FREE CANDY

That 's what you can win if you visit

Rosemary and Jana 's blog

ORDER OF THE OPUS GLUIE

Its a very creative and relaxing blog with lots of fun things.

They are having a candy giveaway

Put in your hand into

the candy jar to see see if

you can fish out something.

Found a nice sticky- sweet poem to go with this post.

Candy Wrap
Well I like ice cream and candy barLike Ben and Jerry's, Hersey's and MarsPop rocks, pop-tarts, and pop-cycles tooMarshmallow cereal how about youI'm gonna eat this candy till I get sickI'm gonna give this lollipop another lickA lot of people always tend to give upBut I say you ain't through until you throw-upBut if you're not careful you'll get cavitiesBut all you got to do if brush dem teefethiesI can't help I have a really bad sweet-toothBut I really love candy and that's the sweet-truthAs long as I'm eating lots of candyI'll be one very happy fatty.

by Soupy Pettry

Girl Power

Rosaline Cutting our local lass has done our

city, our community and my Alma mater proud

by going on a research expedition to the South Pole.

She studied in the Forest Research Institute at Dehra Dun,

a premier institution I have visited.

At the FRI she took part in a workshop on Antarctic studies and was selected for a study tour.

She is on her way again down under

to study global warming and the level of pollution in Antarctica.

Well done Rosaline.

(We may know her family)
________________

Following video is an interview of Priyanka Gandhi,

grand daughter of Indra Gandhi ,

daughter of Rajiv Gandhi both Prime Ministers who were assassinated.

Her mother Sonia who is of Italian descent is a leading

politician of India.

Her brother Rahul is contesting Parliament elections for

the second time.They are very popular

in our state and we support them.

Tomorrow is the 3rd phase of voting.

______________

Just heard on the BBC that there has been a swine flu death in TX

My dear fellow bloggers I am very concerned for you.

Please take the necessary precautions.

Praying for God 's protection.

Just pray the virus doesn 't creep into poor or underdeveloped countries.

It would wreak havoc there.

Me-Me

KATHRYN invited me to play the

8 things tag, so here goes.

8 THINGS I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO

1. Visiting my younger sister Namrita

(she lives in N E India) I have been there only

once.

2. Going on a holiday.

( Don 't see how # 1&2 can materialize though)

3. My adopted sister, Sonia 's visit next month.

4. The vision God has given me for my church to come to pass.

Ezk 36.

5. Having a friend I can meet up with. Everyone lives so far away.

6.My garden to produce a decent amount of veggies as

prices are going up.

7.Owning a laptop someday...wishful thinking. LOL

8. The rains and cooler weather.

8 THINGS I DID YESTERDAY

1. Got up in the morning.

2. Cooked Kheer

3. Did the laundry

4.Cleaned the house

5.Blogged

6.Read

7. Entertained visitors.

8. Played with Sheeba.

8 THINGS I WISH I COULD DO

1.Touch typing

2.Play the piano and saxophone

3.Play pool or snooker or billiards

4. Swim

5. Own an ATV or modified scooter to make me mobile.

6. Earn some money

7. Drive a car

8. Have my house painted and kitchen renovated.

8 SHOWS I WATCH

I am not a TV watcher.

1. The week that wasn 't with Cyrus Barocha

2. Planet 's Funniest Animals

3. We the People

4. Devil 's Advocate (political talk show)

5. News

6 Quiz shows whenever they are on.

7. Biographies on History Channel

8. Travel and cookery shows.

Now I have to tag 8 people

1 Paresh

2. Sita

3. Crown of Beauty

4. Herrad

5.Mary

6. Mr. Joseph

7. Gerry

8. Madison

Kheer with Ismail Merchant

Ismail Merchant (December 25, 1936 – May 25, 2005) was an Indian-born film producer, best known for the results of his famously long collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions which included director James Ivory and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. Their films won six Academy Awards.
Some of his films include -
A Room With A View
Remains of the Day
Heat and Dust
Cotton Mary
Howard 's End
The Perfect Murder
The Householder
Shakespeare Walla

Besides being a producer /director he was an accomplished cook and threw lavish parties for his friends in which he would cook.
I bought his compilation of recipes . I love reading it more than cooking from it as the ingredients he uses are way beyond me more suited to the western world. But the recipes are really good.
(sorry the photo is not very clear I double macroed it)

Since ages I had been wanting to make Kheer, an Indian rice dessert (pudding). Today I finally got down to it.

This is my own adaptation.

but I will give you Merchant 's version.

This patchwork tablecloth was made by my Mom.

I have served the Kheer in a tiny

clay cup. I bought Indian ice cream called kulfi in it and I am recycling it.

They are very cute. You can get larger ones too.

You can buy yogurt and sweets in them.

They are environmentally friendly as

paper and plastics are not involved.

Indian Rice Pudding - Kheer
1 cup long grain rice
5 1/4 cups milk
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup dried milk
1 tablespoon rosewater (don 't worry if you don 't have it -
I did not use it )
6-8 chopped blanched almonds
10-12 shelled unsalted pistachios chopped
1/4 cup seedless raisins
(I used lots of dried fruit and pine nuts, unsalted cashews chopped and coconut scrapings)
Boil rice in3 1/4 cups of water until the rice is very soft
Heat the milk and sugar in another pan and bring them to the boil.
Immediately reduce the heat and stir in the softened rice.
Continue cooking over medium-low heat until the mixture becomes thick. Add the dried milk and stir well.
Add the rose water, almonds, pistachios and raisins and
remove from the heat.Let the pudding cool and serve
it at room temperature.
(I like to chill the pudding)


Try it and see

The flowers at the side of the bowl

are sweet smelling summer belas.

I love their perfume.

Don 't know how they survive the blazing heat.
__________________

Bought these from the vegetable market

(Clockwise)

Watermelon,lobhia beans, okra, green pumpkin.

The green chillies you see on the side the grocer gives free if you ask

for them.

Sunday Blessings - Letters to God and a Gift

Thank you for your kind words and award SITA

Amrita at Yesu Garden comes from the land of my ancestors, India. Her blog is unique, giving reality shocks to westerners about life in the Third World; her photos and anecdotes of her daily life are humorous, delightful and sometimes heart wrenching. Above all, her faith stands firm, strong, and a witness to all who flock to her blog, which includes many non-Christians.

Fall into The Rhythm

A group of percussionists encourage young people to come out and vote for change.

We got the flat roof of our house white washed

with a cheap lime based solution.

Read somewhere that white roofs keep the house cool

as the rays of the sun are reflected backwards.

And I tell you it really works.

Our house has cooled down considerably and

we don 't have to run our air convector

water cooler all the time.

Its a cheap and environmentally friendly way to keep

your house cool. Our temps have crossed

the hundreds mark and will rise further.

I have trouble with my computer

in the heat.

_______

Maybe poverty sows the seeds of evil in people.

I went to the back of the house to get some lemons from our Meyers lemon tree and found most of the fruit missing.

We have all kinds of poor people moving around on our campus gleaning leaves and grass for animals and wood for fuel.

Could be one of them or the mischievous boys

from an economically backward area in our neighbourhood

But I am very upset as those lemons make very good lemonade.

A soldier questions God

Would you save a terrorist?

All men will hate you because of me

This took place on Sunday April 19th ,2009

A mob of about 100 militants of the Hindu fundamentalist party Bajrang Dal attacked a church in Saavner area of Nagpur and vandalized it, according to reports reaching the state police headquarters in Mumbai yesterday. The attack took place at 11.00 a.m. when 70 members of the Christian community were praying in the church. The incident led to tension and panic in the city. Police beefed up security in the area and appealed to the people to not to believe in rumors and help in maintaining peace and harmony in the city. According to police sources, the Bajrang Dal militants attacked the church on the suspicion that it was being used for converting Hindus to Christianity.
The police have registered a case against four accused persons, who are reported to be absconding. The Hindu militants damaged chairs, tables, fans in the church and a minibus that was parked in the church compound.
(Source Arabnews)

-------------------------------------------------

An armed group of Hindu radicals attacked a 100-year-old church in Saoner near Nagpur on Sunday, April 19. Saoner police said that just about 10 minutes before the attack, some persons claiming to be from VHP’s Ramtek unit came to the police station and handed over an application asking for action against religious conversions taking place in Saoner.
They warned of a vigorous movement against the church’s action of allegedly targeting economically weaker section and converting them into Christianity offering them enticements. The allegations, said priest Reverend Mark Sakharpekar of the church, were baseless. He said this was the first attack of its kind on the church.
CH Wakade, superintendent of police, Nagpur rural, said that these men then headed straight to the church. “The police station personnel had accepted the complaint and assured them that they would look into the issue of conversion through unfair means. Ten minutes later, the police station received information about attack at the church. It seems that the moves were planned,” he said. SP said that special squads have been formed to round up the culprits at the earliest.
Sakharpekar had just begun his sermon when the attack began. It triggered panic among the devotees. The church is hardly a kilometre from the police station. The priest’s wife Pushpa Sakharpekar, who is in a shock after the attack, tried to reason with the assailants but to no avail. The other women too protested. A sharp trident like weapon was hurled at the priest. However, he escaped unhurt. One of the attackers told him that ‘next time will be worse’. Two worshippers, Aruna Telkhande and Preeti Dongre, received minor injuries.
The late 19th century church comes under the Church of Scotland Missions and is affiliated to United Church of Northern India. “It was a merciless attack. I was shocked to see them barge into the church with sticks and weapons during the worship. They hurled a sharp trident at me. Some of them were known faces. One Pandit Bharadwaj even brandished a pistol to intimidate me,” said Sakharpekar. “Sonu Bariya was one of the attackers. We know him since his mother often came for the morning service. He too visited the church on several occasions. Both Sonu and his mother had recently discontinued their visits to the church,” he said.
An unidentified man had barged into the Saoner church in the night and tried to vandalise the St. John’s Mission High School’s computer room some days back. Sakharpekar had not taken the matter to police station then. “We had no idea who had then tried to break open the computer room. He had claimed to be sent by someone but that name was unfamiliar,” he said. Sakharpekar had raised the boundary wall of the church and school premises.
An offence of rioting, trespassing and defiling place of worship and insulting religious feelings has been registered against the culprits.

(Source cbcsite)

____________________________

Jesus said; All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.Matthew 10;22

His words have proved to be true all through the centuries..

What I just don 't understand is that the right-wing Hindu fundamentalists accuse the church of "false" or "forced" conversions.

I want to tell them that there are no false or forced conversions in Christianity. True conversion has to be of the heart otherwise it is of no value. And if anyone pretends to be converted he is doing so at the peril of his own soul because God cannot be fooled.

The pretend converts slide back into where they came from. The ones whose names are written in the Lamb 's Book of Life will receive the crown of life .

Please pray for our safety too.

____________________________

The second day of voting passed off peacefully today. There was a low voters turn out because of the blistering 110 ' heat.

India votes for her 15th Parliament

The world's largest exercise in democracy, India's general election, will take weeks to complete and involve hundreds of millions of voters. BBC News explains the process.
When is the vote and who is involved?
People walk past shop selling political party flags
For logistical reasons, polling to elect a new Lok Sabha (lower house) will be staggered over five dates: 16 April, 23 April, 30 April, 7 May and 13 May.
Voting in some states will take place over several stages.
Counting is due on 16 May.
Some 714 million voters are eligible to cast ballots, with almost four million officials taking part.
How is the vote organised?
The Election Commission had to negotiate a long list of potential obstacles when scheduling the poll: it took school exams, holidays, festivals, the harvest and even the monsoon into account.
INDIAN ELECTION AT A GLANCE
Eligible voters: 714 million
Polling centres: 828,804
Voting days: 16, 23, 30 April; 7, 13 May
Vote counting: 16 May
Leading candidates: Manmohan Singh (Congress), LK Advani (BJP), Mayawati ("Third front")
The organisational challenge of the polling is huge. There are 828,804 polling centres, including one in Gujarat's Gir lion sanctuary for a single voter.
Many new centres have been set up to reduce the time voters have to travel, often across hills and rivers.
There will be extensive security measures in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, where separatist militants have been operating for almost two decades.
Electronic vote counting, introduced in 2004, will be used for a second time.
Photo electoral rolls will be used for the first time on a national level to help voter identification and help prevent fraud.
Many Indians are illiterate, and identify parties by their symbols.
Who is competing?
There are two coalitions competing for power: the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), which has been in government for the past five years, and the opposition National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
The UPA is led by the Congress party, which dominated Indian politics for a long time before a decline, while the NDA is led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
But the main parties are coming under pressure from an alliance of left-wing and regional parties who have united to form a "third front". It could coalesce around the Dalit chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati.
What are the issues?
Voters will be casting judgement on Congress's policies over the past five years, including a $2.2bn (£1.6bn) rural employment guarantee programme, arguably the world's biggest such scheme, and a landmark right to information law.
Electronic vote counting will be used for the second time
Congress will point to rapid economic growth during its tenure and its investment in social policies and the country's power infrastructure. But growth has been hit over the past year, with job losses and rising costs likely to weigh on voters' minds.
The BJP/NDA has focused on India's internal security situation in the aftermath of the November 2008 Mumbai (Bombay) attacks, claiming the government has been ineffectual in cracking down on terrorism.
The opposition has also criticised Congress for what it says are slow and ham-handed economic reforms, while claiming that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is ineffectual and under the thumb of Congress head Sonia Gandhi.
What are the possible outcomes?
The increasing fragmentation of Indian politics and rising power of regional parties has caused problems for both the Congress- and BJP-led coalitions.
Neither has been looking especially strong in the run up to the elections, observers say, and both have been scrambling to bolster their positions through regional alliances.
If the two main coalitions fail to win a clear majority, regional and leftist parties could play a crucial role. The third front could try to form a government itself.
Large scale boundary changes since the last elections contribute to the difficulty of predicting the outcome.
Will the vote be free and fair?
India has a long track record in organising peaceful and orderly elections on a massive scale.
Voter intimidation and vote buying have decreased dramatically in the past decade.
The build-up to this year's poll has also been marked by a row at the Election Commission, where election chief N Gopalaswami accused his colleague Navin Chawla of pro-Congress "bias" and recommended his removal.
Mr Chawla has denied the charge and refused to quit. Lok Sabha
Lower house of parliament
543 constituencies each elect one member
The president can appoint 2 extra Anglo-Indian members
131 seats reserved for poor castes and tribespeople

Electorate
World's largest democracy
Has increased by 41 million since 2004
24% are under 35
48% are women
82% will be identified by photos on the electoral roll
(source BBC News)
This is one of the campign songs of the Congress Party which I support


The first phase of the polls took place on April 16th.

Here is a report.

Suunday Blessings - Busy Hot Day

Today was the hottest day so far.

An angry dusty ,flaming wind whipped ,kicked and rattled

everything in sight.

Aunt Maya visited us right after church.

Following that I went to

attend a Memorial Service for

Mr V C, who passed away in Goa last month.

His wife and daughter brought his ashes to our city

to be immersed in the River Ganga

as per his wishes.

Uncle V, as we called him

carved a named for himself in golden letters

in Global Banking. He held top positions

in various International Banks.

(L -R) Daughter V and second wife J

They have been our family friends since my

parent 's young age.
Aunt D (his first wife, close friend of ours)

and 2 daughters spent 3 summer months in our city about 26 years ago before moving to the Middle East.

We sisters spent a lot of time with them.

It was fun recounting the memories

of youth with V.

We met after 13 years.

I searched their name on Face Book and contacted them.

The service took place in Mr V C 's old school.

(my nephew also studied there).

A number of the school 's alumni , family and friends

were present.

(above) Dr R R stepping way after delivering her tribute.

Her illustrious family were good

friends of our nation builders like

Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore.

They are also our family friends.

A group of out city 's prominent citizen 's

talking with Vand J.
Apart from eulogizing the departed soul

all of the speakers recalled the past

history of our city - and the school.

One gentleman reminisced that

erring boys were often caned by

the Headmaster or the Sargent (this was in the 1950s).

And after receiving the punishment each lad

had to say "Thank you" to the

"law enforcement officer".

Many times the poor boys did not know why they were

thanking the teacher, but he said he owes his

grooming and success to that era.

I really enjoyed walking down memory

lane with the old boys.

Got back home fighting the belligerent wind,

had lunch and rested a bit.

In the evening just as I started blogging we

had 2 groups of visitors who left at 8pm.

A young couple, Ravi and Alka came with their son Yash.

They are related to us.

Yash is 4 years old and today he attended

Sunday School for the very first time.

After class his teacher told Mom Alka that Yash

was the brightest kid in class and wanted to

answer all the questions.

When she asked "Why did Jesus die for us?"

Yash answered,"Jesus Papa died because I

sinned". They put Him on the cross because

of my sin."

I tried to capture Yash singing a Sunday School song.

Which goes -

As prayers go up

Blessings come down

Our God is so great

And loves us all.

Yash is an animal lover.

His parents told us

it is mandatory for all his

stories to have animals in them.

Before bidding us goodbye Yash prayed to

Jesus Papa and asked him

to bless Mama and me.

Powerless in the City

This evening I planned on attending a

Praise and Worship music concert.

but something told me not to go.

And I am glad I didn 't because

at about 6pm our area power transformer

which regulates our electricity, blew out with a

booming sound and we were without power all evening.

They hooked us to a temporary transformer at

about 10pm.

I am glad I stayed home because Ma would

have felt very anxious and insecure in the dark

although we have a battery run UPS

but it doesn 't run everything in the house.

Sometimes one has to listen

their instincts.

Technology wins every time

Specially failed or faulty technology.
This is a gizmo I am looking for.
I have bits and pieces of it.
Just have to assemble it.

Weeds

I got this reminder from Olde Dame Penni today.

People think of weeds as "no good," as ssomething bad, as something not to be thankful for, as useless. But God has such a different view. We would have no butterflies if not for weeds. We would have no bees, no crops, not much of anything. Thank you for the weeds!

Weeds in my garden and life irritate me so much. But they are essential for me. Weeds keep me at the grassroots level ,as we say in India - and pulling them out keeps me humble.

Thank you for buoying me up with your prayers , encouraging words and emails. Mom is so much better. I am focusing on her needs rather than satisfying my "mother hen instincts". The lessons I have learnt through this are

a)" God has not given us a spirit of fear,but of power,love and of a sound mind" 2 Timothy 1:7 (New Testament)

b)" in everything give thanks for this is God 's will for you in Christ Jesus" 1 Thessalonians 5;18 (New Testament)

God sky-writes His messages on the horizon of our lives through life circumstances.

The 2 above lessons put on flesh and blood in the lives of the Ten Booms, a Dutch family who sheltered Jews during Hitler 's Holocaust and paid dearly for it when they were discovered by the Gestapo. Read this true story in the book "The Hiding Place" Read it out to your children. Watch the movie together.

Blue Like Jazz

That 's how I felt yesterday.

But I felt stronger today

as Ma showed willingness

to eat.

I tell you my friends

it is insufferably painful and baffling

to watch your parents (or elders)

decline physically.

Since my Dad died in 2004

I have started dreading illness and death.

I panic when someone close to me falls ill.

Maybe its PTSD, I don 't know.

I even have visions of my dog Sheeba dying and leaving me

in a terrible state.

Last year 4 family members passed away.

One was Aunt Sybil whom I cared for

5 years.

I feel, when the Lord calls my mother home

I will be left all alone.

Maybe I am over reacting.

but I know in the realm

of Paindom I am not alone.

There are many more

and they are facing greater hardships than I am.

That 's where Ephesians 6;10-18 fits in

10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
(Ephesians, New Testament, Bible)

Now that I have shed my tears in public

let me share these two smileys with you.

रेड तुएस्दय -Red Confessions

This sari belonged to my younger

sister Namrita, she gave it to me.

Its hand-woven cotton.

We call it hand loom textile.

Its about 25 years old.

Namrita called this morning and talked with mama and me for a long time. She has an Internet connection on her Nokia, but is trying to

get her PC hooked up.

I bought this water melon from the

market today.

My adopted sis, Sonia advised me to always

ask the fruit wala to cut open the melon

and show the inside flesh to make sure its red and juicy.

Otherwise you are left with an unripe, useless one.

I like watermelon with a little salt and pepper sprinkled on it.

Black salt is even better.

Made a bottle of ketchup.

_________

Thank you praying for us friends.

My mother is some better, but has lost her

appetite and this is where the confession part

of this post comes in.

I don 't know about other caregivers

but when my care-givees (charges)

don 't eat properly I get the

caregiver 's frustration virus.

I see my mother so weak and pathetic, when she refuses nutrition I

become

frustrated, impatient and angry too.

I feel like a rusted thorn bush.

A kicked and bruised tin can lying in

a mud puddle.

Can anybody relate to this?

I need help with my

caregiver 's guilt.

I feel like I have screwed up everything.
I feel distressed and dismayed.

World History Split Into Two

BC /AD

Jesus Christ

Splits Time

At His Resurrection

The God who invaded time at the incarnation,

conquered it at the resurrection.

It was here that He split time into two.

The resurrection is the vast watershed

of history.It is the most powerful event in history.

It can neither be tamed or tethered.

It stands as an impregnable rock,

the most well attested event in history.

Upon this rock time is broken

severed into two halves-

BC and AD

Our calenders may date from

Christ 's birth, but its

really His resurrection that splits time.

-Dr Woodrow Kroll

___________________

May this reality touch our lives

daily

Prayer Request

I need the reality of the Resurrection Power

urgently in my life today.

Since yesterday my mother has been sick.

She cannot eat anything. I am giving her

semi-liquid food, of which she can have very

little. She had some pomegranate juice and

a few teaspoons of moong dal today.

As a result she is feeling very weak and low.

This has rubbed off on me too.

After church the Pastor 's wife took me aside

and asked me why I was looking so depressed.

I shared with her and they came to pray for my mother.

I talked with 2 of my sisters. The third one will call later on.

That made me feel better.

Just need your prayers

Art a ' Trois

My precious artist friend, Shirley Jonas

surprised me this morning by emailing me

me this beautiful painting which she

painted.It is based on a photograph she saw on my

blog.

Thank you so much Shirley.

Shirley has been an Arizona resident for many years. She grew up in a small town in Nebraska and majored in art at the University of Nebraska. Subsequently she moved to Arizona. She married and raised 3 sons. Art has always been a part of her life and after her sons were grown, she turned serious attention to painting.
Shirley especially enjoys the natural beauty she sees around her and always has her camera at the ready for a good subject. She draws inspiration from her travels with her husband around the U. S., Canada and some in Europe. Her works are an ever-evolving learning process of using light, color and form.
She is a juried member of the Arizona Art Alliance, a member of the Scottsdale Artists League and the Phoenix Artists Guild. For a time her paintings were chosen to be displayed in the famed Wrigley Mansion in Phoenix and can now be seen regularly at various spots around Phoenix and Scottsdale and the Valley of the Sun, as well as on this site. Recently several of her works were chosen to be published on the covers of some publications in Arizona's Valley of the Sun.
This is such a brilliant piece of work.

Dear friends please visit Shirley 's

website http://www.artatrois.com/

and look at all the masterpieces created

by Shirley and her friends.

You can buy their paintings too.

I want to mention that Shirley is my friend Donetta 's

MIL.Donetta calls her Mother in Love