Last weekend we had a bit of a surprise. We were eating lunch on Friday and some guy we didn't really know came and gathered us all together and said we were a displaced people group from Bangladesh. The government were wanting to build a supermarket where we lived so they were moving us on. He gave us a bin bag and told us we had 5 minutes to pack in the bag; sleeping bag, water bottle, swimming costume, 1 change of clothes and bible and notebook. So we all legged it to our rooms! So crazy we didn't have a clue what was going on. Next thing they give us a tarpaulin, some rope, some buckets and matches and a bag of rice. We then had to walk on the road for 40 minutes between and escort of two cars up hill! and we arrived at the other base and went down into the valley, where there is nothing apart from a block of long drop toilets and we were just in a field next to the river and waterfall. So confused and not knowing what was happening. We then got put into families and given ages. We had to take on those ages. Ben was a Grandpa and Nai was a 6yr old. The staff just left us then. At that point we realized we would be staying the night, so we should build a shelter. So all the adults built a shelter with the tarp and rope. Grandpa made a fire and some others got water from the river to boil to drink, as we had no drinking water, and to use for cooking rice and beans later. Nai went off and played with the kids! And totally had fun acting 6yrs old!!!
We had no idea how long we were going to be there or what was going to be happening. So a lot of time was spent kinda waiting around. We ate rice and beans with our hands for tea!! We picked our sleeping spots and then just sat around the fire and sang a bit and then prayed for each other. It was actually a really awesome time. There were 20 of us there but about 10 were left for the praying bit and we just went round praying for each other and getting words for each other. It was a really great time of bonding with people too. Ben and 2 others slept outside as there was no room under the tarp. We had pretty rough night and it rained in the morning so we had to get up pretty early and shelter. It was one of the students birthdays so we celebrated the best we could with what we had...a flower birthday crown, rice and beans for breakfast and an impromptu Olympic games between all our countries! oh yes, limbo is now a new Olympic sport!!! We're sad to say Canada won We did try our best but we were fairly outnumbered by the Canadians and Americans!
Over the next two days we had various scenarios played out to us by the staff. They came in the night and tried to buy 3 children and in the end just took them, they came and adopted another 2 children, the adults had to go to work and the kids to school to make bracelets from grass, we had to barter with our bracelets,things we were wearing, and money they'd earned at work, to buy more food at the shop, we bought one piece of fruit each and 1 cupcake each! oh the joy of having something sweet to eat! They later told us 3 of us were ill and how long they had left before they died, and how much the medicine cost and then we had to choose who to save as we didn't have enough money for everyone. We also had a UN food drop at one point, but they gave us some things that we couldn't use because we had no way of opening them, we did get some tins of tuna though, so sharing a tin of tuna with 15 or so people was fun! Just a teaspoon of tuna with the rice and beans was sooo good though! The following morning we had a group of missionaries come really quickly and just take selfies with us and pictures of our home and us eating and cooking, and pray for healing and salvation and gave us jumpers we had no use for , they were pretty patronising! They then just left again as quickly as they arrived.
All these scenarios felt quite full on and really taught us so much about what its like for the poor and needy and marginalised. It really helped us to learn and also grow in friendships together as we were just totally in a vulnerable place not knowing what was going to happen next, being tired, dirty and smelly! With all these things they were trying to teach us compassion for the people we reach out to and get us to see things from their side and how sometimes what they're given etc isn't actually helping them. Trying to get us to feel some of the emotions of the people we'll reach out to. It was amazing how well it worked! On Sunday morning we then decided to pack down our shelter as we hoped they would be coming for us at some point that day! They finally arrived and said that the plans for the supermarket had fallen through and that we were able to return home! wowzas what a weekend. learnt so much about the situations people face and the emotions, dilemmas and traumas attached to them and got closer together as a group. It was great (can say that now were this end of it!!) it was hard though!
