Hey everyone....
Just wanted to let you know that the all new HEARTHUNTERS.org website is now up and running.
And, like I promised during the "Live From India" blog posts, pictures and video of the trip are on the site. On the homepage at www.hearthunters.org, you will find a link to "Michael's India Trip." On that page you can watch videos of some of the kids singing and a 30 minute video documentary of our trip to the hills. There is also a photo journal of the trip with over 200 pictures, and the entire blog from the trip is there, too... just in case you missed anything or want to read it again.
In addition to the India trip page, on the site you can find out more information about Bibles For The World and the India Children's Choir. Be sure to check it out.
And I know you have all been wondering about the choir because we have not been telling you much...
Well, to be honest, there is still not much to tell. We are still waiting on an answer back from the State Department. Please keep praying... we are still expecting God to work.
As far as me personally... I am (and have been for awhile now) back at my house in Pennsylvania while we are waiting this thing out. I am trying to stay occupied as much as possible to keep from being bored out of my mind. Some days it works, and some days... well, some days I'm bored out of my mind!
I have been working on some choir stuff (like the website), helping out in my dad's business here and there, and sleeping a lot. :) But, I am so ready to get up and do something, and I really, really miss those kids! Please pray with me that they will be able to come soon.
Blessings,
Michael Esh
Friday, March 13, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
The Latest News About ICC 2009
I'm sure a lot of you have been wondering what the latest news is on the 2009 India Children's Choir visa situation.
The reason that you have not heard anything from me for a while is because nothing really new has happened... no good news, no bad news.
So the kids and leaders are doing the same thing that those of us on the United States side of this thing are doing... waiting.
I talk to the leaders in India every day or two, and they and the kids are doing fine... playing, eating, sleeping, and of course, rehearsing.
So, not much of an update, but that's what we know. Keep praying!
On a more personal note, since this is my personal blog, my brother, Marv, and I have been here in Colorado Springs since Monday. We have just been doing odd jobs around the office... everything on the ICC side of things is kind of on hold until we get word that the kids are on their way.
We spent Friday and Saturday in Aspen, Colorado, taking in some of the events at the Winter X Games. We even got to see live, in person the first ever double backflip on a snowmobile. It was incredible! A lot of fun in the mountains!
The reason that you have not heard anything from me for a while is because nothing really new has happened... no good news, no bad news.
So the kids and leaders are doing the same thing that those of us on the United States side of this thing are doing... waiting.
I talk to the leaders in India every day or two, and they and the kids are doing fine... playing, eating, sleeping, and of course, rehearsing.
So, not much of an update, but that's what we know. Keep praying!
On a more personal note, since this is my personal blog, my brother, Marv, and I have been here in Colorado Springs since Monday. We have just been doing odd jobs around the office... everything on the ICC side of things is kind of on hold until we get word that the kids are on their way.
We spent Friday and Saturday in Aspen, Colorado, taking in some of the events at the Winter X Games. We even got to see live, in person the first ever double backflip on a snowmobile. It was incredible! A lot of fun in the mountains!
Friday, January 16, 2009
KEEP PRAYING!!
OK, here's the latest news, as of just a few hours ago, on the ICC visa situation.
After a few days of redoing medical checkups and waiting for those results and getting together all the documentation that the Consulate was asking for, our leaders in India went back to the Consulate to meet with the official once again.
After a long interview, the official there decided to refer our case to the State Department and wait on their recommendation before making a decision to issue our visas or not.
What does that mean? Looks like more of the waiting game. The Consulate, as well as the State Department, is closed on Saturday and Sunday, and Monday is a holiday. That means it will be at least Tuesday before our case even gets looked at again.
We are still hoping and praying that God will work in this situation, and that most of all, His name would be lifted up. And we would appreciate if you would do the same.
After a few days of redoing medical checkups and waiting for those results and getting together all the documentation that the Consulate was asking for, our leaders in India went back to the Consulate to meet with the official once again.
After a long interview, the official there decided to refer our case to the State Department and wait on their recommendation before making a decision to issue our visas or not.
What does that mean? Looks like more of the waiting game. The Consulate, as well as the State Department, is closed on Saturday and Sunday, and Monday is a holiday. That means it will be at least Tuesday before our case even gets looked at again.
We are still hoping and praying that God will work in this situation, and that most of all, His name would be lifted up. And we would appreciate if you would do the same.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
URGENT PRAYER REQUEST
Dear Friends,
As you know from reading my India trip blog, the 2009 India Children's Choir group is currently in Calcutta, where they have been meeting with the US Consulate to try to get their visas issued.
Usually, this is a fairly easy process and is approved in a day or two.
However, this year, it has been a different story. Since I have arrived back home, here is what has happened...
The visas, which were supposed to be issued yesterday, have still not been approved, and three of the leaders have had their visas denied. The consulate has been making almost impossible demands of the group, all of which they are trying to accommodate to the best of their ability.
The choir was supposed to start the trip to the United States tomorrow, but those plans have been put on hold.
Please pray the God would soften the heart of the lady at the consulate... her name is Deborah Diller... and that the visas would be issued tomorrow, and that the choir could be on their way as soon as possible.
Our people in India are also planning to make a special appeal for the consular to reconsider at least the one leader's visa.
Pray that God would work in this situation, and if your church has a prayer chain, please consider passing this on to them. We need as many people as possible to pray.
God bless,
Michael Esh
As you know from reading my India trip blog, the 2009 India Children's Choir group is currently in Calcutta, where they have been meeting with the US Consulate to try to get their visas issued.
Usually, this is a fairly easy process and is approved in a day or two.
However, this year, it has been a different story. Since I have arrived back home, here is what has happened...
The visas, which were supposed to be issued yesterday, have still not been approved, and three of the leaders have had their visas denied. The consulate has been making almost impossible demands of the group, all of which they are trying to accommodate to the best of their ability.
The choir was supposed to start the trip to the United States tomorrow, but those plans have been put on hold.
Please pray the God would soften the heart of the lady at the consulate... her name is Deborah Diller... and that the visas would be issued tomorrow, and that the choir could be on their way as soon as possible.
Our people in India are also planning to make a special appeal for the consular to reconsider at least the one leader's visa.
Pray that God would work in this situation, and if your church has a prayer chain, please consider passing this on to them. We need as many people as possible to pray.
God bless,
Michael Esh
Monday, January 12, 2009
Home Again!
I am writing this post from my house in Pennsylvania! I arrived at JFK airport in New York this morning around 7:30 after a flight from Calcutta to Dubai and then and then another fourteen hour flight to New York.
Backing up a little... after arriving at the Calcutta train station on Saturday morning, we got six taxis to take us and all our luggage back to the guest house where we were staying. We spent some time getting settled in and then I went out to the mall for a little while. I ate my lunch at Subway! Even though I really enjoy Northeast India food, there's still nothing like good old American food. One difference in my Italian BMT though... it was made with chicken ham, lamb salami, and lamb peperoni. The Hindus do not eat beef, and the Muslims do not eat pork, so the menus are a little different. But it was still good!
It just happened that Saturday evening was the evening of Joyce's (ICC 2008 leader) wedding, and the wedding was being held in Calcutta. I had thought earlier that I was going to miss the wedding by a few days, but with my schedule being changed, it just happened that I was there at the right time, so I put on my brand new suit and tie... I had one made in Churachandpur by Jenny's (ICC 2008) dad... and took a taxi over to the church where the wedding was being held. The ceremony was at 4:30 and then the reception at 7:30.
Even though the festivities were still not over at 9:30 PM, I headed back over to the guest house, and slept with the mosquitos.
Sunday morning, I hung out with the kids for a few hours and then went out to the market to grab a few things I needed yet. I was thinking all day that my flight was at 10:30 PM, but around 6:00, I actually looked at my ticket and the flight was really at 8:30. I made it to the airport at 7:30, but still made the flight.
So, I hope you have enjoyed reading this blog and "joining" us for our trip through India. This will be the last post for the "Live From India" part of the blog, so if you wish to unsubscribe, please feel free to do so.
If you stay subscribed, the posts from here on out will be random thoughts from on the road with the 2009 India Children's Choir, which should be arriving in the United States later this week. The kids are finishing up visa interviews in Calcutta tomorrow. Pray that all would go well, and that the visas would be issued without any problems.
Blessings,
Michael Esh
Backing up a little... after arriving at the Calcutta train station on Saturday morning, we got six taxis to take us and all our luggage back to the guest house where we were staying. We spent some time getting settled in and then I went out to the mall for a little while. I ate my lunch at Subway! Even though I really enjoy Northeast India food, there's still nothing like good old American food. One difference in my Italian BMT though... it was made with chicken ham, lamb salami, and lamb peperoni. The Hindus do not eat beef, and the Muslims do not eat pork, so the menus are a little different. But it was still good!
It just happened that Saturday evening was the evening of Joyce's (ICC 2008 leader) wedding, and the wedding was being held in Calcutta. I had thought earlier that I was going to miss the wedding by a few days, but with my schedule being changed, it just happened that I was there at the right time, so I put on my brand new suit and tie... I had one made in Churachandpur by Jenny's (ICC 2008) dad... and took a taxi over to the church where the wedding was being held. The ceremony was at 4:30 and then the reception at 7:30.
Even though the festivities were still not over at 9:30 PM, I headed back over to the guest house, and slept with the mosquitos.
Sunday morning, I hung out with the kids for a few hours and then went out to the market to grab a few things I needed yet. I was thinking all day that my flight was at 10:30 PM, but around 6:00, I actually looked at my ticket and the flight was really at 8:30. I made it to the airport at 7:30, but still made the flight.
So, I hope you have enjoyed reading this blog and "joining" us for our trip through India. This will be the last post for the "Live From India" part of the blog, so if you wish to unsubscribe, please feel free to do so.
If you stay subscribed, the posts from here on out will be random thoughts from on the road with the 2009 India Children's Choir, which should be arriving in the United States later this week. The kids are finishing up visa interviews in Calcutta tomorrow. Pray that all would go well, and that the visas would be issued without any problems.
Blessings,
Michael Esh
Saturday, January 10, 2009
The Rest of the Story...
Continued from the last post...
After not getting to watch the Penn State game, we slept there at Joseph's house for a few hours and then went back to TCS for a little bit. From there we went to Jenny's (ICC 2008) house for lunch.
While we were in Shillong the first time, Jerry (ICC 2006), Christina, and Grace (both ICC 2007) sang together a few times. They are really, really good and we wanted to get a good recording of some of their songs, so right after lunch on Friday morning, we headed over to a local studio and spent five or six hours recording two of the songs. Keep an eye out for the videos... I hope to post them on www.hearthunters.org in a few weeks. I'm sure you will agree that these kids are great!
From the studio session, we went straight back to Seilmat and to Eunices's house for dinner. Eunice is a girl that my brother, Marv, sponsors. We spent a few hours there and then went back to TCS for the night.
On Saturday morning, we went to Christina's (ICC 2007) grandparent's house for lunch. Christina's whole family was there from Shillong, having spent the Christmas and New Year holiday there.
At 12:30, the ICC reunion started. We had planned this event to bring together as many of the former ICC kis as possible. And a bunch of them came... right around 120 former choir members came together for a time of games, singing, and food. It was a lot of fun. If you want to hear some good singing, try putting over 100 former ICC kids in a room and have them sing together. It was great!
Since our days were winding down and we were out of time slots for meals, we started getting tea invitations, so after most of the kids had left arond 7:00 PM, we went to Angelyn's (ICC 2008) house for tea, and then to Christina's (ICC 2008) for, guess what, more tea!
On Sunday morning, we went to Seilmat church for the morning service, and then to John Mark and Lalnei's (ICC Leaders) house for lunch. From there, we visited the school hostel for a few minutes to see some kids there. Dinner was at Esther's (ICC 2008) house. Remember what I said about tea. Well, it was the last night for Marv, Kramer, and Herm to be in Seilmat, so we had tea at Jasper's (ICC 2007) house at 8:30 PM, Joseph's (ICC 2006) house at 9:30 PM, and tea at Elva's (ICC 2006) house at 10:30 PM!
On Monday morning, we had breakfast at Jacob and Zingi's (principal of TCS and his wife) house, and then spent an hour or so with a bunch of kids that came over to say goodbye to the guys. The three guys left around 10:30 and went to the airport. My plan was to stay for a few more days and then travel to Guwahati, meet the 2009 ICC kids, and the travel with them to Calcutta by train.
That all went according to plan for the first day. After the guys left, I went and had lunch at Fat James, and did some shopping. That evening I had dinner at Paul and Joyful's (ICC Leaders in 2006) house. Paul just received his PhD., and the dinner was in celebration of that. After that it was tea at Fred's (ICC 2001) house, and then tea at Beauty's (ICC 2005) house.
Tuesday morning, I went to Rengkai to eat lunch at Celia's (ICC 2006) house, and there is where the "plan" fell apart. While there, I got a call saying that my Manipur permit expired that day, and I needed to leave the state that day yet. I thought it expired a few days later, but not so. There were no flights available that day anymore, so they made an exception, and said that I had to leave first thing the next morning.
That evening, I had dinner at Mary and Esther's (ICC 2005) house, and then went back and did my packing. A bunch of people came over to say goodbye.
The next morning, after eating breakfast at Paul and Joyful's house, about 15 kids and I piled into a jeep-like vehicle and left for the airport. First we said that we had room to take six kids, but so many of them wanted to come, we piled all of them in. We drove to the airport and I made the flight to Guwahati. Instead of staying there with not much to do for a few days, I decided to make the 3 1/2 hour trip to Shillong. And so that is how I ended up there.
I spent two nights there and had a lot of fun with the kids from there again. On Friday morning, we headed back down to Guwahati, where I met the ICC kids. We boarded the 12:45 train and spent the next 18 hours traveling to Calcutta. We arrived here this morning around 6:00 AM.
After not getting to watch the Penn State game, we slept there at Joseph's house for a few hours and then went back to TCS for a little bit. From there we went to Jenny's (ICC 2008) house for lunch.
While we were in Shillong the first time, Jerry (ICC 2006), Christina, and Grace (both ICC 2007) sang together a few times. They are really, really good and we wanted to get a good recording of some of their songs, so right after lunch on Friday morning, we headed over to a local studio and spent five or six hours recording two of the songs. Keep an eye out for the videos... I hope to post them on www.hearthunters.org in a few weeks. I'm sure you will agree that these kids are great!
From the studio session, we went straight back to Seilmat and to Eunices's house for dinner. Eunice is a girl that my brother, Marv, sponsors. We spent a few hours there and then went back to TCS for the night.
On Saturday morning, we went to Christina's (ICC 2007) grandparent's house for lunch. Christina's whole family was there from Shillong, having spent the Christmas and New Year holiday there.
At 12:30, the ICC reunion started. We had planned this event to bring together as many of the former ICC kis as possible. And a bunch of them came... right around 120 former choir members came together for a time of games, singing, and food. It was a lot of fun. If you want to hear some good singing, try putting over 100 former ICC kids in a room and have them sing together. It was great!
Since our days were winding down and we were out of time slots for meals, we started getting tea invitations, so after most of the kids had left arond 7:00 PM, we went to Angelyn's (ICC 2008) house for tea, and then to Christina's (ICC 2008) for, guess what, more tea!
On Sunday morning, we went to Seilmat church for the morning service, and then to John Mark and Lalnei's (ICC Leaders) house for lunch. From there, we visited the school hostel for a few minutes to see some kids there. Dinner was at Esther's (ICC 2008) house. Remember what I said about tea. Well, it was the last night for Marv, Kramer, and Herm to be in Seilmat, so we had tea at Jasper's (ICC 2007) house at 8:30 PM, Joseph's (ICC 2006) house at 9:30 PM, and tea at Elva's (ICC 2006) house at 10:30 PM!
On Monday morning, we had breakfast at Jacob and Zingi's (principal of TCS and his wife) house, and then spent an hour or so with a bunch of kids that came over to say goodbye to the guys. The three guys left around 10:30 and went to the airport. My plan was to stay for a few more days and then travel to Guwahati, meet the 2009 ICC kids, and the travel with them to Calcutta by train.
That all went according to plan for the first day. After the guys left, I went and had lunch at Fat James, and did some shopping. That evening I had dinner at Paul and Joyful's (ICC Leaders in 2006) house. Paul just received his PhD., and the dinner was in celebration of that. After that it was tea at Fred's (ICC 2001) house, and then tea at Beauty's (ICC 2005) house.
Tuesday morning, I went to Rengkai to eat lunch at Celia's (ICC 2006) house, and there is where the "plan" fell apart. While there, I got a call saying that my Manipur permit expired that day, and I needed to leave the state that day yet. I thought it expired a few days later, but not so. There were no flights available that day anymore, so they made an exception, and said that I had to leave first thing the next morning.
That evening, I had dinner at Mary and Esther's (ICC 2005) house, and then went back and did my packing. A bunch of people came over to say goodbye.
The next morning, after eating breakfast at Paul and Joyful's house, about 15 kids and I piled into a jeep-like vehicle and left for the airport. First we said that we had room to take six kids, but so many of them wanted to come, we piled all of them in. We drove to the airport and I made the flight to Guwahati. Instead of staying there with not much to do for a few days, I decided to make the 3 1/2 hour trip to Shillong. And so that is how I ended up there.
I spent two nights there and had a lot of fun with the kids from there again. On Friday morning, we headed back down to Guwahati, where I met the ICC kids. We boarded the 12:45 train and spent the next 18 hours traveling to Calcutta. We arrived here this morning around 6:00 AM.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
All Alone, and Back In... SHILLONG!!!???
Sorry for the long silence from here... the last week and a half have been busy, busy, busy. Going to houses for meals, entertaining kids almost every waking minute that we were at TCS, add into that a sporadic internet connection... I think you get the picture. I just didn't have time to write.
I am writing this blog from no other place than Shillong... you know that place that we were supposed to be at once during the trip, and this is my third time! More on that later.
As for the all alone part... my brother, Marv, along with the two friends that were traveling with us on this trip all left India a few days ago... Marv should be arriving in the United States as I am writing and the other two are in Thailand, where they will be spending a few more weeks.
Let me start where I left off the last time, and once again give you a rundown of our activities each day...
Saturday morning... that would have been December 27, I took all of the 2009 ICC leaders to the local restaurant, Fat James, for lunch. We had a great time getting to know each other a little better and talking about some of our dreams for the 2009 ICC tour. We spent some time that afternoon back at TCS, and then had dinner at Jasper's (ICC 2007) house. Jasper's family, especially her mother, was one of the families that bent over backwards to make our stay in Seilmat enjoyable, and her house was one of our frequent late-night tea stops.
Sunday morning, we made the twenty minute walk back over to Rengkai where we had breakfast back at Romila's (ICC 2006) house, and then went to the church service there in Rengkai. We spent the whole day there in Rengkai, and then went to Calvin's (ICC 2007) house for dinner. We arrived back in Seilmat just after dark, and spent the evening entertaining our many "little" friends.
A few weeks ago, we visited the little village of Tingcham, about an hour ride by auto-rickshaw, a three-wheeled motor bike designed to carry two or three passengers. Immanuel Lalsanhim (ICC 2007) lives in this village, one of the poorer villages in Churachandpur. When we visited there, the family invited us back for a meal, and so on Monday, we made the trip back there again and ate lunch with them. The family is extremely poor, but they went all out for us. It was quite humbling to see this family most likely sacrifice just to have us there for a meal.
We arrived back at TCS around 2:00 and spent a few hours there. The evening meal was at the house of Mary and Esther (ICC 2005). I sponsor both of the girls.
Tuesday morning, we went to the village of Khawmoi... about fifteen minutes by auto-rickshaw... to Mesak's (ICC 2008) house for lunch. His sister, Dorothy, will be in the 2009 choir. We ate there, and then walked down to the nearby river, where we met Hallelujah, who was a member of the 2005 choir. We went back to TCS, spent a few hours, and then it was back to Khawmoi again, and Rita's (ICC 2006) house for dinner. Priscilla (ICC 2006) joined us for the meal. We arrived back in Seilmat just after dark and spent the evening at TCS.
On Wednesday morning, we went to Rachel's (ICC leader) house for lunch. Rachel has traveled with a number of choirs, the most recent being 2006. She got married in early 2008, and has a baby that is only a little over a month old. Rachel and I were very close during her time in the states and it was really good to see my "sister" again, along with her new family. From Rachel's house, we went to the market and did a little bit of shopping and then returned to TCS for a little while. We ate the evening meal at Joseph's (ICC 2007) house. His sister, Abigail, is a member of the 2009 ICC.
We had tea at Esther K.'s (ICC 2008) house and then went back up to the church to join the midnight service, a service put on by the local youth group. There was a lot of singing, and then the new year was welcomed by the singing of the "Hallelujah Chorus." It was really neat. We went back to Esther's house around 1:00 AM for some food, and then finally got to bed around 3:00 AM.
On New Year's day, we went to a little tiny village just about a thirty minute drive from Seilmat call Tingkangpai. I had been asked to preach the sermon at the New Year service at the small church there. It is a Meitei church, and a lot of the people are new Christians. They fed us a big meal before the service.
From there, we went to Rengkai, where we had been invited to join the New Year celebrations. They played a lot of games, and we had a lot of fun joining them for some of them. We also joined them for their New Year feast.
We returned to Seilmat a little later that evening and had tea at Mary's (ICC 2006) house.
Now, here is a story that those of you who are college football fans will appreciate. All of us (those in my group) being from Pennsylvania, and all being huge Penn State fans, naturally, we wanted to see the Rose Bowl. We checked the local listings, and there it was... Penn State vs. USC... live at 3:30 AM on January 2nd! We were thrilled. We started making plans to go to Joseph's (ICC 2009 leader) to watch the game. Fat James came in and cooked food for us, even though it was New Year's day, and he was closed. He had even turned down a request from one of the local government big shots to cook that day. But he opened up and cooked up ten orders of spring rolls and a bunch of hamburgers just for us.
Next step was to make sure that the cable would be on. You see, in this part of the world, the power is only on for a few hours a day, and it is usually shut off during the night and with it goes the cable TV. Joseph knew the guy who owned the cable company, and we stopped at his house to see if he could run his generator to keep the cable system on during the night. He said that was not an option, because his generator was too big and the neighbors would complain if he ran it at that time of the night. But he and Joseph came up with another plan.
Here's where it gets good... around 11:00 PM... remember, this is New Year's day... this guys and his team of three technicians, pulled one of the satelite dishes that receives the signals for the cable, brought it over to Joseph's house, and set it up there. Here's the kicker... when they pulled that dish, it left a good part of the town without cable... and they did it just for us! Only in India!
We all sacked out at Joseph's house till 3:30 AM. We got up only to discover that game was not even on the channel that it was listed to be on. So we all fell back to sleep and slept there until around 7:30 AM. We were all a little bummed that we didn't get to see the game, but we sure did all that we could to try and see it. And Penn State lost anyway :(. Oh, well. It's just a game.
I am going to stop with that... for now. I am very tired. I will try to post again tomorrow, and then I'll fill you in on the rest of the details of our time here and tell you the about why I am back in Shillong.
I am writing this blog from no other place than Shillong... you know that place that we were supposed to be at once during the trip, and this is my third time! More on that later.
As for the all alone part... my brother, Marv, along with the two friends that were traveling with us on this trip all left India a few days ago... Marv should be arriving in the United States as I am writing and the other two are in Thailand, where they will be spending a few more weeks.
Let me start where I left off the last time, and once again give you a rundown of our activities each day...
Saturday morning... that would have been December 27, I took all of the 2009 ICC leaders to the local restaurant, Fat James, for lunch. We had a great time getting to know each other a little better and talking about some of our dreams for the 2009 ICC tour. We spent some time that afternoon back at TCS, and then had dinner at Jasper's (ICC 2007) house. Jasper's family, especially her mother, was one of the families that bent over backwards to make our stay in Seilmat enjoyable, and her house was one of our frequent late-night tea stops.
Sunday morning, we made the twenty minute walk back over to Rengkai where we had breakfast back at Romila's (ICC 2006) house, and then went to the church service there in Rengkai. We spent the whole day there in Rengkai, and then went to Calvin's (ICC 2007) house for dinner. We arrived back in Seilmat just after dark, and spent the evening entertaining our many "little" friends.
A few weeks ago, we visited the little village of Tingcham, about an hour ride by auto-rickshaw, a three-wheeled motor bike designed to carry two or three passengers. Immanuel Lalsanhim (ICC 2007) lives in this village, one of the poorer villages in Churachandpur. When we visited there, the family invited us back for a meal, and so on Monday, we made the trip back there again and ate lunch with them. The family is extremely poor, but they went all out for us. It was quite humbling to see this family most likely sacrifice just to have us there for a meal.
We arrived back at TCS around 2:00 and spent a few hours there. The evening meal was at the house of Mary and Esther (ICC 2005). I sponsor both of the girls.
Tuesday morning, we went to the village of Khawmoi... about fifteen minutes by auto-rickshaw... to Mesak's (ICC 2008) house for lunch. His sister, Dorothy, will be in the 2009 choir. We ate there, and then walked down to the nearby river, where we met Hallelujah, who was a member of the 2005 choir. We went back to TCS, spent a few hours, and then it was back to Khawmoi again, and Rita's (ICC 2006) house for dinner. Priscilla (ICC 2006) joined us for the meal. We arrived back in Seilmat just after dark and spent the evening at TCS.
On Wednesday morning, we went to Rachel's (ICC leader) house for lunch. Rachel has traveled with a number of choirs, the most recent being 2006. She got married in early 2008, and has a baby that is only a little over a month old. Rachel and I were very close during her time in the states and it was really good to see my "sister" again, along with her new family. From Rachel's house, we went to the market and did a little bit of shopping and then returned to TCS for a little while. We ate the evening meal at Joseph's (ICC 2007) house. His sister, Abigail, is a member of the 2009 ICC.
We had tea at Esther K.'s (ICC 2008) house and then went back up to the church to join the midnight service, a service put on by the local youth group. There was a lot of singing, and then the new year was welcomed by the singing of the "Hallelujah Chorus." It was really neat. We went back to Esther's house around 1:00 AM for some food, and then finally got to bed around 3:00 AM.
On New Year's day, we went to a little tiny village just about a thirty minute drive from Seilmat call Tingkangpai. I had been asked to preach the sermon at the New Year service at the small church there. It is a Meitei church, and a lot of the people are new Christians. They fed us a big meal before the service.
From there, we went to Rengkai, where we had been invited to join the New Year celebrations. They played a lot of games, and we had a lot of fun joining them for some of them. We also joined them for their New Year feast.
We returned to Seilmat a little later that evening and had tea at Mary's (ICC 2006) house.
Now, here is a story that those of you who are college football fans will appreciate. All of us (those in my group) being from Pennsylvania, and all being huge Penn State fans, naturally, we wanted to see the Rose Bowl. We checked the local listings, and there it was... Penn State vs. USC... live at 3:30 AM on January 2nd! We were thrilled. We started making plans to go to Joseph's (ICC 2009 leader) to watch the game. Fat James came in and cooked food for us, even though it was New Year's day, and he was closed. He had even turned down a request from one of the local government big shots to cook that day. But he opened up and cooked up ten orders of spring rolls and a bunch of hamburgers just for us.
Next step was to make sure that the cable would be on. You see, in this part of the world, the power is only on for a few hours a day, and it is usually shut off during the night and with it goes the cable TV. Joseph knew the guy who owned the cable company, and we stopped at his house to see if he could run his generator to keep the cable system on during the night. He said that was not an option, because his generator was too big and the neighbors would complain if he ran it at that time of the night. But he and Joseph came up with another plan.
Here's where it gets good... around 11:00 PM... remember, this is New Year's day... this guys and his team of three technicians, pulled one of the satelite dishes that receives the signals for the cable, brought it over to Joseph's house, and set it up there. Here's the kicker... when they pulled that dish, it left a good part of the town without cable... and they did it just for us! Only in India!
We all sacked out at Joseph's house till 3:30 AM. We got up only to discover that game was not even on the channel that it was listed to be on. So we all fell back to sleep and slept there until around 7:30 AM. We were all a little bummed that we didn't get to see the game, but we sure did all that we could to try and see it. And Penn State lost anyway :(. Oh, well. It's just a game.
I am going to stop with that... for now. I am very tired. I will try to post again tomorrow, and then I'll fill you in on the rest of the details of our time here and tell you the about why I am back in Shillong.
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