April 22, 2009

Happy Earth Day! I think the proper response is, "Everyday is Earth Day!" I'll be volunteering at Sadhana Forest in Auroville beginning next week and will probably be there for two weeks. Less if I hate it, more if I love it. It's going to be hot and I'll be sleeping in a hut, but I hope to learn some things about agriculture, alternative energy, veganism, or just about a group of weird, smelly strangers and how we interact. We'll see.

The temperature is in the 90's, with lows in the 80's. The nights are never cool, so I need to sleep with my tornado-like ceiling fan on, otherwise I wake up drenched in sweat. The temperature today at noon is 95 degrees. The heat hasn't been bothering me yet; I actually quite like it. Just need to remember to drink lots of water, walk in the shade, and spend midday indoors. If I'm out and about, I usually slip into a restaurant for coffee and an eclair, or something, and check my email. I've been here for about two weeks now and am just getting connected with the time zone. I used to wake up at 3:00 am every morning and just lie in bed thinking about all the love in my life until 5:30 (per my friend Jo's suggestion that I start each day with positive thoughts). It's still dark out, but the birds first begin to sing between 5:30 and 6:00. So, I would get up and stretch until 6:00 and start my day. Now I am naturally waking up around 6:00.

My days are remarkably easy. I spend most of them reading; some days I choose to not leave my house and I just read. My neighbors are very friendly and the neighborhood is beautiful. There are piles of garbage on the sides of the road, which in my opinion is better than litter everywhere. With the amount of trees and flowers everywhere, the wind smells like jasmine. There are no big industries here polluting the air. Everybody seems positive, which may not be true and may just be my mental reflection of the vibrant colors of the houses and the women's saris. Even the slummy tin and plywood houses are painted in beautiful colors. The walks I take go past very different views. I walk through poor areas with naked children playing and old men pissing in the gutter, and then a few minutes later am in the prim French area of beautiful houses. Then there's the seaside with the crashing waves throwing positive vibes into the air. The restaurants are all fairly clean and similar to what one would see in the States. Most people understand and speak some English, but I've picked up a few words in Tamil (hello, no, okay, enough, thanks). Women and children often come up to me in the street begging for money, usually while miming the action of eating. I have found that if I give to one, there is a tidal wave of others that come running up with their hands out for money. And if I don't give them anything, they will continue to beg, "Madame, madame..." and will follow me and even wait outside of stores while I shop. The beggars can be pretty severe. So, I have found that it is impossible for me to give to them all and I must walk past them all with no acknowledgment of their presence. Sometimes I pay them to sit for a picture. That seems to work out for both of us. I just need to pull out money and hand it over quickly, before a circus of begging begins.

Linda invites me to cool Ashram related things. The night before last, there was a French pianist that belongs to a related Ashram in Kerala, playing here. I don't know his name, or the exact pieces he played, but it was all Bach with a surprise at the end. The Bach was fantastic. I was barefoot on the same wood floor that his piano sat, so I pushed the soles of my feet on the floor and picked up the vibrations, with my excellent view of him, as he played. I think it's best to incorporate as many senses as possible when enjoying art. His theme for the night was "A Pilgrimage" and you could see how much work he put into the program as he explained the meaning of each selection. It was all really well done. At the end, he showed us how he's trying to translate traditional Indian music to the piano. The entire room - myself included - sang along with him to lyrics he created all about Sri Krishna. It was a really cool experience to be a part of - this Hindi chanting to classical piano - very cool. His talk got me to realize that the Ashram was full of pilgrims. Linda, whose husband left for two months in France, told me that her best friend is also leaving for her yearly six month return to France. It seems people, no matter how long they've been here, are constantly in transition or are a part of someone else's.