Good Friday

You know that verse in the Old Testament that talks about how "man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps"? Well, it was a very real verse to us today. No amount of planning can prepare you for those oh so large bumps in the road that vere you off your course. When we got to the airport this afternoon we were informed by the Thai Airlines official that we did not have Visas for India in our passports, and therefore they could not deliver us to India. We'd have to terminate our trip for the day in Bangkok, which was supposed to only be our stopover on the way to Bangalore. He advised us to seek out the Indian Embassy in Bangkok, where we might get a Visa and then be able to resume our trip. So when we got to the airport in Bangkok, we again talked to another agent and were advised the same. So at a dead end for the day, we decided to find a hotel in Bangkok where we could stay until we could work out the details. We were also told that the Embassy was closed on the weekends, and possibly Monday through Wednesday of next week, due to the Thai Songkran Festival--the Thai New Year's Celebration, which just happens to be a National Holiday, as well. Our chances of getting to India for our friend's wedding are looking grim. And yet, we are unperturbed. Things happen for a reason, and we will take life as it comes--even if it wasn't what we had planned for. And since it's late at night, we'll just have to see what comes of all this...



So, I realized I hadn't finished writing about our time in Bali, so thought I'd wrap it up here. Our last day in Bali was relaxing (besides our stressing at the airport over the news of the Visa issue). We took it easy and meandered our way to the airport. Last night, however, was just magical. Scott and David had this idea to rent motorbikes for a couple of hours (it only cost about $2 US dollars) so we could go for a drive before dinner. There was a full moon, and everything was awash in light. Scott and Jenni took one bike, and Dave the boys and I piled on the other. Yes, all of us. It's the Bali way. You drive down the road and notice the Balinese on their "family mobile". And often it's loaded down with groceries, too. Scott took us on a drive through the rainforests and past little villages outside of Ubud. The air was crisp and there was a wonderful breeze cooling things down. Oh, and there was music in the air. Lots of it. And the smells of food being prepared for the big Full Moon Festival--a Hindu celebration. We passed family after family, all dressed in Balinese traditional clothes, carrying food in baskets on their heads, flowing into the temples where the music permeated the air. David and I held the kids tight and he remarked to me how great it was the kids get to grow up this way. And I couldn't agree more. They'll have so many stories to tell one day--about all their adventures in far away lands.



We had dinner at one of Scott and Jenni's favorite places called Tamtuk. Of course, Scott and Jenni ordered American food--she a grilled cheese and Scott a bagel with cream cheese. They both had orange juice. And Dave and I had Indonesian Beef Rendang-- a traditional Balinese dish. Very tasty. We just laughed at them, knowing this was really special to them because they just eat Indo food all the time at the home. American food is a real treat for them.

When we got home Dave and I watched the movie Taken, starring Liam Neeson. UNBELIEVABLE MOVIE! It's the movie that all parents should, and should not, see. It will scare the living daylights out of you if you are a parent of a girl. Though it freaked me out too because I know that human trafficking is the second biggest money maker in the world (behind drugs), and I know little boys are kidnapped as much as girls and sold on the black market. Modern day slavery is alive all around us, even in America. And it sickens me to no end to think of how hardened a human's heart has to be in order to treat another human as an item. It reminds me that our world view colors all of our choices in life. It directs how we live, even if we aren't conscious of it. Our ideas have consequences. A world view where human beings have little value is apparent in lived life--where woman are objects to be bought and sold and used for the purposes of money. Even governments are in on it. Scott said the Indonesian government turns a blind eye to human trafficking. The immigration office and the foreign office work together to issue "work" visas to 2, 3, and 4 year olds, whom they send to places like Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, to become part of the sex slave trade. It's a sick world we live in, and Scott sees the result of it on the lives on children, every day. And the movie reminded me of all the times I travelled alone outside of the US, and how vulnerable I was to being kidnapped. (A note to my mom: You probably shouldn't watch the movie.) Watching Taken was, for me, like when I first watched the movie Not Without My Daughter. It scared the living daylights out of me--I knew after watching that film that I could never marry a man from the Middle East. And after watching Taken, I'm not sure I'll ever let my kids travel outside of the US without 2 or 3 other people going along.

So the movie rivitted me--I was on the edge of the seat the whole movie! Which is also why I had such a hard time going to sleep last night! It took forever for my adrenal glands to calm down!

On the way to the airport today we talked about how hard it is for Scott and Jenni to get Visas in Indonesia, particularly because everyone wants a handout (bribe money) to make things happen, and no one wants to help them if they aren't willing to pay. The problem is, if you pay one person, you set up a long line of future payments, often to the same person who returns with a higher price or threats of revocation if you don't continue to pay them every year. It's just a big mess. And Scott and Jenni keep trying to get a permanent residency Social Worker Visa, but the government just doesn't want to hand these out, even though they have recognized the work Scott and Jenni do for their people. But when Scott reminds them he is doing this for their people, no one seems to be moved. Scott points this back to the cultural beliefs of Karma. In Hinduism, people are poor because of bad karma which they earned from a previous life. Kids are homeless or beaten or starving because of what they did in a previous life, and if you help them in this life, you yourself risk affecting your own karma. It's a really nasty cycle, but also a good example of what I mentioned earlier about how bad ideas have bad consequences. World views affect our choices and how we choose to live our lives. In Bali, people could care less about helping the needy because they think the needy need to work through their own issues--that if they helped them they too would be in risk of difficulties in the next life. So, as a result, they have little to no organizations helping the needy. This is really systemic to Hinduism. The same results are found in India where the Hindu caste system reflects the karma beliefs, and keeps the needy in society unattended to and left to suffer.

Wow! This blog is getting heavy! So I'll wrap it up for now. Bangkok is outside, and tomorrow we hope to tackle it.