These days have been hectic to say the least.With stipulated time at home I spent the days cooking meals for the carol,cooking christmas dinner for the family and just doodling with my neice,my sister,my brother,my cousins and my precious parents.By doodling I do not mean sketching.Post Christmas has been hectic with a sudden decision to take a cousin's husband for a scan .He has been showing signs of stroke for the past two years but stubbornly refused to go to a doctor.He had multiple infarcts at a young age of fifty five in the MRI.My last but oneday was spent in the hospital corridors of Manipal in Gangtok.Was back at home at around ten at night to find my beautiful family waiting up for me with special dinner and my bags packed for the early morning journey I had to make to the heart-land.Once back I have not had too much time to think.
On the flight from Baghdogra to Delhi I was a withness to that uncomfortable struggle of ordered meals with no cash in hand to pay.The aircraft did not have facilities for debit card so the family just in front of me were actually asked to return the soaked noodles.I watched the entire melodrama hoping something would workout but when the hostess asked me if I would like the noodles I had asked for which had run out ,I just offered to pay for their food.
They hesistated a bit and finally accepted my offer.
I took the connecting flight from Delhi and landed in Varanasi on time.Rajeshwar was butting with the big news and poured it all out as soon as we were safely out of the city.There had been a riot of sorts in the town between two communities and there had been an arrest of about 200 people and the town had been under a curfew of sorts.One youth was badly injured and fighting for his life.Such incidents are very common bere.I remember sitting in the out-patient and examining an elderly lady and her daughter loudly declared that it was a happy day for her mother because her husband had just arrived home after a prison sentence of fifteen years for a murder he had comitted for land issue.
I have been doing a protracted night calls for three days now with my junior down with a very bad AGE which seems to be doing the rounds of the area,
Just yesterday night another badly beaten man with a GCS of 6/15 was wheeled into the out-patient.He was decerebrating and thus we wanted them to take the patient for a CT scan of the brain but they insisted they had no means to take the patient onwards and wanted to keep the patient overnight.He succumbed.It was a fight between the brothers.Apparently the brother's son was as serious and had been taken to Mirzapur from the government set-up.
In the ward,Barsati baba after whom our garden has been named keep us entertained.He must be in his mid-nineties,apparently was a very faithful gardner and had stopped eating and drinking for the past ten days or so and his family had given up on him.He keeps his eyes tightly shut but makes an interesting conversation with intermittant demand for bidi.He has started eating and drinking very well and is just enjoying the pampering in the ward.
Church today was beautiful as always.I was deeply touched by an anecdote of an individual in Bhutan which pastor Mervin shared .Apparently an american missionary planted himself in that country,He could not preach because it is banned but he could play the guitar well and sing beautifully,so he would do that in the steps of his house.One day an adolescent kid walked up to him and requested him to teach him to play the guitar and offered to pay for the lessons so the missionary agreed to teach him free of cost since salvation is free.As he taught him to play the guitar,he shared the gospel with the kid.The kid accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and savior and he declared it to his family.His father was very angry and he beat the boy.After that almost everyday of his life when he came back from school his father would ask him if he still considered Jesus as the Lord of his life and he would affirm and he would be soundly beaten.At sixteen years of age his father kicked him out of his house.Later in life he went on to a bible college and became a pastor.Sixteen years later he had the joy of baptising his father into the faith.
I am also looking forward excitedly for Dr Verghese Philip's book 'living audaciously-30 reflections on rennaiscence painting' which I have placed an order for today and should be in in the new year. I have been in the recent past discovering art as a very powerful medium of expression.
Life goes on sometimes audaciously,sometimes timidly desperately holding on to our savior for the courage to take one step more...and He never fails.
On the flight from Baghdogra to Delhi I was a withness to that uncomfortable struggle of ordered meals with no cash in hand to pay.The aircraft did not have facilities for debit card so the family just in front of me were actually asked to return the soaked noodles.I watched the entire melodrama hoping something would workout but when the hostess asked me if I would like the noodles I had asked for which had run out ,I just offered to pay for their food.
They hesistated a bit and finally accepted my offer.
I took the connecting flight from Delhi and landed in Varanasi on time.Rajeshwar was butting with the big news and poured it all out as soon as we were safely out of the city.There had been a riot of sorts in the town between two communities and there had been an arrest of about 200 people and the town had been under a curfew of sorts.One youth was badly injured and fighting for his life.Such incidents are very common bere.I remember sitting in the out-patient and examining an elderly lady and her daughter loudly declared that it was a happy day for her mother because her husband had just arrived home after a prison sentence of fifteen years for a murder he had comitted for land issue.
I have been doing a protracted night calls for three days now with my junior down with a very bad AGE which seems to be doing the rounds of the area,
Just yesterday night another badly beaten man with a GCS of 6/15 was wheeled into the out-patient.He was decerebrating and thus we wanted them to take the patient for a CT scan of the brain but they insisted they had no means to take the patient onwards and wanted to keep the patient overnight.He succumbed.It was a fight between the brothers.Apparently the brother's son was as serious and had been taken to Mirzapur from the government set-up.
In the ward,Barsati baba after whom our garden has been named keep us entertained.He must be in his mid-nineties,apparently was a very faithful gardner and had stopped eating and drinking for the past ten days or so and his family had given up on him.He keeps his eyes tightly shut but makes an interesting conversation with intermittant demand for bidi.He has started eating and drinking very well and is just enjoying the pampering in the ward.
Church today was beautiful as always.I was deeply touched by an anecdote of an individual in Bhutan which pastor Mervin shared .Apparently an american missionary planted himself in that country,He could not preach because it is banned but he could play the guitar well and sing beautifully,so he would do that in the steps of his house.One day an adolescent kid walked up to him and requested him to teach him to play the guitar and offered to pay for the lessons so the missionary agreed to teach him free of cost since salvation is free.As he taught him to play the guitar,he shared the gospel with the kid.The kid accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and savior and he declared it to his family.His father was very angry and he beat the boy.After that almost everyday of his life when he came back from school his father would ask him if he still considered Jesus as the Lord of his life and he would affirm and he would be soundly beaten.At sixteen years of age his father kicked him out of his house.Later in life he went on to a bible college and became a pastor.Sixteen years later he had the joy of baptising his father into the faith.
I am also looking forward excitedly for Dr Verghese Philip's book 'living audaciously-30 reflections on rennaiscence painting' which I have placed an order for today and should be in in the new year. I have been in the recent past discovering art as a very powerful medium of expression.
Life goes on sometimes audaciously,sometimes timidly desperately holding on to our savior for the courage to take one step more...and He never fails.
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