Carried on the Wind

Apr. 17, 2007 - Light and Life

Keri recently asked about my avatar picture and blog title. I've written here about why I chose Carried on the Wind for the name of my blog. The avatar photo was taken one day on a boat ride down the Ganges River in Varanasi (Benares) India. (You can see photos of the Ganges here.) I spent nine months traveling in India, Thailand, and Nepal with a group called the Prodigal Project. (In case anyone wonders, I don't normally wear a head covering, and I do smile!) Here are some recent thoughts inspired by my travels. I've also written here about meeting a Hindu holy man in Kathmandu, here about an adventure in the jungle of Northern Thailand, and here about our crazy Thanksgiving celebration in Nepal if you'd like to read more. Thanks for asking, Keri!

Burning Ghats on the Ganges River
(Photo from Wikimedia Commons)

    Life and death are inseparable: the fact has never been so evident to me as during the months I spent in Benares, India. There Hindus who are able come to live out their last days, lured by the promise of release from the cycle of reincarnation if only they can die in that holy place. There the piles of wood are stacked high and the flames stoked hot to consume the flesh of the dead. There the ashes are sprinkled on the flowing water of the Ganges River and carried away. I grew accustomed to seeing funeral processions winding their way through narrow and dusty streets, bodies wrapped in white cloth and decorated with marigolds and tinsel. The smell of cremation became familiar to me as I witnessed it over and over again. I ceased being shocked by the contrasts of life and death, of seeing bodies being burned just yards away from children playing lively games of cricket, of women scrubbing pots at water's edge, of young boys leading water buffalo to drink, of hindu holy men performing rituals, of the bustle and color of the life of India swirling around the stark white-shrouded bodies and the consuming flame of death. At some point I learned to accept the seeming irony of this life and death dance and it became normal to me.
    One hot and dusty day in India my friend Rachel and I washed the feet of several of our fellow travelers, wandering souls seeking meaning in the religions of the East. Kneeling before each person we spoke of the One who washed the feet of His disciples, who came not to be served, but to serve, and to give His own life as a ransom for many. Both Rachel and I are presently living our lives as wives and mamas, serving our families here in North America. The past few weeks have brought Rachel the joy of expecting a new baby and the pain of losing that same child. She joins me and countless other mamas who have delivered little souls to heaven, into the arms of Jesus. Death has wound its way through our lives, like a river, our tears joining its flowing waters. In the midst, though, of the sadness of this life shines the reminder of eternity, the brightness of Hope....

    Hope, and life, for the Christian, are made possible by the Resurrection of our Lord. I have never been more ready for the celebration as I was this year. On Good Friday night I found myself walking beneath a bier representing the tomb of Christ. It was a simple thing, but in taking those steps I and my fellow worshippers declared that through His death "we have passed from death into life." (John 5:24) Late Saturday night we came together to celebrate the ultimate victory of Life over death. All light was extinguished and we waited expectantly. At midnight a single candle was held up and we were invited to "Come receive the light from the light that is never overtaken by night, and glorify Christ Who is risen from the dead". Quickly the glow of candles, symbolizing the light of Christ, filled the building and we sang loudly that "Christ is risen from the dead! By death He has trampled upon death, and has bestowed life to those in the tombs." Together we shouted "Christ is Risen!" with hearts full of joy. A passage from John's gospel was read in several languages to remind us that this good news is for all people, that the Light we've received is not to be hidden, but is to illuminate the world, the whole world....

    My mind returns to the banks of the Ganges River that flows through India and through the lives of millions who've never been invited to come receive the Light. Life goes on there much as it has for centuries, the mingling of life and death like ashes on the water. Each morning countless people make their way into the flowing water to make offerings to the rising sun. Each year thousands of young people travel there searching for enlightenment. Hope there is wrapped up in dying in the right place or achieving enough good works to be reborn into paradise.     How different it is from what Christ offers us: Life, freely and abundantly. Through His death and Resurrection, He gives life, freedom from the bondage of sin, and the promise of eternity with Him. In this life we are no strangers to sorrow; like the Hebrew children long ago we often sit and weep by the rivers of Babylon, longing for Zion, the City of our God. But because we serve a risen Savior, we can rise above the sadness and live joyfully here on this earth. Because He lives, we can face tomorrow, trusting that Christ will be there with us as He promised. Because He rose from the grave, I know that one day I will be reunited with my babies by the "river whose streams make glad the city of God, the Holy Place where the Most High dwells. (Psalm 46:4)
     "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." (John 1:4-5) May the Light of Christ shine in me and through me. May it transform my life into something beautiful. May it shine in your hearts and lives too, giving you abundant and radiant life. And may it shine in the dark corners of the world where many have never seen it. May they be given life so they can lift their voices with ours and shout "Truly He is Risen!"

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Dec. 15, 2006 - Mystery Pictures

Thanks to those of you who guessed on what the mystery pictures were. The prize will have to go to callmekate for guessing correctly that the red berries were coffee. They grow on trees with dark glossy leaves and are called coffee cherries. How they get from there to your cup is a pretty lengthy process.
The first item is a cocao pod! Inside of each of the little white sections is a bean that, through yet another long process, becomes chocolate! Erik brought the cocao pod back from his trip to the coffee plantation in the mountains of Mexico. He had me guess what it was and I had no idea either. Hooray for tropical climates that give us such yummy treats.

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Dec. 12, 2006 - A Glimpse of Mexico

Here are some photos of our time in Mexico!
And if you haven't taken a guess at what the pictures in this entry are, there's still time. They are both fruits that are edible and familiar to us all.

Casa Azul was our home away from home. When I explained to Peregrine that casa means house and azul means blue he was very frustrated that they were in the wrong order! He kept telling me that it should be "Azoo Casa"!

Although Peregrine didn't really do any snorkeling he thought it was fun to get geared up! We spent a lovely and idyllic day on Isla Ixtapa where the water was clear and warm. My parents watched the kids for a while so Erik and I could go snorkeling and watch the amazing fish swim about in their coral home.

This was a large iguana sunning itself on a log! Peregrine loved the iguanas so much that he wanted to "so kiss them and bring them home" to live in his fish tank. At about three feet in length, I don't think they would fit! (Although I would much rather have an iguana for a pet than a dog or cat!)

These crocodiles, and several others, were living in a lagoon near the ocean. It had been fenced and a nice deck built above the water. It was amazing to be so close to them, although we did have to stop Peregrine from climbing through the railing! Also in this area were the iguanas, flocks of white egrets, and some turtles.

A little gecko high on the wall of our casa. We always saw them outside in the evenings, and often inside too. I'm rather fond of these little creatures, and their little clicking sounds always make me smile!

Pozole is a simple hearty soup made with pork and hominy. It's a specialty of the region we we visited. Intentionally bland, it's served with a myriad of accompaniments so you can spice it up according to your taste!

Beautiful hand-painted pottery in the market place.

Erik carried Poppy in the Ergo a lot- she was happy with her ride and Erik was impressed with the carrier. This was very near to where we stayed.

This is Isabel, a lovely woman who ran a little taco stand near to us. We ate lunch there several times and although the food was good, she was what kept us coming back. She was joyful and friendly and loved our kids. If we put in a request the day before she would make us whatever we asked for. She said next time she'll give me some lessons!

Cuties.

I loved shopping for produce in the Mercado.

Erik saw this hard-shelled spider during his trip up into the mountains. He said it was as big as his hand. I'm glad I didn't see it!

The crab was dead, but still brought quite a look to Peregrine's face!

And a wonderful time was had by all.

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Nov. 29, 2006 - Sunny Days in Mexico

Yes, it is another sunny and hot day here in Zihua. Siesta time again and it was my turn to venture out into the heat. Erik got to go yesterday and took some pictures of a coffee roasting set-up here and was able to talk to a roaster and buy coffee from a few different people in hopes of figuring out who´s doing it best!
We are having a good time. The kids are doing great, both of them. Peregrine is picking up some Spanish phrases and even little Poppy says a cheery "hola" from her perch on Erik´s back as we walk along. The name of our house (casa) is Casa Azul because of it´s bright blue paint. When I explained the meaning of the words to Peregrine he was very frustrated that it´s not "Azul Casa." So everytime we walk home now he says "We´re going to our Azul Casa. It should really be Azul Casa Mom."
Our days seem to have fallen into a pattern of swimming in the morning after breakfast, before the day gets too hot, then walking downtown or going to the market before lunch, followed by siesta, more swimming in the late afternoon, and then walking downtown again for dinner. We finally found a good little taqueria where five mini tacos al pastor cost just 15 pesos, about $1.50. Good salsa too, and quesidillas for the ninos. No bottled water though, so Peregrine got to experience his first Mexican soda. Thrilling, you can imagine. There is an older woman down the hill from us who has a little taco stand and we´ve also eaten there twice. Isabelle is her name and she picks up the kids an loves on them just like a Grandma. She also cooks up some good food and fresh juices. Peregrine wants to go help her sometime.
They are both loving the water and playing on the beach. We´re so glad we did the swimming lessons as they seem pretty fearless. Peregrine takes the waves as they come and gets right down and rolls around in the surf. He thinks we should live in Mexico- and I think we would if we could just get our families to come too....
There is always something interesting to see. Last night as we were walking home we came upon a tree that that was illuminated and tons of large bats were spooping all around it- a bit too close to us for my comfort. Peregrine wanted to kill one and get the meat off and eat it. Maybe he got that idea after seeing some men earlier in the day carrying animal carcasses into the butcher shop. Ugh. We´ve had lots of geckos in the house and often hear their little chirping sounds. I saw one iguana outside our gate and we´re on the lookout for more of those. Thankfully, so far, I´ve not seen a scorpion, snake, or any mice! Some mangy dogs and a few cats, as you would expect. Not too many mosquitoes, but they like Peregrine best and he's constantly counting his bites and letting us know the tally! At the beach we often see pelicans flying overhead and diving into the water, then gently bobbing on its surface. Last night the sun had just sunk beneath the hill at the rim of the bay and about fifteen pelicans flew down and landed on the water very near to us. It was amazing to see them so close and watch how they faced the breaking waves and rode over the top of them! They are beautiful creatures.
We plan to begin exploring a bit further out soon. So far we´ve mostly gone to the beach below our casa and into the main area of town.
Thanks so much for your prayers. We are having a wonderful time just being together and exploring this amazing place.

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Nov. 23, 2006 - A Far Away Thanksgiving Memory

Special days are often full, not only their present joy and celebration, but the memories of other such days. As we give thanks today my thoughts turn back to other Thanksgiving days; this one was most unusual. It was the year 2000 and seven friends and I were in Kathmandu, Nepal seeking to share our lives and the Good News of Jesus with western travelers. We were staying in a dark guesthouse with hard beds and cold rooms. Fall is Kathmandu is beautiful; the air is cool and clear and the majestic Himalayan foothills loom in the distance. For days before Thanksgiving we made our plans and invited people whom we had met and gotten to know; we ended up with twelve guests- twenty of us altogether. There were a few North Americans, and others from Israel, Denmark, France, And Nepal.
   Our "kitchen" consisted of a small room on the ground floor of our guesthouse. What made it a kitchen were the two low tables, a kerosine burner (the scary kind), and a few containers of water. With two more borrowed stoves we were ready to cook! Here's what I wrote in my journal:
   "We don't have a steamer basket so I inverted a bowl in the pot, rested a plate on that, and placed the chunks of pumpkin on it. I had to do two batches as only half would fit in the pot. I've only made pumpkin pie from canned pumpkin so this is a little different! It was really watery so I put it in some cheesecloth and hung it with clothesline overnight.    Early this morning I mixed up the pie. Of course we don't have a pie plate so I poured it into a pot to bake and put a crumble topping instead of a crust. (No rolling pin and no clean surfaces to roll dough on.) I walked over to Shiva's Restaurant, where I often eat breakfast, and they allowed be to bake it in their toaster oven, since we don't have an oven either. While it baked I ate my usual breakfast of hash brown potatoes and hot lemon with honey.    When I returned we gathered in one of our rooms for a time of giving thanks and praise to God. After that four of us headed downstairs to begin cooking. It was quite a scene, and although we were crowded it was a lot of fun. A Nepali friend also came to help with the cooking. Christyana made fried tofu and stuffing in the wok, John made steamed vegetables, Joy made fruit salad and mashed potatoes, and I made mushroom gravy and cucumber tomato salad. Dan and Mick, two travelers from the U.S. brought rolls and drinks. They even brought drinking glasses that they were able to borrow from a restaurant!    Joy and Christyana transformed their room into the "dining room". They took the mattress off the bed exposing the wood platform and spread a tapestry on it. This was our table and as the guests arrived we all took our places on the floor around it. We filled the room and spilled out into the hallway. One of our fellow American guests suggested that we all share something we were thankful for and so we did. Most of the others had probably never celebrated Thanksgiving before and I was really glad to be able to share it with them. After the meal people hung out and talked and played music together and later we had pie.    It was a beautiful day. I'm thankful for every good and perfect gift, for being alive and loved and able to love. For being here. For these friends who are like a family to me. For my family at home, and all my friends who love and pray for me."
   I'm still thankful for all of those things and so many more- a wonderful husband and children I could never have imagined. For the life God has given me now and for all the memories of the other places I have been. They are part of today, part of who I am, and for that I am thankful.
   (And Rachel and Chinua, John, Christyana, Joy, Rebekah, Christy- I love and miss you all!)

Happy Thanksgiving to each and all.
May your hearts overflow with a good theme as you give thanks!

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