A while ago, I wrote in a somewhat "tongue-in-cheek" blog entitled, "Ode to bureaucracy". In it I described my vision of hell. It was not the classic vision of hell in which there is fire and a evil man dressed in red with a pitch fork. For me, Hell was a line that weaves back and forth in a narrow hallway, filled with people whom you do not know, and with whom you cannot communicate. The real torture of this hell was that ideas of hope seemed to dance somewhere in the distance. However, at the end of the line is a teller who gives you a new set of bureaucratic tasks, and yes, a new line to stand in. And this is eternity.
This was the story of how finally attained a Student Visa here in the Philippines. For a short time this past week, flashes of this torturous scene flashed in my mind once again; but, I need not fear, for the Lord is Gracious and Compassionate. I will tell you why:
For the second time this week, I have found myself waiting in line at the Indian Embassy, here in Manila. The last time that I was here, I left in disappointment with a blank form and a laundry list of things that I needed of information that I needed to provide to prove to the Indian government that I wasn't a terrorist or wild religious fanatic.
Today I returned to the Indian Embassy with papers in hand, together with my passport, ID pictures, copies of confirmed flight itineraries, and 1,100 Pesos (~$20) to pay for a "Transit Visa," which was supposedly required to get me into the country. After waiting for an hour and a half for my number to be called, I finally made it to the window and was promptly told that the Visa that I was applying for was incorrect. I needed the much more expensive one which actually allowed me to leave the Airport in India. I saw that there were three prices for the particular Visa that I needed: One for Filipinos, one for everyone else in the world, and One for Americans--which was (of course) the most expensive and four times more than what I had budgeted.
Beyond this, the lady at the counter asked what I was doing in the Philippines. When I told her that I was a student, she asked to see my I-card. My heart sank, knowing that I didn't HAVE my I-Card due to an entirely separate bureaucratic battle with Philippine immigration, which I will not go into at this time!
All I could do was provide her with a bank card and my student ID. I thought to myself, that this was a futile attempt--a pointless venture--I would no doubt be rejected immediately, and I would have to come back and do the whole thing over again, if they would even let me do that! So, with what information I had, the lady left the room walked down the hall and placed my papers on the Indian Consulate General's desk (--and this is the cool part!) When the papers arrived at the desk of the Consulate, I was told later that the consulate was on the phone with an Indian Expatriate in the Philippines. Her name was Stella Bokare. Stella is a friend and classmate of mine who is also studying at APNTS, and she happens to be very good friends with the Consulate General. Beyond that, this particular man, on whose desk my papers had landed, was a Christian and had even visited APNTS a time or two. Upon seeing my name, papers, and APNTS Student ID, I was quickly approved with only a few questions asked.
What should have been a bureaucratic nightmare, turned out to be a reminder of God's grace and the ridiculously small and interconnected world in which we live. I still never cease to be amazed at God's ability to place the right people, in the right places, at the most perfect times.
