautiful woman she is.  Her face is so soft and kind, she has such a gentle nature.  It is wonderful to see such a transformed life; a new creation.

Robyn