“PARAH PO!” don’t forget  to yell that to the Jipnee driver to let you off your stop.  And “BAHVAHD PO” when you pay the 8 pesos for the ride. Yes! I rode my 1^st Jipnee ride this week alone! (!).  But that was not until after many days of training by the sisters who held my hand and taught me how to take the Jipnee from  home to the KH and back again. It’s 2 rides, 8 pesos each ride.  The system is great, fast, but the fumes from Jipnees  are the worst. Black smoke.  You can’t turn away cuz there are Jipnees’ in front and behind you, bumper to bumper, you may cover your nose with a handkerchief, but I don’t think it helps, the drivers smoke.  And no point in washing your hands until the end of the day or right before eating.  So this week has been awesomely BUSY! Service, service and more service.  Went on studies all week.  It was wonderful. It’s so funny that they only know PJ or Tagalog.  The publishers just conduct the studies in Tagalog, and interpret to me!(now I know how it feels . . .) and when I conduct the study, I can’t fall back on any English, not even numbers, these are fresh, hardcore  pukkeh PJ’s from India with no western background at all.  Usually husband has been here for10-20 years and is fluent in Tagalog, like totally fluent! The wife and  kids may have arrived 5 or less years ago, and if the kids were born in the PI, they know more Tagalog and some PJ.  The wife usually knows less Tagalog and those are the studies that I’ve been starting. Btw, we are starting studies at almost every house, it’s a ridiculous problem.  There are discussions about conducting studies once every 2 weeks.  And then my thought is to study weekly with those are come to meetings once we have them in PJ.  We still have tons of territory yet to be canvassed, just in my little area, the brothers have a confirmed  700+ PJ’s, and there seem to be more un-verified addresses of  PJ’s living in various parts of the PI, 100,s in each area. THE NEED IS TRULY GREAT! here. I am totally overwhelmed.  I feel like a needle in a haystack that said, “hi, I can help.”  Studies are already preaching to others (unknowingly), handing out BH books and asking us for more, telling their relatives, we call on whole families, and then others come over .  Those who  know no Tagalog or English end up reading the mags and My Book of BS, and when I talk to them, they already have a foundation, “oh yes, I read about Adam and  . . .” or “oh I know about that, I read that mag . . .”, so somehow, the work is getting done. JC said the rocks would cry out, well, here, that is sort of happening. And these are  not short studies, 1-2 hours.  There have been some killings of PJ men here, almost every month, one 2 days ago, and due to the bad reputation they have, I think it is wise (with the suggestion from an elder) to not wear PJ suits unless I am interpreting.  Just to play it safe.  I had been wearing suits, and was dying in the heat, esp. with the chunni, and then found out that the PJ women (they don’t wear suits very often, but when they do) do not  ever wear chunni’s here!  They only wear the chunni if they are going to the gurdwara.  So  in my 1^st week,  I have moved, interpreted simul., and given my 1^st English talk . Very intimidating.  Why you may ask?  What is there to be intimidated about?  Its only a cong. Full of DO’s, CO’s, brothers attending the B school for Single bros, Bethelites, Spec Pioneers, Intnl Construc. Volunteers, Branch Committee members, ahhhh!!! I feel quite small.  It is a very international hall.  I still don’t know whose who.  I frequently ask “oh are you in my English cong?”.  And they often laugh . . . but one did not laugh when I asked him that . . .his response, “no, I am your Circuit Overseer!!!!!”.  OMG! Ok?  Times like that I want to just disappear.   The PJ class orientation was today, 26 students from 2 cong. The interesting thing is that all the students are already conducting PJ studies in their area (in Tagalog) and now they want to learn the lang, to reach the heart.  No need to get them out in service, they are ready to rock and roll.  One brother told his RV, “meh tooti-footi PJ boldah hah” and the HH laughed “koy gull nee, meh vee tooti-footi Tagalog boldah hah!”.  Most of the PJ’s are NOT from Jalandhar. They are from Moggah (?) and speak slightly different PJ with a very slurred accent – ex.  ਤੁਹਾਨੂ-(tuhahnu) becomes ਸੋਨੂੰ-(soh-nu) in slang. In Tagalog the word for Indian is “Mumbai”, and they don’t know that that is actually a place in India!  I’m tired but a wonderful satisfied tired. I take of  1 ½ days, the rest is all service, which takes longer than it does in the USA due to public transportation,  and weekly PJ class prep with the class teachers.  That’s all for now. Btw, I am typing this at Starbucks (a taste of paradise for me :) - Jah is good to me) which is located right below my place, I just walk downstairs and there it is . . .ah!!! It is duplicated exactly like the ones we have in the States, same music, chairs, products,  . . .it is wonderful . . .Miss you all.