I miss my computer so much. I can't believe this is how we used to do it in the old days. I hate having to come upstairs and fight my kids over this monster that is chained to a desk. Craziness!

Anyway, I hope to have caught up through our next-to-last day by the end of this post. So here goes...
Who says you can't still get your picture made with Mother Theresa in India?

On Wednesday, our hosts wanted to give us a chance to do some shopping. Because of the huge beggar problem, there was no way for us to just go shopping in a street market. We couldn't really be outside anywhere without getting swarmed. And it is so pitiful because they just don't give up when you say no. You can get in the van, and they will stand there knocking on the window until you practically have to drive over them. It was so hard to watch.

But because of this, they took us to a handicraft fair that you have to pay to get into. So we were free to roam around and find some souvenirs. The prices are all negotiable, of course, and thankfully we had Solomon and company to help us haggle. There was one shirt that I really wanted that the seller said was 400 rupees. This translates into about $10. But when Sagar tried to bring him down, he wouldn't go below 375. So Sagar says, "Walk away." So we did. We waited on the girls to get back, and then Sanga went over to buy it. She got it for 250! It was awesome. We were so lucky to have them with us.

The picture above is just classic Solomon. This man has more of a servant heart than anyone I've ever meant. He absolutely refused to let us carry our own bags. So I had to capture him standing there holding everyone's stuff. He was just adorable and I miss him very much.
This is my oh-so-subtle picture of Muslim prayer time. It was kind of surreal to see these men just grab some grass, lay out their rugs and go through the whole ritual. I'm quite sure there are places in Nashville where I could see this very thing, I just never have. But it is everywhere over there.
After shopping, it was Pizza Hut for lunch. The pizza was good, but the most exciting part was that they had actual sweet tea... with actual ice! I was completely ecstatic after so many days without my addiction. I even got Pastor David to try it, and I think he liked it. However, his came with ice cream in it, and that just seemed a little weird to me.

After having my sweet tea, I could have stayed another week. But of course that option wasn't available. There was a bell by the door that you were supposed to ring if you had a good time. It was fun to hear people ring the bell and hear the Pizza Hut guys yell, "Thank You!" It was like an Indian version of Moe's.

This is Pastor David, his wife Esther and their 7-month old baby girl, Jessica. She was a doll, but I could never get her to smile for the camera. I loved watching David interact with her and just shower her with kisses. Some things are clearly universal.

This is the only picture I got of Gishon in action. He was my driver most of the time, and although I thought he was going to kill me more than once, overall I know he was doing a great job. He would smile at us every now and then, as if our absolute paralyzing fear was somewhat amusing to him. He didn't really speak English, but every day I'd tell him thank you and he would give me such a genuine smile. He was just one more reason I fell in love with this country.

After a brief rest at the hotel, we went back out to see the Baptist Center India. This is a project of the church that Pastor Samuel was very excited to tell us about. There is a church up on a hill alongside a very busy road, and they own something like 19 acres of land out there. There is a home for the aged currently located on site that houses eight elderly women I'll tell you about in a bit. Eventually the plan is to move the orphanage out there as well, along with several other projects. It was great to hear about their vision for this center, and have a chance to pray over it with several of the church elders.

I had to take this picture. It was so symbolic of the way these people love one another, and extended that love to us. One thing that we realized very quickly is that the Indian people have no apparent concept of homophobia. Their men will hug each other, walk arm in arm, hold hands, etc., and no one even raises an eyebrow. It didn't take our men long to accept this, and it was awesome to see these Christian brothers from different sides of the planet embracing in such pure and simple ways. I loved it.

Pastor Samuel and Dick hit it off from the very beginning. I think it was the common grandfather bond. It made me smile to see them together every time.

As usual, it didn't take long for the pastor's son to find Laura and keep her busy. They shared a coconut and several games of chase. I think she was worn out by the time we left there.

I know it's going to be hard for you to tell what's going on in these pictures, but it's one of my favorite memories from the trip, from a purely non-spiritual standpoint. After our tour of the center and hearing about their goals and vision, we all were sort of wandering around looking at stuff and just kind of hanging out. There was a cool breeze blowing, and the sun was on its way down, so the air was just about perfect. It was just one of those good-feeling kind of moments.

One of the guys picked up a rock and started pitching it over the hill down at that hole in the roof of whatever the building is there in the second picture. This of course turned into a competition to see who could be the first to hit the hole. Soon we were all grabbing rocks and heaving them down the hill. I don't think any of us actually hit it, but it was a blast trying.
After that, we walked back down the hill to the building where the elderly women stay. The pastor of the church and his family live there with them and take care of them. These women were so precious, and I couldn't believe the bare existence that they are in every day. There are about four women per room, and it basically just looks like a kind of warehouse. It reminded me of the abandoned factory where the city of Franklin housed the Katrina refugees a few years ago. Just kind of a big empty room with some beds in it. One of the ladies didn't even have a mattress, but JD assured me it was by her choice because she has a bad back. It killed me to see her just laying on a kind of metal bench. She was a stroke victim, so she wasn't able to fully know what was going on. But we hugged and loved on each lady, and they were precious to embrace.

Someone came and got me after we'd been visiting a few minutes and said that one of the ladies serves as their choir director, and would I come and sing with her. So I walked back in her room and knelt down in front of her bed. I held both of her hands and we both sang "Amazing Grace." I was singing in English, and she was singing in Telagu. We were all singing together, and as I mentioned before, I was just overwhelmed with the idea that this was a tiny glimpse of Heaven, how people from all nations will be joining together in song to praise God together. It's definitely something to look forward to.

After we sang Amazing Grace, they wanted to sing "Showers of Blessings." I actually have a clip of this on video, and I'm so excited that I figured out how to get that on my blog. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did, and feel free to sing along. The words may come to life in a new way. They definitely did for me.

There shall be showers of blessings,
This is the promise of love.
There shall be seasons refreshing,
Sent from the savior above.
Showers of blessings,
Showers of blessings we need.
Mercy drops round us are falling,
But for the showers we plead.