the prodigal blogger has come home

It's been over a year since we last made a post here but we've been a little preoccupied with facebook and life isn't nearly exciting day to day when you're at home in your own culture!
Nonetheless, a couple weeks ago Sean graduated from college with his intercultural studies degree. So, that's pretty exciting stuff!! It was a long 4 years but he did a fantastic job and we're all proud of him. Keon often talks about how when he grows up and has kids he wants to go to school, too... we try to explain that most people do it the other way around.
Keon and Levi are getting ready for the major leagues. They both have a batt, ball or mitt in their hands 75% of the day. Levi calls every pitch "strike three!". When we move to India (early 2011) they'll have to switch cricket, I guess!
There were tough moments this past month, too. Lisa was 18 weeks pregnant when we found out the baby had died. It was a huge shock and a terrible disappointment. In our grief, the hope of eternity and heaven has become a deeper revelation. We named our baby Ava,which means 'filled with life". We believe she is full of life in heaven and we will see her one day. There is incredible peace and comfort in that. Having lost 3 other babies this way has not made losing Ava any easier but God has met us in very real ways each time and this time has been no exception.
Life is never exactly what we expect but life expects a lot out of us. The more we give in life, the richer we become.

Home Safe

We just wanted to let everyone know that we have arrived safely. The boys traveled wonderfully as usual and made lots of new friends on the way. We will be in Medicine Hat for a week. If you want to get together, give us a call. Thank you for journeying along with us this last three months. It has been a life changing experience and we will be adding more later. So keep checking up every once in awhile.

Final Week

We are now entering our final week here in Delhi. Playing the which do you like better game does not work when comparing India to Canada or the US. They are two worlds apart and are not comparable as wholes. There are many things about both areas that we like over the other. The people and relationships are always the hardest to say good bye to no matter where you go. We will miss all of our new friends here and look forward to seeing all of our old ones back home. We hope that some day sooner than later we can come visit our friends in India.
नमस्ते

13 and 9

13 Elephants and 9 Camels on the road Sean has seen now. When we arrived Sean asked our friends Dave and Anna how often they see Elephants. They said only 1 or 2 a year. Sean hit the jackpot. Sean saw the elephants over the three months and all 9 camels in our one day trip to Agra. Agra is where the Taj Mahal is and we will have some pictures and updates soon.

Driving along in my automobile...

It took a minute for us to realise what was beside us because as time goes on we aren't noticing the "odd and unusual"so much as we sit in Delhi traffic. We thought this bare bones Semi truck and trailer was pretty out there though!
Speaking of unusual... we have seen about 10 elephants sauntering down the road. They're still a highlight everytime. Basically, anything with wheels plus horses, water buffalo & elephants are allowed on the road. Cows have a free ticket anywhere and even take naps in the middle of the road.

It's pretty crazy during rush hour here. Massive buses don't make full stops most of the time so people are jumping off or running and jumping on when it slows down for a red light. Motorbikes and scooters carry 1 or two adults and then another 3 children if it's a family outing. We've seen a few children about 1 or 2 years old draped over the gas tank of a motorbike fast asleep while Dad weaves in and out and squeezes between auto rickshaws and buses. Not only do motorbikes get loaded up with people but so do bicycles- sometimes three adult men will pile on a bike and pedal through traffic. Bicycles are also used by letter couriers and to deliver large tanks of cooking gas in large cylinders. Bicycle rickshaws transport people and much more. Carpets, tires, pipes, gas tanks, etc. are packed on. Another "vehicle" on the road is the old,wooden carts. They are as wide and long as a compact car, set on 2 or 4 large bicycle tires, and usually being pushed by a very old man or loaded down with 1000 malemine (sp.?) plates from last night's wedding being taken to get washed. No matter what they're carrying it is always heavy and awkward. Considering all these factors it's quite amazing that there isn't more road rage and major accidents when everyone "sifts" into every open space like sand in an hour glass.

Thalis

If you ever go to an Indian Restaurant and see the word Thali on it, get it. They are this amazing sampler of Indian dishes. It is usually four different ones. I am looking for one with eight different samples, but no luck so far. You get them veg or non-veg (chicken or mutton). They come with a large piece of Tandoori Roti or some other Indian bread and rice. You use the bread to eat up the dishs and rice. They are amazing. Lisa and I split one tonight at Nirula's, a cross between McDonald's and Indian. Only if we had found it 7 weeks ago.

Humayan's Tomb

A week ago we visited the Tomb Garden of Emporer Humayan here in New Delhi which was built in the 16th Century A.D. It was absolutley beautiful and totally interactive -Keon could climb anywhere but on the tombs. There were old narrow staircases that led to walkways along the walls surrounding different structures and we could wander along the shallow channels where water flowed to fountains allover the garden. It was the first real "sight-seeing" we've done since we got here. There are many tombs around the city- some round-abouts have been built surrounding them. We had to pay the foreigner price of 250 rupees a person compared to the 10 rupees per Indian. Some would call that "skin" tax.

One of the things we love about being here is the history. The ancient art forms, architecture and culture here are so intricate and unique. There is much to learn and discover about India and its people. We have a list of other places we want to get to in Delhi and, of course, we'll go see the Taj Mahal before we leave.