I've heard the angels sing...

... and I've been to a small piece of heaven on earth. I've just left the state of Mizoram, wayyyy in the north east corner of India, separated from the bulk of the country by Bangladesh, in fact. A country that can pinpoint exactly when God came to them: January 11th, 1894, by way of two Welsh missionaries that landed on one of their riverbanks that day. The 'tribal peoples' of Mizoram (which is how the Indians see them; they spent many years fighting the Indians for independence, and finally conceded to being one of their states, which has not been to their favour - being so geographically isolated, as well as previously having been a rebel state, as well as being adamantly Christian amidst a government that is technically secular, but is trying very hard to become hard-line Hindu, has led to them being somewhat neglected and oppressed in this country) were previously head-hunters and fierce warriors, and are now the most Christianized state in the world. They send the most missionaries out per capita in the world. In stark contrast to the rest of India, their streets are clean, there are no beggars, no homeless, no orphans or widows left alone. The community ensures that all are fed and cared for.
And they sing like angels. Actually, one curious fact about the Mizos is that their culture is drenched in music. There is actually a recording studio every block or so in the capital, and lots of people record their own CDs and even their own videos! They have a whole channel on TV which just plays Mizo music videos 24 hours a day which is really cool! Most of the music is written for, and about, God, and it's gorgeous.
This morning, we visted an orphanage where many Burmese babies are brought across the mountains and left at their doorstep. These 386 children sang for us. Please note: "Above all... like a rose" is not my most favorite song, but it was the first time in a long while that singing has brought me to tears. It was indeed like listening to angels. I know people have got it on videotape, and I'm sure I will end up with a DVD version, but I don't think it will end up being able to transmit it in quite the same manner...