Well, I'm finally back in the United States! I have never traveled so intensely in such an extended period of time. I've been traveling since Friday morning Chennai time and still have two more hours to go before I will be at my new apartment. I am utterly exhausted but the fun is just beginning! I still need to unpack all my stuff, get groceries, make final preparations for school on Monday, and so many other things! I've had quite the adventure getting here so far, including almost missing my flight (kind of..), thinking one of my travel buddies got kidnapped (she just went ahead and got in a line ahead of the rest of us), almost having my luggage get sent to the wrong final destination, thinking my luggage had been lost when I went to pick it up from customs (I found it completely encased in SARAN WRAP for some reason--it makes for interesting conversations and weird stares from people in the airport), nearly dying in the airplane as it made its final descent to SLC, and chilling in the airport for almost four hours awaiting my shuttle's arrival.

Things I Have Found New Appreciation For:

- Clean restrooms in the airplane

- Fresh air that does not smell like B.O.

- Nice green salad and a choice of beef on the menu

- Being able to drink out of a drinking fountain without questioning whether the water will make me sick or not

- A working cell phone

- Solid ground that is NOT an airplane under me

I wake up to the noise of my roommates as they putter around, getting ready for the new day. The little bit of sunlight that has passed through the clouds shines on my face and I hop down from the shaky top bunk that has been my bed for the past three weeks. "Did you have bad dreams last night? Because you were thrashing around a bit and making noises," says Kim, the unfortunate woman who must deal with a miniature earthquake every time I go up and down to get into bed. Ahh, gotta love my malaria medicine. We were a little afraid of the side effects when I got it, but I took my chances. Oh well, I'm still doing fine and I would rather have nightmares and possible hallucinations than a deathly disease!

After a light breakfast of cereal and toast with fresh scrambled eggs the group has morning conclave. We discuss the plans for the day--my group, Shakti (which means "power" in Tamil) is on medical duty. We pile on the bus, our lunches of peanut butter sandwiches in hand. It almost seems like we are going to school, and in a way we are. We aren't going to learn any formal lessons, but lessons of life. The bus bumps along and we travel the familiar road that feels almost like home to me. We pass through the village, past sleeping dogs and naked little children, through the "Junction" where you can get anything from henna to anklets to delicious packaged Indian cookies called Nice Times. After about twenty minutes we pull up to a little building and our driver honks the horn with a long, loud blast. We pick up the doctor, Dr. Kumar, from his small practice and two nurses from their homes. Within five minutes we are parked in front of the Bharatapuram colony's "Old Folks Home" as they call it. Climbing down the steps, I dodge the huge puddle in the road from the past few days' rain and walk through the open doors of the airy building. Instantly I hear greetings of "Vanakkam," the Tamil word for welcome. The story behind this old folks home is incredible, actually. The colony of Bharatapuram is one of the most advanced or maybe THE most advanced out of all of the leprosy colonies. Many of the people here have micro-loans and are doing very well. Bharatapuram is the home of the Bindu Art School, whose students are leprosy patients themselves. Not only is the Art School here, but down the street is a little shop where we bought bottles of 7-Up when we were doing construction once. The colony even has a barber shop!

Apparently as the people of the colony became established and regained their self-dignity, they decided that it was necessary to build a home for the elderly patients. They put their money together and, with donations from some other sponsors and organizations, the idea became a reality. I believe this gives a small indication of the caliber possessed by these people--so downtrodden and distressed themselves, and cast out from society, they would still think to serve others.

Today it is our opportunity to serve them. We unload boxes of supplies from the back of the bus and get to work. Dr. Kumar and a few others go into the building to record blood pressure, test for diabetes, and check up on the patients' general health. The rest of us stay outside, setting up lawn chairs and getting ready for the cleansing and dressing of wounds on the patients' feet. Today I will help wash feet with two other volunteers as well as young Boston and Olivia Hendershot, daughters of a young couple who have committed to staying here at Rising Star for a year. Boston is around eight years old and Olivia is probably ten or eleven. The girls have two brothers and one additional sister. The Hendershot's story is a remarkable one I will have to tell at a later time.

We put on rubber gloves, fill shallow containers with water and a capful of antiseptic, and get ready to treat our patients. I feel a few drops of rain and hope it will hold off until we are done--I don't know what we will do if it starts pouring! My first customer is a man who solemnly takes off the bandage from his foot with the stubs of fingers he has left. His big toe is still recognizable, but all that is left of the other toes are little stumps. He puts his foot in the water and I begin to rub it down. I can feel a sore on the sole and lift up his foot to look at how bad it is. The wound is about the size of a half dollar and is calloused with dead skin about a quarter of an inch thick. I put it back in the water and cautiously rub it, trying to clean it as best as I can. I look up and question, "Pain?" He shrugs. No. He has lost all feeling in his foot. With a little square of towel, I dry him off as best as I can. The less moisture the better. He will go to the girls next to me now, who will cut off the dead skin and bandage him up. Seeing his wound is bad enough--even the thought of taking off so much skin makes me feel a bit queasy. Thank goodness those girls are nursing majors!

The next man I help still has some feeling in his foot. I can tell because he winces and sucks in his breath while I try to clean his wound as gently as possible.

With my fellow foot washers, the work is pretty fast, but bandaging takes quite a lot more time. Soon we have a line of people waiting. We only have two lawn chairs for them to sit on, so we improvise and make a seat out of a stack of bricks for one woman while she waits. I feel like there are too many washers, so I wander inside to see how everything is going in there. They are busy with several people, so I enter the right side of the building. It is a big room with probably 15 or 20 beds--the men's side. I see a few of the men and talk with them for a few minutes. The first man is almost completely blind and extremely thin, nothing but skin and bones. Olivia has brought a picture of him and one of the former volunteers. He can barely see the picture, but he clutches it in his hands and smiles with a hearty "Thank you!" I get up to leave and grab his hands to say goodbye. He puts mine in his and brings them to his forehead.

I meander back outside, feeling slightly useless. Everyone seems to have a job, but I feel like I will just get in the way if I go back to washing feet.

A man suddenly comes up to me and points at his mangled hand with claw-like fingernails. He wants me to trim his nails. I can do that! The nurse hands me a slightly rusty toenail clipper and I set to work. First comes the thumb. The nail is thick with lots of skin buildup underneath and it seems to be slightly dead. After a few minutes of hacking and filing away I let the man examine my work. Hmm, it seems like the nail could be a bit shorter. I understand what he is trying to tell me and try to cut it more. I'm no manicurist and am initially a little afraid of cutting the nail too short, but he most likely doesn't feel anything anyways. After I'm done with his fingernails he grins and gestures to his toes. I smile and get to work. Normally I don't like to touch other people's feet very much, and those are people with healthy feet. These people's feet are anything BUT healthy. I can do this, though. I recognize that these are individuals who have been treated like beasts and untouchables--I want them to know that they are still definitely human beings with worth. I finally finish and he gets up with a smile. "Thank you!"

The word spreads that I am doing nails, and I get a few more customers. As I kneel at the feet of these beautiful people I can't help but think of Jesus Christ as He did similar acts of service for those he loved. I remember the story of a small town in war-torn Europe that had a statue of the Savior in its center. The statue was damaged by bombings and as the people gathered to restore it after the war they realized the hands had been completely demolished. The townspeople eventually decided to leave the statue hand-less, and put at the bottom a plaque that said "You are my hands." I am grateful for this opportunity to be His Hands today. I hope the people I am serving can feel my love as well as His.

Eventually we depart from the colony and arrive back at the Rising Star campus. I go over to the playground and a little boy comes up to me. "Aunty!" He jumps over water puddles and heads to a twisty slide. At the bottom is a big puddle, so I catch him and swing him around to avoid the water. He loves it! We do this probably ten times and then another boy comes. Now I'm swinging two little boys off of that slide. It is so much fun! Later, I play a game of soccer with some of the older boys. They are all so cute!

Dinner tonight is on the roof of the children's hostel. I am delighted, because it has been days since we have been able to eat up there due to the rain. Out come the banana leaves. The regular rice, spicy sauce, and other fruits and vegetables are passed around. It is a beautiful' night. I am excited to go see my girls, though. Kristin and I go down the stairs and into our family's room. The four youngest girls are there. We read books. Abisha surprises me by reading a book called "All By Myself." She is probably 6 years old. She isn't really reading it, but going through each word and sounding out each letter. She grabs my finger and points to each letter as she makes the sound. I am thrilled because this is the first time she has ever done this. At the same time I am sad because I know I only have one more night with her before I leave. The girls and I sing some songs. I teach them "Once There Was a Snowman." First, though, I have to explain what snow is because they have never seen it. They love it! Soon it is eight o'clock. Bedtime. Kristin tells them the story of Beauty and the Beast and then they ask for a song. I sing "Teach Me to Walk in the Light" and Kristin joins in too. It is absolutely beautiful, because two of the little girls start singing as well. What makes me even more happy is that I look over and Abisha has shared her blanket with little Jayamary. Jayamary is relatively new and has had a hard time adjusting. The other girls aren't very nice to her sometimes, which breaks my heart. She is the sweetest girl ever! Seeing Abisha sharing her blanket with her is priceless. I wish this moment would never end.

It does, though, and we go over to the Dining Hall where the older kids are studying. I help some of my older girls with homework and once again end up thankful for the education I have received in America. Soon they gather for prayer and the sound of children's voices singing what sounds like "Abide with Me" in Tamil breaks through the noises of the night.

After prayers the children head to their hostel and we volunteers head to ours. We walk by the light of the moon and a few streetlights. I see what looks like a big toad about to hop on my foot and scream a little--it's only a leaf, though.

Once back at the hostel I grab my shampoo and head for the bowers (bucket showers). The water is cold as it pours over my body, but it is wonderful to be clean. I brush my teeth, careful not to use water from the sink, take out my contacts, and climb up the ladder onto my shaky bed. Ahh, another perfect day in the little paradise of India. There is nowhere else I'd rather be. Let's hope my malaria medicine is good to me tonight!

Caution: Extremely Random Post Tonight!

This blog post is going to be very scattered and not well put together, but I have had an amazing weekend and just some other thoughts I want to share. I will spare you the boring details and just give you a summary of the happenings.

Firstly, I have a confession--pride really does come before the fall. Remember in one of my past blog entries where I said I had mastered the squat toilet? Well I thought I did the first week. Don't worry, I didn't fall in or anything, but one day I went in the stall and noticed for the first time the shape of the toilet. After looking at it for a few seconds I realized that I had been using it backwards! In Western cultures, obviously you face the door as you are sitting on the toilet. I guess I just assumed that was how it was supposed to be in India, too. That day, though, I had my epiphany and everything clicked. I had wondered why the flusher was behind and you had to turn completely around to flush it! And why the hole was at the back instead of the front! And now as I looked at the foot grips on the side I realized they were shaped an ideal way for facing the wall instead of the door, too! I laughed out loud as I realized my foolishness and how ridiculous I had been those many days before in thinking that I knew how to use the toilet so well. No one else was in the bathroom at that time, though, so I kept my embarrassing little secret to myself. I think about it now and wonder how many other things I am doing wrong here in India. I'm sure the natives get a hoot sometimes when they see us dressed in what we think is a real Indian outfit or eating the wrong way. I know my little girls sometimes talk in Tamil about me and laugh, but it's okay. I am sufficiently humbled now and am more open to forgetting my Western ways and learning how to do it the Indian way. Upon further contemplation, though, I wonder if there really IS a right way to use the squatter. Maybe it is one of those things where everyone just has to figure out how they want to do it. Actually I wouldn't be surprised--it seems like that is kind of the way it is here in India. Anything goes! Three grown men can ride a single motorcycle with no problem, chickens cross the road all the time, and you can find just about any type of religion here. Ahh, you gotta love it.

Anyways, now that I got that out of my system, I just want to summarize my weekend real quick:

Friday

Travel on bumpy road at 3 o'clock in the morning to get to airport. 4 hour flight including literally 10 or 15 minutes of taxiing down the runway. Visit Mahatma Ghandi's home and site of martyrdom (walk on the actual path he walked on right before he died and find out that's not allowed--oops!). Go to Old Delhi and tour it via bicycle rikh shah [visit the oldest temple in Delhi, which is 1000 years old; go down cramped alleyways teeming with life and tons of teeny shops; visit the spice market]. Go to Pizza Hut for dinner [it's actually a very nice sit-down restaurant; even my pasta has a tint of Indian spice to it. My strawberry "shake" is DISGUSTING but I hate to waste food so I drink it anyways]. Feel really nauseous for the first time in India and become very familiar with Pizza Hut's little bathroom. 5 hour tour bus ride to Agra in which I feel miraculously better (thank goodness, because the bus has no bathroom). Arrive at the luxurious Jaypee Hotel and crash.

Saturday:

Wake up at 4:45 AM. Depart for Taj Mahal at 5:15 AM.

Visit one of the seven wonders of the Ancient World (also the biggest mausoleum in the world, I think) and take lots of pictures. I get to walk BAREFOOT on the marble of the Taj. Visit Agra Fort, a huge military fort with an amazing palace. FINALLY eat breakfast. Chill at the hotel (SLEEEEP). Shop, shop, shop. Eat at McDonalds, which has no hamburgers [the ice cream tastes exactly the same though :) ] Go to a dazzling show about the story behind the Taj Mahal.

Visit the disco in the hotel. Crash.

Sunday:

Sleep in a little bit. See an elephant up close! (Many people chose to take a ride on it.) Long 6 hour bus ride to Delhi. 2 and a half hour flight to Chennai. Bumpy, windy, wet 2 hour bus ride back home to Rising Star hostel. Arrive after midnight and crash again.

It was such a long weekend packed with probably a week's worth of activities, but I had a great time. I was so happy to be back here, though. We got straight back to work! My group was on construction yesterday and it was the most exhausting one I've experienced. We stayed on the Rising Star campus and dug a trench around what is supposed to be their track. It was SOOO TIRING, but SOOO REWARDING being able to do labor and see the results of it. The last time we were on construction we spent about 40 minutes watching these men pour concrete into the foundation of a bathroom we were all working on, so it felt good to actually do something today. We are praying that it doesn't rain tonight, though, or else the dirt might fall back into the trench and rend all our work useless. If it does, we will cry and then we can say we literally put blood, sweat, and tears into the construction of that track (I got a little cut on my leg while working with a shovel, so hopefully it doesn't get infected!)

It was great to see my girls and all the children again. I played a nice little game of soccer with some of the boys and got to have some quality time with my youngest girls tonight. We read books and sang songs and it was just great. I have this little nagging voice in the back of my head that keeps reminding me that I only have a few days left here, but I'm determined to live those days to the fullest. I'm sure there are still so many things I can learn and experience!

Well it's been a few days since I've seriously blogged and quite a few things have been on my mind. It is absolutely amazing how many experiences can be packed in to a single day! I always feel kind of weird when I get on Facebook and see what's been going on across the world because being in India makes me feel like I'm in some strange kind of time warp. I am so involved in what is going on here that I forget that time hasn't stopped in America. Since I've been gone I've missed two birthdays and my parent's anniversary!

Rising Star has three main focuses: childhood education, micro-business loans, and mobile medical units. I have had several experiences lately that have reinforced the brilliance of Hernando de Soto's idea of micro-financing. Micro-financing is the practice of giving someone a small loan to help her establish a business. The individual must pay the loan back, plus a little interest, I think. For example, in one of the leprosy colonies a woman was loaned a cow. From the cow, she was able to sell the milk and get some money. Eventually, the cow had a calf, and so on, until the woman became one of the richest people in the colony. The first colony I visited was one of the most advanced because of micro-financing. One leprosy patient even opened a barber shop!

One reason micro-financing is so effective is because everything is given value--nothing is given for free. I have seen in many instances that when people invest their own money into something they take much better care of it because it has higher value in their eyes. The founders of Rising Star strongly believe in this principle, and it has been implemented in various ways. For example, schooling for the children used to be provided free of charge; however, a trend developed in which parents would pull their children out of school in order for them to assist in the family business of begging on the streets to obtain money. Rising Star combated this trend by making it mandatory that each family pay something like 60 Rupees (a little over $1) a week for the children's schooling. Even though this hardly makes a dent in financially helping the school, this investment has dramatically decreased the number of children pulled out. This small financial investment helps parents become involved in their children's education in a way they probably never could before, especially since a majority of the adults in rural areas have had poor, little, or no schooling. Further, parents learn to reap the rewards of investing over time, because if a girl completes her education all the way through 12th standard (12th grade) part of their deposit is refunded. This gives me a sense of hope especially for the rising generation of girls, because I have seen the inequality of women in many aspects of life here and know that education is key to helping them reach their potentials.

Often, people from leprosy colonies are never given a chance to earn things on their own. Because society has cast them out and prevented them from having jobs they must rely on the financial charity of others by begging in nearby cities. I have noticed this tendency of begging even in the children here, sadly. It was kind of discouraging to me.

One of the activities volunteers do here at Rising Star is teaching what is called a talent class. We all have talents to share, and this is our chance to introduce the kids to something they might not otherwise have the opportunity to see or do. I had a difficult time deciding on a talent to do and ended up bringing just a bunch of craft stuff. For my first class I decided to bring beads and have the girls make bracelets. In my mind I pictured a nice little bonding experience and everything running smoothly--I should have known better! It ended up a chaotic mess. There was no bonding. There was no sitting quietly. There was no contentment for the two handfuls of beads I had given each girl. Instead, I was swarmed by nine little bodies with outstretched hands saying, "Please, aunty. I need more beads. Aunty, please! Aunty!" The girls weren't really interested in making bracelets at the moment. All they cared about at that point in time was getting as many beads as possible. I couldn't give them too many because I needed to plan for 3 additional bracelet-making classes. And frankly their whiny cries of "Aunty" did not make me feel any more inclined to give them more. Somehow I survived (feeling very hated by those girls), and came to the realization that they were just doing what they had been taught probably as small children. When they were asking me for more they got this extremely pitiful look on their face and said "I need some for my mother, my father, my uncle, etc." I definitely felt like the bad guy when I didn't succumb to their pleadings..well kind of. I ended up giving them a choice of one more special bead each at the end of the class.

Rising Star is implementing programs to help even the children "earn" many of the things they need instead of handing them out for free. One of the coordinators this summer, Katie, came up with a program called the Star Store. Every day in class a student has the opportunity to earn stars for good behavior. Once a week he or she has the opportunity to visit the Star Store, which has a variety of items that can be bought by stars. They have things ranging from pencil cases, hair brushes, sidewalk chalk, finger nail polish, and bigger ticket items. The students can decide to spend their stars right away or they can save them in the "bank" until they earn enough to get some of the bigger things. I think this is a brilliant idea because it gives the children a sense of ownership when they purchase something and also teaches them the value of saving instead of spending right away.

(Katie manning the Star Store) (one of the older boys guarding the items at the store)

When I visited the Moot colony I noticed some effects of this concept as well. We came to give the patients medical aid, most of which was just self-care kits that had things like bandages and ointment. I believe the patients must pay a few rupees for these items (once again the concept of ownership and personal investment comes in to play). The leader of the colony, Jai Raj, told us that since Rising Star has begun to help them they have no need to beg anymore. That is absolutely incredible to me. Because of this organization and the sense that they are paying for their own needs (however little it might be) their lives have been changed forever. No longer do they need to stoop to their worst selves. Instead, they can maintain a small sense of dignity and hopefully realize that they are still human beings with worth. I admire those individuals, especially those in that colony. Their independence and self-motivation show in the little things. I remember the one woman, Surrosha, proudly telling us that she had taught herself how to do her own hair because no one else would help her. She has only stubs and one half of a finger that doesn't work, and I was greatly impressed.

Well anyways, I think I have rambled on enough, but I just wanted to say that I am learning how much an effect one person or one small organization can have on so many lives. Maybe one single person can't always change THE world, but I know that a single person can change A world (or many people's worlds).

You Know You're in India When...

You Know You're In India When...

- You start favoring a squat toilet over a Western one

- It becomes a normal thing to have a cow come around the corner when you're walking down a little street

- The power goes out and you don't even bat an eye

- You love bowers (bucket showers)--even with frogs sitting in the corner

- The children say their "yay"BCs instead of ABCs

- You can go into a gas station and come out with a mango drink that is 60% straight mango pulp

- Not a day goes by that you don't see a man peeing from his truck or right by the road

- The children like pressing their fingers on your skin because it changes colors and theirs doesn't

- You can find a questionable object that looks strangely like a chicken heart in the sauce at dinner time

- Every child you see is absolutely beautiful

- Your legs start looking like man legs because you are afraid to shave and get a staph infection

- You're walking down the street in a leprosy colony and can hear strains of music and dialogue from what sounds like an Indian soap opera coming from the hut nearby

- You eat dinner on a banana leaf--even the "fast food" meals come on one

- Time goes by so slow but so fast at the same time--I can't believe I've already been here for a whole week!

- You dance in rainstorms to "Jai Ho" from the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack

- Tutoring children in reading seems to be more tiring than doing hours of manual labor such as moving cinderblocks or transporting buckets of sand

- You see buildings lining the streets that are half destroyed and just left there. Apparently if you build too close to the street, the government will come and bulldoze them until they are the appropriate distance away

- You feel great when someone checks your head and you are told you do not have lice (yet)

- At every construction sight you can find a creepy scarecrow looking thing hanging ominously from the rafters

- Some of the women wear "swimming costumes", which consist of a one piece swimsuit with sleeves and shorts and a skirt type thing on top

- You get used to seeing vehicles drive on the opposite side of the road almost having a heart attack every time you ride on the bus

- You crave things like leafy salads

- You begin to appreciate the higher quality education you have received in America

- You are having the time of your life and don't want to leave

Our trip to Mamallapuram began with a quick stop at the local In & Out. Unfortunately, they did not have burgers or fries; actually it was just a gas station. We thought it was kind of funny though. Piling up in the un-airconditioned van was a little less fun, although we made the most of it and ended up having a dance party in the back thanks to someone's genius idea of bringing an iPod!

When we finally got there, the first thing I did was climb up around the old temples. I even thought to bring my copy of The Herald so I can send it in and get my picture in the paper, as per my Dad's request. The temples were pretty cool, but it was SO HOT outside! We also saw this big boulder that has been named "Krishna's Butterball."

After the temples it was time for tons of shopping and haggling! It got quite stressful. One guy started following Tanner around, trying to sell him a drum. He eventually did buy one, and STILL the guy followed us around. He was trying to get Tanner to get an "upgrade" and buy a better one. We rode these three-wheeled vehicles called "rikh-shaws." The driver was insane and I swear I saw my life flash before my eyes probably 5 TIMES in the 15 minutes we were in the vehicle!

We did arrive in safety though, by some miracle, at the beach resort called Ideal Beach Resort. It was very nice and a great place to relax. We saw the Bay of Bengal and even swam in it, but the pool was a little nicer. We found some of the signs kind of humorous. Instead of NO DIVING like we're used to seeing in the U.S. they said things like "Please avoid"

Some people had gotten fitted for clothing and needed to come back, and guess who came up to the bus while the rest of us were waiting--our drummer friend! He was a good businessman--he ended up making two or three more sales just from people on our bus!

It was a long, long, long drive home in the bus. Like I said before, the traffic was at a standstill for such a long time! Haha one of the guys in our group climbed out of the window and stood on the roof of the bus for a few minutes. He took this picture of the beautiful sunset for me!

We stopped and got some yummy food for dinner, which I liked a lot! It was absolutely delicious.

When I got back, my girls got a hold of my camera and wanted some pictures. Of course, I couldn't say no :)

Today I went to church in Chennai. It was great! Chennai has three good-sized branches, and I was impressed by the number of people that were there today. We were not only accompanied by a pianist, but also by a violinist! The two speakers talked about reverence. Their talks were insightful and I felt the Spirit strongly. Today is Indian's 63rd year anniversary of independence, so all of us wore the little Indian flag pinned to our lapel. One of the speakers also touched on having reverence for one's country and respect for the leaders. For the rest hymn, they sang the national anthem. Every time I hear these beautiful people sing their national anthem, they express their immense pride. It is certainly invigorating!

I got to play the piano for primary today, which was fun. The kids are so cute, and some of them are from Rising Star. I think it is a testament of their faith that they will take an hour and a half ride to Chennai every Sunday in order to go to church and partake of the Sacrament. Hearing them all sing and participate in Sharing Time strengthened my own testimony. I can't get over how beautiful the children are here!

Today we took a day trip to the beach town of Mamallapuram, which is kind of close to Chennai. I had a marvelous fill of temples (built around the year 600), shopping, the beach, and some great new food! When we first got there we visited some of the temple ruins. They had very intricate designs and carvings!

The next hours were spent learning how to do a new type of shopping which involved lots of negotiation and arguing. I'm not sure I was very good at it, but I thought I got some pretty good deals. After several stressful hours, we went to a place called Ideal Beach Resort, which is right on the Bay of Bengal. It was nice to relax for a little while, but at the same time I felt a little guilty and kind of wanted to be back with the kids. The drive back took FOREVER! We had traffic that was at a standstill for probably 20 minutes waiting for a train to come and go, but we finally got back. We stopped at an Indian "fast food" type of place with delicious bread things and an onion/egg omelet thing as well (Great description, huh?). In order to fit with the custom, we only ate with our right hand, which I've never done in my life. We even had to break the bread with one hand! It was absolutely delicious and was not as hard as I thought it would be. When we got back I went over and visited my girls for a little while. They were SO HYPER but so cute (as always).

Well I'm about to head off to bed. Tomorrow should be exciting--those who would like to are taking a bus up to the closest LDS branch, which is up in Chennai. The whole excursion should take about 9 hours! I'm looking forward to it, though.

I'll post some pictures tomorrow. Good night!

Today has been my favorite day so far! I got to go to a small colony nicknamed Moot (don't ask me what the real name is because I have no idea), which started out with about 30 residents. Now there are only seven people there, I think. We were supposed to be on the medical team today, but none of the patients have open wounds except for one, so it was pretty much just a big party.

The bus ride took about an hour and a half (and on the way we saw MONKEYS!!!) winding through several small towns and villages, and we finally bumped our way down the road until we got to Moot. I had been wondering a little bit about how I would feel being around people with such severe physical disfigurations, but once I stepped off the bus I felt perfectly fine. They are such beautiful people, and they are individuals just like us. Even from the few hours I spent with them, I noticed distinct personalities and felt a strong love for them.

The person who made himself known the was Jai Raj (meaning "victorious king") or something to that effect, and boy his personality certainly reflected his name! He heartily welcomed us and at once told us he wanted to dance, and dance he did. We had brought an iPod along and he taught us some sweet Indian dance moves! At one point he saw my sunglasses and wanted to try them on. I let him try them on, and he said "Superstar!" Yes, he was quite the superstar.

The others came out and some joined us in dancing and clapping. There was one old man we affectionately named "Wheels" because he got along by pushing himself on a little scooter-type thing. He has no fingers left and his legs are all gone, but he had what looked like sandals strapped to his hands so he could push himself around. The residents there LOVE games! Some people played Jenga and checkers, while a few of us set up a long row of dominos so Wheels could knock them down. He loved to do that, and every time he did he would do a wind up and knock them down with a loud happy noise.

Another thing that amazed me was the incredible things these people could do, even with their little stumps of hands. For example, I sat on a cot that was made all of rope by one of the guys in the colony. It was very impressive and looked like it would take a lot of strength and effort for anybody to make, especially one without working fingers!

The longer I stay here the longer I realize that the people are affecting me and my perspective as much as (or more than) I am affecting them. I learned a lot from a beautiful woman named Surrosha today. Like the other patients, the physical ramifications of leprosy were readily apparent at the first sight of her body. She was extremely teeny, with one leg and maybe one part of a finger left. Her left eye was sunken in. She showed us her tiny abode and began telling her story through a translator who had come with us. It breaks my heart to see what she has been through. Surrosha used to be very beautiful, she said, with long black hair that almost touched the ground. She got leprosy when she was ten, however, and married when she was fourteen. (Actually, she married Wheels). Sadly, her husband mistreated her by beating her a lot. She no longer lives with him, although obviously they still live in the same colony. I was brought to tears, though, as I spent more time with her and learned of the tremendous compassion she has for others. The government gives leprosy patients the equivalent of about 6 dollars a month, which they can use to buy food or other necessary supplies. (Obviously it doesn't last very long). But Surrosha uses part of that money to buy crackers and other little snacks to feed the birds. She also takes care of two cats! She said that sometimes she goes a little hungry, but it is worth it to be able to take care of the birds. Surrosha's compassion goes further than that--even though she never talks to her abusive husband anymore, she still gives him tea or whatever she has prepared because he can't take care of himself. I think that says a lot about the woman she is. It broke my heart to hear that Surrosha compares herself to a one-winged bird. She said she gets so bored, and no one comes to visit her. Although she has a t.v. she isn't even able to enjoy the shows she would like to watch because Jai Raj has taken it over and only watches what he wants to watch. Surrosha, myself, and two other girls were sitting in her house for a long time. The translator had gone to talk with some of the other people, so we resorted to talking with gestures. It was amazing to see that we could still communicate, even though we could not speak Tamil and she could not speak English. She told us through her gestures a little bit about her life, making slaps against her face and kicking her leg out. Then she ran her finger down her face like a tear and put her hands together like she was going to sleep. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that she must really be hurting and lonely, but not really able to do anything about it. She is a woman of great faith, though. One corner of her room had pictures of Jesus Christ plastered to the wall (as well as a picture of some birds). She gestured to Him a lot, and said that she would love to go to church but can't, so she prays there in her room. The four of us spent some very tender moments together, and when it was time to say goodbye she gave us each a kiss on the cheek. As I returned the kiss, I wondered how many times she has been given that sweet assurance of affection. Victims of leprosy are rarely even looked at, and a kiss is absolutely out of the question.

It was extremely hard for me to say goodbye to the people of Moot because I know I will probably never see them again. I know that Rising Star has had a great impact on their lives, however, because Jai Raj told us that the residents no longer have to go to the city to beg since their needs are taken care of by our organization. I don't think I will ever forget those amazing people at Moot! Before I left I said goodbye one more time to everyone, even the "Superstar" Jai Raj. Then we piled in the bus and took the long bumpy ride back.

That experience in itself made my day, but when we got back to the campus we got to enjoy a dance presentation by the school children. They wore these colorful little shirts, and seemed so excited to show the school all they had learned that summer. They were all SO ADORABLE!

After that we got a wonderful thunderstorm. I haven't seen water pouring from the skies with such force in a long, long time. We volunteers were back at the hostel, and had a great time playing in the rain. It felt so refreshing and I loved how we got to bond a little better.

We had a delicious dinner and then I got to go help my little girls with their homework. Every time I go there I love them more and more. I am still having problems remembering all their names, though, so I feel a little twinge of guilt. I got them to write their names, so now I need to take some time and study the school roster so I can pick them out! Pray for me! Haha.

Well, I'm about ready for bed, but I just want to say that a day like this lets me know this is absolutely where I'm supposed to be. Everything feels so right, and I am learning so much. I love India!