Indian joy!

Class under the tree, Narikudi School

(my school)

Wedding Guests

Indian Bride

Sunset from my balcony, Tiruchuli, Tamil Nadu

My lane in Tiruchuli.

I'm having a fantastic time here. I teach english to girls at the Narikudi school in the mornings, I catch the bus to and from school (which is a truly Indian experience), and Im working on a Human Rights Grant application for my boss here (www.odam.in) in the afternoons. Life in the village is a daily experience. Yesterday my room mate lost a small item of clothing down the loo 'cos thats the only drain we have in our room so we do our laundry there... very funny experience. We love our sunsets, our quiet lane (although the quiet usually ends about 5 am when the sweeping starts), and we are loving the food. Since being here, we've had the joy of being invited (spontaneously) to two different Hindu Weddings (same same but different).. which were definetly new experiences... very colourful.

Until another time... Vanakum!

Reading suggestions

I'm currently volunteering as an english teacher in Narikudi, Tamil Nadu. While I'm here I have some reading challenges, I'm currently reading Murakami's Blind Willow Weeping Woman, which is a collection of short stories... I find it difficult to read these consequetively, so I read one and put the book up for a while. One the book on the bookshelf in the volunteers room is the Good Earth by Pearl S Buck. It looks interesting, but wondered if anyone had any thoughts about it. Will it be easy enough to read while Im dealing with a lot of other stuff around me???? I'd appreciate your comments.

Indian Summer

Hi - Vanakum!
I'm in Tamil Nadu (southern India) for a 5 week stint of volunteering as an english teacher. This is my second trip to the school and yesterday it was a huge delight to visit the girls again and see how much they've grown, and just to talk with them again.

The school rescues young girls from factory work or house keeping - some of the girls have worked since they were 4 or 5 yrs old and have never been to school. Their families were forced to sell them due to the extreme poverty here in the rural regions. When they come to this school to live, between ages 8 -12yrs, they start an intesive program to bring them up to a mainstream standard in yr 9 (2nd yr highschool).

My friend and I arrived on Sunday, and since then, we've met with the regional district education officer, and had another meeting with a educational advsor who supports the local teachers. Their english has been quite good, but some of the local school teachers have a basic english level. Our job is tofacilitate the students learning through conversational english. They also have english lessons (provided in Tamil) from a local teacher.

We will start our classes tomorrow, taking the 7th standard 5 days a week for english tuition and conversation. We will then also do story time and games with 6th standard class once a week and have 'girl time' conversations with the older girls one night a week. It's all fun, and a great joy to be involved in this project.

While we're here, we also hope to do a little travel. Maybe this weekend visiting the Madurai Temple - world famous and of high regard among the Hindus in India.

On books - Im currently reading the "Marriage Bureau" and a Murukami novel. I was reading Forbidden Colours at home before leaving, but felt it was inappropriate to bring it to India given the topic and content...I'll have to pick it up later.

For now, it's time for an afternoon nap. It's currently about 35 degrees C and very dry.... the country desperately needs rain.

Japanese Literature Challenge 3

Well, here it is again. Dolce Bellezza is hosting the third Japanese Reading Challenge. This will be my second journey on the challenge, and I'm joining this one because the first one I did was so enjoyable, eye opening, challenging and inspirational. In the Japanese Reading Challenge 2 I read

1. Sputnik Sweatheart - Haruki Murakami
2. After Dark - Haruki Murakami
3. Underground - Haruki Murakami
4. Bells of Nagasaki
5. The Devils Whisper
   

This year DB says 'all you have to do is read one work of Japanese origin.' However I cant see that happening. I've already got three on my list.... and I want to expand my horizon with at least one other author - hopefully female. So my pledge for now is

1. Forbidden Colours - Yukio Mishima
2. The Wind-up Bird Chronicle - Haruki Murakami
3. Blind Willow, Sleeping Widow - Haruki Murakami

I'm also really looking forward to my fellow challengers reviews, because even if I cant read all the books, I get to vicariously travel with others on their journey.

The Elegance of the Hedgehog

For the past few weeks I've had the pleasure of sharing the lives of Madame Michel, Paloma, Kakuro Ozu, Leo, Manuela and others who reside at 7, Rue de Grenelle. I have really enjoyed this book, and I think it is one I will return to. It's got alot of philosophy, art, love of music, and lessons of life filling its pages.

This has been one of the books for my 'Lost in Translation' Challenge, as it was originally written in French. I first read about it on the Challenge website when Julie reviewed it. Then RubyReb reviewed it and reminded me I wanted to read it soon. For a work that has been translated, it flowed well, described places, people and events in enough detail for me, and expressed much about french life in an apartment building.

You see below that I found a reference to the joy of sharing a tea ceremony with special friends, but there was so much more. I encourage others to pick this one out of the pile.

Something I liked

A quote from the Concierge at 7 Rue de Grenelle.

I pour the tea and we sip in silence. We have never had our tea together in the morning, and this break with our usual protocol imbues the ritual with a strange flavour.

Yes, this sudden transmutation in the order of things seems to enhance our pleasure, as if consecrating the unchanging nature of a ritual established over our afternoons together, a ritual that has ripened into a solid and meaningful reality. Today, because our ritual has been transgressed, it suddenly acquires all its power; we are tasting the splendid gift of this unexpected morning as if it were some precious nectar, ordinary gestures have an extraordinary resonance, as we breathe in the fragrance of the tea, savour it, lower our cups, serve more and sip again: every gesture has the bright aura of rebirth. At moments like this the web of life is revealed by the power of ritual, and each time we renew our ceremony, the pleasure will be all the greater for our having violated one of its principles. Moments like this act as magical interludes, placing our hearts at the edge of our souls: fleetingly, yet intensely, a fragment of eternity has come to enrich time. Elsewhere the world may be bustling or sleeping, wars are fought, people live and die, some nations disintegrate, with others are born, soon to be swallowed up in turn - and in all this sound and fury, amidst eruptions and undertows, the world goes its merry way, bursts into flames and tears itself apart and is reborn: human life continues to throb.

So, let us drink a cup of tea.

page 86-87, The Elegance of the Hedgehog, Murial Barbery

Hope and Fears

The Iris is one of my favourite flowers. It's so fragile yet so vividly strong and purposeful. It's calming, peaceful, elegant and, at the same time, it's temporary and short lived. My partner bought some home for me on Friday night, and I have been enjoying their company.

I've had a break from blogging since I got the flu, and then went away for a bush walking weekend and hurt my back when I fell on a rock. I've pretty much now recovered, but I then had a couple of busy weekends. All the while I was feeling pretty much emotionally distracted by my up and coming trip to India in September/October (so much planning to do), and preparing for a fairly routine operation this week. Preparing for surgery (regardless of how routine it is for the Dr) is emotionally draining for me. So I haven't really been focused on anything of late.

So, the Iris is my symbol of hope and fear, of strength and fragility. It shows me, I too can be elegant, clam and peaceful in the moment.

Brief updates:

• Finished reading 'The Dragon of Trelian' (Thanks Della Bellezza)
• Currently reading 'The elegance of the Hedgehog' (encouraged by RubyRed Books and 'The Good Life'
• Looking forward to the Japanese Literature Challenge 3
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• Garden pickings (this week) included spinach, bok choy, celery, grapefruits, lemons, carrots, lettuce, cherry tomatoes and leeks
• Garden plantings included a Yacon (check this out for more info), comfrey, bok choy, Chinese cabbage, silverbeet, snow peas and carrots.

Until soon.....