Rock Quarry visit

This morning we went out to visit the Rock Quarry. This is an area on the outskirts of the city that is made up of 10,000 people in the Dalit or "untouchable" caste. Here, people will break large rocks into smaller pieces by hand as a way to earn some money. The problem is, they have to take out loans to buy rock to break and the loan officers charge so much for interest that they will never be able to escape their debt and are therefore in bondage to life in the quarry. We also visited one of the homes that one of the boys from the Rajah boys home lived in. It is in an area next to the quarry. The road to get to this area was in very poor conditions so we had to walk. There is trash, animal feces, and standing water all along the roadway. The homes are nothing more than thatched roof huts. This particular one we entered had holes in the roof and in a place where rainful comes in a moments notice, this would not be much of a shelter. The floor is dirt, which is also where the women and children sleep. It is incomprehensible that people, real mothers with real children, live in a place like this.

There is a way to improve these families living conditions. It is through a program the Pastor Isaiah and his brother Ananth came up with in coordination with CRI. It is called microfinancing. Through donations, money is given to these families who are able to buy more rock without having to worry about the unjust interest rates, thereby making the income they receive for their work more just. This allows them to pay for more of the necessities of life for their families and possibly send their children to better schools. If you are interested in helping with the microfinance project, please visit CRI's website.

There is something you need to know about the poor in India. It is expected that the women and mothers are the workers. They will either work in the rice fields, do laundry for the wealthy, or work in the rock quarry, while the men and husbands spend the day sitting around drinking or doing nothing. This is a vicious cycle and has made me extremely angry and hateful towards the men who do this. However, it is also one of the reasons that Pastor Isaiah started the Rajah boys home. These boys are given the opportunity to sleep on a bed, eat a three meals a day, receive health care, get an education, and eventually earn a living for themselves. It's amazing that $30 per month makes this possible for one of these boys. We were talking with Anunth, Pastor Isaiah's brother, about what happens after the boys graduate from school. He told us that they can go on to junior college, which makes it possible for them to get a respectable job. If they don't go to junior college they can receive vocational training for a specific trade, again allowing them to get a respectable job. This option costs around $125 per year while junior college and bachelor's program costs a bit more. CRI may be considering helping the boys in this, it is all a matter of gathering enough donors. If you would be interested and willing to support one of the boys, please visit CRI's website.

This afternoon we will be taking the boys to the water park in the city. This will be a big treat for the boys. Hopefully they don't run water slides the same way the run the roadways here.