[Written February 23, 2010.]
[christy & heera.]

When I look back on my month in Australia I can say one thing for certain- it would have not been the same if it weren't for one woman. Her hospitality, generosity, wisdom, & love changed the course of our month & impacted our team forever.

Heerabai Christy, a petite & vivacious Indian school teacher, captivated me from the moment we met. Her smile & joyful spirit were impossible to ignore. After meeting her & her husband at our first Sunday church, we were hastily summoned to her house for tea. We, still tired from a long sleepless night in tick city (our wonderful 2 bedroom apt), accepted her generous offer. To our absolute delight, we entered her home to find air conditioning & actual furniture, both rare discoveries in Oenpelli. The tea turned into an afternoon filled with storytelling, chicken curry, & a mini Indian fashion show. I couldn't do a thing but smile at how blessed I felt during that day. Something about Heera made all the difficulties of Oenpelli fade away to insignificance in my mind. Not to mention, I willingly consumed Indian food for the first time in my life & absolutely loved it. (I know this will seem unbelievable for all those who know my eating habits, but I am now a lover of Indian food- surprise!) Plus we got to try on all of her traditional Sarees, complete with jewelry & even Bindis (the forehead dots). Needless to say, it was a pretty great day.
 
[learning how to cook chicken curry.]
 
[heera & christy making indian culinary magic happen.]
 
[this may or may not be my 3rd plate of the day.]
 
[heera dressing me in a traditional saree.]
 
[all the ladies of three:seventeen.]

Just as I thought our random trip to little India would be a short ,happy memory in the time line of our month, Heera came to our rescue by inviting us to live with her. A few days after our first encounter, she walked by our current housing & deemed it "unsuitable for habitation" & therefore, insisting we move immediately- no questions asked. And, I mean, who were we to deny her generous offer & her glorious air conditioning.

Thus marked the beginning of a beautiful friendship. All time not doing ministry was spent with Heera-talking, laughing, playing cards, learning the intricacies of Indian cuisine, watching seemingly endless footage of terrible Indian cinema, & just loving on each other. There were numerous times that I had to remind myself that I was not actually in India, but Australia. I've always wanted to go to India & couldn't have asked for a better alternative, although now I am even more eager to go. (Speaking of which- anybody want to go visit Heera in India with me next January? Haha) I could go on for ages about all the crazy things that happened in that house this month, but I'll spare you the details & let the pictures speak for themselves.

All in all, Heera was my favorite part of Oenpelli. She is someone I just won't forget.
 
[tasty spices.]
 
[heera teaching us indian dot drawing.]
 
[more indian clothes.]
 
[legit anklets.]
 
[family dinner.]
 
[ready for bed in our sweet night gowns.]