Festivals and Protests

“I am woman, hear me roar, in numbers too big to ignore…’

That Helen Reddy song from the 70’s came to mind this weekend, when we witnessed yet another Hindu festival that closed down businesses. Over 3 MILLION women descended upon the city from surrounding villages, cities, and even the adjacent states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, to celebrate a festival called Pongala. There is a Hindu temple in town called Attukal Bhagavathi, and the women sit mile after mile along the roads that lead to the temple. According to the myth, they cook rice in clay pots as an offering to the goddess Kannaki to appease her after her killing rampage when her kingly husband was wrongfully killed. The Friday before the festival was crazy with a ton of traffic. Everyone warned us not to travel on Saturday either, and on Sunday most of the roads in town where closed to traffic. We managed to hire an auto-rickshaw and got close enough to some of the streets to take photos. Some of our European friends went out in the morning to the heart of the event and said that the smoke in the air from the cooking jars was so thick it choked them.

If it isn’t a Hindu festival in this town, it’s a political protest- I’m surprised anything gets done here. Adam had to work from home on Tuesday because there was a transportation strike. All buses, cab drivers, auto-rickshaws, private drivers, etc. took the day off to protest an increase in gas prices. I read in the paper that in one part of the state, the cars of private individuals were smashed in with rocks when they were driving on the roads. We decided to take a short walk on the road by our apartment to witness India without cars! As we were headed back, we saw 12 government buses in a row driving down the road, all with armed personnel in the passenger side seat. The crazy thing about Kerala is that they elected a Communist government in the last elections. It seems like an oxymoron. Apparently, they have free elections again next term during which they can vote them out. I don’t get it. Its still weird to see the posters all around town with pictures of Che Guevara in his classic beret, and the soviet hammer and sickle. Its one of the most political states in the country, we’re told.

We as a family are really growing through this whole experience. The girls have had some really tough times this past week with missing friends and their school. They knew it would be hard being here, but they both, especially Hailey, underestimated just how hard it would be and how long 8 months really is. It may be that God wanted us here to grow as a family together and closer to Him. Hailey goes into Junior High this fall, so maybe part of why we are here is to solidify her faith before these teen years (she turns twelve on March 19th). I have definitely grown as well. Earlier, I felt like I was in a prison being stuck in the apartment all of the time. I expressed this to my friend Suzanne Sieker on the phone, and she said that she knew that God did not want that for me. She prayed that I would learn to find joy. I feel like I am almost at that place. Instead of thinking of how much time we still have here, I’m thinking of how LITTLE time we have left here. I’m trying to help the girls to see that as well.

I wrote before about the Holy Spirit. Before we left, Suzanne and I were doing a study on the Holy Spirit because I really wanted to learn more about what that power looks like. I read a book by D.L. Moody, but it wasn’t quite answering my questions. I’ve been reading Francis Chan’s new book ‘Forgotten God: Reversing our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit’, and it is really hitting home. I wouldn’t say it’s the most lofty of books, but in typical Francis style, he gets to the heart of the matter and pierces you through. He asks those of us who have wanted to have the power of the Holy Spirit why we want that power. Is it for selfish reasons or for the glory of the Kingdom? I had to really examine myself on that one. I have grown to really know the Spirit in a much more intimate way being here. I told my friend Margaret that its more like a quiet strength for me at this point, which is not what I expected. He holds us up in such a tender way. Francis also discussed how the bible tells us that the Spirit prays for us on our behalf. That is too awesome to even get my mind around.

Thanks to everyone for your prayers and support, especially for our girls. We miss being at the Welcome Table at The Pursuit, fellowshipping with our friends as we get ready to worship, and worshipping together in the passionate way that our amazing band inspires!