I typed then deleted...here is what's left

Going to make a snowman with my Kate.

I miss Abishek \/

Plaid Is In

Now that I've been thrown back into the world of hustle, stress, arguments, DVR, and YouTube marathons. When I ask...what did I miss? What happened? All I'm getting from everybody is...

-Lady Gaga is huge
-Taylor Swift is dating some werewolf from Twilight
-Obama is sending my cousin BACK to Iraq for the 3rd time even though he has 4 kids and his wife has MS.
-Plaid is in
-Icthus is taking another campanooing trip (score!)
-Lauren Davis and Alex Russel are dating (adorable)
-Mirey Cirus has a song about not getting a memo about wearing stilettos or something

Honestly I haven't got much more out of anyone than that...and the Lady Gaga news seems to be the BIGGEST DEAL EVER or something (even my mom named dropped her.)

I'm not purposing that Popular Culture is intrinsically bad but when celebrity gossip and fashion trends becomes what we think of to define our last five months its a sad life we lead here.

Lets define our lives by love and not media.
By deep conversations and not YouTube videos.
Lets lead more spiritual lives...where spirituality is truth and breath not just something we list on our Facebook interest.
Who's with me!? We can do it!

Aham = I, me, myself

When the first thought of “I” comes then many thoughts increase. So to finish the thoughts, first we have to finish the thought of “I.”

To get rid of this Aham we have to think of the benefits of others. Then our mind will fill with the thoughts of others, then there will not be space for Aham.

Asmita Prajapati, 14

Guys, where are we?

Today I had to teach yoga in the temple at 5:30 am because Publio took a trip with Valentino. Haha I'm terrible at yoga because I'm not flexible but I enjoy water-air yoga verses fire-earth yoga (more powerful and difficult.)

Anyways we did stretches, mental visualizations, and I incorporated some FaulDafa which was nice and peaceful.

The whole point of this is that I was really tired so I took a small nap and I dreamed that Valentino was teaching a philosophy lesson in a huge pagoda and all of a sudden he turned into Benjamin Linus and was chasing me with a small knife! OMGH! I was terrified and we were then in a baseball stadium and I was running for my life!!!!! What does this mean!??!??

I was in a Buddhist temple which focuses on Dharma...okay Ben aka Henry Gale is the leader of the DHARMA Initiative...if you don't count Jacob which I'm not for the sake of making this story more dramatic. Basically I feel like it's all connected...namaste, 8 more days, Dharma...not to mention the Dharma Initianive's symbol is TOTALLY used as our school's LOGO!!!!

Alice Project is based on Alice In Wonderlands perception mishaps and nothing if more perceptually changing than The Island.

WTF?

Rajastan

Tobi and the Taj
This was our special Tali after a birth of a baby boy.
This is Vishnu aka BFF.

Newsletter

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Freely Given

Ladies and Gents Mr. Sanjay Chakma!!! If you ever get the chance to meet this beautiful amazing person you will be a better person for it. I love Sanjay!
Cutie McPreshy with Ciarra
Neeshant my Hindi teacher at Asha's wedding. (his eyes look funny here)
This is Publio and our cute nuns, we love them and talk about how cute they are daily. Publio is my yoga teacher in the morning (5:30 am....if you know me at all you should be proud.)
Absheik, Kesav, & Bikash

Tea party with Sanjay and many other brothers but I cannot remember exactly. "According to me this tea is really very nice."
Rishikant "Rishy" trying out some glasses...he's such a good friend and Alice's kindergarten teacher. Which means playing games and watching WALLE in Hindi with 25 3-4 year old preshies.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I took my English class, which has turned into about 8 students whom I absolutely adore, to Maha Bodi Temple in Sarnath. This is the temple next to the tree in which Buddha gave his sermon to his 5 disciples, so very peaceful. We took turns pouring each other chai into clay pots which we later discarded on the ground because they turn to dust within a few days. We sat and talked about thankfulness and cultural differences and laughing and singing. We sat cross legged in a circle and sang "Prince of Peace" (I hope you know it) as foreigners (aka 'the others') and Indians walked by wondering what the heck was going on, they sang their little hearts out and the sincerity of these 8 students is inspiring. We spoke in broken English and broken Hindi and most of time through smiles and hugs and back massages and "teek hai's!?" the best way to communicate. I'm so thankful to be living in India this way, with these children who are teaching me a hundredfold what I am teaching them. They make me laugh so hard sometimes...like today when they informed me that they were writing a book about me HAHA! It's called "Lisha maddemji" I highly doubt they are writing it for real but the gesture is so meaningful, they shouldn't write about me...they are beautiful and brilliant. Also the other day Vijay informed me "Basically your boyfriends is really very cute." (8th grade boy) BAH! Totally random and unprovoked.

When we were walking back to school some were walking far behind and myself and two sisters, Priyanka and Sweta (Brahmin girls, or Pundit aka highest priestly caste) we were way ahead of the others; I yelled "hurry up slow pokes!" Sunil yelled back "We are not slow,that's your perception, to us you are fast and this is probably because you are American and always in a hurry and you two are Pundit!"

We waited for them to catch up and Priyanka said "Bhoota Bhia, when we are in school we are not pundit, see I call you 'big brother' this is respect from me to you, I'm not better because I'm Brahmin." Then I told Sunil that foreign women are considered just as 'unclean' as the Dalit (lowest caste) so if he thinks I am clean then he is also clean. He decided I was clean (haha first time in my life someone was affirming my bathing habits, but I guess compared to them using their left hands as toilet paper living in a house lined with cow manure...it's not a difficult battle to win.) Anyways the entire point of this was to show that it was really a special moment to see a high caste child bringing themselves down to a Dalit's level...it made me think maybe their is a hope for India's future after all; her children.

Over 1/3 of India's population are under 15.

Over half of the girls are married by 15. (Legal age is 18)

Not all, but most of the adults in India are ignorant or if they are aware of the problems they are corrupted and only adding to them. It's sad when I bring up "India" in class because what the children have to say is depressing, they aren't proud of their country. They want to change it so badly but birth status mixed with the daunting 1.2 billion people (almost 4x America's populating in an area 1/3 the size of America) is discouraging to say the least. They either want to change it or leave...for example to the US but they know that will never happen, my plane ticket alone cost more than all what they will earn in a lifetime.

Be thankful you have a full belly filled with delicious turkey and are probably being lazy watching football or a parade or something. Really! This isn't to make anyone feel guilty , no way, on the contrary I wan't you to be inspired to very thankful and feel joy and inspiration to do what you wish with what you have been given.

"You have been given freely, therefore you should give freely."

Matthew 10:8