Thanks to The Script for the lyrical title for this week. If you are a regular reader of this
blog, you know that we typically write about the events of the preceding week.
There are times that we have more to write about than we have time or space. So
we keep a list of topics we can write about if there is a slow week.
It’s been six days since Rae left for
the US. I have been quite busy at work. That has consumed my work week.
Yesterday and today we in India watched the rebroadcast of our Church’s General
Conference, so that pretty much consumed my weekend. I could talk about
Conference, there were several great addresses and testimonies borne of Christ.
However, I don’t think that is really the point of this blog.
So, I’ll go to the list… and I’ve got
nothing.
Sheesh, if I can’t even write a blontry
for one week, the next three months while Rae is in the US are going to be
rough.
Hmm, let me dig a little deeper.
This week marks officially two years I
have been at MAII-Stratford University, New Delhi. Time is an interesting
thing. In some ways the time has gone by incredibly quickly; it doesn’t seem as
if it could be two years. Yet, in other ways it seems as if we have been here
forever. Somethings have become routine and I am not gobsmacked by much
anymore. Still, I can’t say I am totally integrated. I am still a stranger in a
strange land. We haven’t had a lot of visitors but those who have come have
been astounded (as have we) by the colors, the history, and the vibrancy of
India. All of that is true. Still living in a place is different from visiting
there. As nice as our home is; as good of friends as we have made; as much as I
am engaged professionally; as amazing as the sites are; living here can be
challenging.
Please don’t misunderstand me. I still
think it was right we came here and I am glad we did so.
We are doing some interesting things at
work. One of those is looking for new location for the campus. We are well
located in the heart of one of the most central, busiest areas. Technically we
are considered to be in South Delhi, but the way the city has grown we are
quite centrally located. We are on a main boulevard with a metro station less
than a quarter mile away. The problem is we lack space. If we are going to grow
and add the new programs we are considering we need more space. So we are
looking.
Looking at the different buildings under
construction or being remodelled is quite interesting. I have written in the
past about the difference in construction methods here and in the States. Some
of those differences are just hard to fathom. The most obvious difference is
the legion of workers, men and women scurrying around the construction site
with loads on their heads. Rarely do you see people with hard hats or any of
the safety equipment you would expect. There are few skilled workers, just
legions of unskilled workers scuttling around the site.
There doesn’t always seem to be sense in
the timing of the construction process either. It seems that too often one step
taken just undoes what has already been done.
It’s not new construction but the repair
work that has been going on at Church is an example. They painted the interior
and exterior of the building. When that was done, they started on repairing the
AC units. In that process, they removed parts of the roof and left the areas uncovered.
Well, it rained, which caused flooding in the upper story, which ruined the
paint job in the upper level and bled into the ground floor ruining those walls
as well. To make it worse the rain water got under the roofing material ruining
the underlayment. So now the whole roof has had to be replaced and the interior
needs to be treated for mold and repainted. At this rate, I think we are
providing lifetime employment for the crew working on our building.
The same pattern is true at a new building
that will house two other congregations and the mission offices and home. They
have sided and resided the building; they have laid torn up, and re-laid the
stone work on the terrace. They have installed, burned out the elevator by
using it too repeatedly to haul loads of material that exceeded the weight
limit. They then used the elevator shaft has a dump so that if they ever get
the elevator repaired, they won’t be able to use it because they can’t lower it
the ground floor. Oh yes, the hammering and pounding to remove the siding
caused broken window and door frames so they had to be replaced.
My parents used to joke that the
philosophy of the highway department in Utah was to do a job that was just good
enough that when a stretch of highway was completed, it was necessary to start
over and repair it. That same philosophy is apparent here. It is ironic. You
can tell from magnificent buildings such as Taj Mahal that Indian craftsmen have
been historically among the world’s best. Unfortunately that same pride in craftsmanship
is rarely seen now. Barely good enough is good enough. The government is trying
to bring a level of professionalism to crafts, trades, and other vocational
jobs. I hope they are successful.
I will say this, many people are very resourceful.
With limited training, tools, or other resources they find a way to make things
to work. If these same people were given adequate training, tools, and supplies
the past historic levels of professionalism might be restored among its
workers.
Wow, I ended having more to say than I
thought. I hope it didn’t seem too much like ranting.
Namaste.
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