Our Village Wedding!

Today, very unexpectadely Tom and I were "married" again village-style!!! It was one of the most surprising and touching things that has happened to us. Tom and I went to the village to see the rest of the women I had worked with when I lived here in 2005. I was just expecting a series of sweet meetings, some hugs and awkward conversation (no one speaks English). But, when we arrived there was about 100 people greeting us at the door to a small house. They put garlands on us and there were young boys on the roof throwing petals at us. Everyone was cheering! They ushered us inside where we were immediately separated. Tom was taken with the men to put on wedding clothes. I was taken to put on a red sari and jewelry. They brought us back out, sang to us, prayed for us and then did several dances for us. I was obligated to join in ... ;) At one point a bunch of young girls "stole" Tom's shoes. He had to pay the girls to get them back. I guess this is a tradition of the younger sisters, cousins and friends of the bride to the new groom. It was all a rite of passage of sorts for Tom. They said that I was family, but that they now had to welcome the groom into the family and so now Tom is family too. :) It was a wonderful wonderful day!

Their Very First Easter!

Shem is a pastor here in Nepal who has decided to follow God back to his old porter/guide routes in the remote mountains of Nepal to share the love of Jesus. He's an amazing guy with whom I am honored to call a friend. Shem has been faithfully telling Gatlang and Nessing villages for 14 years about the love of Jesus. It took half that time before they even had a building (which is now busting at the seams to grow further). The village has heard of Jesus and many have accepted His gift of life. The past 14 years, God has been good but this year was special. Although many knew of Jesus, his death and resurrection, they didn't know their was a holiday to celebrate and remember . Last week, Shem went to tell them about Good Friday and Easter and took his camera. They celebrated, prayed and sang in the church for Easter for the very first time. Then over a hundred people processed through the streets of their tiny remote village, despite the persecution they receive, to proclaim the joy they have been given. When I saw the pictures and little video clips Shem had taken, I asked if I could turn them into a short video. I know I have been so encouraged by these brave souls and hope you are too. Enjoy!

Trekking Day 8

We get up at 4:30 am to pack everything up, take some coffee and begin our hike to the bus stop (2 hours away). Shem is going to stay in Gatlang another week, but is walking us to the bus stop to say goodbye. As we are heading out of town Prem comes out of his house and joins us as we walk. It was nice getting to spend that last bit of time with him so early in the morning.

We get our tickets and board the bus with no issues and head home to Kathmandu.

The bus ride was relatively uneventful by Nepali standards. We were overcrowded and I ended up at one point with a crate of chickens in my lap. Later we ran off the road and got stuck in a rice paddy field. I had been sleeping when this happened so I was a little grumpy to have to get off the bus and sit in a field for 30 minutes while they got a truck to pull the bus out. Thankfully, we were at pretty low elevation when it happened and were near a construction site so there was truck and cables available.

We continued our journey with Tom only looking to get us off the bus about 5 or 6 times when he caught the driver talking on his cell phone while taking dangerous curves at high speed. I finally convinced him to stop looking at the driver and to listen to my special “calming” mix on the ipod, made for such occasions. To be fair, the bus ride is by far the hardest part of the journey. But, we arrived safe in Kathmandu, caught a taxi and were just at our gate in Sanepa when the skies opened and an amazing thunderstorm began. It was a good cleansing end to a amazing week.

Trekking Day 7

I woke up today with a raging appetite. Thank the Lord! Had some coffee and boiled potatoes and I was good to go. Shortly after breakfast we heard some drumming and so we went outside to see. Below in the village we saw a slow procession of people making their way up the hillside. Shem told us it was a Tibetan Buddhist funeral procession. We watched for awhile and while we don't really know what was going on, what I observed was about 50 people walking very slowly and in a single file line. First there were a few monks and then a man carrying what looked like a large yellow sack (presumably the body). A few more men and then what must have been the immediate family for there were women crying loudly. About 20 paces behind them were about 6 more men walking, another 20 paces then 6 women, another 20 paces, about 5 men and then another 20 paces about 4 women. I don't know if these numbers have any significance but it was what I observed. They gathered at a very high point on the hillside (aka, mountain) where we saw a small fire that did not last very long, certainly not long enough for a cremation. Later we learned that they do not typically cremate the bodies up there because of the lack of firewood or some such reason. If the individual was a lama or monk then they might be placed in a sitting position and stones placed around them, but for most people they would be dismembered and placed on the rocks for the vultures to feed on. I don't know if this is what happened, but we did notice an unusually large number of birds later in the morning.

About midday, we went with a group of people down to the river to have an “amazing” time together. The way down was very steep, very very steep. Despite wearing hiking shoes, I was going very slow and probably holding up our own procession. So a woman wearing a basinet (complete with infant) strapped to her forehead and a bundle in her arms and flip flops on her feet decided to take my hand and lead me down to the river. There were probably about 20 of us and it was a joyful bunch, an interesting contrast to the procession going up the mountain for the funeral. If you are interested in hearing more about this then I can tell you about it in person. Some things cannot be shared here.

Had lunch at Yungchin's house today. It was delicious and I was so happy to eat. After lunch she gave us some Yak milk to try. It was tasty, so rich and slightly sweet. Best milk I've ever had! Her family are yak farmers. We also tried Tibetan tea. It's make of yak butter, salt and a few tea leaves. I really don't think they should call it tea though. It gives the wrong impression in your mind, because it smells a bit like detergent and tastes like very rich melted butter. It's not a bad taste, but not what you think of when drinking tea.

In the afternoon, I went to the tent to rest again for a bit. It was an unsuccessful rest though because kids saw me go into the tent. And apparently decided to spend the afternoon haunting me. They would circle the tent and occasionally a brave kid would press himself against the sides or play with the zippers. Tom was hanging out in the church and so kept running out telling the kids to leave me alone. They would run and hide and then 5 minutes later begin again. I could see their shadows coming closer and closer and hear their loud kid whispers. Sometimes there would be a finger testing the zippers or pushing the sides. Then some of them started throwing rocks at the tent. Eventually Tom had to just come outside and be near the tent. We had already been carrying all of our valuable items on us at all times, but we are convinced if we were there one more day the kids would have gotten bold enough to get in the tent and probably take some things. Kids in 3s and 4s are pretty cool, but they can become a mob together if you let them. I've seen some scary things in Guatemala when you pull out a bag of candy in a school yard …

We have dinner that evening with a new friend and a man from the government who was handing out eye medications. Tom and I both got a very strange feeling from this guy. We don't know why, but there was something off about him. After dinner we made the rounds to say goodbye and then headed to bed. We had an early morning ahead of us.

Day 6 - Trekking

I have been feeling weak for the last day and this morning I wake up with no appetite and slight nausea. We go over to a friends house for a big meal of “daal bhaat” for breakfast. I decide not to eat the meal and just have a granola bar instead. The problem is we are going to trek back to Gatlang today. That means about 4 hours of hard walking, mostly uphill. Just the last 45 minutes was going to be downhill. I know it is going to be hard for me, but we all agree to go slow. After about 20 minutes of our journey we stop by a small waterfall to fill up our water bottles and apply sunscreen. I lean against a rock to rest and make the mistake of leaning against a very spiny plant called “polo.” Tom had made this mistake on our first day in Gatlang when his hand brushed the plant and he was in pain for hours afterward. It is a green leafy plant that is covered in razer thin spikes that apparently goes through denim! It's quite painful and certainly takes my mind off my nausea for a while. After about 2 hours the pain subsides. An interesting thing about this plant that we found VERY hard to believe was that it is edible. Tom often asked how it was possible to pick a plant like that much less to actually eat it. We found out later that night when it was served to us with our meal.

We arrived in Gatlang in pretty decent time despite my weakness. Before we fully reached our destination we were called into another home for tea. It's the first home we've seen that actually has a bed with a bedframe and Tom noticed the lady had clean feet and painted toenails. We are invited to dinner the next evening.

I spent the rest of the afternoon resting in the tent. Yungchin (Shem's adopted daughter) came by at one point to bring me tea and to invite us to lunch the next day.

That evening we go to Prem's house for dinner and I still have nausea, so I don't eat again. I'm not sure what the hostess really thought of that, but what can I do. I am desperately hoping to have my appetite back soon.

Day 5 - Trekking

This morning we were attending the village church so we decided it time to wash our hair. We had a pot of water heated on the fire and took turns bending over a bucket while the other poured water over our head being careful not to get our clothes wet. It was awkward, but effective and it's a wonderful to have clean hair. It turns out there was a “Village Development Committee” meeting this morning so most of the adults attended that, which left only a few elderly people and a lot of children attending the church service. It was nice, if a little chaotic.

Afterwards, most of the adults (and ALL of the women) went out to the fields to work. There is no day off until winter. It is a very hard living here. It looks like they only grow potatoes and millet. A few people tend to cows, yaks and sheep, but there is not much else here. There are no stores and no money. When the people need anything more than millet and potatoes they have to walk two days to get to Dunche and back, carrying sacks of goods to trade. What little money they get will usually go to oil, salt and rice, maybe some lentils. No soap, no medicine, no other spices or food, clothing just has to last … forget toys. Though, I did spend some time watching a girl who was supposed to be tending cows jump rope with a bamboo switch.

The homes are made of wood and stone, usually two story with any animals they have living below the main house. The walls are made of stones that are just laid one on top of the other. It is remarkable how straight and secure it seems, however there are gaps between the stones so I can't imagine how cold that wind is in the winter (it snows up here) and then I heard they have tons of leeches that come into the homes during monsoon. All in all the homes are clean and comfortable for this time of the year and a little roomier than many places I have seen in Kathmandu.

For dinner, Shem wants to go to an old friends house.

Shem says “I want you to meet a man who has 12 children.”

I say, “from one woman?!”

Shem says “yes, from one woman.”

I say “forget the man, I want to meet the woman.”

Shem says, “she died last year.”

I say “oh, I'm sorry. How did she die?”

Shem says “in childbirth.”

(sigh)

We go for dinner and have a lovely time, sharing stories (through translation), eating with his many children and even hearing some Tibetan songs played on a hand-carved instrument that reminds me a bit of a banjo but smaller. For dinner, we had meat. They had obviously killed some animal for us because there was a huge platter of raw meat on the floor. Tom asked if it was “buff” for water buffalo and was told that it was the “other kind.” Wow!

Day 4 - Trekking

This morning we packed up our tent and belongings to trek to the next village of Nessing. We had been invited the night before to have breakfast of daal bhaat with another family on the way out of the village. We set the time to eat at 9:30 because we wanted to be walking by 10 am. The family said yes the food would be ready at 9:30 am. We arrived on time to a two room house. One room was for the cows and chickens and the other (divided by a fence) was for the kitchen fire and sleeping planks. We waited for another hour for the food to be finished. Shem asked why when they said it would be ready at 9:30 it wasn't ready until 10:30. The father said that he didn't have a watch or clock and so he looked at the sun and thought it was about 9:30.

We had a large meal, took some family photos and set off. It was going to be a 3 hour, or so, walk until we got to Nessing. The first hour involved us going about 1500 feet straight up to cross a pass. Tom was cruising up the mountain, but I had learned my lesson from the day before and went very slowly, taking the smallest steps possible and making my own switchbacks on 3 foot wide trails and stone steps. It worked, my body never got tired and I was never out of breath. I was ultimately even able to make it to the top in very good time because I never needed rest. Shem was a trekking guide and so he showed me (by example) how to walk this way. The rest of the hike was a long gradual downhill through a Rhodendendrum forest (the national flower). We met men shepherding goats, a women camping by a stream with a cow who invited us to tea and saw view after view of distant remote villages. It was beautiful and I was overcome several times that I am so fortunate to be living my dream.

On approaching Nessing, we were joined by a group of children ranging in age from 8 years to 3 years old. They all had a bundle of firewood strapped to their forehead, even the 3 years old had a big strap of sticks!

On arrival at the small church building in Nessing, we set up the tent, made a cup of chai and were shortly joined by a woman with an infant. The child was about 4 months old and had fallen in a fire and his backside had 3^rd degree burns on it. It was awful, the skin was black and crusty and the entire baby was filthy. Again, we are not doctors, but I did have some soap and triple antibiotic. We heated some water to lukewarm and I showed the woman how to clean the baby and gently get the dead skin off and apply the antibiotic. I was as gentle as possible, but the baby screamed (as burns are extremely painful) and then peed on his mother. We covered the wound with some toilet paper as there was nothing else clean to be found. There are no stores and no soap available in this village. No soap at all!!! So, we cut off a chunk of our soap and gave it to the mother with some more triple antibiotic and instructed her to clean the baby at least twice a day. I didn't know what else to do and so we prayed for her. It was not long before I realized that Nessing is very very poor in a way I have not seen before and very very cut off.

That evening we had dinner at a home of a young married couple. The wife was 16 (and a good friend of Shem's adopted daughter) and the husband was 19 or 20. She was a fantastic cook and her potatoes were some of the best we'd had. We started to make very simple Nepali conversation and I asked them how long they had been married and he said about 8 years. 8 years!!! What?! Did I hear that right? She confirmed and said they were very young. Young is right, she was like 8 years old! I started asking around and found that it was very rare if I girl was not married before puberty. Wow, wow. This began a string of thoughts that I have yet to fully process. It's a different thing hearing about this practice that I find pretty much repulsive, and then sharing a meal in friendship in the house of a couple where this is common and accepted. Sometimes, it's a good thing that I don't yet have the words to share my complete thoughts on a subject.

Day 3 - Trekking

Got up today to find that some villagers had brought us about 50 potatoes and 2 pumpkins. I know we have lunch and dinner plans so I don't know when we are going to eat all of these.

I was preparing to speak in the evening so I spent much of the morning in a chair overlooking Gatlang village studying. A 4 year old girl decided to spend her morning watching me and touching the skin on my arm. Tom spend the morning talking Nepali with some of the men who had come to dig a new ditch around the church and then apparently boiling potatoes for breakfast!

For lunch we went to a new friends house for millet and chicken. We've never had millet before, but it is a staple food for the area as they do not grow rice here. Prepared millet is a sort of hardish brown mush that does not have that much taste. We dipped it in the chicken gravy and it was pretty good. The chicken was delicious, but I slipped Tom a chicken stomach and told him to eat it, which he did, but he was not happy when I told him what it was while he was still chewing.

While here we are talking family photos. Most people don't have a mirror, much less a photo of themselves and their family. So, we've decided to take photos of them, get them printed in Kathmandu and then send copies back to the village with Shem when he returns in May.

It's hard to get people to smile in their photos as for some reason everyone wants to take a “serious” photo. So, we've learned how to say “I like potatoes” in Tamang (and Nepali) and that usually makes people smile long enough to get the better photo we were looking for.

While walking through the village this morning we are chased for about 10 minutes by 6 very small children yelling “Nameste” at us and eating rhododendron flowers. It was cute at first, but after a few minutes of “Nameste, Nameste, Nameste, Nameste” each word getting more and more scrill it started to be a bit of a “Children of the Corn” moment.

In the afternoon, some young guys decide to take Tom and I on a “walk” to a pond. Shem says that he does not want to go and urges the boys to “go very very slowly” with us. I know it will take about one hour to walk there, but do not realize that the 1 hour is straight up! I quickly learn about altitude walking. My body was fine, but I could not breath and had to rest very often. The sun was strong and there were few trees. We made it to the pond, which was lovely and clear, but extremely windy. The boys then decided that Tom should go higher to “see a yak”, but that “sister looked done.” I was done. I found my way to a family house that happened to be a small shop with a bench outside. I was quickly surround by young women with small children. I don't know that much to say in Nepali, but was able to put together that, “My husband is watching yaks.” They proceeded to laugh and laugh at me, a lot, and at everything I said to them. I didn't think it was that funny …