My first morning at breakfast in the CNI headquarters, I met a man by the surname Mohandass and his 15-ish year old son (braces and all). Mr. Mohandass was in Delhi because he had been charged with accompanying the Delhi-bound students from the Hebron International School in Tamil Nadu (one of the Southern states in India). He is the caterer there and the first truly smiling face that I had encountered at that point (besides the absolutely endearing, non-English speaking kitchen and security staff at CNI... I guess Mr. Mohandass, then, was the first smiling English-speaking face I had seen). He invited me to visit their small southern town of Nilgiris, and I think I just may. Get a small taste of the Church of South India while I'm there. Mr. Mohandass and his son were off to see the Taj that morning, so I bid them farewell and hoped to see them again. I caught them at breakfast this morning and we shook hands goodbye. They were able to get on the train back to Tamil Nadu today. I am sad to see them go.
I met the Rt. Rev. Naresh Ambala, Bishop of the Eastern Himalaya diocese of CNI. Bishop Ambala is a total hoot (in the greatest and most respectful sense of the word)! We ate breakfast together and he informed me that he was from Darjeeling (would I be traveling there at all?) I had just decided that morning -- in my sleep-deprived state when I found myself awake at 4 am yet again! -- to visit Darjeeling, which sits at the base of the Himalayas. He told me that he would be happy to be of service to me while in Darjeeling, and if he happened to be in the UK at Lambeth he would make certain that the Darjeeling pastor would be of help to me in his place. Of course, he said, I must allow them to 'be selfish' one day and show me the work that they are doing in the East Himalaya diocese. I told him THAT is the exact reason that I am in India this summer (I mean, Monsoon Season) and that I looked forward to seeing him in Darjeeling in August. Bishop Ambala then said, "I am sorry. I did not ask your name!" I told him 'Bethany' and he asked if it was for "the home of Mary and Martha". I said, 'yes', and explained that its Hebrew translation (my father being an OT professor, which the Bishop found very interesting) was roughly 'House of the Desperate' or 'Home of the Homeless'. I told him that my parents hoped that I would be a resting place for Jesus (the NT town) and also a place of refuge for those in need (Hebrew translation). He found it all very interesting, particularly since towns are only used as the surname in India. He had never known someone named for a town as their primary name before. Finally, Bishop Ambala told me of a collection of speeches I must read: Swami Vivekananda's Chicago Addresses (since I am a theology student in Chicago). He wrote down the book information for me on a card and again expressed his hope to see me in Darjeeling. I thanked him and looked down at the card: it was a subscription card for the Anglican Theological Review in Evanston, IL!!!! such a small world! I will have to email Jackie Winter (the editor of ATR, and someone I know through my favorite UC professor, K. Tanner)!!
So, those are my two friends from breakfast at CNI (I am sure that you will all be pleased to know that I have indeed made MORE than two friends since I drafted this post... worry not, the extrovert is still here... she just needed a few days to adjust to the culture shock).
After breakfast, I went to morning worship at CNI. Most of the service was in Hindi (except the Lord's Prayer was only recited in English). The room was filled with women (just like most American Christian services, good to know the trend is global...), and Bishop Ambala was decked out in full bishop splendor (I almost didn't recognize him). The director of the HIV/AIDS branch of CNI led worship and gave the message from Matthew 14 (Jesus walking on the water). "Do not be afraid!" were the first English words of the service. Ok... You've got my attention, God. "Do not be afraid!" Else you (BETHANY!), like Peter, might sink into the sea (the Indian monsoon). Thank you Saint Matthew. Apparently, my nervous attitude has caught the attention of the higher powers, and God decided to remind me: "DO NOT BE AFRAID!!!" Well, I decided to listen to good ol' St. Matt, and I ventured into Delhi (alone) shortly after worship was over. (Oh, did I mention that everyone takes off their shoes to enter the chapel, as if it were a temple? It is always interesting to see which pieces of a pre-evangelized culture translates into contemporary Christian practices).
Once in Delhi -- Cannaught Place again ... I'm branching, but not too much -- I went to the JetAirways office to purchase (in cash... argh! wallet!) my plane ticket to Kolkata for Thursday. There was a mis-communication, so I ended up buying a 6 am flight that no one can meet on the other end (Bishop's College is in the middle of faculty retreat this week during the day). I then found an internet cafe and promptly spent two hours surfing a very slow web (the post yesterday). For lunch I returned to the South Indian restaurant at which Dan and I ate on Sunday, and the waiter asked me about 'my friend'. I told him that Dan was on his way to Tibet and it was just me now (Dan! We're so memorable!). After eating, I decided to go to a bookstore to pick up Bishop Ambala's suggested reading. A man stopped me to speak English -- he seemed harmless enough. He offered to take me to a 'good English bookstore' and I decided to let him lead me through the crowded (VERY public and VERY daylit, Mom and Cynthia) outdoor shopping centre to the bookstore. Again, he seemed harmless enough and really only interested in practicing his English. I did find the book eventually and headed back to CNI. By this point, I am able to tell if I'm headed in the right direction, so I'm starting to feel like I might be able to pull this off.
I met the Rt. Rev. Naresh Ambala, Bishop of the Eastern Himalaya diocese of CNI. Bishop Ambala is a total hoot (in the greatest and most respectful sense of the word)! We ate breakfast together and he informed me that he was from Darjeeling (would I be traveling there at all?) I had just decided that morning -- in my sleep-deprived state when I found myself awake at 4 am yet again! -- to visit Darjeeling, which sits at the base of the Himalayas. He told me that he would be happy to be of service to me while in Darjeeling, and if he happened to be in the UK at Lambeth he would make certain that the Darjeeling pastor would be of help to me in his place. Of course, he said, I must allow them to 'be selfish' one day and show me the work that they are doing in the East Himalaya diocese. I told him THAT is the exact reason that I am in India this summer (I mean, Monsoon Season) and that I looked forward to seeing him in Darjeeling in August. Bishop Ambala then said, "I am sorry. I did not ask your name!" I told him 'Bethany' and he asked if it was for "the home of Mary and Martha". I said, 'yes', and explained that its Hebrew translation (my father being an OT professor, which the Bishop found very interesting) was roughly 'House of the Desperate' or 'Home of the Homeless'. I told him that my parents hoped that I would be a resting place for Jesus (the NT town) and also a place of refuge for those in need (Hebrew translation). He found it all very interesting, particularly since towns are only used as the surname in India. He had never known someone named for a town as their primary name before. Finally, Bishop Ambala told me of a collection of speeches I must read: Swami Vivekananda's Chicago Addresses (since I am a theology student in Chicago). He wrote down the book information for me on a card and again expressed his hope to see me in Darjeeling. I thanked him and looked down at the card: it was a subscription card for the Anglican Theological Review in Evanston, IL!!!! such a small world! I will have to email Jackie Winter (the editor of ATR, and someone I know through my favorite UC professor, K. Tanner)!!
So, those are my two friends from breakfast at CNI (I am sure that you will all be pleased to know that I have indeed made MORE than two friends since I drafted this post... worry not, the extrovert is still here... she just needed a few days to adjust to the culture shock).
After breakfast, I went to morning worship at CNI. Most of the service was in Hindi (except the Lord's Prayer was only recited in English). The room was filled with women (just like most American Christian services, good to know the trend is global...), and Bishop Ambala was decked out in full bishop splendor (I almost didn't recognize him). The director of the HIV/AIDS branch of CNI led worship and gave the message from Matthew 14 (Jesus walking on the water). "Do not be afraid!" were the first English words of the service. Ok... You've got my attention, God. "Do not be afraid!" Else you (BETHANY!), like Peter, might sink into the sea (the Indian monsoon). Thank you Saint Matthew. Apparently, my nervous attitude has caught the attention of the higher powers, and God decided to remind me: "DO NOT BE AFRAID!!!" Well, I decided to listen to good ol' St. Matt, and I ventured into Delhi (alone) shortly after worship was over. (Oh, did I mention that everyone takes off their shoes to enter the chapel, as if it were a temple? It is always interesting to see which pieces of a pre-evangelized culture translates into contemporary Christian practices).
Once in Delhi -- Cannaught Place again ... I'm branching, but not too much -- I went to the JetAirways office to purchase (in cash... argh! wallet!) my plane ticket to Kolkata for Thursday. There was a mis-communication, so I ended up buying a 6 am flight that no one can meet on the other end (Bishop's College is in the middle of faculty retreat this week during the day). I then found an internet cafe and promptly spent two hours surfing a very slow web (the post yesterday). For lunch I returned to the South Indian restaurant at which Dan and I ate on Sunday, and the waiter asked me about 'my friend'. I told him that Dan was on his way to Tibet and it was just me now (Dan! We're so memorable!). After eating, I decided to go to a bookstore to pick up Bishop Ambala's suggested reading. A man stopped me to speak English -- he seemed harmless enough. He offered to take me to a 'good English bookstore' and I decided to let him lead me through the crowded (VERY public and VERY daylit, Mom and Cynthia) outdoor shopping centre to the bookstore. Again, he seemed harmless enough and really only interested in practicing his English. I did find the book eventually and headed back to CNI. By this point, I am able to tell if I'm headed in the right direction, so I'm starting to feel like I might be able to pull this off.
2 comments:
B,
The boyfriend. Hmmm. That story brings a flood of emotion for me. When my own daughter of your age ventured to Niger a few years ago, I remember the way it felt to be the mom of a world traveler who would have to make her own way without me along to see to her physical well-being. I was astonished (morified might be a more accurate term) to learn she was visiting a country of such poverty that they have to import their food. (Being from OOOOOoook-lahoma farm country, I have a hard time wrapping my mind around that.)
At any rate, during her semester abroad, rumor was that Osama Bin Laden was hiding out in the desert north of the country -- which of course she was desperate to see and was set to hire a driver so she and a couple of friends could visit the oasis up there. Now THERE'S a boyfriend for you! :-) I was relieved when her plans changed.
I swallowed hard throughout your story of the bookstore hopping, reminding myself of the fact that you had apparently survived it. I was, after all, reading a post written AFTER that adventure.
In the end, I remembered that by some miracle I will never understand completely, my children have gifts and graces and wisdom that defy my fears about their safety when they are out of my protective reach. And, I believe in God. That helps, too.
Wallets? Who needs 'em.
Peace, Love and Save the Whales,
Patti
p.s. - How about a post on what led you to make this trek to India... (or maybe it's there and I just need to learn to navigate a blog?)
Hey Bethany~
Just letting you know that you have a faithful reader in Tx. I love reading blogs every day, and I've added you to my list now! Keep the adventures and stories coming!
~Jennifer Hovis
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