Meenaben's story

I am so excited to tell you about what has been happening since I started my literacy class a few months ago. Remember how I told you about how nervous and excited I was before my first class? I didn't know what to expect. I even thought maybe it was some kind of trick - a way to make me feel bad about not being able to read.

But now I know Sangita was telling the truth - she really did want to give me a gift! I thought the gift would just be about writing my name or reading a letter from my husband, Karsenbai. But it is so much more than that.

I have a friend. For the first time in my life, I have a real, true friend who cares about me. When I arrive for class each night with my book and my chalk and slate, she is always there to greet me with a smile and a hug. She asks me how my sons are... or have I heard news from Karsenbai?

There is something so different about Sangita than other people I have met. She is so patient and kind. At the beginning of the class I would get so frustrated with myself when I couldn't get my letters right. There were many nights when I went home and thought, "I should just quit. I'll never be smart enough to read and write."

But then I would hear Sangita's soft voice in my head: "You can do it. Just keep trying, Meenaben. I know you can do it!"

And Sangita isn't the only friend I've made. I already knew many of the women in my class, but before I was so shy that I didn't really talk to anyone. But we've been gathering together every night for two hours, huddled around the kerosene lanterns so we can see our books and our slates. We help each other and talk about how the class is helping us.

I told them about my trip to the market last week. I bought some vegetables from the vendor and he wrote down how much I was supposed to give him. Before, I wouldn't have been able to read what it said and would just give him money until he said it was enough. But this time I handed him the right amount the first time. He just stared at me in surprise! After I walked away I had a big smile on my face - he can't cheat me anymore!

While we have class, there are babies sleeping or crying in laps and other little ones play nearby. Some of the older children even try to write letters on the slates, just like their mothers are doing! At home I showed my sons how to write their names.

We don't just practice our lessons during class. Sangita has taught us songs that we sing together at the beginning of every class. She asks us all about our lives and our families and she prays for our needs. Whenever Sangita prays, I don't feel all alone anymore.

Often she reads us stories out of a big book she calls the Bible. The stories are about Jesus, who can do many miracles of healing. Sangita says Jesus loves us like we are his little children.

Some of the stories made me sad. Like the one about the angry and jealous men who killed Jesus because the people recognized he was the son of God. But Sangita says it isn't a sad story - she says it is a joyful one. She says his greatest miracle is that he is alive today - that he rose up from the dead and that he loves us today as his little children.

I don't understand everything Sangita says about Jesus...but I want to know more about him. Sangita says it is Jesus who fills her heart with peace and joy, even when life isn't good. I want to know what it would be like to feel like that...

Enjoy this week's activities. Don't forget to check your email again next week, when you'll read part 6 of Meenaben's story!