That giant sucking sound you hear...

...is the sound of me getting sucked into Delhi life! The NGO where I am working is called Pravah, and their mission is to educate youth to get them socially active. I am 1000% supportive of this noble mission and find it a pleasure to work with the highly educated and interesting people here. Today we have discussed my possible future in this organization as a coordinator for the youth collective program. Aaaakkkk! I sound like a cheesy social worker! Wait a minute...I am a cheesy social worker.

And in a sweet gesture, the office bought a chocolate cake in honor of my birthday. So much for my Monday fast!

In three weeks time a dear friend from DC will meet me in Bangalore for some fun and frolicking in the south of India. I only hope the FRRO office can make some progress on my visa before it's time to go. Otherwise, I may just board the two days' train to Bangalore without it. But really, what's the worst that could happen?...hee hee hee

In the meantime I am making new (Indian!) friends here at work and still vascillating wildly over whether or not to replace my mobile. The people at work seem to assume I will (otherwise how will I stay in touch?). Seems logical enough, so why is it so hard?!?

One nice thought I had last night: I'm having a difficult time right now – maybe the most difficult since I arrived in India – and yet, I haven't plunged into the dark hole of depression that has characterized so much of my life. For some reason I'm still hanging on! For now I'll credit my friend Maria, who constantly tells me how beautiful I am and by her example, teaches me to be more moderate and to accept and be easier on myself. Thank you, Maria for your inspiration. And thank you, God, for sending me Maria...

Love,
the eternally hopeful and irrationally exuberant,
LMA

PS: Palm reading is a common thing here in India. The latest palm reader to have a look at my hand has predicted my death at 85 years old. Whoo hoo!