Election Day

This morning we went to Kirti and Vaishali’s house for breakfast. We had idli which are these little rice patties similar to grits, with daal and coconut chutney to go over them. And the best chai tea ever in the history of the universe. Vaishali is one of the most beautiful people I’ve ever seen when she smiles. It’s hard to get her to smile for a photo, though. They have a three-year-old named Roshan. He was a little afraid of us. Kishor and Alvina’s son Chris is four. He was scared of us at first but he seems to be getting used to us. He looks just like his mother.

I spent most of the rest of the day prepping for tomorrow’s seminar. I can only hope that what I teach makes some kind of sense and is reasonable for these women to implement in their lives. Kris has been planning and fasting today also. Now she’s done and practicing her guitar, which is mostly worship time for her I think. She knows more songs in French and Spanish than I can play in English.

It still feels like we’re under attack. My neck is healed but Kris’ foot is very red and hot. She started antibiotics today to prevent a more dangerous infection. Her back has been very painful also. Last night Jack got a migraine and has been unable to eat much today. Cleveland has been a little fatigued and not his normal self also. And Noel had a bad reaction to her anti-malaria medicine. She’s got nausea and dizziness. We’re going to try to get some doxycycline so we can switch her before her next dose is due. To top it off, the guitar Noel has been playing, that someone donated for us to leave over here, broke this morning. It doesn’t appear to be fixable.

So all of that would be super frustrating, right? Wrong. We’re all still doing what we need to do. Jack is planning his sermon for the big gathering. Kris and I are planning our seminar. Noel, Jodi, and Lu are planning their day with the kids. Jodi and Noel went shopping today. Doug and Cleve went in search of internet, but since everything is closed for elections today they didn’t have much luck.

I haven’t written about Vyara. The impression I got from Doug/Cleveland/Lu at our meetings was that this was a tiny village with no shopping, no internet, and not much to do. I have no idea where they got that idea. Vyara is a thriving city with over 50,000 people. It’s on a major trade road between Gujarat and Maharashtra states. There are loads of restaurants, hotels, and enough shopping for anyone. Of course, today is election day, so not as much shopping today – most shops are closed. But still – not even close to what I imagined.

The area around school is more like what I imagined. It’s in a beautiful rural area that reminds me of the South. The kids come from five surrounding small tribal villages. A little van purchased by STC picks them up and drops them off each day. Out there, you are more likely to pass a water buffalo than another vehicle. The farms mostly grow daal and jwarl, AKA lentils and sorghum.