Visiting families

My past few days have been visiting families who have no land at all. They work for rich farmers who owned big acres of land. This particular group of families are special because after the seasons of harvest they have no work so they basically go hungry. What MCC did/doing is provided/providing livestock as well napier grass to them. Not just anyone but the selected families through a survey conducted two years ago. Its is such a blessing to see their happy faces as we entered their Basa (house/home). They are very much eager to provide you with anything and its sad because they are providing their best and I can not say no for that. We walked through villages to villages families to families for three days visit and have seen some amazing things they've done. They have done their best to take care of big animals like a heifer or a bull or goats of three or four. they have tried their best to try grow the grasses where ever pieces of land they can find. There was one family that I felt sad becaues their boss can not let them use unused land or even the side walks to grow the grass, but still their heifer is suriving but struggling. I am so thankful for everything that I have seen and involved with, its a great honor to be part of this group of families.

Thoughts exhaust the whole body

Today I go about my day to day activities then I was reminded of something that happened last night. Its not just last night it often happens to me but I try not to think about it. Anywhere. Last night I decided to go to bed early at 10 pm. Thats a normal night time for some people but not for me. For the past few months its been crazy. I've tried to go to bed early but never happens till around 1 or 2 am the next morning, so tired fighting my thick brain of to sleep. So last night was one of those nights. I bet sometimes you have that too. I didnt get to bed till 2am, I mean completely blank, not aware of what happened till to getup by the sound of your alarm clock the next. During the process of fight my thought, i physically got up and hit myself so hard on my head then i remember, a topic "letting the mind take over your soul and spirit", preached by one of my youth pastors from home. He said that mind is really dangerous and that involves mr I, if only you let your heart decides things and following what the hearts desire is can see the true nature of the world. so I talked so loud to my self for two minutes and told my mind that you are not off your own and that you are part of many parts that work together and your are bound to work together. Then I took a few moments to just silent myself and then was gone. all i am trying to say is that thinking can be contagious if we let the mind take over thus exhausted the whole body. so take a break and do a short meditation to clear off your thoughts, a short breath in breath out and expanding the second or matra, Lectio Divina...or other meditations that your know of.

Shubho Nob Borsho (Happy New Year)

Today the April 14th the first month of the Bangladesh calendar. We celebrated their new year today. I just learned the word Shubho nobo borsho yesterday so that I can say it today. In Bangladesh there are 6 seasons and each season has two months. Right now we are begining our summer and its going to last for two months and than the rainy season starts. Its been quiet a while to get use to the system here, but I am getting better at it each day. Basically, this morning was a quiet morning then as afternoon back, the streets came a live, lots and lots of noise from people scream to one another or rickshaws clashing to each other. We took a rickshaw ride to the river and we couldnt get through so we were dropped off at a different site and we walked to the river. Today there was no street empty, was quiet a day, people were walking so close that we could smell their body odor. Although it was packed and sweaty People were well dressed mostly in red and white, even their kids wore sari which is a women's clothing. It was colourful though, and we had a great time passing through people and just getting picture.

Easter Day

Theres something I learned here from my co-worker a muslim friend, mentioned that the Friday 21st of March, in their calendar year this year is their special day. The day when their prophet Isa (the shorter version) was borned and after 40 years on the same date he died. To the muslims, its the day of Eid-e-miladunnabi. We as christains also have celebrated in remembrance of our Lord Jesus Christ's dead on the cross, the same date. Both religions celebrated the day together but with a different meaning. To the muslims, this is their fourth prophet who came 40 years ago and died, and dead forever, but for the christains Lord Jesus died and he rose up the third day. He is living today and forver more and soon coming to judge the living and the death. During our sunny rise service on Sunday it was a double blessing for me, a blessing to celebrate the ressurection of our Lord Jesus and celebrating with a good number of christains where you would think very less or few hundreds. To me it seemed alot especially when it is a muslim dominated country, figuratively speaking christain population is .4%.

New Place

I have moved to my new working area, Sirajganj. It takes about three and a half hours bus ride from the main city Dhaka, however, mostly traffic jam so most likely takes four to five hours. I am currently living with one of my another co-worker. She is nice and wonderful so I am comfortble to leave with her for few months before I get my own house. I still have few more months to complete my language class and I feel like I am slowly saying the words. Someone just talked with me this morning and mentioned that to start learning new things has to start from the body parts, then to food and then to household staff. this is what she is doing to her baby, so just to say that I am starting from the beginning, like a baby. But sometimes being a baby is frustrating because you dont get to say what you what to say. Anywhere, my work right now is reading alot of reports and ofcourse studying my Bangla which offen doesnt happened. I am so thankful that I have such a wonderful individuals and groups out there in the world praying for me. God Bless you in this Great Easter.

Ants in the Sugarbowl

So send I you:

• to ants in the sugar bowl
• to things that fly, creep and crawl into the house
• to uncertain water, sporadic electricity
• to long hours, sweltering heat, exhausting days
• to uncomfortable vehicles, crowded jeeps, smelly buses
• to noisy, early, Early mornings
• to rice, rice, and more rice
• to poverty you didnt believe existed
• to masses of people like you have never seen
• to know and work with people who have never know comfort

So send I you, and I expect you to adjust.

So send I you:

• to people who will give to you from their poverty
• to friends that will embarrass you with their generosity
• to pastors that will entertain you from their lack, with bounty
• to hungry, receptive, questioning people who want to know God
• to study, to teach, to learn from your study and teaching
• to probe your own motives, values, and beliefs
• to learn about yourself and the culture that has reared you

So send I you.

Are you going? I'll go with you all the way.

-Elizabeth Givens

Retreat to Bandarban

It was around 11pm on the 26th of February we left Dhaka for Bandarban a tribal area around in Bangladesh. I am not really good at travelling in a public bus in the night for more than 5 hours but I knew that the best was waiting for me, so me with my great images of this foreign place we started our road ride. In deed I was preparing for this retreat few days a head early. Anywhere, we reached the border area and there we were held for 20 minutes of filling necessary informations before crossing the border. Once we entered the guest house, I was ready for nasta(breakfast). We all haulded at the dining hall for breakfast before settling into our rooms. Not long breakfast was served and I ordered porota and vegetables and omelet, mmm...and that was great. To make it short we were there for three days and we have seen some of Bangladeshes great views especially mountains, rivers and nice people and that has refreshed my mind of these bad images that I have been storing for the past six weeks. I really enjoyed the site seeing, hiking, walking and visiting the villages. The meals were great too. The three days there was really refreshing from all those site seeing but also from the morning part of meditation. My great thank you to those of you that are praying for us who are doing serve work, God bless you all.