I want to introduce our wonderful staff to you. Without them, we could not live here in India. We would be completely lost in so many ways! But first, I thought I would highlight an awesome thing we did with some of them...we made brownies! In a pressure cooker, no less! In India, most kitchens do not have ovens because they are extremely expensive (not to mention how hot they are in an already hot climate). Our kitchen staff had been given a box of brownie mix by a previous BYU student, but they wanted to learn how to make it from scratch so they had Craig make it with them. The only ingredients they had to buy were cocoa powder and butter.
Craig and Madhu made the batter:
After the batter was mixed, they poured it into a round cake-like pan that they had:
Then they put some sand and a...round circular thing in there (I have no idea what it actually is!) so that the batter wouldn't burn on the bottom of the pressure cooker. The point is, the cake pan was raised so it wasn't directly over the heat.
It cooked over the stove for about 40 minutes and then was done! It actually tasted almost exactly like a brownie, maybe a little more cakey. We had it with vanilla ice cream. It was such a fun treat and the staff enjoyed learning how to make it. They want us to teach them some other American recipes and so we will be cooking with them more in the future!
Okay, here are our wonderful staff!
This is Dr. Krishnayya or Krishnayyagaru (garu added for respect). He has been working with Dr. Nuckolls for the last 30 years and on the BYU India program for the last 6 years. He is a retired professor of Andhra University where he taught Philosophy. He directs all of the students in their projects and is our commander in chief. He is very caring and worries about us a lot when we don't tell him where we're going. He has also initiated my doctor's appointments with one of the best doctor's in the state of Andra Pradesh. He also takes care of the other staff members; they are like family to him. Overall, we could NOT be here without him! He is a funny man and we get a kick out of him.
Over the years he has received many BYU t-shirts. This is just one of them.
This is our team of 3 translators/interpreters: Sadisha, Rajalakshmi, and Madhu. So far Craig has worked with Madhu the most when interviewing people and they have a great friendship. Madhu is just a great guy. Also, his English is probably the best. Rajalakshmi is very blunt and tells you like it is. I really like her. Sadisha is more reserved and working on a two year degree while working for us. However, she always reminds me to eat plenty of fruit because I'm pregnant : ) They are all very concerned for my well-being.
The kitchen staff: Gowri, Durga, and Sylaja (pronounced, SIGH-LUH-JUH). Gowri is a young widow. Her two children live in another city with her mother. Durga is the main cook and has two children who live here. One of them, Mumuksha, is featured here. He is 14 months old and SO cute! His head was shaved when we first got here at the Simhachalan temple but his hair is quickly growing back. Durga's husband, Razu, is our washerman. I don't have a picture of him. Sylaja is single and Dr. Krishnayya will probably be the one to arrange her marriage as he is like a father to her. They are all wonderful! I think they get a kick out of us and our strangeness. They put up with a lot. They have been cooking less spicy food lately because they know it is a lot for me sometimes. They often ask me, "Ma'am...spicy?" to make sure it's not too much. Sometimes Dr. Krishnayya scolds them and it sounds pretty rude, but we've been told that in their culture it's a sign of affection to scold people beneath you because it shows that you want what is best for them and that you care about them.
Here is a picture I took earlier of Sylaja in a lovely saree:
Craig and Mumuksha (we call him Mumu for short) love to play together. I think Mumu likes the boys better : ) He's still a little shy of me sometimes. He is seriously such a cute baby! He's smiley and happy and doesn't cry easily. Here they often give their babies gentle swats to discipline them but they don't really cry because they're used to it.
Here is Durga and Razu's older son, Sidhu. Sidhu is four and goes to a nice school everyday. He is very energetic sometimes! We have learned here that Indians want their children to be quiet and respectful, but the way that BYU students play with them doesn't always encourage that kind of behavior. The way Americans approach children and the way that Indians approach children is very different. We use a high-pitched cutesy voices when we talk to them, while they talk to them like they are adults (albeit underdeveloped adults). We wrestle and get on the floor with little kids, while they would probably never do that. We've had to learn to treat Sidhu in a way that his mother will appreciate : ) After all, she's the one that has to deal with his behavior later.
Well that's it! We really could not survive without these people. I thank God for them in my prayers everyday. Even though there are cultural and communication barriers between some of us, we still have a great respect for each other. Dr. Nuckolls said that when we leave in April they will cry and wail and that it is extremely hard for them to see the BYU students go every semester. They have become our family here!
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