Wayfarer's window!

How often does one find cartoons that speak aptly of one's situation? Here are two which amply speak about the dilemmas that confound me, and give me an opportunity to laugh at myself. :D

Isaiah 50:4-9 New International Version (NIV) 4  The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue,      to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning,      wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed. 5  The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears;      I have not been rebellious,      I have not turned away. 6  I offered my back to those who beat me,      my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face      from mocking and spitting. 7  Because the Sovereign Lord helps me,      I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint,      and I know I will not be put to shame. 8  He who vindicates me is near.      Who then will bring charges against me?      Let us face e...

Describe Darjeeling in the monsoon in three words! It is rain, rain and rain!!! Yet the thick fog that limits your visibility to just several meters, allows you to explore the lands rich variety of flora. I cannot say I am a master of plants but certain plant species evoke strong memories and associations. Like "sisnu" the nettle plan with which I got my first real beating! Incredibly this same nettle plant can be made into a broth-like delicious local dish. Then there is "iskus" or squash of which the tuberous root, the spiky fruit as well as the tender tendrils are eaten as vegetables. The "baas" or the bamboo, is the most versatile of the lot; not only are the tender bamboo shoots a delicacy of their own but also the bamboo cane is used to make every conceivable furniture, utility item and even houses and animal shelters. Finally there is the "dhupi" of the birch. which enhances the skyline with its lovely triangular shape, and the thick br...

Yesterday, I went to my grandmother's room, the same room I stayed in and grew up as a child. The room was and still remains enchanting. The window opens up to scenes of the tea-estates and green hills yonder and often brings in the travelling mist with stories of its own. The ceiling either drums to the incessant dancing of the rain drops or deep in the night, the scurrying footsteps of pigeons and birds that take shelter there. The corridor entraps the sound of the howling wind, which gets inside the room the moment one steps out to explore it! Sometimes, one can listen to the sounds of children playing hide and seek as they shout "ho-ki-key", whatever that means. At other times. the sound of the dirge during the funeral in the cemetery below where the lone figure of Jesus on a cross overlooks the dead in their graves.  Yesterday, my gaze  rested on the tree-line, where the forest suddenly stops to give way to tea-estates and I wondered what happened t...

The landmarks on the earth below, helped me recognize from the air, the different places (office buildings) where I have worked in. Any guessing these places?

More pictures from the lakes and their surroundings!

A retreat to a secluded ashram. A hill with forests and seven lakes. A few pictures....