A day in the life of a Kalighat volunteer

0420: we wake up with the birds while it is still dark out and lay in bed wondering if it is 2am or if the sun will show up any minute. It is very unusal to sleep through the night while our bodies are still adjusting so if it is 4am and this is the first time we're awake, hurray!

0450: get out of bed and try to remember to use the water bottle for brushing our teeth. Using sink water would be an almost fatal mistake. It's too early to have that kind of danger awaiting! We wouldn't die, but apparently, it would feel like it.

0520: begin the twenty minute walk to the Motherhouse as the streets of Kolkata are waking up. Tip-toe past hundreds of people sleeping everywhere: on top of taxis, rickshaws, on the sidewalks. We watch people brush their teeth and spit into the gutter. The walk is always full of smells but luckily it is not too bad in the morning because the meat in the market has not been out in the hot air for too long. Avoid: rats, groups of young boys, women trying to get you to let them do henna, and the taxi wash because you just might get another shower. You also get to play a fun game as you attempt to cross main roads: Frogger and we are the frogs.

0545: arrive at Motherhouse. Make sure to remain in silence and take off our sandals before entering the chapel. Also, make sure to drink water or else you will be super thirsty half way through mass. This morning was a bit different because Ally and I were the lectors for mass. Mass is beautiful and you don't even notice you are sitting on a (very clean) cement floor.

0700: have breakfast with the other volunteers, anywhere between 30 and 80 of them in the volunteer "lounge" where we can be noisy. Excellent. Breakfast is a very delicious glass of chai, a piece of white bread, and a mini banana. The banana is a bit longer and a bit thicker than a man's thumb.

0730: pray and go with the Missionary's blessing to your respective destinations. Our walk is about 35 minutes through markets and along the rail road tracks. Again, we have learned to avoid small groups of boys who think it is a fun game to hit you and run away. By the train station is the most intense poverty. Garbage is EVERYWHERE, like snow in Minnesota in January.

0800: Arrive at Kalighat and put away your bag in a locked volunteer cabinet. Put on your apron ASAP because SM. Florentine will definitely find you if you don't. We start laundry right away unless you get pulled to an odd-job like feeding someone breakfast. I fed someone breakfast yesterday and it was hard because she would collect the food in her mouth instead of swallowing it. Critical thinking nursing skills are coming in handy in those kinds of situations (also it is handy if you know the Hindi word for swallow which I think is "gilo"). You had better work fast otherwise you will get "fired" and a masi will take over (a hired Indian worker). Laundry is fun...you can't mess up too much. There is an assembly line with two people at each bucket. First you throw a bunch of clothes/linen into the bucket and "dance" (step on it like you're making wine). Then you swish and twist in a particular way depending on the item, and toss it into the rinsing bucket. Lastly, you toss it into the disinfecting busket. Everything gets hung out to dry on the roof.

0900: help hand out medicine. This is a good way to learn (and slaughter) people's names. There are about 50 different kinds of oral medicines and everyones prescriptions are handwritten in two different books. Then it is chai time! This is EVERYONES favorite part of the day. We hand out tea and biscuits. Yesterday, I kindly helped a diabetic have very sugary tea. She's still OK today but now I know!

1000: we get to have chai time with the other volunteers now. It's a nice time to relax and chat. Today there was a very heated political discussion. When it got really bad, I interjected asking the males, more tea? No one, NO ONE, can resist more chai.

1100: take the laundry off the line or help hand out lunch. I have been folding the laundry because the woman in charge is picky and everyone else gets fired. We are getting to be good friends and she was very happy to hear I will be here for two months. It's hard when people come and go because they have such a specific way of doing things.

1200: we leave Kalighat and walk a short way to catch an auto-rickshaw. This is like a golfcart/motorcycle that seats six people and is, quite possibly, the best way to get around. Ever. It is the most fun I have all day. It costs us about a quarter each to take the 10 minute ride home.

The afternoons are filled with eating, emailing, blogging, reading, praying, and most importantly, napping.

0500: walk to the Motherhouse for adoration and a communal rosary. This is one of the best parts of the day because it gives you a great time to reflect on the day.

0700: eat dinner at Blue Sky cafe, a well-established street vendor that someone has already tried and not gotten sick at, or buy something from the grocery store.

0800: shower, read, practice guitar (I can play whole songs now and I just started learning! Ally's a great, patient teacher)

0900: lights out!

Allie's Post

So Laura and I might write similar things so I apologize in advance...but I must say, this trip has been a whirlwind of adventure from the second I left the house! 42 hours of traveling definitely takes a toll!  We arrived in Kolkata around 8:30am so we decided it would be best to stay awake the rest of the day and try to get our sleep-cycle adjusted...we ended up lasting till 6:30pm and that was the end! It came back to bite me when I woke up at 3:00am but I'm getting closer! We started off the day with Mass at the MotherHouse at 6am.  The amount of prayer time we will have during these 2 months will be not only amazing, but also essential to the work we will be doing.  The poverty is such an intense part of life here that it can definitely be overwhelming without proper perspective.When we stepped off the plane, I have to admit I was pretty surprised at how tropical Kolkata is.  There are tons of palm trees and it's pretty green outside the pollution of the city.  By the grace of God, John was able to find us very easily and we took a prepaid taxi to our hotel, Hotel Galaxy.  This bus trip by far topped any amusement park ride I've ever experienced.  It was basically 30 minutes of Laura and I having a heart attack.  Apparently car lanes are not necessary here because I don't think we drove in a straight line at any point in time.  The driver was dodging other taxis, bikes, people, auto-rickshaws, dogs, you name it! Quite the introduction to where we will be living for the next 2 months. But, as I'm sure my family will be happy to hear, while there is so much going on, we feel quite safe walking through the streets as most people either ignore us or are nice.  Not that my guard is down any less...I promise I won't close my eyes and walk down the street at night with money taped to my body.

We did orientation at the Shishu Bhavan yesterday which took about 2 hours.  Some experienced volunteers told us about each of the homes we might have the opportunity to work in and then we were asked to choose one.  Not everyone got the home they asked for but uh...Laura and I are kinda a big deal (AKA we're going to be staying the longest of everyone and got first choice) so we both are going to be working in Khaligat...the famous Home for the Dying.  It sounds like they aren't too strict about moving around to work in different places, although they do discourage it for short-term volunteers as moving around is disruptive to the work the Missionaries are trying to do.  But I am hoping to at least work in Shishu Bhavan, the disabled children's home, for a while.   

Well, that's a brief rundown of what we've been experiencing in the 24-ish hours we've been here! Oh also...Blue Sky Cafe= lifesaver (adventurous Laura loves the peanut butter toast). Literally. After seeing the meat markets on the street, I'm surprised we haven't gotten sick just looking at them! Unsanitary is an understatement.  Flies, pollution, heat , humidity...the list goes on.  We are looking forward to starting volunteering tomorrow for the first time! The Missionaries of Charity are one of the most beautiful orders I've ever seen and such a breath of fresh air from the intensity of the streets.  You cannot come here without being changed by the example of love these woman give.  We are so blessed to have this opportunity!

Laura and I are going to try and bargain for some sandals now so until next time...God bless!

Allie (Allison ;)

First day off

Thursday is the volunteer's day off of working and the other part of our team has left for a two day trip to see some elephants and tigers. Although it was tempting to go with them, Allie and I decided to stay here so we can start volunteering tomorrow. I woke up this morning with the sun at 5am and walked to the Motherhouse with John and Allie. The streets of Kolkata were uncharacteristically quiet this morning. Stepping into the Motherhouse is like entering a sanctuary. Quiet, if not silence, is requested throughout the House.  We walked a flight up to the chapel and took off our shoes before entering. Since the windows are open to allow airflow it can seem quite noisy in the chapel, but it really isn't; it is the calmest place I have ever experienced. I am excited for the solitude and recollection the Sisters enjoy each day. My hope is to carry it with me the rest of my life.

We're here!

Allie and I have arrived safely in Kolkata to join up with the rest of the team. We are about to head to lunch and then our new volunteer orientation. I cannot wait to see the Motherhouse and meet some of the Sisters! I wil have more to write tomorrow after our first day of volunteering.

Peace! Laura

Getting in the Groove

After spending close to a week in Kolkata, I'm surprised at the adjustments, both conscious and subconscious, our group has made to the environment.  At the conscious level, we've just become more savvy in regards to street navigation; we know how the culture works more every day.  This was the sort of change I expected.  More interesting changes seem to occur at what I'll call a subconscious level.  To site a trivial example: Kolkata's average temperature ranges from a humid 90-105 degrees, after only a few days none of us notice the heat near as much as expected, and we hardly sweat.  On a more interesting note, we have gradually becoming less aware of the many things we initially found quite appalling.  Take the poverty for example.  Initially, a feeling of tense nervousness accompanied every journey we took outside the walls our lodgings.  Now, the poverty seems more ordinary.  Feeling comfortable amidst the poverty really allows one to see the humanity amidst the destitution.  The more we pass boundaries such as these, the more we're able to understand the people we serve.  Anthony brought it to my attention yesterday that although most of the people we encounter have very little in the way of material possessions, most of them seem fairly  happy.  I offer this cliche reflection simply to affirm the old maxim: money does not equal happiness.

Both Anthony and I have spent the majority of our time volunteering at Khaligat, the "Home for the Dying."  Many of the patients brought in off the streets resemble pictures of men and women I've seen after liberation from Nazi concentration camps.  Skin and bones is the norm.  Working is such an environment has forced us to really be thankful for basic things like health and material necessitities.  Most of the dying men only speak broken English, but those who can are more than happy to converse with us volunteers during their last few days/weeks.  These conversations can be quite illuminating, shedding light on those things which are universally felt, cherished, feared, and loved in the human experience. 

I could ramble about Khaligat for hours, but now I'll just cite one memorable anecdote.  Some say that it's impossible to bring an Indian to an authentic understanding of what we insular westerners call Christianity.  Some contend that Christianity with its Greek influence can find no context atop the philosophical underpinnings of the eastern mind.   Several experiences I've had over the last few days seem to say otherwise.  Though the cultural, philosophical, and language barriers separating the average American Christian from his brother on the streets of Kolkata are strong indeed, they do not seem insurmountable.   On Wednesday a man was released from Khaligat to re-enter Indian society (a rare occurrence considering the nature of the institution).  Before the man left he hugged several of the sisters.  During these final interactions with the sisters he kept gesturing and pointing to a crucifix hung on a nearby wall.  At first I could not quite out what he was attempting to communicate, but as he passed my way he pointed again and said, "Jesus save me."  Incredible.  Experiences such as this seem to indicate that the barriers can be crossed, or perhaps there were never any real barriers in the first place. 

First Few Days

Our Lonely Planet Traveler's Guide describes Kolkata as, "A festival of human existence."  Though cheesy, I'll say that's a pretty accurate description.  Pam, Anthony, and I stepped out into the city's boisterious streets just two days ago. We immediately took a taxi to Sudder Street, where we will be staying for the next two months.  Our Bengali-speaking taxi man drove us into completely different country, different in every way.  The Hindu and Islamic influence manifests itself in Kolkata's people and architecture, and the city possesses all of the characteristics you would normally associate with an poor, Asian/Middle-eastern country.  Though these characteristics will be difficult to adjust to, the most appalling facet of the city was its poverty.  The homeless and dying really are spread all throughout the city, this is an entirely different degree of poverty than the US.  It's intense and widespread, to say the least.
After finishing our long journey to Sudder Street we were excited to make our first visit to the Motherhouse.  Our first glimpse of the sisters in their white and blue habits was quite a relief.  They're so beautiful.  Mother Theresa's tomb is located in a poor area of Kilkata, just off a busy street.  The peaceful, ordered convent sitting amidst the Kolkata slums presents quite an extraordinary contrast.
After beginning each day with Mass at the Motherhouse we travel to any one of many MC apostolates throughout the city.  So far we've worked at Premdan, Shishu Bhavan, and Khaligat.  Pramdam is a makeshift hospital for adults.  Shishu Bhavan provides care for disabled children who've been rejected by their parents.  And Khaligat is Mother Theresa's famous "Home for the Dying."  What an incredible experience; each apostolate requires one to endure continuous gut-checks.  I don't think I could dream up a more sanctifying environment.  I'll stop discussing the apostolates for now, as the majority of our posts will likely contain further descriptions, but know that they stand at the center of our experience.  Alright, that's all for now, picture will come later.  Please exscuse the mispellingses and bad gramurs :)  Mom, we're all safe and healthy.