Wayfarer's window!

A small nondescript town with wonderful old monuments and temples...Orrcha ...nearby its more famous sister town of Jhansi...worth a lazy-day long visit:

My recent travel to Jhansi  took me to a monument with a brush of poetry; and literally at that. How often do you find a poem written at the very entry step of an old monument. Written about the valiant queen Rani Lakhmi Bai of Jhansi, the fort there reminiscences her short lifetime (died at 29 fighting on a horseback) of valor and bravery. Here are pictures of the poem and the fort itself. Entrance Jhansi fort the poem close up Poem about Queen Lakshmibai a temple in the fort a view of the city from the fort the high point of the story the height where the jump took place

Taken during my walks during the afternoons and evenings.....

"We can all see God in exceptional things, but it requires the growth of spiritual discipline to see God in every detail. Never believe that the so-called random events of life are anything less than God’s appointed order. Be ready to discover His divine designs anywhere and everywhere." Oswald Chambers in "My utmost for His highest". As my fingers strike the keyboard, my thoughts zoom out across time and space. For a moment I see myself, sitting in this place, here and now, as an ever receding small speck. As I look at the bigger picture, there appear all the places I have been to and will go to, all the people I have known and will know and all the events in and around my life; past, present and future. These are not random events, places and people but a skillful master design. Even my solitary life has been carved out uniquely, purposefully, skillfully .  I am awestruck. I am humbled. I am thankful.  I fit cozily with all who are around; like t...

The recent marriage seminar I attended was an eye-opener! It revealed facts about marriage I had not imagined. While many aspects were discussed and the sessions were enriching...what took the cake was this statement..."my marriage was not made for my happiness!" While I will write the details another time...I am giving this blog over to someone who expresses the thought a wee bit better than I possibly can! I am sharing this link for a read, and I hope it will get you thinking, believing and living out your marriage which is not to make you happy! http://www.viralnova.com/marriage-is-not-for-you/  

this is an enchanting song of a dark-dark night... where moonless yet lighted by a thousand little flames which light up for a while but not through the night; and melody sifts like the wafting wind transporting me to a land of long ago...   there, I left my childhood among the desolate hills there, tied to a thread is some fond memory   in me, tonight there is light, even in the darkest corners, for the Light has come within, and lighted my soul.   yet, I long for this Light, to shine there too, when no matter the truant moon be amiss, there is the flood of light of the everlasting sun! and the song that was once sung in pain, is mine to sing in joy and eternal gain.    

"People have sought to carry out God’s orders through a shortcut of their own. God’s way is always the way of suffering— the way of the “long road home.”" Oswald Chambers  in "My utmost for His highest." I did not know, why He let me be, the man I never wanted to be..... I thought it was gonna be easy, but that is not what he had kept for me.   Sometimes, it was desperation, sometimes just fear and shame, I was looking for a respite, but rescue never came.   He was moulding, He was making, while all I said was "give" I wanted a quick way to get there.. but He led me the long road home.   On the road, I saw my face in the mirror, and it was not what I had imagined it would be, there was an unslightly creature, and that was exactly me!   On the road, I hurt the ones I thought I loved the most, perhaps it was His way, to teach me what to Him, I had cost.   On the road, I learnt ...

Picture and quote below borrowed from the following link: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/29343835044919424/ Susan Davis Cushing                                                   "A beautiful example of wabi sabi… When the Japanese mend broken objects, they aggrandize the damage by filling the cracks with gold. They believe that when something’s suffered damage and has a history it becomes more beautiful. - Barbara Bloom Kintsugi technique on oribe ceramic bowl" The words "wabi-sabi" was shared by a friend several years ago. While I cannot exactly describe this Japanese word or the related philosophy and worldview, the idea that it left behind was "brokenness than can be beautifully mended". The picture was of a cracked ...

I have been humming a song for the last few weeks. There are few words of the lyrics I remember, but cant seem to recollect it all. The words go this way "my life is not my own, my life belongs to Him; I have been purchased by His blood...". My several attempts to google the entire lyrics have been unsuccessful. Todays reading from "My Utmost" brings me back to this theme...I am not my own! The passage talks about a "Private life"....a life that we all want to keep to ourselves for ourselves. I have been calling it my "secret life"...and it is that part of me that I do not want to let go of. It seems to be so precious that I don't want my Lord to take hold of it! But I must...for I am reminded ..that I belong to Him. If God wants to achieve His entire will in me, I must let go all my secret places and my precious moments...even at the cost of a heartbreak!   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlqClimbemg Below is today's readi...

The closer look at a familiar story makes me realize that giants are not always what they appear to be!!! Another interesting TED talk. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziGD7vQOwl8  

Epidemiology and data are my bread and butter! Sometimes however, the regular stuff can a get twist when applied to different situations...and then present as something new and interesting. Here are some samples!! Thanks to TED talks for these remarkable treats on epidemiology and data!!!   https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=CZNrOzgNWf4   https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=d6wG_sAdP0U  

Below is an excerpt from my favorite devotional , Oswald chambers "My Utmost for His Highest".   I am amazed at how God speaks through His word and even through this devotional. "It is just what I needed" would be an understatement. As I read the words below, I felt that these words written several decades ago, were meant exactly for me in my situation Here and Now!!   October 11, 2013 When He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was — John 11:6 Has God trusted you with His silence— a silence that has great meaning? God’s silences are actually His answers. Just think of those days of absolute silence in the home at Bethany! Is there anything comparable to those days in your life? Can God trust you like that, or are you still asking Him for a visible answer? God will give you the very blessings you ask if you refuse to go any further without them, but His silence is the sign that He is bringing you into an even m...

Do we have our little areas where God convicts us to let go of! Do we keep ignoring Him in our stubbornness? ....this morning's devotion from Oswald Chambers "My Utmost for His Highest" reminds us of this wilful struggle! "Never disregard a conviction that the Holy Spirit brings to you. If it is important enough for the Spirit of God to bring it to your mind, it is the very thing He is detecting in you. You were looking for some big thing to give up, while God is telling you of some tiny thing that must go. But behind that tiny thing lies the stronghold of obstinacy, and you say, “I will not give up my right to myself”— the very thing that God intends you to give up if you are to be a disciple of Jesus Christ."

I have spent a better past of my morning viewing news of unrest in my home-town. The pictures beam the sad plight of the common man and I find it disturbing. I can blame politicians for the grim situation and join the protest brigade; but to lend  solidarity to the cause  I am encouraged by friends to fight the battle on a different plane.  The lights are down, yet shadows loom large. The town looks deserted, but there are eyes prying, behind every window. They have been shaken and stirred, pushed around and hurt, and we have been mutely counting the twenty and more years that have washed away. I was there then, so were you,  we were young and there was hope, but our destinies made us leave our homes. We look back now and wonder  if things were better before than now. Yet, our home is still there, where we have left our hearts; only that this morning we have other windows to look through. We seek the deserted streets and the hurt h...

Time slips away like a fistful of sand, as I look at another strand of my white hair. I realise its not just me, wasting away all the good, that was given. Now, I want to invest, all that I have, in one precious place, where I know it will matter. Seriously, If you heard me say this before, then you'll hear me say this once again. Listen, even if it means that I shake you a bit too roughly and ask you, "is what you're doing worth it, when it all slips away so soon?" I am learning myself to invest all I have and not to spend or throw it away, Yes, I am talking about my life, and quite clearly at that! But, I don't wanna wait till I learn it all, and then tell you about it. When it might just be too late for me, for you. I wanna tell you now...invest in what matters...matters for eternity! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vfG5s_VgWE

Anantnag Valley Viranag Pool Chenab river Dam on the river Chenab enroute from Leh

Liked this song which captures the myriad melodies of the orient! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlaZSx6tqRo