Surrender

This morning I read an email informing us that one potential teacher candidate wasn’t going to come teach at LAMB School. I felt like giving up and wondered whether I had misunderstood God’s plan for us. I was wondering about times when I hadn’t searched God’s will as it seemed like He was telling us O Levels weren’t going to happen. As I entered the school grounds, I surrendered it and our future into God’s hands and prayed for the students who had been hoping to do their O Levels here. Before lunch one person offered to teach two subjects and suggested another teacher for a third. I still don’t know how God will provide someone to teach Physics, Chemistry and Biology but I know it is in His hands. Thank you God and thank you readers for your prayers.

Reasons why

His opening remark yesterday was, “If you raise the monthly fee, I can’t pay it.” My reply was, “That sounds like blackmail.” I calmed down after that and started to listen.

By some mistake the finance department had charged a fee this parent wasn’t supposed to pay – probably my mistake. I assured him the mistake would be corrected and he was greatly relieved. He then went on to tell me about how he no longer was able to buy meat or even eggs for his children, how he hadn’t been able to buy them any fruit this season and how – having taken an advance to pay the older brother’s school fees at a different school meant he wouldn’t get any money this month. The extra fee we had charged meant his advance wasn’t going to be paid back until next month.

As I listened I went through regret, shame and then joy. Regret and shame at my initial reaction and then joy; Here is a father, who has put all his money into the education of his children, whose wife endures living in a lean-to up against her brother’s brick house so that they can send their children to school. Now the oldest daughter has her tenth grade diploma, the oldest son is a star ninth grader in another private school and the youngest is possibly the best in grade 1 at LAMB School.

What a privilege and joy that we can be a part of helping this family by educating one of their children.

Garu gari

It has been years since I last saw a real live ox cart in Bangladesh. This one, unlike more modern versions, has wooden wheels as opposed to car wheels and is pulled by cows rather than by water buffaloes. When this specimen passed by on the road where I live I had to get my camera and take a picture of what is fast becoming an extinct means of transportation.

Chutney

What capacity for feeling possessive the human soul possess. I sit in my living room, writing this as my ears are picking up every hint of falling fruit in my garden lest the neighbours should get there before me. This is the story of every Kal-boishaki storm in Bangladesh, when mangos are prematurely torn of the branches and brought down into jars of chutney. I don’t make chutney and wish I could leave the mangoes for my neighbours to pick up, but I would rather give them to them so that they know of my generosity – and perhaps returns a jar of chutney for the favour.

Hail

Fortunately they are tiny little. None that we saw were more than 1.5 cm
across. Please pray that the Lord of the Harvest will have mercy upon the
farmers for this harvest of rice that has been awaited with so much hope.
When rice prices go up, the poor can't buy enough to feed themselves and
their families. We all knew that the devastation from SIDR was a loss to
overcome. There have been talks about a bumper harvest which would solve the
food crisis in Bangladesh for the time being. Last week the harvest began;
then came Nargis; we all prayed that God would not let another cyclone hit
Bangladesh. It turned South East and made landfall in Myanmar Friday night.
Now everybody is hoping that God will continue to protect the crop and the
people whom it is meant to feed. What do we pray; that God will teach us to
trust in Him? that God will make us into the people he wants us to be? or
just plainly that God will give us our daily rice?