Zac's India Mission

Hello everyone,

This week has been a week of preparation for the next three weeks. This week I was in communication with the CCV team that is coming. Giving them last minute preparation details before they left. I also finished up a lot of projects that I have been working on. I finalized the web content for both the Mid India website and also the majority of the content for the Media Production website. I also wrote an article on the Christian Fair I attended last weekend. David's brother Ajai is planning on sending it in to Christian Standard or another magazine to be published. I guess I will see if it will be published or not later. I also worked on a paper that I am writing about the movement. I still have several pages left to write but I will have it done in the next few days. I made final my final touches on the poster I created for the Oasis of Love school. I will hopefully have it printed this week so that I am able to give it to them next week. But that was the gist of what I have done throughout the week at the studio.

Wednesday evening I attended a rally that David took me to for the movement. The rally was in celebration of a Guru Ravidas Jayanti birthday which is actually tomorrow. Ravidas is a well-known and respected guru of the 14 century. Many of the Chamar caste study his teachings. The funny thing is that though many people have studied Ravidas' teachings they don't act or follow the teachings. Ravidas taught that the caste system was not right and that all people are equal and should have equal rights. He also believed that idol worship was wrong and that there is only one omnipresent and  omnipotent god. 

David was able to print about 2,000 copies of the religious books of the Chamar caste that Ravidas read and followed. He gave out about 40 copies of this book to people at this rally and read a few passages from the book and how the Chamar people need to read their own religious books and follow what it says instead of just reading it and not acting on it. It was good to be able to experience this rally. David told me that prior to the rally that many people didn't come to the rally because many people of the near village were saying not to attend this meeting because the Christians are heading it up. The village leaders didn't want the people to start separating themselves from the rest of the village people. The few that showed up were really excited that they had printed off their holy book and was teaching from it. Now these people will go back to the village and tell the others that it wasn't the Christians preaching the bible. When the next rally takes place there will be more people that come and hear what the leaders have to say. 

Thursday was the actually birthday of Ravidas and there was a bigger rally that took plac e with over 2,000 people. David had me stay home because he didn't know how safe it would be since it would be in the middle of town. He then later called and said that there may be a chance you can drive by the rally and see for yourself what it looks like. Makson, Manee, and myself went to see if we could drive by and see it but David called when we almost arrived and said that there was no way to drive by cause there were road blocks on that street. So we went to Jabalpur and I was able to do some shopping. I bought two “cortes” which are a type of Indian shirt for males.

Today I was thinking that I have less than three weeks left here.  It was sad to think that I am going to leave all these people that I have become such good friends with. Yeah I want to get back home to see my friends and family but it will be hard leaving this behind. I will definitely have to return and see everyone.

That has been my week. Thank you all so much for your comments and for your prayers. I would ask your prayers for the three guys from CCV that will be here tomorrow. We will be doing a lot traveling and a lot of teaching of media production and web design. Pray that it would be a productive week and that the guys will adjust well and stay healthy while they are here. Thanks you and have a wonderful week. 

This week was filled with many great memories and events. On Tuesday I celebrated my 24 birthday in India. It doesn't seem that crazy having a birthday but a birthday in India is not just a birthday, its a big party. Its a good thing that David and Sheela didn't know that my birthday was Tuesday until morning devotions when Manee told everyone that it was my birthday today. I looked at Sheela and she had this surprised look on her face. As soon as we left from devotions Sheela began planning my party for lunch time. When all was said and done lunched was served for over 50 people at the studio, the cake was made, and had a present to open. I can't even imagine what it would have been like if they would have had several days to prepare for it. 

Wednesday I spent the morning playing and being with the kids at Oasis of Love. I got the idea to make a poster for the school with all the kid's and teachers faces making the outline of a cross. So I had to go and take the pictures of the children to start making the poster. I had a great time with the kids playing cricket and then also teaching them a few songs to sing. I taught them Jesus Loves Me. 

Thursday I went and finished taking pictures of some of the kids that were not at school the day before. Then I had to pack up my things before leaving on the train for Bilaspur where the Christian Fair took place. The train was delayed about a two hours and we finally boarded at about 9pm. We arrived to Bilaspur at about 5am and I was wiped out. We went to Sheela's brothers house and that is where we stayed for the weekend. About 9am we left to go to the fair which was about a 45 min drive. The place where the fair is held is an island that is created by two rivers. There are no bridges that go to the island but the water in some places is about knee deep so people can walk across. Other ways of making it across are canoe (with about 20 people crowded on it) or a water buffalo cart. The first time across we took the canoe because we were with David's brother Ajai who was the main speaker at the fair. He had special privileges so we were able to only have 6 people in the canoe so that it would not flip over. The second time across, which was at 10pm, David and I took the water buffalo cart across. It was pretty crazy  because we could not see where we were going and we thought for sure we would end up soaked in nasty water. 

A little side note before going on: This Christian Fair is held ever year and this year was the centennial. Before going there was projected to be about 80,000 people attending. After the weekend I heard that there was over 100,000 people on the island over the weekend. Picture no bathroom facilities for 100,000 people for a week. HAHA!! The river, the forest, the sandy beach, the walking paths, pretty much everywhere became the bathroom for 100,000 people. For that reason and many others is why some people won't step foot in the water, but for the majority of the people the river was not only the bathroom but also a swimming pool, laundry room, drinking water supply, and fishing hole.  

For this weekend this island is transformed into a village. People bring their tents for various businesses, tents to sleep in, tents for restaurants, and etc. Anything that you would find in a normal city you would find on this island for this weekend only. Luckily I was with the right people for the fair and the Lall family was given a special tent with a few beds, some chairs to sit on, and a fan which was very much appreciated. Because during the long sessions of preaching and singing competitions all in Hindi I spent a lot of my time in that tent sleeping, reading, and taking pictures of the incoming crowd across the river.  

Now a little information about the fair. The atmosphere of the fair was more like a state fair in the U.S. Many people walking around shopping for things, meeting old friends, and watching events and competitions. The difference was that it was a Christian gathering of all denominations from all over India. I have been thinking and I could not think of a single Christian event that would compare to this. I'm not what it would have been like back in the day when their were big tent revivals in the US but I think that it was like that but multiplied 100x because of 100,000 people. David, Sheela, and grandma Pushpa (David's mother) received special awards for lifetime Christian service. The last two evenings there was a special guest, a famous singer/actor, by the name of Vijai Benedict who in the last 10 years has became a Christian. He was there to sing a few songs each night. Many other pastors/evangelists of India were there and were recognized for their service for the kingdom. Now that I have experienced this weekends event Ajai wants me to write up my thoughts and experience to send to Christian Standard or to the Horizon to be published.

That was my crazy week and this week will begin the busiest of my time here. Next weekend the CCV team comes to help teach the guys at the studio how to operate some of the new equipment that they have recently received. So I am looking forward to seeing the three guys this next weekend. Well thank you all so much for your continued prayers. It doesn't even seem possible that I have been here over a month now. One prayer request that I have is that I wouldn't grow complacent now that I have been here for this long and just wait for the time to be over, but that God will continue to challenge me and teach me whatever lessons he has for me to learn. 

Thank you so much and tune in next week to see what happens to Zac in India. Make sure  you take a look at the pictures I have added in my photo album. 

Wow, I can't believe I have started my 5th week in India. It seems as each week keeps flying by faster and faster. Well this week was a little on the down side in terms of excitement and crazy experiences. I did a lot of work in the studio the first few days of the week. I finished up the 2nd draft of the web content that will go on the Mid India website and then finished the first draft of the content for the Mid India Productions website. 

Tuesday night I began to feel sick again. My stomach hurt like crazy and I had diarrhea for most of the day on Wednesday. Early that morning I also found out that one of the guys that I am closely working with, Manee, also had the same symptoms so that it wasn't just me being a weak American with stomach problems in a foreign country. So Wednesday my day consisted of sleeping, watching a movie, reading , and sitting on the pot. 

Friday was a day of fun and excitement. I was able to attend a picnic with the Oasis of Love kids, which are kids with physical and mental handicaps. I rode out with the kids to the missions church camp site. That is where we had our picnic. It didn't take long after the kids filed of the bus that I was playing cricket with some of the older boys, which I have a bad tendency to swing the cricket paddle like a baseball bat, imagine that. We ate lunch together, by the way was probably one of the more spicy meals I've had, and then we played more games. I won a game of lotto which was more like BINGO, but I think the main teacher rigged the game so that I would win after she saw the last number that I needed in order to win. When that was over with I busted out my camera and began taking photos of all the kids. It is hard to explain but they enjoy that more than anything. Its a good thing that we have digital cameras where we are able to see the pictures after they are taken. So I would take a picture of the kids and show it to them. They would point out themselves and start smiling and laughing. But only one picture would not do, so I ended up taking many pictures of kids as they made different poses or did a cartwheel or a pushup or a funny hand gesture behind someone else's head, you know the typical kid behavior when a camera shows up. 

Tonight I went and played some cricket with a bunch of kids. It was fun to play with some non-Christian kids. Even though I had no idea what they might had said to me. But they seemed to be having  fun watching a white boy play cricket for only the second time ever. By the way if anyone is interested today I weighed myself on a scale and I have gained 5 pounds since I have been here, which may seem good for some of you to know that I am eating well but I am eating to well. Before leaving for India I was hoping to lose about 5 pounds, now when I get back I will have the job of loosing 10 pounds before I get married. But anyways, thought you might want to know that. 

Well that has been my week so far. Next week will be the same for the first few days but then Thursday will be traveling to a Christian gathering for the weekend. 

This week was my third week in India. Thursday marked exactly three weeks in India and two weeks in Damoh. After returning to Damoh from Bhopal last weekend I didn't feel very well starting Monday afternoon through Wednesday. My stomach was bothering me and took Tuesday off to just relax and rest so that I would get better sooner. Wednesday and Thursday were normal days working at the studio. I thought that I probably should get some good work in at the studio since I am not sure what will happen the next several weeks, if I will be traveling or be in Damoh for a while. 

Friday morning I left early to go and visit a good friend of mine from college, Katie Guthrie, who has been in Kulpahar since last June. It was about a 5 hour drive which seemed like forever because my driver didn't speak English and I don't know any Hindi to talk to him. So most of the trip there I was able to listen to my ipod. I arrived at Kulpahar around 1pm which was right in time for lunch. It was really great to see Katie. She gave me a tour of the place after I ate and was able to me some of the girls that live at the children's home. Before evening Katie and the older girls taught me how to play a game called “depot” (I think that's the name). It was a fun game to play and something to do to meet some of the girls that Katie has been living with for the last 8 months. 

Saturday I was able to share with Katie the entire crazy story of my engagement to Mercedes. She was excited to hear the story since she had heard from other people about it. After lunch the boys organized a game of cricket for after school. I went and learned how to play and had a lot of fun playing. My team lost but I didn't play to bad for the first time ever playing. It was similar to playing baseball in some aspects so it was easy to get  use to it. Saturday night I was able to meet some of the younger girls at a prayer time. And then this morning we went to church and I helped Katie transfer some pictures from one computer to another because I had a fashdrive that could do it quickly. And then I made the 5 hour journey back to Damoh and arrived back at around 6:00pm. 

Anyways it was very special to see Katie, especially for her to see me, because she hadn't had anyone her age that she could have a relationship with to talk to. So we were able to talk about a lot of things that she was experiencing and listen to some of her stories. I was able to tell her some of my crazy stories and share what I have been learning. I think this visit was very timely for her because I think she was beginning to wear down and so I was able to encourage her in some form. I have so much respect for Katie because it must be so hard to have been gone from family and friends for nearly a year while being pretty much alone in terms of relationships. 

The trip was good for me too because I was able to get her thoughts on some cultural issues which are hard to talk with people who have been here for a long time or with others who are not here. We both agreed that it is probably is more difficult to go on a mission trip alone because you have no one you can share the trip with. With a team you have the other people that you can talk with not only on the trip but also after the trip and there will always be that bond or connection with those people. Anyways it was definitely a very good trip. 

Please pray that I will continue to be healthy for the rest of the trip. Traveling seems to be very brutal on the body, especially driving on Indian roads. Pray also that I would be wise with my time remaining in India. The weeks are flying by and I don't want to miss out on an opportunity that God has placed before me. Thanks and hope you all have a wonderful week.