Cricket

One thing that I have been able to do while here in India is learn to play cricket. Cricket is the game here in India. Everyone plays. If you are just driving around, you will see several games being played by various ages in various places. Anywhere with a flat area is a potential cricket pitch.

Being competitive, it has been difficult for me to not be good at learning the game. In many ways it is similar to baseball, but the subtle differences make it even more difficult to learn this game. There is a team here that has been letting me practice and play with them on a somewhat regular basis. I have enjoyed getting to play with them, but the team I am on always seems to lose by a few runs. I wish I was better.

However, despite my competitiveness, I got to witness an incredible sight. I could hardly believe it with my own eyes. Near where we are staying, there is a school for blind children. Some are not completely blind, some are crippled with polio, and some are just deaf. They are all "disabled" in some way. Despite their physical limitations, their love for the game of cricket has not been hindered.

The kids play everyday...just for fun. It is truly breathtaking to witness. It's hard to describe in words, so I'll just let you see the video. It is 45 seconds long, so it might take a little while to load, but it is worth it. Just watching the kids play has probably been the highlight of my trip so far. Watch how they play.




The ball they use is filled with little rocks so they can hear it. The kid that is playing catcher is completely blind. Towards the end of the video he throws it right back to the kid who bowls the ball. This wasn't just one throw, he made a perfect throw every time while I was watching him.

Jabalpur

Holydays occur almost once or twice a month her in india. Yesterday was one of those days, so we took the opportunity to have our good indian friends Many and Alice take us to the nearest big city... Jabalpur. It took us two hours to get there. There's not a good theatre in Damoh, where we are staying, so the first place Many took us was to a mall theatre, we bought tickets to a movie that's called "Guest, when are you leaving?" The whole movie was in Hindi, but we still enjoyed watching it.

After the movie we went back to the Mercy Home for the girls. This is the same location that we painted the girls' nails and did their hair. They were excited to see us. We played girlscout type games, they they taught us a popular Indian game called Pitha. It's a team game that requires a lot of running and skill with throwing a ball. They were a lot better than us at it!

Many and Alice also took us to a lake 20 minutes outside of town. It was a large lake that would be perfect for wakeboarding... except that there are crocodiles in the water. That didn't stop us from renting a couple paddle boats and playing on the water for a while! We didn't see and croc though!

We then spent a few minutes meeting Alice's family. Her father is Chinese and her mother is Indian.. so we call her a Chindian! They greeted us with the normal Indian warmness including hot masala chai and something sweet. We didn't take the "something sweet" because we were heading off to what is supposedly the best Chinese food in all India. The Clocktower Chinese restaraunt. We tried the Hot-and-Sour Soup and some other nice dishes. We were full, but we still had room for a visit to and indian Ice cream shop. We headed back to Damoh around 9:30.

Revolutionaries

Like we have mentioned in earlier posts, we are interacting with some high calibur revolutionaries. They are countering the normal way of society. We want to tell you about some of them.
Mama Pushpa
Mama is David Lall's mother. She is an 80 year old widow that still stays up until 11:00 just to visit those in hard situations. From the way she lives her life, she should be worn out, but she has gained even more energy from serving Christ so fervently. Anytime someone is sick in the church, she will visit them. Anytime someone has something to celebrate, she will go celebrate with them. From what we can see, she has never missed an opportunity to reach out. And on top of this she still runs a widow ministry, and teaches destitute women how to sew and make money. She also runs a ministry that works with special needs children who would otherwise be either killed or locked in thier house, hidden from society. Each time we meet with Mama, we prepare ourself to be met with a holy kiss! This woman gives a warm and welcoming feeling to everyone indiscriminantly.

Mr. Mick
This man is changing the status quo to the extent that I cannot even use his real name in this public blog. Even though the caste system was erradicated by the government, most people still live by those rules. Most people from lower castes, do not even know the oppression that they are under. For them, the reality is that they are inferior beings.
Mr. Mick had an enlightening experience that led him to see the system from another light. He was from a very low class. So low in fact that people believe that they couldn't even touch items that these low class people had touched, lest they become "unholy." One day Mr. Mick accidentally touched a table where someone was selling tea. The salesmen screamed and cursed at him for making his table "unholy" and set out to have his table cleansed. Right after this happened a dog came and urinated on the same table. The water salesman did nothing. So Mr. Mick began to question him... "I touch the table and you get very upset, but this dog relieves himself on you table and you don't mind?" The salesman replied, "That was just a dog." It was at this point that Mr. Mick realized he was part of a system that viewed him as being lower than even "dog piss."

At that point he sought to find something else. He thought there must be more to life than this, there has to be some higher truth. So, he began seeking "Truth" and preaching freedom to the lower castes. He now has a following of over 45,000 people.

The first time we met Mr. Mick he has brought in 15 children from a village. He was explaining child marriage to us. In lower castes only children have marriages arranged for them when they are 9 or 10 years old. Out of the 15 children present, 9 of them were already married. Soon the girls would become mothers. And if the child husband became bored with her, he could leave her and entertain other interests in marriage, which would leave the first girl open to multiple marriages and sleeping partners, or destitution. The high castes, on the other hand usually are educated through college, then they start looking for spouses. This leaves the lower castes oppressed in terribly torn family situations and uneducated views of life.

Education is another passion for Mr. Mick. He has seen that the higher class are purposely taking away good education opportunities from the lower castes. In a particular village, all children were attending a government school, but several years ago the high class parents have taken their children out of the government school and put them in expensive private schools where they will get a very good education and continue on through college. This leaves the lower class students with teachers who pay little attention to them and a drunken principal. He found that by the 8th grade, students from low castes could barely write their own name in Hindi, let alone speak or write English. Since the government school is in the afternoon, this man has helped to set up a tutoring program in the morning which teaches the students first to read and write Hindi, then English, Math, and Sciences. This man's life is in danger for what he is doing.

CASTE AWAY

Hinduism reigns here in India. But it is not just a religion. It is interwoven into every aspect of society. The way people talk, think, and function is all vastly influenced by Hinduism. One of the unique qualities of the Hindu religion is the caste system. There are five main castes in India, each made up of several other small "sub-castes.". In Hinduism, you are born into a certain caste based on your previous life. If you lead a good life, then you move to a higher caste. If you are bad, then a lower you go to a lower one. Of course there are only a select few that are ever make up the highest caste. Naturally, these select few are the ones who are revered, honored, and served by all the lower caste. This may seem like a ridiculous concept, but this is so engrained into the minds of the people that they are completely devoted to this system. They really believe that this life is a reflection of your past life, and therefore should be treated accordingly.

Because of this view, several people suffer. One of the truly disheartening truths is that people have no sympathy for individuals born with mental/physical handicaps. It is believed they are being punished for their previous life. This leads the parents of these children to neglect the needs of this child and as much as possible, try to keep them out of the public eye.

One of most powerful things we have witnessed here in India, is the program called Oasis of Love, ran by the people we are staying with. On the outside, it looks just like a place for handicapped children to spend their day. But it is much more than that. Oasis of Love is taking the rejects of society, those who have been neglected, hated, and looked down upon, and showing them that they deserve better. They are giving these kids purpose, meaning ,and love. The kids are getting an education, learning skills, and being shown that they do matter.

Once a month, Oasis of Love takes the kids out on a picnic, just to get away and have fun. We got to go with them last week...and we had a blast. The kids got draw-string packs that were made of material that they could color on. They played games, got prizes, and filled their packs up with all their new stuff. It was awesome. It's easy to just get caught up in the fun. It's also humbling to realize, that for most of these kids, before Oasis of Love, they never had the chance to just color, laugh, and just be a kid.

There is a Love that has come to restore all peoples, from every tribe, every nation, every caste.

A Few Breifs

Just a quick overview of what we have been doing the last couple days. We took a trip to Khajaraho. Khajaraho is home to several temples built over 1000 years ago. We also spent some time at the markets, where shopkeepers are extremely pushy, which takes americans out of their comfort zone! But we still had a lot of fun looking around and talking to different shopkeepers. Both of us bought Indian style shirts. Then next day we woke up at 5 AM to go to Panna Tiger Park. We saw some crocodiles, but no tigers (only a couple footprints on the road). It was incredible to just drive around the jungle. Our friend Bunty spotted more animals than our guide!


On the way to Khajaraho we stopped in a village where Hope 4 Kids had a well dug. The village had no water source until the well was built. The village was extremely happy to welcome us with an Indian band and dancing! We dedicated the well, then continued journey to Khajaraho.




Finally we came back to Damoh and have settled in. At this point, the large group with Hope 4 Kids has gone home, we are done touring India, and we have begun some regular tasks. We now have only three short weeks left here in India. Therefore, to be most productive with our time, we have decided to jump on board with Hope 4 Kids. This was their initial trip to India, so our task is to wrap up some loose ends and make a smooth transition from American to Indian leadership. We will be helping kids write letters, taking photo’s and gathering more information about different schools.

Our schedule changes everyday, but most everyday we have a devotional with the entire Mid-India Christian Mission. Then a short “thought for the day” with mama puspha (David’s mom) and a group of pastors. These pastors claim to be so encouraged that we would leave our country to come be with them. They are so excited to have us here, but we have to admit that we are the ones gaining a benefit. Everyone here holds a doctorate of some kind and has incredible leadership skills. We truly are engaging with the Martin Luther King’s Jrs, Apostle Pauls and Mother Theresas of India!

After these meetings, we go to our “office” at the mission’s production studio from 10 to 4. The rest of the day is up to us to decide.

Last night during that time we grilled some BBQ chicken (because beef is illegal in India) and some veggies for the Lalls. I think everyone enjoyed it except for mama Puspha, who didn’t each much!

Tonight we spent time with an Indian family we have come to know pretty well. Their son Mayank speaks English very well, and is enamored with us Whities. He was excited that we came over to watch Home Alone 2 with him and his mother, Sonu. After the movie they showed us their family’s picture albums, which we have found to be an Indian Tradition. These times with Indian families have been highlights for both of us.
When we left, we did our usual activities: Tag, Red Rover, and Dodgeball. Ashley got outrun by a 4 year old, but Justin was told he had a “strong body!”
This is Ashley and Justin, reporting from India. Good Night.

HOLY COW!!!

Holy Cow!...literally. Cows are considered holy by Hindus. They roam freely and are given the right of way, no matter where they are. It is not uncommon to have the cows meandering all around town, even in the middle of the street! And you do not want to hit one--even on accident. I asked one of the locals what would happen if someone were to run over a cow, even if the cow were to run in front of a car and get hit, and they said that the person would more than likely be mobbed and lynched. I couldn't believe it, and it explains why I haven't been able to find a good steak here.


We've had some unique opportunities in the last couple of days to interact with some other animals, not just cows. Randomly, we were passing through town and we spotted an elephant. Some of the people we are working with brought it over to the place we are staying and let us ride it around for a little bit.


Earlier this morning we were greeted by some snake charmers. I only held on for a little bit, but it was enough to get a picture.

Jabalpur,

नमस्ते, ग्रीटिंग्स फ्रॉम जबलपुर।

(Nameste, greetings from Jabalpur!)

We flew into Jabalpur, India yesterday and were greeted warmly (as you can see from the picture)!

The last couple of days we have been getting to know Japalpur, India. Life in Jabalpur is a little slower than Dehli. It feels like the "midwest" of India. Yesterday we went to explore a river that runs through town. It is interesting because it is surrounded by cliffs of marble. Because it's a large tourist attraction there are guided boat rides along the river.

Today we spent time at a girls-home that David Lall started here in Jabalpur. The girls are all under 18 and still in school. Our group split up to style hair and paint nails (except Justin, who refused to take part in such "girly" activities). Most of the girls spoke a little English and were able to joke around and chat. They sang and danced for us, then made us a curry lunch.