This morning I woke up at 6am again. It is getting annoying, but I guess there are worse things in the world then getting up early. I went to mass, which is in Bengali, and was a little homesick, because mass always reminds me of either St. Stephens or St. Ignatius, which reminds me of friends and family. For breakfast Fr. made Nepalese noodles, which were ramen noodles with spices. They were very good. Then we went with Fr. Herman to DDC, to check on the second day of the AIDS training. It was going well, and I listened for a while, to a women speak about the lifecycle of HIV. I could tell what she was speaking about because of the diagram on the board. Then we went to St. Xavier, a private Jesuit school in the area. We sat at the dining table with a couple of the Fathers and had coffee while the Fathers discussed a break in that happened a while ago. I like St. Xavier’s because the children are all taught in English, so everyone speaks very good English. I also like it because the Fathers there are very nice and always make me feel welcome.
On the drive home Fr. decided at the last minute to send me to his friend, the bank manager’s house for the day. At first I was surprised, he had not even called this family and here he was dumping me off on them during their holiday. I was horribly wrong. They were so welcoming and wonderful. They spoke perfect English and understood my English. I spoke with the husband, Jonathon, about politics and with the wife about adjusting to new places. They are originally from Kolkata and they have only been in Raiganj a year. They also have a two-year-old daughter, Trisha, who is a doll! I stayed with them from 11am-7pm. We chatted, played with Trisha, ate lunch, had coffee and just hung out. It was such a great time, I really enjoyed having someone to chat with, and they seemed to genuinely enjoy my company. They invited me over whenever I would like and I honestly think I will take them up on the offer. Especially since the wife, Rachicka, stays at home during the day and she said she would love some company (plus Trisha is so fun to play with!). They are a young couple and are more accustomed to metropolitan living than rural living. They were both so nice! I am glad that I have been able to continue making friends, it makes my journey seem less lonely and more authentic. Father came at 7pm and on the walk home we stopped and bought these really wonderful fried dough sugar sauce coated things. They were delicious!
Dinner was uneventful. Fr. is leaving Monday night for Dehli and he will be gone until the 27th. Which means I am left to fend for myself! He is leaving behind work for me to do, and I think I will go to the field for a few of the days. I will have class everyday, including Saturday, because Monday the 26th is a holiday and class is cancelled, so we will have class on Saturday to make up for it. That’s all for now, sending my love to all back home!
PS Ajla I couldn’t find the moon tonight, so instead I am wearing mismatched socks!
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Way to go Chelsea! Can't wait for you to come home and fix some of those sweet donut things that you & your Mom can bring over - hint. How fotunate the children are to have you there. I've forgotten the hokey pokey - a lesson?
ReplyDeleteYou will find as you look back upon your life, that the moments that stand out are the moments when you have done things for others! You, my dear, are creating those moments (of which, I am sure, you are unaware!) Your day with the children singing and dancing and laughing made me smile. I'm glad all those years of dance lessons are coming in handy!! Love ya bunches, Mom
ReplyDeleteLove it Chelsea. I can't help but feel I'm a lump on a log just sitting here going to school and not really helping anyone other than myself.
ReplyDeleteYou're great.
Andrew
Hello love,
ReplyDeleteIn order to respond to you I say "But instead I found the moon and the stars and throughoutly enjoyed them for a good 5 minutes while freezing outside" :-)