"Asha"

Asha means hope in Bengali. and its the name that i'll use for one of the women i met in the Gach on Monday (WMF has a policy not to use real names to protect the women)...

i can say with full confidence that God brought us to Asha...for a few reasons. first, the way we met was so totally random, and secondly cause we'd prayed for Divine appointments in the Gach...and i believe God answered that request.

we went to visit one of our friends, but she was eating lunch, so we were waiting outside her room in a little hallway talking with another girl. her phone rang, and we started talking with another lady. there had been a storm the night before and we were talking about it. she said that she was sleeping on the roof and when it rained it woke her up. Then she wanted to show us the roof, so we went up with her. While we were on the roof, we saw this lady on the roof across the street, and she motioned for us to come over to see her...and that's how we met Asha. After we were done visiting the girl we'd originally come to see, we went across the street to look for Asha. they'd never been in that brothel before, so we just climbed up to the roof, and there were a bunch of people that we didn't know...and we couldn't find the woman who's motioned us to come...but eventually we found her. She was in her room, and they others pointed us in her direction.

Asha's room is 3 x 5, and she pays 1500 Rs/month (it should cost 100 Rs/month). Exorbitant rent is one of the systems that keeps women in bondage and debt. she lives there with her 2 sons. Asha is 20 years old, a widow, and has been in the trade for about a year, and of course, hates it. She's struggling to make ends meet financially, has no friends that she trusts, and sees how the Gach is a bad influence on her sons. (she said, i only speak good words, but my sons hear so many bad words that they have started using them). She wants to move them out. You could say that Asha "chose" to work in the sex-trade (she wasn't trafficked or tricked, she knew the work she was coming to do), although, the book "Guilty without Trial" says that a person only truly chooses when there is a viable alternative. Not to justify her choice, or condone the work she does - but my heart is full of compassion for Asha. I'm quite sure if she'd been able to find any other job she would have taken it. Asha is incredibly intelligent. Her mother tongue is Hindi, but in the past year she has taught herself Bengali, just by hearing other people speak it! And she has this incredible smile...she's just a cool lady! the sort of person you just want to be friends with.

now, here's where the Hope comes in. Asha is the perfect candidate to work at Freeset (and they happen to be hiring right now!). She isn't owned, doesn't have friendships that would make it hard to move (she wouldn't be able to afford her room on Freeset wages) and hates it in the Gach. We presented the possibility of working at Freeset, and as usual she had many excuses (motivated by fear, and bondage). She couldn't believe that "women like me" could make the bags...that they could have another type of work.

From here, we'll continue to visit Asha, and hopefully she'll choose to work at Freeset...although we'll continue to be her friend regardless. Freeset is only hiring for the next month - so she'll have to decide soon...and that decision is HUGE...even though the circumstances seem quite idea for her to work at Freeset, God will have to move in her heart, and give her the freedom and courage to make the move. Fear, lack of self-worth, and the unknown make it very hard for women to leave. Asha also has a "man in her life" who says he wants to marry her (long term relationships with men "babus" are quite common).

so...i tell you all this for a couple reasons. first - i find the individual stories of the girls compelling, and i wanted to share one with you - because of the way it makes the sex-trade personal and real. secondly - would you join me in praying for Asha, that she will have courage to leave...that we'll have wisdom in building relationship with her...and that her babu will be supportive of the move?