Kristen & Scott

The People

Posted by Kristen & Scott (Hyderabad, India) on 27 September 2010 in People & Portrait and Portfolio.

Looking back over the last 9 months, it still doesn’t seem possible that much time has passed since we left the States in January. It honestly still feels like it should be March, but the time has come and Scott and I are leaving India.

For the longest time, it felt like September 14th would never arrive and home felt further away then it ever had. Then, something changed, and Scott and I suddenly realized our days were becoming very few in India and we wondered if we would have the time to say good-bye to everyone we wanted to and actually be ready to leave India. The anticipation and excitement of going home disappeared a little (just a little, because we were definitely still more than thrilled to be going back), and we took some time to look at what we were leaving behind.

The craziness that had blown us away upon our arrival had become a part of our daily life. It kept us on our toes because we really had no idea what tomorrow was going to bring and that was so awesome (most of the time)! Anything could happen at any time and we had really gotten used to the lack of routine. What would we do without the random cow in the road or actually having consistent power? But most of all, we thought about the people...

Bhaskar, Rajitha, Jayashree, Mary, Anji, Koteswarao, Ravinder, Priya, Haritha, Vijayalaxmi, Padima, Jayamma, Swapna, Robert, Bramham, Padmavathi, Annie, Rebecca, Yashoda, Padma, Kotomma, Kishore, Sreenivas, Thulasi, Suguna, Naga, Rehana, Shailaja, Ambica, Anjamma, Shakunthala, Tata, Shobha, Kala, Mangamma, and all of their children and families were now our families. God used these amazing people to change us in ways that we probably won’t figure out for a while. Their hospitality, gentleness, along with their laughter and smiles are something that we will never forget!

Scott and I will miss the craziness of India, but not nearly as much as we will miss the people. They have touched our hearts and we pray that we have in some small way touched theirs. We are forever changed because of the time we got to spend getting to know all of them and are so thankful that God chose to use us. It is because of the people that we wish we had more time in India - more time to sit and laugh, more time to enjoy a meal at one of their homes, more time to carry their babies, or shade love shapes at Golconda.

I guess you could always ask for more time, because it doesn’t always seem like enough. We hope that God has plans for more time in the future. Our gratitude and love for our family in India is what we will always keep with us in the meantime.

-Kristen