20 degrees to 90 degrees in 17 hours

Slums of Mumbai

Me, Neha (the bride), and Gargi before the wedding





Trying on my first sari...



A little girl in Yerpedu showing Usha her aids treatment booklet.

The art called "Kalamkari." They hand-print and color sari cloth.

A street vendor selling us our chai masala

India is a lot like Chicago in many ways...it's a metropolis where you will find many different kinds of people, it has great shopping, great eats, and you can catch a cab on nearly any corner. But the differences are clear. No where else in the world, will you find slums like in Mumbai. They are expansive and heart-wrenching. The abject poverty that is staring you in the face in India, makes you thankful for the small luxeries we have in our daily lives...such as consistent electricity, clean water, a comfortable bed, food at our disposal, air-conditioning...all things that we take for granted, daily. People in India can survive for a mere salary of $5,000 a year. And many survive on much less. So next time you open your mouth to complain about your raise...consider the above.

Drew and I travelled to India for two reasons. We have family friends that are missionaries in India and they run an AIDS and Leprosy hospital. We have always wanted to visit and learn more about their work there. We stayed with them in a small south Indian village called Yerpedu for five days. We got to visit some of their patients and experience south Indian life. We also discovered the joy of south Indian cooking! Mylama was the most amazing cook and I miss her cooking, even today. Usha and Emerys truly have a heart for the Indian people and have devoted their lives to trying to give hope to their patients living with HIV Aids and spreading the fact that God is love...even to those with this life threatening disease. How could anyone look into these children's eyes and tell them that they don't matter? That a disease that they had no control over, has made their lives insignificant? Usha and Emerys show them this is not the case, that their lives DO matter and that they should be making the most of it. God's grace is evident in India and the people there are ready to tell you about it.

We then left our home in Yerpedu and travelled to Mumbai...the Indian epicenter for everything Bollywood. Our second reason for visiting India: Our friends, Salil and Neha were getting married and Drew and I were fortunate enough to get an invitation. We gladly followed Salil into a big, shiny (air-conditioned) mall to buy some traditional Indian clothing and eat our first Indian fast food feast. We then left the mall and the traffic in India is not something I can easily describe, but I will no longer complain about Chicago traffic. It's pretty bad though when an ox and cart pass you on the interstate...After our shopping spree, Salil took us to Neha's house where she was having a Mehndi party. I got some beautiful henna on my hands and arms (which is still there as I write this) and was exposed to some of the most beautiful (inside and out) Indian women. We spent some time exploring the city and trying to take everything in. There were so many firsts for Drew and I....at one point, our cab driver pulled over and yelled at us to get out...when we tried to explain that we weren't at our hotel, he starting yelling at us in Hindi and then proceeded to open our doors and tell us to get out (or at least we thought that's what he was saying...). The smells in India are unrivaled by any other country I've been in, both the good and the bad. But again, everything made us very thankful for our small, creature comforts waiting for us at home. The wedding was probably one of the most beautiful events I have ever witnessed and was sad when it was all over. The Indians really know how to party, and they really know how to make their guests feel welcome.

It's safe to say that our time in India, while short, was very humbling. It's a beautiful country that I think everyone should try to visit in their lifetime, but go prepared to be taken out of every comfort zone you have ever known. Go prepared for your heart to be broken. Go prepared to experience their simple joys. Go prepared to understand that we are blessed beyond measure.

"Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity." - 1 Timothy 4:12