Blessed Mother Teresa House

this was after a morning mass, noviciates are gathered to receive
blessing from a father whose birthday was today

Mother House is located on 54 AJC Bose Road in Calcutta, India. This house, is the headquarter of the Missionary of Charity in the World. This is where Mother lives, works and died. In this house, you find Mother's tomb, two to three churches with the church on the second floor being the one regularly attended by the nuns and the volunteers. It is allowed to take only pictures at the Mother's tomb which is located on the first floor to the right of this picture.

Mother's tomb room. the only area of
the compound where we are allowed to
take picture.

There is also the room of Mother which is to be visited from 9AM-12PM and 3PM-5PM Monday-Sunday except Thursday which is the holiday. Here also, it is prohibited to take pictures. One can only see from behind a fence. This room is typical to Mother's life as regard to her humility, chastity, poverty and renunciation to all type of material comfort.
In this compound, there is also the Mother's Museum which portays Mother's life from the beginning of the foundation to her death. One finds here, everything belongings to Mother during her life. It is also prohibited to take picture here.

Here pausing with a Palestinian's volunteer in the
Volunteer's room

Again on this first floor, we have the volunteer's hall where all volunteers meet every morning after the mass to take the breakfast (banana, loave of bread and chai or Indian's tea). Here, the nuns in charge of volunteers give the last informations about the day and also give passes to the newcomers who have not registered yet. This is one of the hot spots where you have the sense that, the World is present. All the volunteers meet here every morning before departing each to the assigned site of work for the day. Also, some gatherings of the volunteers are done here. People come from all the continents regardless of religions, that is why you find Non-Catholics and Catholics coming to work for the common good of the poors as Mother did during her lifetime.

Two volunteers talking after the morning
mass in the chapel of the second floor.

Entrance to Mother's compound

Mother House is receiving many visitors throughout the day. These are tourists coming all over the World some of whom are here to volunteer. Also these are Indians from Hindu or Muslims coming to pay tribute to Mother. It is beautiful to see how Non-Catholics bow to Mother's Tomb in Hindu or Muslim tradition. During visits, rosaries are tributed on demand. Eventhough the compound is not big, a guide is available if one needs to tour it. At the entrance, there is/are always nun(s) to provide information.

Volunteers waiting for the bus to drop them
at their assigned site

After the Morning's breakfast and information, volunteers move out of the room to wait on the sidewalk for the bus to go to their assigned site. Some of which sites are not far from Mother House just walked there. For example volunteers schedule to work at Shishu Bavan which is two blocks away, just walk there. Other eventhough the site is far, decide to walk there in group of many.

It is an awsome experience to volunteer with the Foundation. It is spiritually revigorating and uplifting. One cannot regret to go there. I thank God to giving me the grace to volunteer for the expansion of his glory in the poor of Calcutta. To glory be our Almighty God, maker of Heaven and Earth, the Unseen and Seen.

"Please Don't Kill the Child" by Blessed Mother Teresa

At my arrival in the US, I found a three-year old case of child murder well known as Casey Anthony's trial. This trial has started in 2008 when, the child Kelly Anthony, 2-year old was vanished from the family view for 31 days without her mom reporting the dissapearance and, going to party at the Night Club every night. The late 2-years old Kelly was find dead in the swamp close to the family's house.
It is highly suspicious that due to the Casey Anthony's behaviour, she had killed her little girl to be parenting free. There is no doubt in Americans' minds. Unfortunately, Casey Anthony walk free from the court with a NOT GUILTY verdict. Yes the American Justice System, has let a murderer walk free from the court, the system has confirmed that you can kill a child and walk free in this country.

this how Mother was taking care of the abandoned kids she found on the
streets in many of her orphanages

Having known this verdict, I just recalled what Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta has said. She has worked to saved childrens' lives not only in Calcutta but also in the World through her multiple foundations she established in many countries.
I have worked in one of the orphanages of Mother in Calcutta named Daya Dan. Each kid there has a story. Some of them were picked up in the dumpsters by the nuns, where as other were handed to the center by mothers who did not want parenting because of cultural issue such as: It is shameful in Hindu's society for a girl to be pregnant while not married, or be pregnant due to rape. The kids there were rejected by their mother or the families.

Mother holding a kid in one of the Centers in Calcutta
during her lifetime

Blessed Mother Teresa said: "Please don't kill the child. I want the child. Please give me the child. I am willing to accept any child who would be aborted, and to give that child to a married couple who will love the child, and be loved by the child. From our children's home in Calcutta alone, we have saved over 3,000 children from abortions. These children have brought such love and joy to their adopting parents, and have grown up so full of love and joy!". I have witnessed this love of children by Blessed Mother Teresa through her foundation when I was volunteering there. I remember that, 3 to 4 children were adopted by families and two of these children went to Switzerland with the adopted families while other went to Germany and USA. 
We need to protect the lives of our kids in this World so that, the Casey Anthony's drama will not happen anymore. We need to start loving our family at home so that we can love the World as said by Blessed Mother Teresa. This love of kids will help us build a society of peace, of security and safety where all are safe and loved.   

Memories of the BALCONY

In times, it happens what some call the side-dishes of the main plate. The sidedishes can be there or not to accompany our main plate.
My main plate was to volunteer passionately with Blessed Mother Teresa along with the Foundation she left behind to improve the living  conditions of the poor of Calcutta. To bring them God's light and love. I am very happy for what I have done there and thank the Almighty God to give me such blessings to work for his glory.

one of the moments at that BALCONY

The side-dish here was an amazing encounter I have had during my journey in Calcutta. It sounds or seems as if she and I were meant to arrive and depart Calcutta on the same dates. We were working together at one of the dispensaries where we were assigned in the afternoon. We had a lot of joy working there, commuting together back and forth to the dispensary. When I felt sick, she was the one who accompany me to the Diagnostic Center to find what was wrong with my biological system. She was always there. At the evening, after the works, we were always meeting at my BALCONY on Modern Lodge which was my hotel. She was living just accross mine in the hotel called Galaxy.
At that BALCONY (now famous), we had fun, we laughed, we played. Whenever we went out on date, we were coming back at that BALCONY to finish our experience. What ever we did, the BALCONY was the final point to close our meeting.
That BALCONY will always be in my memory for ever for the love and excitement it brought to both of us.

Mother Teresa's Room



this gathering of the novices was after the mass and the Mother's room is just behind the right corner. to go there, one has to take the stairs.

 Visiting Mother Teresa's room was one of the highs of my current journey here in Calcutta. The room is located within the Mother's House compound that hosts the Missionary Head Quarter in the  World. Once I got up the stairs that lead to the room, I started to see a shadow of it. When at the real view of the room, I had a glimpse of my memory of the Holocaust Museum I visited two years ago in Washington, D.C. In that museum, the description of living conditions during the Nazi horrible period is replicated as in real moment. The room is compared to what was in the worst period, the World has ever known in the history of humanity, people were living without fan or what we call nowadays Air Conditioning (AC), furniture was in a delabrated conditions that one can think of a kitchen in the ancient time. The bed and frames were dirty and made of simple woods and matress covered with a simple shit of dirty or old linen. The window was almost inexistent to facilitate the air in and out of the room. In short, living conditions in that period of dehumanization were not promoting the dignity of human being.
Think of all these worst conditions, Nazi and its leader Hitler were using to torture and dehumanize human beings, and then imagine Mother Teresa living in such conditions at her free will, without anybody forcing her to, you will realize how simple she was, how she had decided to live her vow of extreme poverty, chastity and obedience to her lovely and almighty God. Yes, I was struck positively by these conditions she had chose to share with the poors she was serving for the love of God.
In Calcutta, the sun is sometime at 100 F or 40 C, at this sunny condition, people do not stand the heat without a fan or AC. I myself cannot stand it. But Mother Teresa was sleeping, living in her room without AC or fan throughout her life. She even had not a window that will enable air to move in and out of the room. Her bed is made of simple old iron frame with a thinny mattress; covered by a simple shit. Her desk where she was receiving guests or conducting affairs of the foundations, is made of raw wood saw in from the tree. Her cabinet where she kept sensitive files for the foundation is made of raw woods also. Mother Teresa had not the taste of refinery, but the one of unrefine things, the taste of poverty in which the poor she served lived on the streets, the dumpsters and the garbage site of the town.
Visiting the room of Mother has taught me a lesson of simplicity, the lesson of basic needs are enough to live with. Through the visitation, I have learnt that, worry about material things of earth is unworthed but as long as we are in healthy conditions, one is rich. Living in such simplicity is giving more importance to spiritual things, the life of higher values, the eternal life; which can be lived through simplicity, humility and chastity.
Thank you Mother and I pray that you intercede for me to live a life of spiritual values and be simple as our Lord Jesus Christ was during his pilgrimage on earth.


this is the tomb of Mother Teresa in the head quarter of Missionary of Charity.



Mother Teresa my hero

Mother Teresa along with Mahatma Ghandi, Martin Luther King and Bob Marley are my heros. I have known them since I was in level two in high school. At that time, I was really interested in reading at Municipal Library. That is where I discovered these legends who are now my heros. I remember that, there were two shelves of cartoons books within which these legends were autobiographed. Instantly, I did enjoy reading them because I have come to realize that, I have no authority in my life thus, these legends can provide me the wisdoms, guidances that a child with father besides him will have enjoyed. I then decided unconsciously to emulate these highly spiritual individuals. A way for me to mimic them was that, anywhere I was going in town to hangout or sightsee, I will always take my ID card with me. This, to me was a symbol to show my responsibility with the society. Thus, if something was going wrong, they could have know where I am and who to call should an emergency arises. I also remember my friends telling me that I behave like father or head of a family because I was always giving them advices and be the first to respond to a crisis. I was always in responsible mood.
Another way for me to practice my engagement for the society and for myself, was to be engaged in school by studying hard and obey my mom who was the only one to raise me and my twin sister. I remember to be all the time the first in the class or to make many A's in classes.

Mother Teresa and other heros, have taught me to be responsible for the community and to myself. They taught me through the readings of their biographies and stories, to always stand for my convictions and for the voiceless or the poors of the community. Another way for me to express that responsibility was to be involve in the church, in charitable activities within the churches and the civil societies.

My First odd with Indian Food

Nice food eaten at Blue Sky Cafe

Food eaten here by some volunteers
on a Street Stand

A volunteer from England showed me a street stand that fixes food and, he said that it is one of the cleanest street food stands. I went there yesterday to eat my lunch. At around 6pm, I was feeling a discomfort or precisely a stomach ache. All night long, I had the feeling of burning in my belly. So, this morning, I have tried to avoid these foods again. I could have kept eating my foods at Blue Sky Cafe or Spanish Restaurant which are more clean and service wise than other stores I have known so far. I have been told to avoid street foods and even my Indian's friends from USA, advised me to avoid them. Not to mention that, volunteers are reminded to not drink water off the tap. Till now, I haven't drink it and intend not to.
India which is one of five emergent economies, has to provide to its population and the visitors fresh and safe water. By doing this, it will reduce communicable diseases which are already affecting individuals due to the air polution and lack of good public sanitation. I cannot count how many times I found stink open public toilets which, urine's odor one can smell at hundred miles range. I remember ed meeting unvaccinated dogs rooming in public. Not to mention kids, youngs and old piing or defecating on sidewalks.
All these will if fixed, improve the status of India in the world stage as one of the clean countries on earth to visit by tourists.
For this, I have decided to eat Subway or McDonald and at Spanish Cafe because it is better to eat the foods you already know than eating something new to your stomach.

Meeting the Homeless and outcasts at the Dispensary



This homeless had a bad wound and
I needed to clean it before dressing it.

 Meeting the wounded homeless and uninsured of Calcutta at the Mother Teresa's Dispensary was hard to deal with. It was emotionally difficult to deal with someone's wound has been rooten for more than two weeks. I had to remember that I was trained to handle such difficult cases in order to follow the protocol of wound care and dressing.

These are homeless coming at the
SEALDAH dispensary for care

The second patient I met had a green stick fracture of the shin. It was also hard to deal with it. Nevertheless, taking my calm, I started to assess the deficient leg, assess the wound and francture. I had to clean it thouroughly and for long to reduce the infection. Because the foundation has a hospital capable to provide surgery, we finally had to sent him over there. He will undergo surgery which will help us to deep clean and provide a cast.

finishing a dressing of this patient

After all this care, I had to move to a Physiotherapy room where I have to provide physical exercises that will help straitghen bones and relax the muscles of the kids. This will prevent contracture or other deformities of the bones.
Mother Teresa's legacy will remain for ever as long as God will want. The foundation is not just reaching to Christians, but also Hindi, Bengali and other denominations. Yes it is the promotion of Humanity which according to her is above the religion. Let's us think above our own beliefs systems and religion.