My Home in Nepal....

It has four rooms: 3 bedrooms and a kitchen, although the kitchen is nothing like you would imagine. There is a tiny refridgerator (made in 1985) that is supposed to keep milk and veggies cold only for a day or so due to the load sharing (when the electricity gets cut out on scheduled days/times). There is a mini-table and mini-seats for us to eat our dal bhaat. When I eat, I eat in between my knees that are as high as my shoulders. Maybe I am too tall for this set up? I say mini because its sort of like eating on the floor the height is so low. The charpi (toilet) is outside, past the tap hooked to the fence. The back-yard is tiny, and there is even an area in which they throw trash like banana peels and apple cores. The monkeys tend to gravitate there, especially when P and I are 'showering' (quotations are used because its hardly a shower- the tap goes to our waist!). The best part of the house is the terrace. This is where my family lays their clothes to dry and where we can sit and enjoy the evening cool. The other neat thing about the terrace is the Children's Home has one, too. My house and the home are neighboring buildings so when I go on the terrace at home, I can see the children playing on theirs. They yell to me "Namaste Didi!!"

My Ama is a thoroughbread Nepali woman. The lines on her face show her hard work from over the years. She speaks no English, but somehow we understand eachother. She is caring, genuine and loves to laugh at me trying to speak her language. When I was sick, she felt my head and thought I had a fever. She brought me lemon tea and a little snack she said would make me strong. She caters to everyone in her family and I love that about her.

My Ba is a smiley man. He insisted on walking P to Thamel a few days ago, and when I wasn't home by dark last night he went out looking for me. How cute is that? He makes sure I eat first when the meal is served. Ba walks an hour every morning with Ama. They always come back with fresh vegetables and fruit for the day. I think that is how the Nepali do it. Ba holds his little grandson and sings Hindu songs to him. He is very gentle.

The other great things about this house is the little baby "Jack"- I named him (4 months) and little girl, Dibya (3 years). Jack and I play airplane and tickle monster. I bounce him on my legs and I learned how to change a Nepali 'diaper'. The first day I was there, I asked if I could hold him. My sister said "he is your baby, too" . Wow, they really do consider us like family.

My Sita- bahini (Sita is her name) is the sister in the house who also teaches at the Children's Home. She speaks English (moderately) and if it weren't for her, the frustration level would reach a point of no return. The language barrier is frustrating, but we are getting by. Sita is very patient and has become the house translator. Yesterday, she was at work which posed for a bit of a challenge. All I wanted to do was have a little Jessi-time. So, I told Ama that I was going to go use the internet, and used my fingers to type on my imaginary keyboard. I thought that would be enough for her to understand. She gets her shoes and starts walking with me. I thought maybe she was going to walk me there and then maybe go to the market or something. Boy was I wrong. She definitely came with me to the internet cafe, sat behind me while I typed away emails. Oh, where was Sita when I needed her?!

The amount of genuine care that my Host family represents is unbelievable and I am so thankful for that. They really are catering to our every need. They believe in being true hosts. They have adopted us into their family. They are respectful and always want us to be happy. If we seem sad, or unwell, they will do whatever is in their power to make us feel better. That is such a neat thing to be a part of.

I have to run to a Health meeting. I will write more on the Children soon.