Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Caryn's laugh and little goats

My journal has been neglected since it's all been written here, but I do have four small entries in it about India (except maybe the one about my Justin Beiber dream doesn't technically count as being about India). I shall share one with you, and I quote:

Caryn laughed so much today, even bigger and so beautiful. She said, "India has improved my sense of humour. Not that it wasn't there before, but funny things are just so funny." It's true. And beautiful things are more beautiful. Puppies playing with flies, men playing cards in the street, kids who are smiling. Amid it all, the beauty is emphasized.

end quote.

Maybe this is a bit hard to understand, I'm not sure if the contrast of India is coming across in our writing. Yes you go to Pizza Hut, but you just left a woman with a child begging outside for food. You walk your usual route to the high speed clean internet place, past that woman with cool glasses and no fingers, begging. Mall, slum, mall. It's almost harder than if it was all a "developing" country/global south situation that you saw. Yes, as above, the contrast with the tough times makes for bigger laughs at goats with floppy ears. But in reverse, the contrast with western ease makes the suffering more.. frustrating... or.. or

It can be hard being in India.

We are appreciating Canada more than ever. We are thanking God for kindness and honesty, for good interactions. We are finding animals especially wonderful. We are completely loving our current spot, McLeod Ganj, and Tibetans. It's wonderful here. Perhaps another journal quote could explain,

I was sick in bed, in a haze
and Caryn comes in from McLeod Ganj
and she's just beaming, glowing, radiant.
She loves this place, she says,
she loves these people.
She looks so relaxed and calm, her joy is multiplied due to how difficult it has been elsewhere.
She tells me about the town she loves already.
It storms here at night, and it's fresh in the morning.

One more journal tidbit about this lovely town. Quote from our hotel handout,
"Please close your windows when you leave the Hotel room in order to avoid having your goods being mishandled be the Monkeys."

We love you and miss you.


3 comments:

  1. Oh, lovely, loving girls. You make me want to laugh and cry and hug you all at the same time. What makes you want to confuse your auntie, so. It seems to me, too, that India is making you loving, compassionate, funny and fun, wise and silly. Love you to pieces, and love your descriptions of India, Pat

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  2. This is a beautiful post! In my head, I started writing an essay about it.

    Love you! Just got a pile o postcards from you! Thrilling.

    xoxoxox.

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  3. I love the visual picture of monkeys coming in and "mishandling" your things...what would they do? Put your socks on their ears? Drop your teacups? I love your poem, the juxtaposition of poverty to daily life, the mall, and the endless question of how to respond to it all....gives me pause, especially on this day of royal extravaganza....perhaps you will come home with much wisdom to share....I think many cups of tea are in store here!

    Beth xoxox

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