The monsoons come very suddenly, with little warning, and they bust in with both guns blazing. It went from normal night to crazy rain in a matter of minutes.
Last night I was at the orphanage, around 9:00, and all of a sudden some huge gusts of wind came through. Then, the power went out, and the rain started. All of a sudden it was madness inside the place...the building isn't exactly water tight, so they had to move their stuff around to the areas where they knew it would be dry. Meanwhile, some of the younger girls were really scared, and were clinging on to me for dear life.
There was one girl in particular, who is an absolute sweetheart, who was very frightened and was crying. For the longest time, I held her close to me, and kept telling her that it was going to be alright, the power just went out and soon the rain will stop. Everytime a big gust of wind came through, she freaked out. Poor thing. She kept her eyes closed because she thought something bad would happen if she opened them.
I ended up sleeping at the orphanage because of the monsoon, which ended up being a very bad night's sleep! One thing that I liked about the monsoon, though, was it was so refreshing to have a cold gust of wind come in. I have been in several restaurants and shops with A/C, but to have a natural coolness felt soooooooo good.
5 comments:
I'm proud of you too. Glad you are safe. Love, your sister.
hi david
my name is sam - amy sent me your blog link
ive been reading your journaling - im reliving my days of adjusting to india. I lived there for a year (2 different times 4 months/8 months).
anyways - you are going to learn so much and think so differently after this trip. its really life changing.
im jealous of you - when i went i meant to journal and i didnt!
however - i have a few words of help for you. a few things i wish i could have had passed to me that i unfortunately had to learn....
1.for all tough decisions (like giving money to beggars or which kids to give the 5 lollipops you have) only make them when youre alone. easier to make clearer decisions. so dont be afraid to say wait or tomorrow or let me think.
the beggars are hard to turn down arent they. well - i had some trainging before i went (cdc/who for polio work). a seasoned cdc person gave me a tip - if you feel like you need to give money, dont give it to the beggars. give it to an established organization. like the orphanage itself(still hard to turn down the beggars)
2.i really thought you were so good to dive in and dance in the circle! ha! what i learned all too late is that indians are very curious about you - but dont want to make the first contact. (although they will stare at you like theres no tomorrow). Anyways - a smile, or a nod, or a simple nomaste will quickly break the ice. dont be afraid or hesitant to ask them questions or want to join in with them. While it might be rude by US standards, in India it would be totally be a compliment "whitie thinks we are neat and wants to spend time with us!". So dont be afraid to dive in. I missed out on some things on my first trip to india because i was being shy. i regret it so much! so dive in and dont be afraid to ask for ANYTHING. because in india anything goes!
the next tiem you see a guy in the street on a horse, with a band following him, and a bunch of people walking/dancing ---- go jump in. its a wedding procession and indian weddings are to die for!
3. they are smarter than you think they are, and they will play you. i was reading your monsoon story about the girl that was scared. i was thinking "the monsoons come every year - the kid just wants his attention". they know you feel sorry for them - that goes for everyone in india no just your orphans. they will use it against you to get things they want. anytime you are negtiating prices for things they will use it. SO just keep it in mind. Otherwise oneday you will realize it and then feel like you were HAD.(which you proably were).
MONSOONS - have you gone outside in the monsoon? makes a great shower!
MONKEYS - if you talk to them, they will talk back :-)
HINDI - are you learing any hindi?
just a few words will get you loads of laughs and good times.
Chua = mouse (im sure you have a few of those at the orphange!)
jangli janvar = wild animal. im sure this applies to some of the kids!
BELLY ACHES - are you getting belly aches? i got it bad on my first trip. a few things that helped me - ice cream. Theres a reason why indians eat yogurt with everything, it cools the spices. i never liked thier yogurt tho - so i used ice cream.
another thing that helps - beer. it helps your poop(sorry to be graphic). i had a new definition for hot a** after living in india. im sure you understand that! beer helps keep things REGULAR and LESS SPICY on the way out.
ok - ive totally writeen way to much - you dont even know me! but please feel free to ask me any questions i might help with.
BTW - nice to emeet you
samantha
stay dry. And check your email! I miss you
david, i'm still in sf and still miss you buddy. i love your blog, can't tell you enough. the chicks are gonna totally dig it too.
peace love dove.
-lee
sam:
thanks for reading my blog, and for the info! I am in Tamil Nadu, so they speak Tamil here, not Hindi. Also, in this area, there is NO beer except at the expensive hotels in Chennai. I am NOT kidding, though I wish I were!
David
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