Longitude

The fish farm-lined road to Gummallapadu holds a healthy bit of traffic this morning. The car bumping along it is blasting Bollywood tunes as it winds through the bustling crowd: a few nervous goats pick at the grass; a lazy water buffalo stubbornly refuses to move off the path; a chicken crosses the road (why? The other side looks quite nice). A cow-pulled cart laden with hay lumbers by, leaning treacherously close to the water where the bathing beauties are all buffalo. The man on the radio sings “Baby, you’re so sexy, baby, you’re one in the galaxy!” to a dance hall rhythm. Welcome to Andhra Pradesh.

The people here are so warm and inviting – spend five minutes in the village and you’ll start to think you were born here and just can’t remember it. The children crowd around you, shouting “My name is? My name is?” waiting both for you to say your name and their own. The adults pat you on the back while you work and say “Good!” even when you’ve spilled concrete everywhere and dropped a bucket of water on their heads. Everyone wants to show you their house and teach you a few Telugu words, which are beautiful to hear but impossible to remember.

We all feel blessed to be here, interacting with these wonderful people, helping them get proper housing, and learning about their culture. I hope to keep learning about them and being involved with this after returning to Japan. We’ve raised about half of the money we need. If you haven’t donated already (or have but are feeling particularly generous!), we’d all really appreciate your help. Even just a little is helpful. A little goes a long way here! Thank you in advance – or, in Telugu, Wandanamuru!