It's easy to find myself lost in the busyness of life here; home never leaves my mind but I find myself separated from home in that I can never give enough of myself to stay present in life there. I have to tell myself it's okay as I'm not there and as I continue to pray for the ability to be present where I am.

A few clips of mind:
(written today) >
I've realized this week what a hard ministry they're doing here. The reality of the women we are in relationship with can not be put into words but can only be heard through a stream of tears that you sometimes have trouble stopping; yet at some point the freedom is there to step away from the tears, for us and for them, as we look at the redemption they are given. It can be hard to step away from the sadness that fills my insides, but I don't think we're always asked to.

(written two days ago) >
It smells of incense as I go to refill my glass with water in the kitchen taking a break from the case study reflection that I write on this early puja holiday evening. I walk out on the veranda – smelling incense yet, watching a firework light up the sky, watching the shadows of sparklers on rooftops and flashing Christmas lights spread over the city – a smoke hovers on the horizon from the festivities of today and yesterday, waiting for the rest that will come in the hours ahead And her voice is still going but this time its not singing, it only mumbles to me a foreigner something not understandable. and the drums continue the festival music as the offerings proceed in another October.

(Writing now) >
Puja season here, but I'm beginning to wonder when its not. As I was walking to and fro the metro last evening traveling to language class, I wondered what this city would like if it worshipped Jesus. And I was struck at what a sight it would really be ... if you could only see the way these people worship Kali, Durga, and Dewali And I wondered what it would be like if we chose to worship Jesus in the way that they worship these Hindu goddesses, what if we constructed magnificent structures for the worship of God and danced around them playing our drums, moving ourselves to the beat of our brothers and sisters playing music for Jesus; and this is spread all over the city, one here one there ... another just a ways down the street. what if we paraded through the streets dancing to a beat for Jesus and we weren't shy to let the city know it. it would be awesome. in a way it would be a direct opposition to the worship these deceivers receive from a people they have blinded