Return to India, Part 9: A prayer and a blessing for Suji; we head for the train; three calls to Manu
Friday, April 20, 2012 at 8:47PM ;)
Just before we left to catch the train there was a very short blessing ceremony for Sujitha, in light of her upcoming wedding ceremony. The rest of us held flower petals and as she knelt before each of us in turn, we sprinkled the petals upon her.
In mainstream American culture, one does not kneel before another, but I was in India now, in the midst of Hindu culture and so I joined in and made a prayer for her in her own way. Even though I am not Hindu, or anything else but a questioner and wandering wonderer, for that matter, it was a real prayer and blessing - a prayer I felt in my heart and a blessing I gave with my soul.
I want her to have a good life and a good marriage with Manoj. This was my prayer for her and my blessing to her. I offered it and gave it by sprinkling flower petals upon as she kneeled, not in servitude but in respect, before me. It felt good to me. I know it felt good to her as well - we were both blessed.
My photo and the words I write here are a reiteration of this prayer/blessing. Each time a set of eyes looks upon this image and reads these words, the prayer is offered anew.
;)
After the blessings, she received a hug from her aunt, Dr. Bhuvaneshwari.
;)
Sujitha waves goodbye to neighbors from across the street, who stepped out of their doors to say goodbye just as she was leaving.
;)
Now, the feeling inside the cab is all happiness, excitement and joy.
;)
And then came that moment when she thought about her sister and best friend, Soundu, and how they had talked about and planned for this day and all the things that Sound was going to do make certain the day was special. This is maybe one second after the photo in the last post. The tear has traveled down her cheek. It can hardly be seen now, but it is there.
We traveled in two cabs. After we reach the station, as we stand in the shade of an awning beyond the reach of the hot, hard, sun that beats down beyond, Ravi withdraws the rupees he will need to pay the cab drivers. Ravi also paid my train fare, as well as the fares of his family members.
;)
Porters take our bags to where we will board the Indian Railways train. Standing in the shade of still another awning, Suji reaches Manu on the phone.
;)
Our train is running a bit behind schedule. Suji rests upon her father's knees as we wait.
;)
Pretty soon, she is again talking to Manu on the phone.
;)
She grooms the hair of her aunt "Bhuvana," a medical doctor, who will not be traveling with us on the train, but will come later by plane.
;)
Our train pulls into the station.
;)
We board - here, Ganesh, Vasanthi, Murthy, Natarajan and Suji.
;)
Soon, Suji is back on the phone with Manu.
;)
She and her grandfather exchange fond glances.
;)
Suji glances at me through the mirror in the larger compartment across the aisle. An 18-hour train ride awaits us. Those who have followed this blog for awhile and know how I feel about trains will not be surprised to learn that I am... EXCITED... happy to be on this train, happy to be traveling with my Indian family. Just under five years ago, I did not even know they existed and now I am bonded with them.
It will take at least two more posts, maybe three, for me to cover this train ride and I think I had better also throw in at least one spacer at some point, maybe two. I am running way behind. I need to get this blog to Suji's wedding, pronto. So it is my intent to put up all of the train ride posts before I go to bed. Maybe I won't make it. Maybe I will have to wait and finish in the morning. I want to get it done, but I don't want to rush it, either.
Yet, I am rushing it. I could work on the larger story here for months yet, maybe a year. I suppose I will, too, but not in this blog. I must wrap this blog series up, very soon.
Series index:
Reader Comments