Busy busy busy!

So waterplay was really a lead into washing the kids the next day - for their scabies treatment. Only no one prepared me. A very little child so very frightened had been rounded up and her mother was dousing her with cold water. The child began screaming hysterically so a young man took over. They wouldnt let me help. I wasnt sure if there was some kind of cultural taboo so I backed off. I busied myself washing another child next to him while he proceeded to pour water straight into and over the little ones face and hair, making sure it was thoroughly soaked. With no let up he grabbed a bar of soap lathering it up in her hair and over her face and eyes and ears, making sure she was thoroughly soaped. Then on with the buckets of water, over and over as he rinsed her off. Her screams were curdling. All I could think of was the American soldiers water boarding those prisoners. As he threw the last bucket I wrapped her in a towel and whisked her away. She buried her poor little face into my neck, both of us sobbing, much to the amazement of the spectators. I have always been a bit emotional around crying babies but this was truly horrible. No wonder they don't like being clean!

After that I insisted on washing all the petrified little ones. “amar, amar” (gently, gently). Some of the frightened bigger ones tapped me on the arm “madam, you wash me please”. 

Still literally washed out from that, we went to catch the bus home and were approached by a beggar. Most of the beggars know we work at Charan community and just smile and say namaste. But this guy was pushy "I am hungry" he kept saying. We gave him all our fruit, but he wanted money. Its not good to give them money they get drunk and the wife cops it. I tried all sorts of reasoning, suggestions. But he was persistent and bolshy. Eventually he said that if we gave him Frances we could pay him a dowry too, plenty of money. At this point my softly softly evaporated and became rather tall. if I had had a carrot stick he may have had a rapping around his knee caps!! I told him that in our culture that was the height of rudeness, I thought Frances might just punch him out! Just then one of the men from the Charan slum came to our rescue, slipped between us gestured to us to head off while he spoke to the man.

When we got home we had to take a shower at Antionette's. The big IPL cricket games are on and there are 25 000 extra people in town. The hotels are taking all the water, as well as the cricket ground. The only reason Charan still has water is that they are right in the shadow of the enormous state of the art cricket ground... ironic really while some starve others play cricket. Anyway that's where Gerard is today. He and Antoinette are watching the big game. The Dalai Lama is opening the game! So if Gerard had any concerns about terrorists before he came he has walked right into the lions mouth or is it the den?

The HH has so much security because of the Chinese and of course the cricket is another big target here... and of course there is also the earth quake in Tibet and this region is apparently a bit unstable at the moment. Still he's coping, more worried about me getting lice and scabies I think! Hopefully there will be water tomorrow. We have had only two buckets a day for the last week!! Getting a bit whiffy!! Gerard will tell you all about it as well as his moment of glory while we waited for the cricketers to come out of the temple after there blessing from HH.

We also went to the Tong-len Hostel today to see the lucky Charan kids who have sponsors. That was lovely. We will write more, but just suffice to say if any of you are feeling generous then do consider sponsoring a child. They are soooo fortunate to leave all that behind, and grateful.

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Today we visited the Tong-len hostel. First we went to the girls hostel, they had the cutest little puppies and after weeks and weeks of not being allowed to touch dog or cats, Dad finally let us!!! We met the girls at the hostel first and they did the best dancing ever, just like all the movies!!! They got Abbey and I to dance with them. Dad tried to copy them and sent them into fits of laughter.

We were shown around the hostel by some eager girls. It was just like a house but with BIG bedrooms! After some boys took us to the boys hostel and showed us around. Dad got some of their lesson books and asked them questions from them. We went up to the roof and they showed us the school they go to that was near by and when we were up there it started to rain!!!

The kids at the hostel were cool calm and collected compared with the ones at them slum, you could tell that they liked to learn and were interested in the world around them. The boy who showed us around passionately told us about how it was important for the hostel kids to teach the people at the camp things like not having too many kids! They love living at the hostel, they love their families coming to visit but they don't want to go back.

 Jamyang, the Tong-len director