Random Thoughts from India

This part of the country is flat F-L-A-T--flat! And I am from Saskatchewan, so I know flat. I mean this is watch-your-goat-run-away-for-6-days-standing-on-a-chapati flat! I can't imagine where the water goes when it rains. It must go into the soil. If you were to put the proper slope on an average sized parking lot here, the center would be the tallest hill for miles. I guess it makes it easy to make rice patties and there is no shortage of those.

Hair. These people know how to grow hair: long, thick, shiny, black hair--and not just the women! The men all have perfectly quaffed, Elvis-sized, thick, black hair. It is like there is some naturally occurring Minoxidil in the water. And it is not just that they all have a lot of it. Their hair is always clean and shiny and never seems to move in the wind. Maybe it is so thick that there is nowhere for it to move. I, on the other hand, had an emergency haircut 10 minutes before leaving for the airport, and it is the best thing that I could have done. (Thank you, thank you, thank you to my daughter for that!) Even with all my hair only 3/8 of an inch long, I somehow still manage to look like I have just been drug through a hedge backwards.

Sari's in the surf. It seems that bathing suits have not made it to southern India. We stopped at the beach where three seas meet. The sand part of the beach was very small and packed with people. Most were wading in the water, some swimming, but I was the only guy in a bathing suit. The women were in their saris, and the men were in pants or shorts. I am glad I didn’t bring my Speedo! The crowd seemed to part as I walked through, and there was no problem finding space to swim. They were all very polite, but you might have thought Moby Dick had just washed ashore with the stares I got. I would have been less conspicuous in a sari, I think.

Chipmunks! Yes, there are chipmunks in India! I guess there is no good reason that there shouldn’t be, but I was quite startled to see a couple of chipmunks running along the wall in front of my window this morning. I wonder what Alvin would sound like with an Indian accent?

St. Luke's

St. Luke’s is so much more than a leprosarium. They have adopted a much more holistic approach to the problem of leprosy. Curing leprosy is a simple matter of the right antibiotics; changing the root cause and the social attitudes around leprosy is a whole other issue. I am not sure how many people in North America realize that leprosy is still a problem in the world. India is by far the world hot spot for new leprosy cases, accounting for about 75% of new cases globally. Fortunately the number of new cases is dropping, but even if there were no more new cases starting today, we still have a 50 year problem.



Early detection is since the bacteria that causes leprosy can be completely wiped out with cheap antibiotics, but the problem is the social stigma. People, especially women, tend not to act quickly because lepers are still shunned from their community. Once the bacteria advances to the stage of damaging nerves, the condition can be halted, but the nerve damage cannot be reversed.


Many of the people I met at St. Luke’s have been there for many years. Damaged limbs prevent them from regular employment, and the community is not welcoming toward them should they try to return to their home village. St. Luke’s retains them and gives them meaning and purpose in their lives. Depending on the degree of damage they have some can work in the fields or do handicrafts. One man is making candles. Others help to care for their fellow patients less fortunate than themselves.




In addition to helping patients suffering from leprosy, St. Luke’s works with the children of patients providing schooling and a home to live in. There are agricultural training programs for these children that include gardening, goat farming, and pig farming. Education of the community is key to integrating people back into society, and although this is a slow process, St. Luke’s is working hard to bring this about. Although I am sure that leprosy will be eradicated from the earth at some point, I also predict it will be long after the roof we are building crumbles. My thanks to the staff of St. Luke’s for their dedication to helping our brothers and sisters in a time of need. When you do this for the least of these...

South India Spa & Weight Loss Program

If you are looking for a great way to tone up and lose a few extra pounds, try a trip to South India in April. The program starts as you leave the plane. You can feel the fat melt away in the +40 degree heat. As a matter of fact, it's not just the fat--you melt! You receive plenty of encouragement from all around as you struggle to retrieve your bags from the one small luggage belt carrying everyone's bags from both flights that have just arrived. This becomes your first cardiac workout. The drive to your final destination is a great core workout. It is far too hot to sit back in your seat, so you try to remain upright as your driver navigates the very busy, ever-changing roads. Three hours later you will be 3 pounds lighter, more fit, and have no appetite because of the heat. Only 4 more days to go! This is just what I needed to break that fitness plateau I have been on for the last 6 weeks!

In all seriousness, I was very warmly received (pun intended) by the staff at St. Luke’s Leprosy Colony! I am impressed with the level of organization, professionalism, and care the patients are receiving. There are more than 150 people under care here, and many have been here for more than 20 years. The buildings are aging; many were built in stages as funds were available. Three of the buildings have metal roofs that were supposed to be temporary many years ago! Granted, this is the hottest time of the year, but being under a tin roof at 42 degree C is unbelievable! I can feel the heat radiating down from the roof like an infrared heater. I wish I brought an IR heat tester with me. Or maybe I don’t want to know the surface temperature! We are proposing to replace one roof, and there is a German NGO that will be doing a second roof, but there is still one to go!

This group is well organized and accustomed to doing projects with NGOs and individuals, so I am confident that this project will go smoothly. Reporting is possible because they have internet on campus--not just internet, I was informed, but fast internet! Sure enough, there is one computer connected to the internet at a blistering 10Mb! It reminds me of my office in Ag Mech when I started.

I have not done much to earn my keep yet, but this morning I looked at the playground equipment outside my window to see one broken swing. I knew I brought my Leatherman for something. I found some wire in the ditch (don’t ask) and wired up the swing. I took it for a spin to test the repair. If it holds me, it will hold an entire class of these young kids. I hope that will not be the sum total of my contribution from this trip. Oh yes, I have also donated quite a bit of blood to the local night creatures.

It All Computes! - April 18

It was great to see Grace and the CCIT again today! The place was as clean as a whistle, as always, and Grace was welcoming, as always. It was good to hear the students working hard. They ARE dedication! Some of the students are nearing completion of their course ahead of schedule--a feat even more remarkable considering all the power failures the area has had. You learn to save and save often!

Grace will be moving her computer training skills to a new home under a new name to better serve the needs of the people of the Champai area. I am very excited for her! This will become a true family business as more of her family members graduate. Some will come back to work with her and help her build the business. Grace is always helping someone in her extended family; it will be good for her to get some help back. This is a great example of the sense of comunity that is so common here. I keep learning from Grace and others like her as I travel around the world. I wish Grace the best of luck in her new adventure, and if there are any unused laptops out there, I know where they could find a home...

You can't believe the difference an education makes in a place like this. Too often we take our education for granted in Canada. An education does not guarantee you an easy life here, but having no education guarantees you a hard life! The students thank all of you in Canada who sponsored their tuition. I assure you that you have made a huge difference!

Trigger

It was a busy day yesterday: lots to take in, lots to deal with. I went to sleep at about 10:30 mostly due to exhaustion--a good exhaustion--but that was not to last. By 3:30 a.m., my mind was wide awake, processing, not interested in sleep. This is not new for me. It happens often. I can only take in so much before I have to stop and think about it. I am great in a crisis. I forge ahead, directing others, solving problems, always walking out of the smoke. Then, some time later, I deal with what I have been through. Life has been busy lately, with Haiti thrown in just in case I dared to think that I might get my head above water, and I know I have a backlog of “stuff” to process. It is great to have 4 solid hours of think-time this morning, but why now? What triggered the need to process this morning? Children singing. The universal language of music.

Yesterday we went to an orphanage where 4 of the students we sponsored come from. Dr. Ray wanted to check out some of the local orphanages anyway, so we killed two birds with one stone. They have 99 orphans here from age 2 to age 17, both boys and girls. They had very little warning that we were coming but warmly received us and gave us a tour. I am not the kind that loves to hold the kids and play ball with them. My strength is more in evaluating buildings, drainage, security and so on. That is pretty much what I did--asked about the agriculture they teach, looked at the mulberry seed harvesting they do, stuff like that--while Dr. Ray talked to the house mother and the kids.

All the kids assembled in the chapel to hear a message from us, and I took the opportunity to meet with the boys taking classes from Grace at CCIT and talk with them a bit. We took a picture (note: they are smiling this time!) and then we went inside. There were opening remarks; Dr. Ray gave a motivational speech about education, caring, and community; and then the children sang for us. Not just Mary had a little lamb, no! They sang hymns in three part harmony. They did not just sing out of duty; they sang with joy and heart. They smiled. They beamed. Music is a part of this community, and it is alanguage that we all understand. I stopped thinking about the construction techniques of the chapel, of the politics of helping, of the flight we might not catch because of the rain. I stopped thinking about it all and was simply inspired.

It was the voices of the children that triggered my minded this morning, their voices focussing me on what needs to be done and reminding me why I am here, why this matters. Their voices are helping me process all that I have experienced, put it into perspective and carry on. Thank you, and keep singing!

Clinic to the Stars - April 17

Sorry...That should have been "Clinic Under the Stars." The power is a bit flaky here! I have just returned from the new Zowkathar clinic building, and it is a thing of beauty if I do say so myself. No Kappa says it is the nicest building in town, and I have to agree with him. Although the official opening will be in January, The community will start to "test drive" it next week, I suspect. The current clinic is a small, 2-room, wooden building; the new clinic is 9 rooms and made of concrete, brick and tin--a big improvement!

Many people have worked hard to make this happen, and many dollars have been raised abroad. Medical Mercy Canada has worked with their sister organizations in India and A Better World has worked in Canada. Ultimately, it is the local people who will run the clinic with guidance and financial support from MMC. There is no shortage of need in the area, that is for sure! This has been a great example of a collaboration that has worked.

There are always technical issues with a new building--that is why I am here--but sometimes the issues are bigger than expected. When we started this project, the town was to supply water, but, since then, the town demand for water has outstripped the supply. There has been a draught, and the amount of developement in the area makes this place look like a boom town. Be that as it may, we still need water. We have looked at a number of options including pumping from the river, storing rain water, and having water trucked in. The cheap farmer in me is thrilled that we now have a composite solution that will meet the immediate needs of the clinic, at least.

I met the new doctor at the old clinic I suspect he is anxous to move into the new digs! He will be living in the clinic until a house can be built. He should feel lucky. If I had this building in Haiti, I would have 20 families living in it! Now matter how bad off you are, there is always someone else worse off! The same holds true in the other direction: no matter how well off you are, there is always someone with more. Perhaps we should learn to be content with what we have? But, I digress. The people of Zowkathar will be very happy with their new clinic, and if you had something to do with making this happen, pat yourself on the back. Good job!

On a completely unrelated note, every trip seems to have a first of some sort. This trip is no exception: I saw my first pineapple growing! It would be a fun exercise to list everything you have ever eaten then see how many of those items you have touched while they were alive.

Unplugged, But Not By Choice - April 17

I am unplugged again, but it is different this time. I didn’t plan this, for starters! I can usually count on getting internet at certain spots along my route, but this time it has not happened. The hotel was full; we did not stop at CCIT in Champai; and there is not even cell phone out here in Zohkathar! I am still writing when I have a minute (usually early in the morning when I can’t sleep), but I feel more cut off this trip than ever before. I am safe, healthy, happy, but cut off. I did a week unplugged before without trouble, so what is the difference now?

Expectation, is all. This morning I was up with the first light of dawn. I am staying in a very nice guest house overlooking the Burma boarder. Again, it was very quiet. Again, it was the voices in my head that pulled me from my sleep. But today I looked out at those on the receiving end of the racial rant. As I worried about being disconnected from my family and friends, I looked down at a Burmese family on the India side of the river--truly unplugged, disconnected. Unplugged not just from technology but from their homeland, their family, and their culture. Children who will not see their parents birthplace, children who will be judged by their name first and their actions second, children who will have to create a new culture with elements from their past and present.

I have yet to make the trip from Aizawl to Zowkathar without our driver stopping somewhere to drop off a letter or a package along the way. It just seems to be a community service the driver provides. Although I am unplugged, this blog is getting to you because of a network of friends: a driver willing to drop off a memory stick with Grace at CCIT; Grace willing to download and email this it my editor, Crystal; and Crystal willing to work her magic and mount this for the rest of my family and friends to see. As long as I have friends, I will never be completely unplugged.