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Sometimes life throws bigger questions at us, just when we are comfortable, just when we are cruising along and all seems well with the world.
Shaya is an 18-year-old girl who finished school in July last year. Her mother passed away a month later, in August, from a paralytic attack. She had been bedridden since Shaya was 16.
Her father isn’t a part of her life, because the parents were divorced. Shaya told me she’d been depressed since she was 16, when her mother first fell ill. But she said she was strong and was doing things to keep herself going, things like painting and going to yoga. She came across as incredibly bright.
She excused herself to lie down because she had a headache. I looked at her across the room. She was sitting by herself, eyes closed and laughing to herself. Her caretaker told me it was so sad that Shaya was suffering so much and in a way that no one could fathom because mental health issues cannot be seen, unlike physical ailments.
Suffering is often unequal, Sister Lissy of Damien Institute in Kerala told me. She looks after people with mental health issues and those who have recovered from leprosy. There is no plausible reason why one person suffers more than the other. It’s all God’s will, Sister Lissy says.
Places like the Damien Institute received [a] grant from CNEWA. This grant helps with looking after patients, their food and medication.
There are many more projects in Kerala that benefit from CNEWA support. Another example is the Hrudaya Palliative Care Program. This program takes care of people with serious illnesses and those who are bedridden with conditions such as cancer, stroke and spinal cord injuries.
Kerala is the most literate state in India and quite economically well off. Yet, there are families who have no help or literally zero resources.
When you face suffering in yourself and others, there is also always hope. It can come as a friend, partner, relative or sometimes just strangers, but there is always hope and help.
Read more about how churches in India are working to support people on the margins in “The Church as Field Hospital” in the March issue of ONE.