247 letters

Today was my second day of Tamil lessons with Rani as my teacher. She is a very good teacher. She says that we have to start slow and lay a good foundation. I agree with that. I also learned that there are 247 letters in the alphabet... Go figure. I am very overwhelmed by this but also confident that learning the language is possible as long as I am willing to work hard at it. I have worked on learning 9 of the main letters. Once I get the basic letters down the others are supposed to be easy... Although Ernie argued with Rani today and said there is no way this language could ever be easy. It sure sounds like it is going to be an interesting journey anyway.
We also recieved several donations from the States and New Zealand which we are very encouraged by. We received a donations for orphans, and Bihar. We also received a general donation and a donation to build a parsonage. We are so thrilled to be able to share these blessings. The needs here are endless so every donation is helpful. We also have several people donating on an ongoing basis for pastors salaries and so forth. On days where we are very homesick it is good to receive support from the States and to know that people care and are praying with us!
It also rained cats and dogs today. Overall the monsoon season has not provided the necessary rains for the year so it is good to have rain but it is also hard to function in these dramatic down pours. Many of the people who live in thatched huts and on the streets suffer during these rains. Even our staff people have to fight to keep the water out of their homes. So the rain is a bitter sweet thing around here. It is necessary but also troublesome. I have included a video of the staff people dealing with the water problem!