When asked what I was most looking forward to about our move to India, I replied, “Household help, to be honest.”
And honestly, that’s been the best and most challenging part of our short time here so far. I am grateful for the assistance, and in need of it: things take much longer to do, the time-saving devices we’re accustomed to in the US are either unavailable or not as dependable here. I also need help at times navigating the cultural differences, having someone who speaks one of 4 languages used communicate what I’m trying to say…
Our helpers are: 1) Raju, the driver (official job, which includes being available up to 14 hours a day, 6 days a week; he takes Shae to work and picks him up, and is available to me & the kids in the interim.) I’ve written a bit about him so far. He’s the youngest of 4 kids (a delightful, social baby of the family; funny like my sister), he’s married and has an 8-month-old daughter. We hope to meet his family next month when they return from the village. He grew up in Bangalore, knows the city very well. His English is the best of our helpers, though we still have a few misunderstandings/puzzled looks every day. He thinks WE speak too fast. Ha ha. In addition to English, he speaks Hindi, Kannada (language of the state of Karnataka, where we live) and some Tamil. He is Hindu. Hannah loves the shiny golden Ganesh (elephant god) on his dashboard.
He has been an ENORMOUS help in running errands and finding the things we need for our home. He not only takes us there (no street signs), but helps us make the purchases and/or bargain if we need it. I really feel like he is an ally—not to suggest an advesarial relationship between us as expats and the Indian world, but perhaps us as obvious newbie foreigners trying to adjust to a radically different world (I feel so much like a freshman again)… his is a face of compassion towards us. Though he does laugh at us often, too. Usually with us. You should have seen him laugh at my passport photo, “Not a very good photo, madam.” He calls Matthew “Matthew-baba” (like Ali Baba). He kisses the children every morning when he greets them.
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3 comments:
He sounds great. I'm sure he loves your kind and well-behaved family. :)
We miss you so much. We hope you miss us just a little bit. Try not to associate us with the bad weather, ok?
I love all your posts.
I am finding all your posts fascinating and a pleasure to read. I haven't been checking in b/c I didn't think you would have internet, so I was pleasantly surprised to find so many entries.
I'm loving the bits about the cook :-).
We were at the zoo today and I was missin' you guys. It's been so good to get a glimpse into your life and see that you're doing well. Praise God for His tender care of your family!!
Dear Megan,
Thank you for reading! Matthew has mentioned the zoo a few times and when we met a boy named Joshua here, Hannah said, "We have a Joshua, too!"
God has definitely answered your prayers for a warm reception for us here. Thank you.
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