Joy headaches

 Much like a smile and Elder M's saggy bedframe shaped like a hammock, we had a great beginning and a great ending this week but a definite midweek crash. 

 Sabbaths are always a happy day for us. We love to meet with the Indian Saints of both Ramanathapuram and Ghandipuram Branches. We enjoyed singing in Brother Sam's choir after practicing the day before, although somehow we were confused and got our times all wrong. Someone mentioned coming early on Sunday at 9 to practice and we shifted our thinking that church was at 9:30 but when we got there a few minutes after 9, we were horrified to see we had missed singing the special opening song. Gah! Church starts at 9! What cookoos we are! Gratefully we got a 2nd chance for the 2nd # we practiced. The choir consisted of everyone singing in unison with me alone on the alto part which I hope is ok as no one has said a word otherwise. It's my only option these days. After attending both branch meetings, we then had a very detailed, drawn out planning meeting with the Young Adults and President Suresh about the Open House the following day. I think it's very common here for people to stay all day at the church building because of travel times to get there. We are developing new muscles for these marathon stretches of time! 

The Open House on Monday was also to be an all-day affair from 10-6 and since it was a National holiday-Labors Day, it was believed many would have the day off to attend. It was suggested we get there early for set up by 8:30 am. We are figuring out that the call time usually works in the half hour of stretchy wiggle room (except for cases of when you actually need to be there on time, like for singing the opening song in church).  

The Open House on Monday began very slowly. I think maybe 3 visitors had come through who were friends of members that had been personally invited. Around noonish, Elder Dunlap and I thought we should go out to the busy Trichy Road and see if we could drum up some foot traffic. He convinced a group of young men to poke their heads in and I got a couple of college girls to come into the lobby but neither group stayed for a tour or to get more information. But no one seemed particularly discouraged by the lack of response as we had left it a matter of prayer that the Lord would help those who were seeking the truth to come and see. By mid-afternoon, lunch was ordered in for all those who had persevered the already 6 hour day. We stayed too, even refraining from murmuring that there could perhaps be better means or methods for missionary work. But we are not the smart ones you see, we have so much to learn. We are coming to understand because of the strict laws India is under currently, this was the best we could do at this time. We need to be willing to put in the hours and then watch in faith the Lord do his marvelous work. So we proceeded to witness our "4th-watch God" perform a miracle. I believe it was because everyone had stayed to the bitter end with cheerfulness and no complaint. Just about ending time, a family walked in; two parents that live two hours away and their two daughters, one with special needs who lives with them, the other who had recently moved here with her new husband.

The married daughter said she had been very curious about this church everytime she had driven by and felt compelled to know more about it. (Thank you, Holy Spirit)  They had no idea we were having an open house, the timing was just too amazing that they came in when they did. Rob and I both made an immediate connection with the married daughter as she loves to sing AND loves to bake bread! The entire branch enveloped this family in fellowship and attention. The mother and special needs daughter were harder for us two to create a connection with as Mom spoke no English and daughter was non-verbal. I handed the mom a tract in Tamil with a picture of Jesus Christ on the front and just smiled with eye contact for her to take it. That was all I could do. Rob made a balloon out of a surgical glove (quick thinking honey!) and we all played some lobby wolleyball with the non-verbal daughter while Dad and married sister took a very long tour and learned all about the Plan of Salvation and the organization and priesthood authority of our Church which is the same as when Christ was on the earth with Apostles and Seventy. This was the moment we had waited for and they could take as long as they needed!

 Getting them out to their car was a group effort as it was now pouring buckets of rain. We had two umbrellas between us all but we took them in shifts and got them into their car and on their way without prematurely baptizing them! We were all thoroughly soaked but felt the warmth and glow of what we had just witnessed. What if we had packed it up at 5:00 and said, No one else is coming, this is futile?! It was very apparent to everyone who stayed that every minute spent that day was worth it even for that one experience, that one family.

When I finally put my head on the pillow that night after a long day, I became aware it was throbbing and I was not feeling at all well. This was no joy headache which I often get from smiling too much. (Does anyone else get joy headaches or is this just me?) I woke up in the night with a horrible sore throat and fever that Rob suffered with last week so I spent Tuesday P-day and Wednesday flat down in bed. (I'm not as heroic a sick person as Rob is.) But my fever finally broke and I thankfully felt much better by Wednesday afternoon but just to be safe, took Thursday at a gingerly pace just to get my strength back. I used the time in bed to transcribe more gravestones. This latest batch we had photographed the markers of Franciscan Tertiary nuns, dating from 1895 to the latest death date I noticed at 2022. I started thinking about these devoted single sisters. Their names suggested they were perhaps from Europe; England, France, Spain maybe. Did they, like me, feel a call to go serve God in an exotic country like India? Did they sacrifice their family ties to serve in this part of the world, far from home and familiarity? And the biggest question I asked, the fact that none of them have children or posterity, would anyone ever be looking for them? Was this a complete waste of my time to record their deaths and prove they had indeed lived and died here? What say you? Is it a waste of time? If I didn't have a firm testimony of my own that every person who has ever lived is known to our Heavenly Parents and that India will need names to nourish their future temple, I wouldn't see the need to do this for a mere genealogy exercise. But because we have been commanded to gather Israel on both sides of the veil, we feel we want to continue, even though no one has asked us to do this. Because if not us, then who? 

 

By Friday I was feeling pretty up to snuff. And because our own trio of sister missionaries are leaving the area after this transfer, we told them we wanted to have them to our home for a farewell lunch after district meeting. Well...they said that was great but they wanted to invite the elders too AND do all the cooking, not us. We thought this sounded like a fine idea (in theory) so we gave them money to do all the shopping beforehand for what they wanted to cook for lunch. You'd think we'd have learned from our Salt Lake India Cooking gatherings just how labor intensive Indian food is to prepare. 3 hours later we still weren't eating their farewell lunch!! Aren't there mission rules about this?? But they seemed to all be in their happy element and as usual, no one complained about the wait. Elder M joined the cooking team and did most of the chopping, what a worker bee he is.

Elder Dunlap kept the younger Elders engaged with games and activities

                   Remember this one, kids? 

Are any of you elders up for adoption?

Future Nepalese Stake President/General Authority here

There was not enough space around our table to all eat together, so no problem, just move the table to the side and eat on the floor of our apartment. Easy fix!

 Better knees than mine, my lotus days are over

If we do nothing else but love on these young Sisters and Elders and adorable young adults and support them in their efforts, our time will be well spent in India. We love them so much!! Their souls are so valiant, so pure, and so full of light. Their goodness is rubbing off on us. We are definitely becoming more patient in ways we haven't been before because of this lovely culture and because the Lord is performing a work in us too. 

Alma 26:16

 ..."Behold I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel"