my fabulous final day @ RSO.

Today was amazing. It is not over yet but I am afraid I won't be able to post tonight because we will be busy packing up. We are leaving Rising Star Outreach @ about 4:00 am to head for Delhi. We went with the building team today out to do the final touches on the squatters (the Indian bathrooms we have been building in one of the colonies). This particular colony has an ART SCHOOL where the local lepers paint for a living. Most of them don't even have fingers and it was incredibly humbling to walk into the school and see multiple people barely holding a paint brush and yet, creating a masterpiece. One woman in particular caught my eye. Her name is SUNDARI. She was the sweetest old woman and Chelsea and I fell in love with her work. We both ended up buying a painting from her, as well as our friend, Steve. She was so amazed that we loved her work so much and as she watched us pay the man for her paintings, she stood there and cried. Chelsea and I were both so touched and teary ourselves. It is incredible what these people are able to do and I was amazed to see them use their talents in spite of what they have lost. It was incredible.
This is on the wall of the school. So neat.

Incredible. He doesn't even have fingers. We loved this painting but it wasn't finished so we couldn't purchase it.

This is SUNDARI. She is incredible.


Our next adventure for the day involved these bushes. This colony does not have any bathrooms, hence the reason we are building them. SO.... Chelsea and I both had to use the restroom and were directed to the "hill." It was a lovely sight, walking on the path surrounded by human feces. I realize this is graphic but it was one of the most comical moments of this trip so I just had to write about it.



We worked on the squatters for a while, plastering the outside. It was harder than it looked but a good experience. They look so great! It is amazing to think I helped to build that! It turned out the medical team was actually working in the same colony we were @ which was SO LUCKY! Chelsea and I both got to help wash and bandage wounds of some of the lepers. I am so grateful that I got to have this experience. It was wonderful to sit and talk to the people and help the nurse to make them feel better. It was one of the most MEMORABLE things I have done on this trip.

You can't really see this wound very well but it is on the back of his heel and SO DEEP. I watched the nurse shove the gauze about an inch into his foot. It was crazy but amazing.


As we were walking through the colony we saw KARPAN! He is the man I helped around the hospital yesterday. I was so excited to see him so we got another photo with him @ his home.

Such a fun filled and memorable day. I LOVE Rising Star Outreach. Every moment I am here I wish every person I know and love could see what I have seen here in India. Pictures and words can only go so far. These people are truly INCREDIBLE. Serving here may not change the entire world, but I believe that each day we are here we change a life, and in some small way, it changes a part of the world.

a hospital visit... Indian style.

I was assigned to go with the medical team for the day. Again, we didn't get to wash which I was really bummed about, but we got to visit the hospital. The medical van leaves early and drives around to the colonies, picking up patients that need to visit the hospital. My group headed out to the city and met up with the van @ the hospital. We were each assigned a patient from the colony to take around to their appointments for the day. Luckily the two guys Chelsea and I were assigned to needed the same care and were from the same colony so we got to hang out together. We were assigned to TIAGA RAJEN who was with his wife, VIJAYA, as well as KARPAN. We went to the cardiology department and handed in their charts which were marked "confidential." Odd since we were carrying them around.... We had about an hour to kill before the Doctor was going to arrive so we wandered to the "cafeteria." Sketchy. We spent 10 minutes refusing coffee from our new friends in our best Tamil+actions. We faked it a bit when they persisted and stuck it in front of us... it was sad to decline their offer.

Karpan, Abbey, Tiaga Rajen, Vijaya.

We wandered up to the second floor and I felt like I had stepped back in time. Chelsea and I both had the independent thought that the hospital looked a bit like the set of the movie, Pearl Harbor. Our patients were so proud of us and walked around introducing us to all of their friends @ the hospital. They would randomly be talking to people and look @ us and say something about America and then people would stare. It was so sweet. We met this man who was lying in a bed and his friend asked us to pray and bless him. Chelsea and I were looking @ each other very confused but we folded our arms and said a prayer for him... One of many interesting moments on this trip. Don't worry his friend recorded it on his phone... sketchy. Anyway, we went back down to meet the doctor and Chelsea and I basically sat in the waiting room and talked to people while our colony friends got their shots and check ups. It was so interesting to take it all in and get a feel for an Indian hospital. I took most of these photos for my dad, I thought he would be able to appreciate the appearance of this place.

Our little friend that we blessed....

GREYS ANATOMY gone India. Doctors in training.

This nurse was just kickin it on her phone for about 20 minutes.... Also take note of her desk....

Pear Harbor flashbacks anyone?


As I returned from the hospital, I again got to spend time with these awesome CHILDREN.

monkey.

This is one of my all time FAVORITE children here. His name is Madidos and he is six years old. He is the CUTEST little boy I have ever seen and so full of life. I call him "MONKEY" (he calls himself "King Kong") because I keep telling him he looks just like Terk, the ape friend on Disney's Tarzan. He is adorable.












You can't see it very well but his hair is honestly always in a mohawk. It is so cute and just adds to his character and the fact that he is a lookalike!

a new home.

We visited a larger, nicer colony today, about two hours away from Rising Star. Some of our group went out to the colony yesterday and kindly scraped the home of a man, @ his request. They prepared the home for our painting job today. I was one of the lucky ones who got to paint his home for him while he watched with a big smile on his face, complimenting our every stroke! It was hot as usual but enjoyable nonetheless. RSO will continue to visit this colony and paint more of the homes. You can imagine they are jealous of his new home!

You can't really see the home owner, but he is next to me in the doorway.


A sort of BEFORE and AFTER shot. This is the home we painted next to the neighboring home. The yellow is so cheery!


Our drive back once again turned into a lovely excursion and we ended up pulling off in some alley way so that our bus driver could collect some sort of equipment for the other buses. Sketchy. Then Chelsea and I both had to use the bathroom so we crossed ANOTHER highway and attempted to communicate our need for a bathroom to some individuals at a "Dentist" office. Sketchy. We finally got our point across and were able to use their restroom which was, of course, SKETCHY. Our 2 hour drive had turned into a 4 hour drive but we eventually made it back safely. In India, everything ends up taking longer than expected. We timely people here (Chelsea and I) are struggling a bit with the lack of organization and punctuality. But hey, it's all part of the experience, I guess.

Tonight I was reminded of what an example CHILDREN are, of unconditional LOVE and so many things that are good. The kids here @ Rising Star are incredible. They welcome every person, young or old, dark or white, and make them SMILE. What a talent they have to help others feel LOVED. Many of these children come from less than ideal situations and are deprived of love and attention in multiple aspects. And yet, they give of LOVE so freely and so genuinely. I feel like LUCKY to have associated with such wonderful kids, even if only for a short time. I have been a recipient of UNCONDITIONAL LOVE.

a little side note.

I just have to take a break from India and post some news from home. I woke up this morning to a DEMAND to check my brother Geoffrey's blog. My sister in law, Aleena, is pregnant and due in January. She went to find out the sex of the baby on Monday and this is what they saw:


In case you can't tell, TWINS! A boy and a girl!
I am SO excited for them! They are the greatest parents and have the most beautiful children. I can't wait till December to have two new additions to our growing family. Congrats to Geoff and Aleena!

more of the kids.

I just have to post a few more PRECIOUS faces. I love these kids.

painting.

Today I got to stay at Rising Star and PAINT! The children's hostels are located right above where the volunteers stay. Past volunteers have painted all the walls of their rooms with BLUE paint. Our group has been able to decorate the walls by painting colorful pictures on them. It is SO FUN. The girls hostel has lots of great paintings like Dora the Explorer, butterflies, rainbows, and fish. My group ventured over to the boys hostel to start on their walls which have been blank. We painted one huge wall with a moon, stars, clouds, and a ROCKET SHIP! We had such a good time.


The boys came in for their lunch which they eat in the hostel. We had only just begun on some of the walls but they were SO HAPPY! It was cute to see their faces and excitement. They kept saying, "Paint this wall! And this wall!" We told them we would do as many as we could. They loved the colors and the paintings.


After lunch Chelsea and I worked on Buzz Lightyear. Each room sort of had a "theme" so we stuck with the SPACE idea. It turned out really great and the little boys love it. It was fun to do a different kind of service for these children and put a SMILE on their faces. They are all so grateful. It makes me HAPPY.

a sunday to remember.

Today was an adventure. We woke up early this morning to go to church in Chennai. It was a two hour drive which went smoothly. @ church I got to talk to Elder Tuscano for a long time. We went to Gospel Principles with Josh and it was quite the experience that I will attempt to relay to you now: The young man started out by asking everyone to introduce themselves and give their name, where they are from, and tell their favorite drink. Coincidently, the topic of the lesson was "The Lords Law of Health." He proceeded by asking the class to raise their hands if they drink alcohol, then chastised those who do. Then asked who drinks coffee, pointed specifically to one woman and when she responded, "No." He said, "Good job sister." Mind you the girl next to her had said that her favorite drink was coffee. Awesome. Chelsea and I could not believe what was being said, it was pure awkward and we kept exchanging looks with each other and the American missionaries. It was classic.
It was said to say goodbye to JOSH! We are going to kick it in Provo when he returns.

NEXT came lunch. We convinced them to go to an American restaurant called SPARKY'S. It was a great decision.

This is SPARKY. He was the greatest manager and checked on us about 4 times during our meal. Great guy!

Chelsea and I shared chicken fingers and we ate an amazing dessert called "Dessert Nachos."



OH! I was thrilled because this restaurant had DR. PEPPER. Well, they only had diet but I did not care. It was the best moment ever. Here is our before photo, right when we got it:

And AFTER. Whoever can stand DIET Dr. Pepper is weird. Also, THIS IS INDIA so there may have been something else wrong with it but it was terrible. We both ordered a PEPSI and were satisfied.


NEXT we began our trek home. Remember how it was supposed to be a 2 hour problem? Well, 5 hours later, we returned to Rising Star. Worst experience of my life. Our bus broke down, not 1, not 2, but 3 TIMES! First, we ran out of gas. We hung out on the side of the rode like dumb Americans for about 45 minutes. This is Steve, Chelsea, Lincoln and me on top of the bus. We just stood up there and waved as people stared at us. It was awesome.


THEN, our engine blew. We pulled off to the side of the road, called some mechanic (very sketchy) and waited for about an hour. Steve, Lincoln, Chelsea and I went on an adventure to find water for the group. After crossing a 4 lane highway and hopping some random divider in a skirt and sandals, we found liquid. Soon after we returned to the bus, we left.
An hour later, our engine blew AGAIN. This time it was pitch dark, in the middle of a country road. We did not have a chance to pull off the road so cars just pulled around us. By this time everyone was angry and in horrible moods, which made for eventful road side chat.
We attempted HITCH HIKING:

PUSHED our bus to the side of the road:


and AFTER waiting for another hour, we were rescued by another bus. All 30 of us climbed into it and drove the remaining 15 minutes back to Rising Star. It was crazy, but a Sunday I will never forget.