Body,Soul, Earth and Air

Hello friends I really appreciate all your comments, observations and reactions.

Like I always say, blogging is about relationships for me,

otherwise it would be akin to flipping through a glossy magazine.

Just say Hi, even if you don 't have anything to say.

Sometimes I do that and its fine.

Well let me begin with the torso (body) report.

I have a slight cold .

The snout and larynx feel dry and irritated.

The general framework achy and tired.

Taking warm water, herbal tea with jaggery and tonight

started on Benadryl, eucalyptus oil is also good.

Want to make chicken and veggie soup

have to get the ingredients first.

Namrita is travelling to Alld on Dec 22nd and her elder son

Mishael has been diagnosed with jaundice.

Its early detection, so hopefully he will recover soon.

Has to stick to a carbo/ glucose diet.

A home remedy is -

wash and peel a radish,

sprinkle it with lemon juice and sugar

and place it outdoors overnight to catch the dew.

It should be eaten first thing in the morning.

I remember eating it when I had jaundice as a High Schooler.

Not pleasant at all.

Sugarcane juice is also good.

Yesterday Mishael ,s younger brother Rayguel turned 9.

They had a subdued celebration as their house is being painted

and Mishael 's sick.

The boys can celebrate in MacDonald's when they come here.

Please pray for Mishael 's recovery.

Our EU and EGF (similar to IVF) friends put up a small concert

at the Pentecostal Bible School on Saturday.

Their music group is called Alive.

They are all fresh collegians -Agriculture and Technology

and their leader is a young college teacher.

They are learning and singing for the glory of God.

My nephew plays the guitar in the band, but he was sick

so here he is manning the PowerPoint display.

Our local churches have a tradition of singing carols by candle light.

Here is one.

They turn the lights off.

The Pastor of the Pentecostal church, Sisdter K

(American lady)

gave a wonderful message on the Cross being the real

Christmas Tree.

I will share that later on.

Below the body and soul is the earth.

So let me show you what is happening in my garden.

Agrarian pursuit requires patience.

Plants are coming up
We are getting dil or green soy herb, eggplant,radish
spinach, mustard leaves,some bathua (strangely called
pig weed) which is very good for arthritis etc.
bottle gourd, little snake gourd
and some herbs.

Bananas, guavas and lemon are also yielding well.

After pruning our roses have started to bloom
Our family has cultivated roses for the past 25 years.
October pruning, and sunning the roots is very important
for the rose bushes. After that they are fed
a variety of fertilizers. And they are
ready to splash their bright colours.
In the same way our heaven soul-keeper God prunes and disciplines us.
He removes the unseemly parts of our lives
and tunes us into shape,..
we have to submit to His hand
in order to yield and be fruitful.


We have chrysanthemums of various hues.

We only have orange gladioli.

Grapefruit

Coxcombs

The Nehemiah Project is going on.

Repairing and building of our church wall.

Carting sand for the mortar

Everything is done by hand laboriously

Having a solid high wall wall around one 's property

is very essential to protect

yourself against encroachers, thieves,

vandals and stray animals.

If you are worth anything you have to turn

your campus and house into a virtual fortress,

society has become so evil and criminal.

There was an era when walls were not needed.

The British, who established our church built a very

low wall around the campus.

But bear in mind no body would dare cause turbulence

in a place owned by the firangis.

Times they have achanged now as the song goes.

Walls come up.

Right after Jesus ' death on the cross

the Temple Curtain which divided the holy place from

the worshippers was

rent into two.

Meaning that man could approach God through what Christ accomplished on the cross

for mankind. No more distance between God and man.

The Bible also says that Christ brought down

the wall between races and genders, the rich and poor.

Jesus is our demolition man.

He brought the walls of separation down.

We donv 't have to cart our guilt and sin around.

Just lay it at the foot of the cross.

He will take all the parts of your life and

and create something new and solid with them.

He is our Mortar Man., our Mason, Builder.

Please keep praying for our building finances.

We need a lot of money to build two sides of our wall and fix

the parsonage roof which is almost falling down.

We worry about the safety of the Pastor 's family.

The Copenhagen Summit began today.

Lets hope the bigwigs search for some viable

solutions for the rest of us.

Outherwise we will have to go

an Air Station to get air pumped into our tanks.

Took this photo at a gas/petrol station

where they pump your car tyres with air.

Quite symbolic for the moment.

Nice plants at the gas station.

Have a good day people

and say Hello

An Indian Wedding -Photos and Videos

Some more photos and videos .

This is a wedding overload. A guest dressed in all her finery.

From her attire one can safely assume that she is conservative married woman

as she is wearing lots of jewelry and her head is covered.

Join the baraat
Congratulations

This is after the initial Jai Maal

or garlanding ceremony.

The couple exchange wedding garlands.

The buffet lawn
There are scores of big and small ceremonies in
a Hindu wedding. Mostly involving relatives and close friends.
The main body of guests can make merry and go home
while the rites and rituals of matrimony are being
solemnized at the bride 's residence
in the wee hours of the morning and
thereafter.
This was the wedding in a affluent family therefore all the rich flamboyance.
Other weddings are conducted in a more subdued manner.
Weddings are a big affair in India for both the rich
and the poor.
People start saving for weddings (specially daughters)
right from their childhood.

Many people borrow money to

fulfil their dreams.
Girls are called 'paraya dhan"
or stranger 's wealth because parents
have to spend a lot for their dowry and wedding.
The scale of a wedding depends on your finances,
religion, caste, social status, circumstances and philosophy.
Christians have a church wedding,
followed by a reception dinner. The wedding cake
is very important.
We also have some cultural ceremonies
which bring family and friends together.

Being part of a joyful wedding celebration makes me look forward with anticipation to the most glorious marriage of eternity.The marriage feast of Jesus Christ - the Holy Lamb of God.The church will someday be united with Christ as the redeemed bride of the Lamb. The church has been called the bride of Christ.

Although he was not a Christian, the poet Shelly glimpsed that perfect love

"Love he sent to bind.

The dsmantled tendrils of that vine

Which bears the wine of

life,the human heart."

"Come let us be glad and rejoice and give honor to him;for th marriage of the Lamb is come,and his wife hath made herself ready."

Revelations 19;7

Shaadi Dot Com - A North Indian Wedding

On Friday Nov 27th I went to a wedding with

Sonia and family.

He was the son of a wealthy businessman and government officer.

We first visited the groom 's home where

a very large number of relatives and friends had gathered.

From there they took us to a reception guest house

where the bride 's family served us coffee, sweets and snacks.

Traditional weddings take place in the middle of the night so time

does not matter.

At about 10 pm everybody was ready to start the baraat or wedding procession'

This is the wedding horse on which the groom sits.
The musicians with drums and pipes

The light walas.
This is a must in baraats.
The lights are powered by a portable generator

The groom seated on the horse with a
young boy for company,
usually a cousin
Weddings are a business in India.
Many people find employment in this area.
On the right is the groom 's sister with a cousin
Girls dancing in the baraat.
There was a time when women were not
included in the baraat,
let alone
dancing on the street.
They either stayed at home or went to the wedding venue
by private transport.
But times have changed now.
As they say.
"You 've come a long way baby".
This was the first time I took
part in a baraat.
Of course Christians don 't have baraats.
This was a Hindu wedding.
I was mainly there to take
photos and videos.
(for my blog)


This is a decorated music van
which accompanies the baraat.
The music is extremely loud.
Mainly pop and dance music.

A shehnai player.

He could hardly be heard in the cacophony

Here comes the groom

Men dancing behind the van.

They have money in their hands

which they wave over the heads of the dancers

to ward off the evil eye.

This money is up for grabs.

The music band, children,

young people anyone can have it.

Abner got Rs 15 and was very pleased.

This is the wedding reception hall.

There are scores of such venues all over the city.

Many in posh hotels near my home.

So you can imagine the disturbance.

On an auspicious night there can be a dozen wedding parties going

like right now,.

We live in a party zone.

The stage where the bridal party sits.

To the left is a small dance floor.

Guests in the reception area

The bride and groom

This is the lawn where food was

served buffet style.

It was all vegetarian.

Very delicious dishes

even Chines and South Indian cuisine.

Salads, ice creams, flavored milk and Indian sweets for dessert.

One just could not eat everything.

There traqdition wedding must have taken place

somewhere else in the wee hours

of the morning , the auspicious hour

determined by the preists.

Another shot of the buffet lawn

Kids on the dance floor

Abner also joined the fun

Congratulating the couple .

Sonia and Abner ( 3rd from the left)

I took a number of short videos.

You can get a taste of the baraat.

All my videos did not upload.

I will post some more tomorrow