Crows

You might not know this, but CRHP is home to the world's largest concentration of loud, black crows, I think. Every morning at fiveish they squawk and screech until I wake up and they don't stop until I've given up going back to sleep. I've mentioned this to other students a few times, asking them "How do you sleep with the birds so loud?" but they never seem to share my anguish. They notice the birds, but they're certainly not ripped out of sleep by them every morning. Well, I made a groundbreaking discovery the other day. I was looking out my window when I saw a bird's silhouette swoop right up to it with something hanging from its mouth, directly followed by the raucous screeching I have come to dread. I immediately threw open my window and bam! An entire nest of crows between my window and the shudders in my room, which are a few feet from my bed. When momma crow swoops in with a worm several times every morning, the baby crows go wild. Sadly, there's not much I can do. My window is two stories above the ground, the birds can't fly yet, and I'm way too scared to touch them.

So there's only a week left of the course. It's over on Friday, and my plane leaves the following Monday for Dubai and then onto SLC. It's sad that I'll be leaving so soon. I really love it here. I've made some friends I'll keep in touch with in the future and some contacts that will help me along my path. What a beautiful opportunity it has been.

This week a few of us started having bible study together in the mornings before class. I've never really done that before, except on my mission, but I was just teaching a few people from a lesson manual, with not much group participation. Here everyone is very participative and willing to share. It's funny, when I was getting ready to come here to India, I knew I would probably be the only one from the LDS faith, so I figured I would be able to share my beliefs with lots of other students. I forgot, however, that they know things about God and spirituality too, and that I might have something to learn from them. In our class, we gave "River of Life" presentations about the events of our lives have led us to CRHP, and one person in the bible study group suggested that we do something similar, instead describing events in our spiritual lives that have led us to where we are today spiritually. We're starting tomorrow and I can't wait.

We've had some really neat lectures over the last two days I think I should write about.

Yesterday, we had five people with leprosy come in and share their experience with the disease as well as how CRHP has helped them deal with it. They each talked about the fear they felt upon being diagnosed, especially considering how people with leprosy are typically ostracized in rural Indian communities. Shortly after finding out they had the disease, each man fortunately found his way to CRHP, where they taught him how to take care of himself. They taught him first that the disease was not a curse from God on him or his family, and that the deformities people associate with the disease can prevented almost entirely. Interesting fact about leprosy you might not know: it doesn't cause deformities directly. It does cause a loss of sensation in the hands and feet, but the deformities we generally associate with the disease result from accidents--things like burns, broken bones, and cuts that go unnoticed because of the numbness. Thanks to what they learned, these men were able to keep their social standing by simply taking care of their hands and feet. One man had had a few minor deformities that led to people avoiding him and not allowing him to come close to them, but the CRHP hired him as a food server in their kitchen and taught villagers that leprosy is not easily contagious. Soon after, the town accepted him back with open arms. The other men, have not only escaped the stigma, but have become successful leaders in their communities. It is amazing that each of these men were given a chance at normal lives just from a little bit of information shared with them about their disease. Demystifying medicine is one of CRHP's focuses. People, they think, should understand what the diseases they get really come from and what doctors are doing to them. It's a wonderful thing. The best moment of the lecture was at the end. The founder of CRHP, Dr. Raj Arole had been conducting the discussion, asking the leprosy patients questions and translating their answers for us. Before leaving the room, each patient approached to Raj and knelt to kiss his feet. They felt indebted to him for his kindness in helping them defeat their disease and the stigmas attached to it for the last thirty years. But what Raj did perfectly reflects CRHP's mission to help people reach their potential by understanding their own self worth. He stopped each of them before they reached his feet, looked them in their eyes, shook their hands and reminded them that he did not deserve such treatment. He is, he reminded them, their friend and equal. It was beautiful.

We had a lesson this morning on natural remedies to common diseases and injuries. Our teacher explained that herbal medicine is in many circumstances cheaper, easier to find, and just as effective as antibiotics or synthetic supplements. She passed around different plants to the class and explained circumstances they might be used under, especially when people have a hard time getting good care without bribing doctors and pharmacies.

Because it was the first time having a class on something we already knew a good amount about, the CRHP staff asked us to conduct a discussion about AIDS ourselves. Two of the medical students in the class did a fantastic job explaining the science of HIV/AIDS, in terms of how it's contracted, how it spreads, and how to treat it. Another student who worked in Botswana as a peace corps volunteer shared his on-the- ground experience working with AIDS victims and how Botswana's aid distribution infrastructure is weak and disorganized and often keeps people from getting the anti-retrovirals they need. As a result, people have little incentive to get tested because they don't even know if they'll get treatment. Unfortunately, PEPFAR (the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief,) which is the largest expenditure on foreign aid EVER, does not address Botswana's (and other countries') flawed infrastructure and essentially ties the hands of volunteers from giving practical advice and leading worthwhile discussions with villages because of some very narrow-minded policies. It is, in this volunteer's opinion, not a sustainable project. Too bad Western governments are still dumping billions and billions of dollars into it. Another student added that the money it costs to keep a Botswanan on anti-retrovirals for a year (with a spotty and ineffective supply at best) is the same amount it would cost to treat 1000 children with diarrhea who die by the thousands each year. Foreign aid could, it seems in this case, be spent more effectively in Botswana, whether that means fixing the infrastructure or reallocating funds to more pressing projects.It's really unfortunate.

Well, that's enough for today. I'll post again soon. Much love, Bryce

PS- I'm reading a new book called Fugitive Pieces, by Anne Michaels. It's in the running for my favorite ever. Check it out if you're like me and would rather trust someone else's judgment when you're choosing a book to read.

PPS-You also might be interested to know that I have a super gnarly ten-day beard.