Slum School Shenanigans + Some

Yesterday was yet another awesome day at the slum school. We were teaching the itty bitties all about the letter A so we were spelling simple words with the letter "A" and had them tell us which letter was which.  Julie wrote the word "cat" on the white board and pointed to each letter individually. C-A-YISU BABA! because a lower case t looks like a...yep you guessed it! Such smart itty bitties! Julie, another teacher, and I cracked up ALL day about it! The children are so precious and I just can't get over the funny little things that come out of their mouths! Made beautifully in the image of God.

After the school was over yesterday one of my absolute favorite itty bitties, Chiru came running down the beaten path towards the school and I scooped him right up! When my friends from the US were here a few weeks ago there was one day when he came into the class absolutely beaming. I knew something was up! It wasn't a mischievous look, but a look of pure joy.  I asked the national teacher to translate what he was saying. He said his momma had a baby the night before and he was now a big brother!! He could not stop smiling; he was so incredibly proud! So every so often I ask him "chota bonn ko thai" which means "where is you little sister?" He would smile and say "bari" in his house.  So when I grabbed him up as I was leaving the school he directed me towards his house and I met his mother and his chota bonn! She was incredibly gorgeous and absolutely adorable.  Seeing the whole story come full circle was awesome.

snippits

two little funny snippits from my past week

One day this week Elisa and I went into the village.  At the house where we were, the ladies made us lunch which consisted of chicken, rice, dal, and a veggie dish.  When offered chicken, I declined because I'm veg and they lady was so concerned.  She asked if I ate eggs and I said yes so she sent her daughter-in-law to get an egg and showed it to me.  She said it was from the chicken that everyone else was eating... I kept eating my rice and then in a few minutes I had a fried egg in front of me! I'd forgotten about it and the woman looked so concerned as she urged me to eat it.  I ate it, despite the fact that it was runny (ewww haha) and showed the plate to the woman and her daughter-in-law who were eagerly watching.  When I showed them the empty plate they both "head bobbled" at the exact same time and had the exact same look of approval on their faces.  It made me laugh out loud! And then the woman was concerned that I only had one serving of dal.  Tryin' ta make me fat over hur.

Another day after going to the school we went to watch the kids of some friends.  When their dad came back we decided to all head back to our part of town and have dinner with another family in our building.  We picked up some Lebanese and headed back to our flat.  The family we were with had their own car, but in our complex we don't have a parking spot, so the guards just directed him to a spot along the side.  The dad of the family said he'd be 5-10 minutes.  We headed up and ate all together and the kids were all having a blast dressing up in super hero costumes and enjoying time all together. About a hour and a half later there's a knock on the door and a little guard is there saying that they need to leave.  The dad, a rather large, especially when compared to the guard, told him that he would be 5 minutes and shut the door in his face. About 10 minutes later there is another knock on the door and a slightly taller (but not in comparison to the dad) guard comes up and is using a more raised and assertive tone.  The dad is not fazed at all and says "Thank you" and tries to shut the door.  The guard pushes the door back open and says "ONE MINUTE," but the door shuts anyways.  When our friends eventually left,  we assumed they got home okay because we didn't receive an SMS or hear any distinct shouting.  They did go down with a small army so I didn't expect anything less.

transitions

I'm sitting here and this is where I am and what I'm doing:
In this moment I am: trying to free up disc space on my computer without deleting the 7,000 pictures that I hold so dear, trying to change my cover photo-and failing, listening to the INCESSANT hammering in the flat below mine that has been ensuing consistently since August.  Picture my nap time, or my "lay in bed with a gun to my head" time.  It's one of the most annoying things-ever.  Oh, and also listening to some lovely Olivia Morgan, worship leader at a church at home I attended.
And today I've realized a few things.
Well for starters I've recently moved to a bustling city-no more small rural town!  I've always wanted to spend at least a little time in a city and here I am!  A long, drawn out series of events has lead me here (& also the hand of God, obviously) and I couldn't be more content.  No more hand washing laundry, no more cement floors, no more freezing nights,  no more outdoor sinks for dish washing, no more tension and anxiety that I was feeling in my former residence.  No more lack of purpose.  I love love loved where I was before, but things changed.  Everything has a season.  So here I am in a city. A big one.  Listening from my room the the screeching tires, honking horns, sporadic shouting, (& like I said, that horrid hammering).
I have an awesome roommate and another one who will be here soon once she returns from Nepal.  I've been spending all my time with her and with another US fam that is six floors below.  The husband and wife are just like older siblings- they don't act their age at all!  Stephanie is expecting a baby with SIX WEEKS!  And little three-year-old Hudson is going to be the best, wildest big brother ever.  He's a handful himself, but his precious little smile and those chubby cheeks make it so hard to feel anything but joy when you're around him.
Another AWESOME thing about being here is that I get to go to the slum school twice a week when I thought that I wouldn't have a opportunity to go back.  I'll have to upload some pictures for sure because these smiles and souls are just to adorable not to share!  Every morning when I walk in I'm welcomed warmly by a thunderous "MORNING AUNTIE!" as bright, warm, smiling faces shine up at me.  Anyone who has ever served in any way in an improvished area knows the smiles that I'm talking about.  The smiles of ones so small who literally have nothing.  Okay I lied; they have the numb of a pencil, a hole-y book bag, and rags for clothes.  Their smiles radiate so brightly for those who have no physical possessions.  The joy that they have is unfathomable.  I love them so much.  I would spend every day writing letters for them to trace or having them repeat "ORANGE-CIRCLE, PINK-RECTANGLE, WHITE-RHOMBUS" if I could.  I sit on the floor and have up to three on me at a time shoving their workbooks in my face SO PROUD of their work as they try and catch my attention with their "AUNTIE, AUNTIE."  As I leave the school each day and see them along the main road of the slum, it is hard to recognize them when they are out of their school uniform.  Seeing them in the reality in which they live.  But their smiles are just as bright as ever.  They will always have a very special place in my heart.

[Let us just pause for one second.  I just took a quick instagram/facebook break and proceeded to search the fridge for a little something to fill the itty-bitty open space in my belly.  And then I saw it.  Just sitting in the shelf, minding it's own business, but it knew I was coming for it.  And did I ever.  Squatting in front of the open fridge holding the glorious bottle.  Flipped up that flip top and proceeded to squirt a blob of chocolate sauce into my hand...it's been so long.  And then I did it 4 more times.  Sorry Elisa if you're reading this! I couldn't help it! And I'm really not that sorry hehehe. Then I ate another banana. Additional side note: I've eaten almost 3 kilos of bananas in the past three days as well as 462 grams of crunchy peanut butter....It's gotten to the point where I've eaten so much that I can't even open my mouth or swallow.  I'm holding down the fort over here don't worry.]

Anyways, back to the "substance."  One thing that has been especially important to me in my time here has been journalling.  I feel burdened to do it.  I can't sleep if I don't.  I have a fear that I'll forget details.  I don't want to forget anything.  Every second is important to me because before I know it, I'll be "home."  So my first journal is almost done and every time I leave the flat I'm secretly poking around stands and stores looking for the perfect new journal, but I refuse to by one until I'm completely finished.  It will be my reward.  I want to remember Christmas here on the page where I pasted some of the marigolds that were thrown into the air amidst the celebration.  I want to remember my first Hindu wedding on the page where I have the dried roses given to me by my first friends here.  I'm the wary queen of sentimentally.  I'm trying to not let it turn into hoarding, but I may not mind if it does. (jk I totally mind, but hopefully it won't go THAT far.)  I just love every second I'm here and even the ones that are harder to love, I want to remember because it's all part of my growth and journey.  And that's what adventure is.

Friends from home came to pay a visit!

Made friendship bracelets with the ladies in the village :)

New book bags all around!

SNACK TIME

oh and I'll be posting a video within the next few days :) and if anyone wants to give me a unique new format I would not be opposed :)

Also, this is the third time I've added to this post, BUT I have been reading a ton more since there are actually book stores here and I have a recommendation.  The book SOLD by Patricia McCormick.  We  visited a business called SariBari [saribari.com] where women rescued from sex-trafficing are employed  and are given the opportunity to have a new life- a life full of Restoration.  One lady who interns there told us that she has read Sold and that it is what actually happens in the Indian sex-trafficing trade.  It's one of the simplest and easiest books I've ever read, but it completely heart breaking.  It's important to be aware of all that is going on around the world and it's crazy to know that it runs so rampant in the city I'm living in, which is the city where the book takes place.
Next up- Nocturnes by Karuzo Ishiguro 

just a quick catch up