The bus ride to Hyden

Monday, August 9, 2010. They say that your first trip into the mountains is the hardest. My first trip into the mountains of Kentucky was accompanied by a lot of anticipation and the sense that it took a lot of work to get to the beginning of the journey, but the journey itself to the school was easy. After Stephanie Boyd from FSMFN called role, 21 of us clambered aboard the bus at the airport.
The ride took a little over two hours, with a stop at a truck stop for us to buy snackcs and use the restrooms. The bus driver was not the regular driver, but was the owner of the company. We did notice that he talked a lot on his cell phone while negotiating the heavy traffice out of Lexington. However, the drive was beautiful, the woods denser (at least from the road view) from what I imagined.
Once we reached Hyden, the bus driver/owner had to stop and ask directions to the school and a man obliging showed us the sharp turn in front of the school and a few more sharp turns as we headed up the mountain. At the last turn, the bus driver had to back up the rest of the road, which was a little nerve wracking as it was a narrow road with a steep drop on one side and the driver obviously had never done this before. (The bus needed to be backed up this final stretch of the road as there is no where for it to turn around at the top of the road.) Fortunately, we did not go over the side of the mountain nor were we electrocuted by the low lying power line.
At Hyden, we got our name badges, schedules and room assignements. My room was on the first floor of the Haggin dormitory which was the original dormitory for the early Frontier Nursing Service nurses. (This building has three floors.) I was assigned a roommate to share the small room, but as it happened, she decided not to come to Frontier Bound and I had the room to myself. Only one bathroom to each floor, and each bathroom has only one toilet and one shower. The morning showers will be interesting with a dorm full of women.
After we settled in our rooms, they had a light supper for us: salad, fruit, and dessert. Afterwards, we met in "The Barn" for our evening sessions. This building really did used to be a barn to house the horses of the early frontier nurses. Now it has been converted into a technology lab, library, and classrooms. The highlight of the evening was listening to the stories of Jean Fee, an early Frontier Nursing Service nurse. She talked of her work as a district nurse and midwife, saying that she liked the horses. "Horses and I seemed to get along," she said. She talked of providing health care when doctors weren't available (everything seemed to go along just fine in the doctors' absence) and how little one really needed to help delivery a baby (something to clamp and tie the cord).
After "circling up" and singing the Frontier School Of Midwifery and Family Nursing's school song, we left to go back to our dorms. Natalie Wipert, one of the students I had "met" on Facebook invited me, along with several others, to her room for a glass of wine. Probably about a dozen of us shared 2 bottles of wine Natalie had brought with her while we shared "war stories" of our various practices. I really like these women.
Didn't sleep real well this first night. I was excited, sleeping in a new bed, and I was cold! Definitely too much air conditioning, but I dare not say anything as the third floor is not getting ANY air conditioning in this 100 something heat.

Getting to Frontier Bound

Well, I finally arrived at the Frontier School of Midwifery and Family Nursing. I left Friday morning (August 6th) from Fairbanks heading for Roswell, New Mexico to visit Mom a few days before I went to Kentucky to begin my adventure becoming a family nurse practitioner. Because of thunder and lightening storms, the plane from Seattle had to land in Abilene, Texas before going on to Dallas. Fortunately, my plane into Roswell was also delayed so that I could catch the flight, albeit I didn't arrive into Roswell until 2am Saturday morning.

When in Roswell, I was able to have lunch with Mom at Martin's Capital Cafe, along with her caregiver DeeDee and DeeDee's daughter-in-law, Ramona. Mom wasn't really aware of who I was, which was sad. It was even sadder the next day when I had lunch with here and DeeDee's family and she finally recognized me but it was time for me to leave.

So, I left Roswell to head for Lexington, Kentucky. the plane was delayed out of Roswell so when I landed in Lexington I had to run to catch the plane. Everyone else had already boarded and they were ready to close the doors. Of course, when I got to Lexington, my luggage didn't. I left a claim at American Airlines, then took the shuttle to the Crowne Royal Plaza.

The next morning, I went to buy toiletries to take a bathe. However, I didn't have any clean clothes as I broke one of my travel rules: always carry a clean change of clothing in your carry on. I met Rosemary (from Washington) and Ed (from Sitka) for lunch at my hotel. Afterwards, Ed went to rescue Sarah (from Michigan) as she was having car troubles and Rosemary and I took the shuttle to the airport to meet the bus which would take us to Kentucky

Easter Orphanage Visit and Home Visit

After our lazy day yesterday, it felt good to get our of the guest house on a few excursions today. When we finished with the breakfast that Rani had cooked for us (eggs, tomato chutney and dosais, which are similar to crepes), I took a walk in the neighborhood to look for final photo opportunites. I took pictures of several of the kollams that were drawn on doorsteps and a few children asked me to take their photo. A woman who was sifting sand at a construction sited also asked me to take her picture and I cheerfully agreed, wishing that I could tell her that I REALLY KNEW how hard her work really was after my construction experience.

Sister Rose of the Assisi Illam orphanage invited Stephen, his family, and Claudia and I over to the orphanage for lunch. I had a great time playing with the children. I received repeated requests for "This is how ladies ride", "Baby shark shark", and "This Little Piggy Goes to Market." They also loved to be tickled and we laughed and laughed. The food that Sister Rose had prepared was delicious, as always, and the adults sat in a circle on the floor and ate liberally.

After lunch, we went back to the guest house and packed away more of our belongings and napped a little. I got up late in the afternoon for a final walk through the "hood." Stephen invited Claudia and I over to his house for dinner. Claudia declined, saying she felt grumpy, but I elected to go. Before leaving the guest house, Sheeba bought jasmine to pin in my hair. I will always love the scent of jasmine.

At Stephen's house, I once again got to visit, not only with Steven, Sheeba and their son Roshan, but with Stephen's mother and father and his sister and her son. They had a small flock of chicks in a cage in their house. I saw that they were painted pink, orange and blue and asked if they were painted for Easter. They said no, they were painted those colors so birds of prey wouldn't recognize them and kill them. I was also shown a cage full of parakeets (what they call love birds) that they keep in the back yard for pets.

The dinner was delicious: chicken biryani with a yogurt/onion sauce, chicken, fried potatoes, and a sweet noodle/almond dessert. I was reluctant to eat until everyone was served, but they told me to go ahead as they wouldn't be eating until later. Dinner time in India is around 8pm; Sheeba explained that when it is hot, they don't like to eat until it is cooler. Stephen and his nephew did eat with me so that I didn't feel so alone. While I was eating, I got to chat with Stephen's mother, sister, and nephew - using frequent interpretations by Stephen. They are truly gracious people and I will always treasure this evening I got to visit with them.

All too soon, I was taken back to the guest house to shower, finish packing and to await the plane. What I told Stephen is what I truly believe; one of the things I will always remember about India is the friendliness and warmth of her people.

Lazy Day

Yesterday was a lazy day, just what I needed before starting my long trek home. Aneesh and Jana had left during the night, so Claudia and I woke up having the house to ourselves (except for Rani the cook and Barnabus the man who cleans the house and does our laundry). We enjoyed having a leisurely breakfast and not rushing to a work assignment. The temperature and humidity is still climbing, so we spent much of the day by the air conditioner in our room while we read, sorted our purchases, and napped. Before dinner, we walked to the tailor so that Claudia could pick up the dresses she had made for her daughter, then went to the "fancy shop" where Claudia shopped for some more bangles. Stephen and Sheeba joined us for dinner and we could tell they were tired after entertaining volunteers for three weeks. They also are tired as they have a son who is almost two years old who is having trouble going to sleep at night and they asked our advice, which made us realize that parents have the same concerns the world over.

Tomorrow is our last day. The burning question is: Can I fit everything in my suitcase??

Tears and Good Deals

Today was our final official work day. The remaining four of us slept in a little later after the late farewells to Katie and Joelle last night, showered, then gathered for breakfast. After eating at a table which seemed empty, Aneesh, Claudia, and Jana headed for Assisi while I stayed behind to continue my work on the SEAM growth charts. We all met again at lunch time, then spent an hour cooling off by the air conditioners in our rooms as the temperature and humidity in Chennai is still climbing. At 2pm, we headed to SEAM for our final visit. I took photos of some of the kids and watched while they played an impromptu game of cricket in their dirt courtyard. At the conclusion of our visit, we gathered in their common room and they sang us a farewell song. I did all right until a climbed back into the van, at which time the tears came. I will miss these children who need so much.

When we returned from SEAM, we quickly showered off then little Stephen drove us to the downtown mall for a final shopping trip. I didn't think I was going to buy anything, but I ended up buying a getting a few more "good deals." Outside the shops are people who try to lure you in, and once you enter, several people are there to convince you to buy as much as possible and are more than willing to show you their entire stock, piece by piece. It's fun being to be so catered to, but it is very hard to resist their "amazing" offers.

When we returned to the guest house, Stephen had arranged for fast food burgers to be delivered to the guest house. "Burgers" in India are either vegetarian or chicken, NOT beef. The chicken burgers were sort of like the spicy chicken burgers at Wendy's. Stephen also bought us individual clay pots of Indian ice cream, the same as we had our first week. I will have to say, I don't think I lost weight on this trip.

Tonight, Aneesh and Jana leave; Aneesh for his home in Los Angeles and Jana for her customized tour of southern India. Tomorrow, only Claudia and I will remain at our guest house. Stephen has graciously let us stay in the guest house until our departure so that we don't have to move our stuff to hotel for these final few days. So we have the luxury of resting this weekend and having plenty of time to pack our belongings. This time next week we will be home.

Dwindling Numbers and Reflections

All great achievements require time.
Maya Angelou

Today marked the last day for team members Joelle and Katie. The day started by Aneesh, Katie, and I attending our last morning yoga session. At the end of the session, Katie asked our yoga teacher if he would perform his favorite yoga pose for a picture. We were amazed as he stood on his head, then crossed his legs. Perhaps one day we can achieve this, also – or not as the case may be.
After our morning cold shower and breakfast of ramen noodles and hard boiled eggs, team members migrated to their work assignments. Joelle, Aneesh, and Jana went to Assissi Illam, Katie and Claudia went to Grace Nursery and Primary School, and I stayed behind to work on the growth charts for the kids at SEAM. Work assigments are haphazard this week as this is the week before Easter and schools are going on holiday.

Claudia had ordered a cake (from our local copy shop of all places) for a lunch time treat for the students at Grace School. Aneesh and Jana left Assisi early, picked up the cake, and took it to the school, where the teachers were anxious to meet Aneesh as they thought he looked like Obama in the brief glances they had of him. However, once Aneesh arrived, the teachers became shy and needed encouragement to talk with him. Katie arrived back at the guest house after the party with the palm of her hand decorated with henna by one of the teachers. Henna is carefully painted on the palms of the hands; after an hour or two, the henna paste is washed off and the resulting skin under the paste remains dyed and lasts for a week or two. Unmarried women can only have the palm of their hands decorated. Married women can also have the tops of their hands painted.

This afternoon, Katie and Joelle went to Assisi to say their last farewells to the children. Katie was especially honored to be chosen to be the godmother of little Jasmine and we all felt fortunate to be able to attend Jasmine's baptism yesterday. I'm sure Katie savored her last visit with Jasmine today before traveling back to Minnesota this evening. While Katie and Joelle went to Assisi, Aneesh, Jana and I went to SEAM. (Claudia stayed behind to rest after the party at Grace School as she is still recovering from an upper respiratory infection.) At SEAM, while Aneesh and Jana attended to the students' myriad cuts and scrapes, I had an impromptu conversational English class with four of the students. Using postcards, I told them about Alaska. I could tell they couldn't totally comprehend a land of ice and snow (northern lights were beyond any comprehension) but they were fascinated with the pictures anyway. When we finished discussing Alaska, they brought out a picture book about India and we discussed pictures with which they were familiar. The last part of our visit was playing “Indian games”, which I always lost because they conveniently didn't tell me all the rules. It was hilarious.

Back at the guest house, we quickly showered and went out to the restaurant we visited our first week in India. This was the final farewell dinner. We had an excellent Indian dinner which included tandoori chicken, garlic naan bread, spicy fried cauliflower, vegetable curry, and rice. Indian cuisine consists of so many dishes, I could not learn them all this trip. Hopefully, I'll be inspired to cook up a spicy Indian dish every once in a while in my northern abode and think of the warm hospitality I experience while in Chennai.

Upon our arrival back at the guest house, Katie and Claudia found two students from Grace waiting for them to give them a thank-you letter. Obviously, Katie and Claudia's presence at Grace School touched these students enough to make them to want to make the extra effort to write a letter and wait at the guest house for them to return from dinner in order to deliver it.

Too soon, it was time for Katie and Joelle to leave for the airport. At the beginning of this trip, there were 10 volunteers, now we are down to four. As my time draws near to leave, I wonder what it was that I contributed. Would the sand have been sifted at the construction site without me? Probably, eventually. Would the students at Grace have learned English without me? Yes. The hospital would have survived just fine without my days of observation. And the children at SEAM would have spread themselves out between nine volunteers instead of ten. So what can I tell others who are contemplating a trip with Global Volunteers what is the purpose of volunteering?

First, no one person is indispensable, nor should be as a program cannot survive if it is dependent on only one person. However, a steady stream of dedicated groups of people can truly make a difference in community selected projects. Secondly, while a program may not be dependent on one person, that one person can truly make a good or bad impressiion on the community. If by smiling politely at the grocery store, or patiently waiting in line at the copy shop I can make a favorable impression and my country is viewed in a better light by even one person, I think that is worth the trip. Finally, I believe that the first step in making the world a better place is by first making a change within our own selves. Volunteering provides a great opportunity of personal growth, and by making ourselves better people we are better able to effect change in those around us.

Baptism

Today, after our morning yoga practice and breakfast, we received the news that Katie (one of our team members) had been selected to be the godmother for one of the young orphans at Assisi Illam and the baptism would be today at 11:00am. Sister Rose, the Catholic sister who is the administrator of Assisi had been very concerned that Jasmine (the 3 year old girl who was to be Katie's goddaughter) had not been baptized and as Sister Rose has been in ill health, she wished to see this done. Apparently, it had hard to convince a priest to hold a baptism during Lent, but he was finally persuaded by the fact that Katie was scheduled to leave before Lent was over. We dressed up as much as we could; Katie shown in one of the saris that she had bought while in India. Sheeba then presented us with beautiful necklaces as going away gifts. Pictures were taken, then we headed over to Assisi Illam.

Jasmine (the 3 year old girl being baptized) was adorned in a beautiful white, long dress and white cap. She was even given silver bangles to wear on her wrists and silver bracelets for her wrists. Sister Rose had bought flowers for us, so we had jasmine and roses woven in our hair. After all these preparations, our white van took us to the church. It had to make two trips as it transported not only us, but the small orphans and nuns who were also attending.

The baptism went well. We gathered at the front of the church along with the nuns and other small orphans to watch the priest perform the ceremony. The church was beautiful: white walls and stained class. The priest was a younger Indian man. I didn't understand all the ceremony, but I enjoyed watching the pageantry.

After the baptism, we were once again herded into the van and taken back to Assisi. The sisters insisted that we stay for lunch. Unfortunately, it was the hottest day ever with the highest humidity. I almost passed out as the electricity went out and the fans weren't functioning. However, I was unable to go back to the guesthouse to cool off until lunch was served and eaten. The expression "killing with kindness" seemed appropriate.

I immediately felt better after I returned to the guesthouse and cooled off, though I still felt tired the rest of the day. In the afternoon, Sheeba (Stephen's wife) and Rani (our guesthouse cook) held an Indian food cooking class. I wrote down the recipes; however, I will have to practice as they were unable to give the quantities of each ingredient - they don't measure, they go by sight and taste. The foods we learned to cook were: chicken biriyani, eggplant curry, fried cauliflower, and a yogurt/cucumber sauce.

We were able to rest awhile more before going to SEAM. At SEAM, I was able to get the birthdates of all the children so that I could complete their height/weight charts. At the end of the visit, the children held a going-away celebration for Katie and Joelle who will be leaving tomorrow night. Soon we will all be back home and a new team of volunteers will take over.