Haddoks Expectations

Unlike Great Expectations (I didn't like the book, probably because I was made to read it for my O' Level English Literature) I hope this will not be a long and tedious entry. Despite being a seasoned traveller and also having made 3 "mission" trips to Zinguinchor in Senegal I must admit I am a little apprehensive about our trip to India. I have seen poverty and hunger, I have witnessed the exploitation of children in the extreme - http://arm-senegal.org/talibe.html - and have wept over it. Perhaps my apprehension stems from the expectation of even more extremes in India? In Senegal I only ever saw one person sleeping on the streets where as I know in Kolkata there are thousands, even whole families that live on the streets in appalling conditions. Or perhaps it is because of the profound impact that my brief trips to Africa had on me? I found returning to the UK and all of it's excesses of comfort, food, money, belongings and the white noise that it produces difficult to adjust back to. I even had a strong desire to return to the simpler but harder life of Senegal with its smells, its sounds, its colours and its vibrancy, a desire that swells up every time I look at my pictures or speak to a returning missionary.

So what are my expectations for this trip? I expect to be challenged, shocked, confronted but I also expect to be changed, to grow a little more. My hope is that I approach everything with an open mind and a servant heart, and that in my own faulty, sin-ridden way, I can be a blessing to all those I meet.