India, Part 4: THE MOTHER SHIP
Kolkata was our third and final stop in India. Emma and I spent a week volunteering with the Sisters of Charity - and you know how people say it is kind of amazing and stuff? ALL TRUE THINGS. One more week there and my parental units would have received a phone call that would have gone something like this: "Hey, Ma. Hey, Pa. Send Timmy a peace sign emoji because I have found the MOTHER SHIP. I have found MY PEOPLE. I have decided to join MY SISTERS FROM THE HIGHEST MISTER."
After registration and going to all the wrong Nun places ohmygosh (there's like a zillion), here's what a normal day looked like:
We would walk to the Mother House at 5:30 a.m. with a cinnamon roll (or two) in hand (because #breakfastfoodnotinchinerr), to get to Mass in time. I had never been to Mass before, so the fact that my first Mass ever was a floor above Mother Teresa's tomb was kind of like WHAT the WHAT. (insert cool guy emoji). At first, the unfamiliarity of it all made me a little uneasy: Do I stand? Sit? Kneel? What is happening now? But as time goes on, the liturgy becomes more familiar and more meaningful and the atmosphere of that room is overwhelmingly peaceful and sacred. And the fact that the Nuns SING LIKE ANGELS makes all your feels FEEL to infinity.
After Mass, the Sisters give all the volunteers a light breakfast downstairs and then after everyone says a prayer together, the doors open up and INDIA happens. You stalk people who are going to the same place you are and just follow them onto buses, tuk-tuks, down sketchy alleys, up random flights of stairs.
There a many different houses you can volunteer at, but we chose to volunteer at Daya Dan, which is a home for kids who are physically and/or mentally disabled. A normal morning went something like this: first make the beds, then go to the roof to do laundry by hand, or, if you are our Taiwanese friend Ming Ta, by foot. He was the washing machine and loved stomping around in his bucket of suds. Rinse, ring, hang. These sisters have the system down to a T - and they go fffaaasstt. Then around mid-morning, we would do some PT with some of the kids with cerebral palsy. After PT, maybe an activity and then you help feed the kids lunch. It doesn't sound like a lot, but it is, and by the time you end your shift at half past noon, you is TIRED.
One of the best parts about volunteering is that you meet so many different people from all around the world. Young people, old people, religious, non-religious, Buddhists, Hindus, Protestants. A Taiwanese guy who has found the fountain of youth, a Mexican triathlon champion, a professional dancer from Japan, a nurse from Lebanon, two crazy smart girls from Peking University. THE WORLD AND ITS PEOPLE ARE SO COOL, Y'ALL.
One of the days, the kids of Daya Dan held their own Mass and I sat against the wall and watched as they sang and shook tambourines with gusto and lined up to receive communion. It was a particularly sacred morning for me. Much of the conversation in Western Christian culture revolves around what worship is, what ministry and service is or what it should be. There are boxes and bullet points and spreadsheets. Those are important conversations but when it becomes the only conversation, it can feel overwhelming and distracting.
So, for me, during that morning Mass with the Daya Dan kids, the simplicity of worship and ministry and service felt like the first moments of a slow, Saturday morning: clear, steady, and profound. Worship and the million different ways it can be, I'm finding, can take us by surprise. It has the power to change us if we surrender to it. It can change us if we are open to it being a little different than what we thought it would be.
There a zillion cool things to do in Kolkata, but Emma did most of the exploring because the last few days I got a stomach bug and I was pretty immobile. But thankfully, the last day we were there, we went to check out Freeset - a business that employs women who have chosen to leave the sex industry. Our time there was amazing. What Freeset does is so sustainable and intentional and effective. Most of the women, the manager told us, still live in the brothels, because that is essentially their home. I think this is amazing. They are such a light in the darkness, these women. I LOVE THE GOSPEL.
BBAB Travel Tips:
A note about Mass at the Mother Ship: Promptness is next to Godliness. The Nuns are nice, but if you are late, they won't let you in. Also, if you are tall, you must get there extra early to find a spot in the back.
If you simply get there on time and sit in the middle-ish, a Nun will tap you on the shoulder and say, "Ahem. I can't see" and then you will find yourself in the wildest conundrum of HOW SHALT I RESPOND TO THIS SISTER as moving to a different spot is not an option. Sorry? You will say as you hunch down because YOU ARE IN MASS.
Where to Stay: Hotel Galaxy
Best location, decent price, and literally two steps away from BEST CHAI GUY EVER.
You will need to e-mail them beforehand to check availability/prices. You can't book online. (At least to my knowledge). Only via e-mail.
Momma T's Info: http://www.motherteresa.org/07_family/volunteering/v_cal.html
You will need to e-mail them beforehand to check availability/prices. You can't book online. (At least to my knowledge). Only via e-mail.
Momma T's Info: http://www.motherteresa.org/07_family/volunteering/v_cal.html
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2 comments
Sarah, thanks so much for this post...like a breath of fresh air...can imagine the Gospel really getting out there, unrestrained and unfiltered...the Mothership - way cool...afraid my experience in China and here have mostly been religious deadness...God has a way somehow
ReplyDeleteHey, Jerry! Thanks for all your encouragement. I also like reading your blog - really encouraging to my heart, especially being in Gongyi now and most often feeling like a loner. Trusting God is sovereign and working all the time, even if my days are fruitless and long. Praise Him for always going before us
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