Visit To Patna & Siwan, Bihar India - By Dean

It was late at night when we arrived in Patna, the capital city in the state of Bihar in India.  We were met by Rev E.A. Abraham, the Founder and Director of the mission in the state of Bihar.  He greeted us with a traditional Indian flower gift.  He was very happy to see us.  We had just made our plane in Bangalore, so we were lucky to have made it. We left the small airport and headed into downtown Patna.  What we noticed first was the poverty. 

Trash is everywhere in the city.  There were many dogs, cows and pigs on the streets picking through the trash for food.  The odors and pollution were thick.  They burn the trash in the street at night so the smoke creates a thick fog across the city.  We also seemed to be the only Caucasians in the city.  Patna does have a small amount of tourism due to Buddhism, but primarily from Korea, Japan and China. 

Most residents in Bihar have never seen a Caucasian.  Matter of fact, when we mentioned to different locals in Bangalore that we were going to be traveling to Bihar, we were faced with a smirk or a question of why.  When we were getting off the plane, a resident of Patna said, “we never get tourists here”.    Everyone seemed to be looking at who these strangers were.  We stood out like light bulbs.

We stayed at Patna’s nicest hotel called the Windsor. The picture below is the view of the street from the balcony of the hotel.  It is a free for all with trucks, cars, motorcycles, scooters, rickshaws, bikes, horse drawn carts and even people drawn carts! The hotel was relatively clean and provided a place for us to sleep. Luckily they had internet access in the lobby for 50 rupees a day. The next morning we headed to Emmanuel High School, a three story building with various classrooms.  This was established by Abraham and has 260 children from Muslim, Hindu and Christian families.  All children are welcomed in this school regardless of their religion.  They want to help these kids learn and interact together as equals. 

Castes are still very alive and well in India.  I believe similar types of segregation activities still exist in most parts of the world but with different names and levels of severity.   By having children study, eat and play together, these walls are torn down and the segregation slowly disappears.  We arrived on Saturday morning.  We still found about 40 children in classrooms taking their final exam for the year.  The classrooms are modest with a chalkboard, benches and small tables for the kids to write. 

The kids were very focused on their work even with the visitors walking around with cameras.  After their tests were finished, we were able to meet some of them.  They were all very polite and even sang songs for us.  They were amazed with the cameras. 

Most had never seen a digital camera before and were entranced with the pictures of themselves on the view screen.  They immediately started asking for more pictures and wanted to see them.  I started playing a game with them that I do with most kids I meet.  I turn the camera around so they can see themselves and ask them to give me their funniest face.  I do the funny faces with them.  When they see the screen they start to laugh and immediately the barriers and fear disappear.  They’re just regular kids again.  After we finished having fun, we went downstairs to see their bus. 

The school is in desperate need of a new school bus, but they cannot afford one.  They have made this bus work, but they have to hide it from the local police and government or they will impound it.  It is unsafe to drive, but it is all they have.  They said that they can get a new school bus for $10,000 US dollars.  Abraham said this is one of their most critical needs since they bring in kids from all parts of the city and surrounding towns.  If they didn’t have this transportation many of the children would be unable to get to the school.  Their parents are very poor and don’t have vehicles.  We’re starting a drive to collect $10,000 to buy this school bus for them.  Click [here] to see how you can help.

After the school, we visited Abraham’s office.  It was across the street.  It’s a modest office but much better than they have ever had.  The front door has piles of trash and cows eating from it just like everywhere else in Bihar. The office needs donations to help buy laptops and other office equipment.  Email me if you want to know more on how to help.

Bihar is in the northeastern part of India.  I had never heard of it before this trip.  Abraham had a great sign in his office that gave me a picture of the area and what they were trying to accomplish.   There are 37 districts and over 90 million people living there.  It’s big, densely populated and extremely poor.  Abraham’s mission builds churches, schools and even tailoring centers where the women can learn a trade.  Most women do not know how to read/write or have skills they can use for getting jobs so they are very dependent upon others.  Learning how to communicate and gaining a skill is a life changing experience for them.

After the office we visited the school for pastors.  Abraham trains newly converted people who are interested in ministry.  They attend an intense six-month training school to learn how to plant churches in homes across Bihar.  They start with as few as three people in the home church and invite people to come and hear more.  This is exactly how Abraham started his work.

For ten years he didn’t have one single convert.  Matter of fact he was threatened often and even was attacked at knifepoint and with guns at his home. His family was also threatened with kidnapping.  People did not want Abraham talking to anyone about his religion.  As Abraham puts it, by the grace of God, he and his family survived to continue the work. 

The people in this school face an uphill battle just as Abraham has.  It will not be easy, but all of them understand and are anxious to learn and start the work.  It was very enlightening to hear their stories and see their determination.

After seeing the incredible work being done in the Patna ministry, we started the 70km drive to Siwan.  The drive takes four hours because of the condition of the roads and the traffic. 

People fill every inch of the different vehicles including the roofs and bumpers.  As you can see in the picture to the right, this little jeep has nearly 19 people in it.  The drivers don’t leave until they have filled every space.  It’s a dangerous drive, and Abraham has done it at least two times a week for the last 22 years.  The roads have gotten much better, but there are still many stretches that are dotted with huge potholes and debris.  Along the route we saw many little towns with open markets and other stores.  The trash is still everywhere and there are no bathrooms available so people just squat where they are.  This is one of the other challenges the schools face.  The kids live in poverty and don’t have the greatest hygiene.  They have to teach them.  In Patna the kids are required to wear uniforms and practice good hygiene or they are not allowed to attend.

We arrived in Siwan at about 8pm and checked in to Siwan’s nicest hotel.  Again, it’s not the Hilton, but it did give us a place to sleep.  It was an interesting night.  Mom was freaked out by geckos in the room and we had interesting bathrooms (no toilet with a seat, only squat toilets - holes in the ground).  The room had open vents to the streets so we heard the blaring of horns all night.  The big trucks have huge, extremely loud horns so it was a different kind of music to lull us to sleep.  Funny thing was we slept for ten hours.  I guess we were really tired.

The next morning we got our first glimpse of Siwan in the daylight.  The night before all we saw was a thick haze from all the trash burning in the street.  It had cleared up a bit by the morning, but it was still hazy.  We started out with a breakfast.  Abraham made it at his house and brought it to our hotel.  He was really watching out for us to make sure we didn’t get sick.  We jumped in the jeep and headed over to Abraham’s school and church.  It was amazing to me to see how much he has accomplished.  They had built a large church and school from the ground up. 

   It was off the main road and very quiet compared to the hotel and main street.  When we arrived, there were people showing up for the church service.  I interviewed Abraham outside of his church so he could share his story of what drove him to choose this direction in his life.  It was an amazing story.  He also shared about the difficulties and the miracles they had in making their ministry happen in Siwan.  I was very impressed.  After the interview we went into the church and heard Abraham preach. 

He preached in Hindi since most did not understand English.  He also let my mom and I sing a duet for the church.  That was really neat.  I loved singing in English to all of these people. 

They didn’t know the words but they knew the melody of Amazing Grace.  I watched the children as Abraham was talking.  What impressed me was how engaged they were.  They had notebooks with pencils and were taking notes.  When they started singing, they were really getting into it.  Check out the little girl to the right.  She was lost in the songs whenever we started singing.

Immediately after the service my mom was able to do something she was really waiting for.  She had lugged a big suitcase full of candy and soaps from the US to give out to the kids and the women of Bihar.  Everyone lined up and my mom was like Mrs. Clause!  The kids and the moms were really thankful for her generosity.  They really liked the candy and the soaps.  I guess they can’t get this kind of stuff in India especially so far out from the main cities.  My mom was waiting for this moment for a while.  The faces of the kids and the grown ups were priceless.  We just wished we had brought more to be able to give out.

After church the congregation gathered outside for a group photo.  What I loved was like Patna, most of them had never seen a digital camera before.  They enjoyed the pictures.  My mom and I were able to meet many of them;  teachers from the school, parents, kids and other families.

The picture below is of one of the teachers in front of the Mission High School.  I didn’t catch his name, but he was a very sincere man who really wanted to help the children of his city. 

There were also people who had never been to the church before.  They were Hindus who were asking for Abraham to pray for them because they were sick.  After the service, Abraham brought us around the schoolrooms.  It was a big building with very modest rooms.  They built what they could with the money they had gathered.  They had left re-bar out so they could build more rooms and floors as they collected more money.  You can see the example in the picture below.

Abraham is at the end of the second floor where they still plan to build four more classrooms.  If you notice, none of the buildings have any windows.  They couldn’t afford them.  But, that works out fine since they have a roof over their heads to block the rain and it’s open during the hot summer months.  If you notice below, the classrooms are just four walls with benches and a chalkboard.  They didn’t have enough room, so they had to partition off the rooms to make two classrooms each.  It’s distracting, but they make due.  The kids are just happy to be there getting an education.

After church we headed back to Abraham’s house.  His wife had made lunch for us.  His parents were visiting from another part of India. 

It was great to meet them.  They had purchased 7Up for us to drink.  Abraham’s mom and dad had never tried it before.  It was really funny to watch their faces when the first carbonation hit them.  His mom squinted her eyes and started laughing like she was being tickled.  We had a great meal and good fellowship and then headed to our last stop of this trip, The Grace Home.  This is a home

where they house orphans and kids who’s parents are unable to care for or support them.  They can only afford to house 26 kids at the moment.  The family that lives there with them is incredible.  They teach and care for these kids as if they were one big family.  It really is amazing to see how much people can give for others.  Once again my mom played Mrs. Clause handing out candy to the kids.  Many had been at the church earlier so they got a double take on sugar!

This is where I heard a story that hit me like a ton of bricks.  There is a little boy who lives in the Grace Home with his two brothers.  His name is Manish and his brothers names are Deepak & Raja.  Manish is crippled and must walk with a walker.  The Grace Home was able to build him a makeshift walker as you can see in this picture.  It looks like a toy, but it is really the only way he can get around without crawling.  Manish is the small one in the front and he is about six years old.  The amazing part of this story is that he and his brothers are still alive. 

Three years earlier, the kids father had been put in prison.  Shortly after that, their mother committed suicide.  Abraham found these three kids begging on the street.  They had no money, food or place to live.  The smallest was Manish in front who was crippled.  He was three years old and crawling in the street.  I can personally attest to how terrible that was.  When we drove to this place, we had to pass through the small streets of the city.  The smell was almost unbearable.  Imagine trash and waste from humans and animals throughout the streets and gutters.  I just can’t fathom a three-year-old child crawling through that filth just trying to survive. His brothers had taken care of him as much as they could.  It was truly a miracle that they were found by Abraham’s mission and saved from the streets and what I believe would have been certain death for Manish.  This is just one of the stories of the kids in Bihar.  We only stayed for a short while, but Manish’s face is permanently etched in my brain.

We started the trip back to Patna to catch our plane to Delhi. 

During the trip I kept reflecting on how incredibly selfless Abraham and his team are.  They are constantly trying to help others to have a better life.  I am a Christian, but to be objective, I kept trying look at this from a non-religious point of view. It really takes a special person to dedicate their lives to help others.  Abraham does not force his beliefs on others.  He and his group live the life they are teaching. They help their fellow man.  They foster the children.  They turn the other cheek. They don’t worry about wealth or power. They just care deeply about everyone and never stop.  For 22 years he has been doing nothing but helping others.

When I think of Abraham in Bihar and Kumar in Bangalore and reflect on my own life, I’m humbled.  I always try to be honest and do right by my fellow man.  I try hard to be a good husband and father.  I spend time with my daughter and teach her right from wrong and how to be a good person.  And I try to lead by example.  But what I do isn’t even in the same league.  I’m a geek who makes computers work.  Abraham and Kumar and their families give people hope and an opportunity to have a better life.

During my trip I made a decision to do three things when I returned to the US.

1. 1.Spread the word
   

2. The website you are seeing now is the start to share the wonderful things these people are doing.  Hopefully we can connect with more people who can help them. 
   

2. 2.Buy a school bus
   

3. I decided to start a fund raising drive. to collect enough to buy a new school bus for the kids in Patna. I will continue gathering support until I reach $10,000.  See how you can help the effort [here].
   

3. 3.Create a video
   

4. Abraham needs a video of his mission to show to people around the world when he travels gathering support.  I will use the footage I shot while we were there to help Abraham in his mission.  It’s amazing that I decided to purchase a new HD camera to film the data center we finished in Bangalore rather than hiring a company.  This allowed me to capture good quality footage for Abraham while I was there.
   

5. 
   

If you’ve made it this far in my write up, you must be intrigued and/or interested in helping.  Take that interest and share some of your own prosperity with others in need.  I keep thinking about how one dinner in the US would cover a child’s expenses for a month in India.  I decided to take this a step further and do more than just donate money.  I wanted to use the skills I have learned over the years to help in bigger way.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.  Feel free to contact me by email if you want any further information or have questions or comments.  I appreciate them all.  dean.nelson@sun.com.