to be amputated. Saying a prayer and taking a pair of scissors, she snipped
it off. Her patient then fainted in one direction and she in the other. She
often gave her bus fare away to those who needed it more and, instead,
walked home.
THE DARK NIGHT
Although the remaining pages of her journal document the people and
situations that she saw and even the feelings she had while doing her
work, it is still hard to imagine the tremendous loneliness that Mother
Teresa must have felt as she made her way through the slums of Calcutta
in those first months. For someone who had been accustomed to the order
and peace of convent life, the reality must have been jarring. But Mother
Teresa’s faith in God was absolute, and so she kept up her work, despite
the exhaustion and pain she felt at the end of the day.
Her faith also kept Mother Teresa from falling into despair, for she
sensed that her work accomplished very little. Calcutta faced intractable
problems. Since winning independence from Great Britain, India had
been divided into two nations: Muslim Pakistan and Hindu India. De-
spite the creation of a separate country for Muslims, conflict between
them and the Hindus continued, sometimes erupting into bloody vio-
lence, which left families devastated and areas ravaged. Many Hindus
seeking jobs flooded the streets of an already-overcrowded Calcutta.
Most ended up in the streets, and with a growing shortage of food and
water, many were plunged into unrelenting poverty. Much of the food
and water available became contaminated from the overflowing sewage.
Many considered the acquisition of one rupee (about 11 cents Ameri-
can) as good fortune.
Still, Mother Teresa persevered. As people heard of what she was
doing, they came forth with money, supplies, time, and favors. The bus
driver who drove the route to St. Joseph’s made her sit in a seat next to
him so she should would not have to make the hour-long walk back to St.
Joseph’s. A former teacher at St. Mary’s came to help her teach classes. On
one occasion, she went to a local parish priest for help. As much as he said
he was glad to be of service, he offered her little in the way of encourage-
ment or help. Mother Teresa then went to another priest who was so de-
lighted with what she had accomplished, that he presented her with a gift
of 100 rupees to help carry on her work. It was a princely sum that allowed
Mother Teresa to rent two small huts in Motijihl for five rupees each. One
hut served as a school where the students met for class and where they
were given milk at lunchtime and free bars of soap as prizes.
42 MOTHER TERESA