Lunch at Upendra's

Upendra is on staff at Sari Bari. And yesterday he and his wife invited us over for lunch after church. Upendra's house is very small - about 10 ft square. Upendra, his wife, and 2 kids live there. They have a little loft that's about waist high. below the loft they cook, above they sleep and live. I had such a wonderful time at Upendra's. it was so good to begin getting to know him, and his family. His passion for the Lord is clear, as is his desire to see women freed from the sex-trade. In him there is a clear hope for restoration. i was so blessed by Upendra's generosity. I loved sitting in their home, playing games with Megha (their 7 year old daughter)...and laughing. And at the same time, it was incredibly humbling to receive from them. I know money is tight for them - so to feed us was an incredible gift. it was good, and right...and humbling...and wonderful and beautiful....and the food was GOOD!

In West Bengal you eat with your hands...even when its rice. you should try it. pile some rice on your plate...but some gooey stuff on...and go to town. Sarah says that food tastes better when you eat with your hand. i'm not so sure about that yet...but i am getting better at it. (i still use silverware sometimes...) This was also my first experience with Indian hospitality. We were served a ton of rice (easily twice what i would have served myself)...and dal (made of seasoned lentils), and chicken. Its offensive not to finish what you're served. at first i wasn't sure i could fit all that rice in my belly...but Beth says the trick is to just keep eating...don't take a break at all, or you'll have time to realize how full you are and it just won't work! So...after plenty of hard work...i finished all my rice. RAHOO. i passed the first test :)

i often feel like my world is in constant conflict with itself here...like Sunday afternoon...we'd just shared a meal with Upendra and his fam, and then we went to language class. Protima Didi (our tutor) is rather affluent. So, i went from a small tiny house - to this beautiful huge house with all sorts of amenities. I flip flop between such extremes...and sometimes its hard to do, and definitely hard to understand. Its also hard to know the balance between living simply, and "taking care of myself" or "living sustainably" So, my prayer remains that i'll have a soft heart, and ears attentive to the Holy Spirit, and that He will guide my heart and my steps as i try to live here well, in a way that honors my fellow humans, and my Father.

I'd asked you to pray last week that i would find a way to rest and recharge here, and i wanted to let you know that God is at work in that way. I'm finding ways to be "alone" and to reflect...and to rest. Thanks for praying :)