Mama Joy and Papa Charles have been adventuring together for 56 years - mostly raising kids, getting an education (formal and informal) and teaching. We invite you to join us on our latest adventure - a trip to India!!!
Our goal is to learn as much as we can about people and culture and history and whatever else God has for us. Today is Tue Dec 2, 2008 - only a few days past the terrorist attacks in Mumbai/Bombay. We never unpacked our bags, but certainly watched closely by TV, computer, news print and updates from our "Indian" connection, Mercy and Nikhil Parikh (more about these precious people later). As of today, we are planning to leave DFW Wed afternoon Dec 10th to continue the adventure, always willing to re-think if wisdom suggests it.
The adventure began when our pastor, Raul, welcomed a young Indian couple - she Christian, he Hindu - to our church as they walked by on a weekday afternoon. Mercy had recently arrived from India to join her husband of only a few months who was here to attend the U of N Tx to get his masters in public health. They are both graduates of med school in India and desire to get their AMA certification, as well, serving their internships in the US. They desired the additional study required to pass the med exams here, to better qualify them to serve their country.
They attended a service. Mercy's first request of the ladies circle she met with later was, that she have a prayer partner, specifically an older woman. I came to the ladies' minds, so the contact was made. The rest is history. We met and prayed at a coffee shop. Papa Charles and Nikhil met with us for dinner, and we were fast friends. They are the age of our grandchildren and were lonely for family. That was more than four years ago. We have grown to love and appreciate each other. They have worked very hard on the various exams that physicians must take, and have done very well on all of them. They are now both interns at Advocate Hospital in Chicago.
The trip was talked about in wishes and "wouldn't it be wonderful if..."s. The idea that this could become reality was slow coming to PC and me. At this age? A 3rd world country? How could we ever afford...? But, here we are - packed (well, I'm packed) and writing my first blog - ever - on The Adventures of Mama Joy and Papa Charles.
So, dear friends and family, join us as we embark on the trip of a lifetime. I'll update you from time to time, telling you what we're seeing, feeling, understanding and loving about the whole adventure. decolores,mj
PS 'De Colores' is a greeting (kinda like Aloha) that we use. Love,mj
Our goal is to learn as much as we can about people and culture and history and whatever else God has for us. Today is Tue Dec 2, 2008 - only a few days past the terrorist attacks in Mumbai/Bombay. We never unpacked our bags, but certainly watched closely by TV, computer, news print and updates from our "Indian" connection, Mercy and Nikhil Parikh (more about these precious people later). As of today, we are planning to leave DFW Wed afternoon Dec 10th to continue the adventure, always willing to re-think if wisdom suggests it.
The adventure began when our pastor, Raul, welcomed a young Indian couple - she Christian, he Hindu - to our church as they walked by on a weekday afternoon. Mercy had recently arrived from India to join her husband of only a few months who was here to attend the U of N Tx to get his masters in public health. They are both graduates of med school in India and desire to get their AMA certification, as well, serving their internships in the US. They desired the additional study required to pass the med exams here, to better qualify them to serve their country.
They attended a service. Mercy's first request of the ladies circle she met with later was, that she have a prayer partner, specifically an older woman. I came to the ladies' minds, so the contact was made. The rest is history. We met and prayed at a coffee shop. Papa Charles and Nikhil met with us for dinner, and we were fast friends. They are the age of our grandchildren and were lonely for family. That was more than four years ago. We have grown to love and appreciate each other. They have worked very hard on the various exams that physicians must take, and have done very well on all of them. They are now both interns at Advocate Hospital in Chicago.
The trip was talked about in wishes and "wouldn't it be wonderful if..."s. The idea that this could become reality was slow coming to PC and me. At this age? A 3rd world country? How could we ever afford...? But, here we are - packed (well, I'm packed) and writing my first blog - ever - on The Adventures of Mama Joy and Papa Charles.
So, dear friends and family, join us as we embark on the trip of a lifetime. I'll update you from time to time, telling you what we're seeing, feeling, understanding and loving about the whole adventure. decolores,mj
PS 'De Colores' is a greeting (kinda like Aloha) that we use. Love,mj
