I must have gasped when my foot slipped off the narrow ledge
because hands flew out from in front and behind to steady me so I would not
fall. It was dark. Thankfully, Matthew had brought the
headlamps. He also brought our raincoats
which helped us stay somewhat dry in the steady rainfall. We left Kathmandu Nepal early that morning for our
journey. After a two hour drive to the
parking spot, we crossed a long bridge on foot to begin the hike.
As we crossed that bridge overlooking the river beneath our
feet, we did not realize that it would be another 7 hours til we arrived at our
destination.
On the other side of those seven hours was a mountain
village and a church on a hill. It was
hot and humid during most of our trek although our companions made sure we had
plenty of water, snacks, a walking stick to use when the path was steep, and
even an umbrella to shield me from the blazing sun. We weren’t just heading to any village or any
church. Excitement overflowed as we
pondered the meaningful journey we were on.
We hiked and hiked enjoying the breathtaking views surrounding us, occasionally
stopping to rest or talk to people along the way.
“A few more hours, a few more hours,” our new Nepali friends
kept encouraging. Those hours were
filled with many interesting things that we don’t often encounter when we hike
in the mountains of Colorado. Here are a
few examples…
Giant spiders…
Cows fighting on the
edge of a cliff…
Interesting berries picked
from a tree…
(A piece of advice for anyone who plans to trek in Nepal at some point in your life – if you are offered these berries and a group of people gather around to watch you eat them…Don’t do it!!!! If you do, you will eat them and they will cause your cheeks to implode because they are so sour and the people will laugh at you. Just thought you’d like to know:)
After hours of hiking in the heat, the clouds suddenly rolled in. Just as the first few drops hit the ground, we ducked into a village home right off the path. Our companions knew the family that lived there. We first sat on the front step with rows of corn cobs hanging over our heads and chickens walking around us. A few minutes later, the rain was falling so hard that we had to move into the house. We sat on the floor taking up the entire first floor which was a joint kitchen and living room area. The kids in the house sat on the ladder leading up to the second floor sleeping area.
We ended up staying there for about an hour and a half
because it was pouring. The family began
to prepare the kindling and sticks to start a fire under the stove. Smoke filled the living room as they began to
fry their corn for us.
As we ate the crunchy snack, I looked around the room and
realized that there was a goat right there in the living room. Again, not something we normally come across
where we live. This was a truly
authentic experience of life in Nepal.
After the rain died down, we started on our journey
again. Just a few more hours. Matthew and I did not think about the
possibility that it might be dark by the time we arrived. Shortly after our hike resumed, the rain
returned. Not a downpour like before,
but steady. It made the path slippery
but we carefully followed our leader, Pastor Hanok.
After another hour of hiking, they pointed across a valley to our
destination, a small home on the hill. I
breathed a sigh of relief that our destination was finally in sight but then
suddenly realized that the sky was darkening, the rain still falling, and
although I could see the destination, it still quite a distance away. There was no way we would get there before
daylight faded.
Matthew pulled out the headlamps and we continued on our
way. Darkness came quickly and the rain
continued to fall steadily. Our guides
decided that it was time for a shortcut.
Rather than staying on the wide path lengthening our journey, it was
time to cut across the ledges of the rice paddies to get to the home as soon as
we could. They circled around us to keep
us as safe as possible, picking up the pace and hoping to keep us in step with
them. My foot slipping off the ledge was
indeed a shock, but my other foot was firmly planted and the hands that
suddenly grabbed my arms prevented me from falling. “You’re doing great babe, we’re almost
there,” Matthew encouraged, although with the dim lights of our headlamps, we
were both unsure how far the house was.
A short while later, we were suddenly standing next to a
house where the occupants stood waiting for us.
We made it. As we entered the
home, I realized that it was not unlike the village home we visited a few hours
ago. Our hosts showed us to our bedroom,
which was up a ladder on the second floor.
Actually, the bedroom was the
second floor and it occurred to me that, as honored guests, they had given us
the only room in their house. We changed
out of our wet clothes and I looked down at my calves to see thin streams blood
flowing from the places the leeches had attached. Wow, what a journey.
Despite the rain, the dark, the fatigue, and yes even the
leeches, it was worth it. Our companions
summoned us downstairs to meet the family we had heard about. This was a family whose lives had touched the
heart of my father-in-law, Michael. The woman of
the house, a beautiful woman who exudes strength yet has a sweet, gentle spirit,
has the most amazing story. I don’t even
know how to capture it in this blog, but just know that her story is incredibly
beautiful. So much so that my
father-in-law decided to design and sponsor a church to be built in this far away mountain
village so that these people would have a place to worship together. Once the funds were in place, the villagers
joyfully labored to build their own church with their own hands.
In the morning, we walked across the rice paddies toward the
music seeping out the windows. The views
of the mountains around us were spectacular.
We saw the church on the hill, our hearts full as we listened to the
sounds of music floating in the air.
As we were welcomed in, we smiled as we saw that the room
was full. They honored us with garlands
of flowers although we didn’t feel that we were the ones to be honored. They sang and danced and prayed. Matthew preached a powerful message with
Pastor translating every word. The women
asked me to pray for them which blessed me.
Afterward, we spent time with the villagers and they even
let me hold a sweet little baby. They
gathered in front of the church for pictures and we laughed at how I blended
in. (Throughout our entire time in
Nepal, I heard the phrases, “Are you Nepali? You look Nepali” multiple times
every day!) At that moment, there was no
division between us as Americans and Nepalis, but only a common bond of
brothers and sisters in Christ.
***************
The trek down from the village church was much less strenuous
and took half the time. We heard news of
the earthquake that hit Kathmandu last night.
Later we realized that if we had gone to the mountain village a day
earlier as planned, we too would have been in Kathmandu during the
earthquake. I was overwhelmed to think
about how many times God has protected us on this trip…this was one of several
times in the last few months that we were supposed to be somewhere but our
plans had changed causing us to barely miss a riot and a protest and a bombing
and now an earthquake.
As we hiked down, we learned more about our companions that
guided our way up the mountain the previous day. These young men were all church leaders in
their communities.
As they shared their stories, we realized that practically
every one of them had faced major consequences for their faith including being
beaten or being disowned from their families or even having to flee the country. During the rest of our time in Nepal, we
continued to find this to be true among the rest of the people we met.
***************
Matthew and I were able to visit and stay for several nights
at a children’s home with 10 kids. We
thoroughly enjoyed our days with the kids along with the house parents and
their own two children. The kids taught
us how to play in-depth games with little pebbles thrown into the air and
caught on the back of your hand. We sang
songs with them and taught them a few new English songs. Every day, they would give us new cards and
letters that they created, filled with messages like, “Uncle, you are so
handsome” and “Thank you for teaching us songs Aunty” and “We will pray for
you” and “We love you”. We taught them
to play games such as Red Light Green Light and Simon Says, and Matthew taught
them how to walk on their hands. We
aren’t sure who was feeling more sad when we had to leave the kids – us or them.
***************
Matthew and I met another young man, Amrit, with long dreads
and a trekking business that he runs to support his own children’s home, this
one with twenty kids. Not much older
than ourselves, we realized that Amrit was in his early twenties when he
started rescuing children and formed this children’s home years ago. We only spent one evening at the home but we
loved meeting the kids. All twenty of
them greeted us one by one and told us their names. All sorts of percussion instruments emerged
as they sang and danced for us. It was
great fun! The next day, Amrit picked us
up to tour Kathmandu since we hadn’t seen the sights yet. We climbed up hundreds of steps to tour a
temple filled with more monkeys than steps, and overlooked the city of
Kathmandu. He told us the story of how
he married his wife – the very first child he rescued was his wife’s younger
brother. He met her years later but
didn’t know that the rescued boy was her brother until later. After he found out, he cared for her too by
helping her get an education, and the rest is history.
***************
The two of us also spent a few days at more of tourist
destination in Nepal, called Pohkara.
Our days in Pokhara were spent eating at a variety of restaurants, trying
to glimpse the snow capped Himalayas when the sky cleared, renting a motorbike for a
mountain drive, and doing some hiking to explore the area.
We planned to go boating on the lake but it rained during our last
day there. It was a relaxing time taking in the beautiful surroundings.
After Nepal, we decided to stop in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
for a few days before heading to Bali, Indonesia…
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