Back Home at the Ashram – March 19

I am back from Mussoorie and have only a few days left here at the Ashram. I’m glad I came home when I did because Kavita invited me to go with her to attend Arati (evening prayers) at Rishikesh. If you are a devout Hindu you want to attend Arati at either Haridwar or Rishikesh – both are on the Ganga where it leaves the Himalayas and meets the plains – and I now will have attended both.

We took a cab to Rishikesh and stopped at her house for a while. She opened all the doors and windows to let it air out. We sat on her bed and chatted. Then we had tea with her neighbors down the road that I had met before. I am fascinated by how English is incorporated into daily speech in India. Kavita and her friend’s husband were discussing a recent land deal he had made. Suddenly, in the middle of all the fast Hindi, I heard the phrase, “he is a spineless man” and then back into Hindi.

Her friend’s house – large and lovely. The living room is big – it has large seating pieces spaced around the room. The decorations intrigued me. There were 2 stuffed teddy bears on the top of a low cabinet along with some other stuffed animals. Here is what got me, though. A stuffed 20-inch Tweetie Bird hung on the wall, smiling down at me. Interesting! Didn’t seem to match the crown molding and delicate painting of the room. As always, what is art to one person may not be to another.

Arati was lovely. We sat on the ghats (the steps) that went down to the Ganga. People continuously trickled in so, at the end, it was very crowded. The setting sun marked the beginning of the ceremony – again that big, fat, red sun slipping out of sight beyond the Ganga. As the sky darkened, the lamps were lit - it was truly beautiful. We sang God’s praises (thank you, Beatles, for teaching me “Hari Krishna . . .”) while we watched the ceremony and saw the lights of Rishikesh come on across the water.

Again, I can’t cross my legs so I sat with my feet on the step below me. A man and his wife moved down in front of us and he ended up sitting on my feet - okay, I thought, don’t wiggle your toes, Donna. Could be misperceived. About 30 minutes later people stood up and moved a bit, and when they sat down his wife was now sitting on them. I felt a little less awkward!

When it was over we wandered back in the dark through the well-lit bazaar. It was magical. Kavita bought some food and then got nervous about crossing the footbridge because of the waiting monkeys. We shouldn’t have worried – didn’t see a single one. As usual, I kept thinking, “this is it, the last time here” – my mantra related to just about everything I do as the days count down.

When I got back to the Ashram I was surprised to find that Betsy had left. A family emergency came up and she decided she needed to go home. She had already gone to Delhi to deal with her expired visa and now, suddenly, needed to move her flight up. She emailed asking me to pack up her things. A friend then took them to Delhi. I was sorry I didn’t get a formal chance to say goodbye – it had been a quick hug when I left for Mussoorie. I really enjoyed Betsy – she is charming, caring, and a lot of fun. She was easy to live with.

So, once again I am alone in the room. I put my suitcases on her bed and have started packing up stuff I know I won’t use in my remaining time here. I did indeed learn something from the fiasco of my carry-on luggage on the way over. I have a fold-up, very light duffle bag which I will use to carry my laptop and what I need for the actual flight - and will make sure it weighs LESS than 15 pounds! On this leg of the trip the Ashram doesn’t need one of my bags so I can check through both my big bag and the one I used as carry-on on the way over. How lovely to have just my purse and duffle bag to deal with on the flight – the way I prefer to travel!

So, how am I spending these last days? Well, I am working with Sulochana to finish up distribution of all the clothes that came over with us in the large Ashram duffle bags. Today, Wednesday, is the last day for the children to come get clothes. Tomorrow we will remove all the remaining clothes from a room in my building over to a room in the children’s dorm. It has all the accumulated clothes that have not yet been selected from previous years. We also, by the way, distributed a lot from that room as well. We each monitored one room and the children moved between the two so they got a chance to look at everything available in their sizes.

The littlest kids are the most fun – they just love EVERYTHING. If it is pink and has anything sparkly on it, the girls are delighted. One found a Monterey Bay Aquarium t-shirt with a sparkly jellyfish on it – and was so upset when I had to tell her it didn’t fit (too small) and we had to leave it for another child. But, when I found something else pink and sparkly, the wobbly lower lip turned into a grin of delight. The same child found gently used sandals with bows on the toes and joyfully pranced around the room showing off the wonder of her “new” shoes.

The older children are pickier – the oldest girls, understandably, are the pickiest. I completely understand the desire to be fashionable – and, of course, these are hand-me-downs, and may not be today’s height of fashion. But, by the end, everybody got something – I’d say 2-3 pairs of pants and 3 shirts plus some sandals was about average. I would write each of their numbers on the tags so clothes can be differentiated in the wash.

I also continue to help with tea every few days – am so tired of peeling 50 oranges at a time – and have to remind myself to find joy in work! Luckily, I do like the smell of orange that remains on my hands – so something good comes out of it. We now have so many short-term guests that I have less interest in trying to get to know people. About a third of the original group who arrived here with me in January is still here – but lots more have been added.

Kavita and I have been spending a lot of time together. Last night I was helping her with her resume and ended up spending the night. At 3:30, when I gave up trying to get to sleep, I thought about slipping out and going back to my own building - but then remembered why one doesn’t wander from 3 – 4 am. It’s when elephants (or hotti, in Hindi) are on the move. I had to laugh as I looked out into the dark at the wheat field and playing field I would need to cross – I am trapped because of the potential of marauding elephants. You know, I suspect this will NEVER be a concern once I am home.
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