Bala

This is Bala, and he is our driver. He is 28 years old, and he was raised at Good Shepherd. Driving is his full time job. To give you an idea of his skills, you first need to know about the traffic. It is a madhouse. No one stays in their own lane, and everyone is constantly weaving around each other. The horns are in constant use. To add to the degree of difficulty, you can throw in a few hundred pedestrians along the edge, some potholes as deep as canyons, and a handful of stray cows. While driving, Bala is on full alert. I'm not kidding about this. He doesn't turn around, he doesn't use his phone, and he generally doesn't talk. His focus is the road. When he is not driving, I have learned that Bala is in an arranged marriage. He has two kids, ages 3 & 5. His wife is a nurse. Bala lives in a neighboring village. He has to walk a few kilometers to catch a bus, then take a 40 minute bus ride to get to Good Shepherd. It is too far to go home each night, so he spends several at the mission.