2010 Year in Review

The sun sets on another year!!

This is a bit overdue, but here’s a brief synopsis of a few highlights from 2010:

The year actually began for me much the way 2011 has-- in training. Last year at this time I was in San Antonio, TX completing my stateside flight instructor training. It was a 5-month course that was quite challenging, although the flying was fun. In addition to the training I was taking grad classes, which meant that I didn’t have much free time. However, I was fortunate enough to have some good friends in TX who were a real blessing to me. What little free time I had was spent playing golf, enjoying delicious steaks (and other food), and engaging in lively conversation with good company. After finishing up in TX, I went back to Philly to pack my bags for India with a stop in Indianapolis to watch the NCAA National Championship basketball game – Duke v. Butler. Apart from the outcome (Duke won), it was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

I also managed to take in a Cardinals-Reds Opening Day baseball game in Cincinnati, which was pretty cool too!

Cards v. Reds Opening Day - April 5, 2010

Since my training in TX finished at the end of March and my training in India was scheduled to begin in May, I didn’t expect to have much time to say my goodbye to friends and get ready for the move overseas. However, as a result of some lengthy delays, I didn’t end up leaving for India until August. That allowed me to take a couple extra grad classes and prepare for this exciting new chapter of life. Oh, and those extensive delays meant that I got to have about 10 “going-away” parties. Of course being the party animal that I took full advantage! The best party was the “Cowboys and Indians” party, which my family was able to attend. It ended up being quite a clash of cultures with Native American/Cowboy (western) attire mixed with South Asian kurtas and sarees! Another fun one was my last karaoke night at Yakitori Boy, which was a total blast.

My last few months in Philly were a real blessing as I had the opportunity to spend time cultivating deeper relationships with my friends. Of course this made leaving much more difficult, but I thank God for His provision in bringing so many wonderful people into my life. However, my last week in Philly may have been the most exciting and most memorable of the entire 7 years I spent there! I was living temporarily with some friends in South Philly since most of my material possessions had already packed up. I was basically living out of a suitcase, but amazingly enough that did not prevent someone from breaking into the house and stealing what few personal effects I still had! I was actually the only person home at the time the brigand broke into the third floor bedroom utilizing the nearby construction. Unfortunately, that was where I happened to be keeping my stuff. Without describing it in too much detail, the story ended with me chasing him down with a golf club in my hand! In retrospect, it probably wasn’t the brightest idea, but it certainly makes for a good story! That experience made it a bit easier to say goodbye to the city I had grown to love!

My first stop leaving Philly was DC, where I was able to spend some time with my sister and a dear friend before trekking out west. I was fortunate enough to have friends and family spread across the country which made the drive to Colorado quite pleasant. After DC, I stopped in Cincinnati to visit a good friend from college before visiting relatives in northern Illinois. Then I spent a week in St Louis with extended family and managed to take in a Cards game at their new ballpark (it wasn’t heaven, but it was close!). 

Baseball's Promised Land

The last stop was in Kansas to see more family before I eventually made my way to Colorado. The time in CO was spent with my parents, my other sister, and her (now) husband. After a few failed attempts to get my golf game in shape, I was on the airplane to India via Hawaii. Hawaii was a nice little mini-vacation before boarding the plane for Delhi (with short layovers in Tokyo and Singapore).

Touching down in Delhi, the Gora (white guy) began the South Asia adventure and a foray into the blogosphere. If you’ve read any of my blogs, you know that India has been quite an exciting experience thsu far. As I look back on 2010, it was a year of many firsts for me:

First solo flight (in 9+ years!),
First trip to India (Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Hampi, and Goa)
First Christmas and New Year’s Eve celebration in India,
First bicycle and auto (car) rickshaw rides,
First training flight in India,
First Indian wedding crashed by the Gora,
First car accident in India,
First snake encounter (possibly poisonous),

First stomach/intestinal virus in India (and hopefully my last!)

The list could go on and on, but I’ve limited the list to the Gora’s most memorable experiences of 2010 in India. For those of you wondering what topped the list overall, it was definitely my sister’s wedding, although getting to spend some quality time with my grandfather before the Lord called him home is also up there. 2010 was a year that I will not soon forget as there were so many unique experiences shared with so many dear friends. I thank God for His grace and provision which was so abundantly poured out in 2010. May this New Year bring an even better taste of His goodness!

Scottish Presbyterians in India

Here are a few pictures of a lovely church in Chennai called St Andrews (the Kirk).  The church building is absolutely beautiful and the high arching dome provides such majestic sounds that it feels as though you are singing with the hosts of heaven.  What a delight it has been for me to worship God with the congregation at St Andrews.

English is funny... Christmas edition

This is a slight variation from my typical "English is funny" blog format, but one that I hope will nonetheless coax some laughs (or maybe just giggles) out of you.  It actually has very little to do with Christmas except for the fact that Christmas is in nine days!
Essentially all I’ve done is collect some interesting newspaper clippings all of which were included in the December 7th ‘New Indian Express’ a local Chennai paper.  The articles from this paper are quite typical, which is why I so enjoy reading the paper here!  Every day I pick up the newspaper I read an article that’s amusing because of course, ‘English is funny’!!

If you’re anything like me, you’ll probably find the descriptions in the “Crime File” sections to be the most amusing especially when they include pictures.  Happy reading!!

“On the spot where the incident took place, a naked man was found, whom police declared to be a lunatic.  He was later arrested…”  Was he arrested for being a lunatic or for indecent exposure in front of nuns or for being suspected of the act of sacrilege?  Furthermore, was the act of sacrilege the fact that the statue of Mary was broken or that a naked man was found with the statue at the scene?  Please tell me that more details are forthcoming!

It just seems funny to me that people would be smuggling sea cucumbers and even funnier that a “tip-off” led to a “surprise raid”.  Surely there are bigger problems for the police to be addressing than the illegal smuggling of sea cucumbers?  I can only imagine if I were still living in Philly and called the police to tip them off about an illegal sea cucumber trade.  I’m sure they’d have those goons locked up quicker than you can say “Ramanathapuram”.

Is it against the law to own or transport rosewood?  Apparently so if a local gang has their hands on it!  If you ask me, these guys have earned an intimidating nickname--the "Rosewood Gangsta's".

Not sure what creating "flutter" means exactly, but I love the meticulously detailed description of the response to the incident.  “The whole episode ended with a real cliff-hanger” is probably my favorite line.

I feel so sorry for the couple, yet nonetheless can’t help but be amused by the very specific description of how they hid their valuables.  How much is 15 sovereigns anyway?

C’mon, you gotta admit that’s funny!  Makes me wonder how much my "undergarments" will fetch one day!!

English is funny… Part Deux

This is my second post in a series titled, “English is funny”.  If you didn’t get to read the first one, you will soon see why I find these terms and sayings interesting.  Many of them are probably used more regularly in British lexicon than American.  As I’ve said before, the purpose is not to make fun of the way English is used or to denigrate cultural differences or the training environment, but rather to highlight some of the language differences that can make communication difficult or hilarious or maybe both!  This list is a bit shorter than the first, probably because I’m slowly growing accustomed to the words and phrases that once were unexpected…  Enjoy!

Again, please picture yourself in a training environment with a group of uniformed officers.

“Don’t feel like it’s a lion to be tamed, it’s actually quite nice” – said by a course instructor to the class; I believe he was speaking of the forthcoming course challenges, but I can't recall because I was so distracted by the amusing saying.  I am a bit curious to find out how taming a lion can be quite nice…

“You/he/she/it got bashed up” – refers to someone getting beat up pretty good; might be a good description of a UFC fight?

“My palms are itching… I’ve not been in a fight for some time” – a quote used by a classmate during a very entertaining story; no names mentioned here to protect the innocent… or the guilty

“I was a mini-mobster once” – used during the same story to describe the mob-like actions of a group of people too small to be considered a real “mob”; again, no names will be mentioned here to protect the innocent… or the guilty

“We gave it back to him” – same story again, this describes getting even or exacting revenge or maybe its karma?

“We got into a scuffle” and “those guys were goons”… you guessed it, these terms were used in the mini-mobster/itchy palms/revenge story; all I can say is that the words scuffle and goon should most definitely be more widely utilized in the US, isn’t it?!
Trust me if you had heard this story, you would have been ROTFL with me!!

To be completely honest, many of these terms and phrases are used regularly in the newspapers here.  They really have the best descriptions of petty crime you could imagine.  One of these days I’ll have to post one of the colorful and entertaining small criminal (or should I say mini-mobster?) stories, so that you can share in the amusement!

Real sorrow, but true thanksgiving

Having just returned from a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration with my family, it’s so easy for me to count my blessings.  Being back in the States with my family was truly special, even though it was in fact a result of my grandpa’s death.  It’s too bad these types of occasions are often necessary for us to be reminded of the many things we take for granted.

The road to grandpa's farm (it's on the right)

I want to share a little bit about my grandpa as his legacy continues to be on my mind even though it’s now been over two weeks since God called him home.  Fortunately for me, the funeral arrangements had to be made with consideration for the Thanksgiving holiday which allowed me make it home in time for the funeral service.  His health had been rapidly declining in recent months, but we were not expecting him to leave us quite so soon.  I received the news via e-mail from my father because it can be so difficult for us to connect given that we are at opposite ends of the world.  The Indian AF was very gracious and understanding of my request to return to the U.S. for the funeral and I am so grateful for the opportunity to celebrate my grandfather’s life with my family.  In retrospect, his departure could not have been better timed as my entire family was able to gather together for the first time in ages.  We shared many stories and memories as we acknowledged God’s provision for grandpa and for us.  Grandpa was unwavering in his devotion, loyalty, and faithfulness to family.  He was a family man who delighted in celebrating birthdays or graduations with his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren or cheering them on at sporting events.  His support of our athletic pursuits was only surpassed by his desire to see us succeed in the classroom and earn college degrees.  

Sunrise on the farm

Grandpa also experienced many of the most difficult challenges in life.  He said goodbye to many loved ones (family and friends), lived through the Great Depression, and served in the South Pacific with the Army Air Corps during WWII.  My grandpa knew about sacrifice because he experienced it on many occasions which it seemed to have had a profound effect on him such that he truly learned to enjoy the small things and live within his means.  Beyond that, grandpa knew what it meant to count the many blessings of a faithful God so dawn of each day brought with it hope and expectation.

In addition to work and family obligations, grandpa was an active participant in various types of community and church service, though he never sought the limelight.  He was happy to volunteer wherever he could be of service because what mattered to grandpa was not his status in the eyes of man, but rather his standing before Almighty God.  He humbly reflected Christ’s love so it was appropriate that God quietly called him home during an afternoon nap.  Grandpa is now in the arms of His Savior enjoying true and lasting peace.

Though it has been difficult to accept the fact that he is no longer physically present, there is comfort in knowing that I will see my grandpa again.  The burial of his ashes and the funeral service brought forth many emotions, the chief one of course being sadness.  Yet despite the sorrow, I am confident that my relationship with my grandpa will one day be gloriously renewed.  I’m thankful for my grandpa’s trust in Jesus and that this faith has been passed on to succeeding generations.

Grandpa's favorite dining establishment - White Pines

Nonetheless I cannot deny the very real and seemingly overwhelming sense of loss that comes with physical death.  It simply does not fit well within the reality of our hearts.  That’s true of many other experiences in life, but death is the one inescapable fact of life.  It is something every one of us must face one day, yet we often deny, ignore, or distract ourselves from its power.  I think the reason we do this is because deep down we know that life was not intended to be temporal.  God did not create us to have a physical beginning and a physical end.  Therefore, separation from our physical bodies is as incomprehensible, as it is sad and scary—all natural human reactions that cross all cultural and religious barriers.

The same day I received the news that my grandfather died, I was driving down the road and came upon an Indian funeral procession.  Cattle and goats following behind the procession were eating flower petals that were strewn along the road behind the procession.  Ahead of them men were walking on either side of a small van.  As we approached, we began to hear rhythmic music that kept getting louder as we got closer.   The back door of the van was open and visible inside were men sitting on either side of a covered body, whose head was sticking out awkwardly from the back of the vehicle.  In front of the slow-moving procession were men dancing in a trance-like fashion to the loud, somber music.

This scene was etched into my mind as I thought about my grandpa and considered our natural human responses to death.  It is so clear to me that we were not created for life AND death.  Death is certainly universal, but it is not natural or at least it ought not to be.  We react negatively to it because God did not create life whilst purposing for death would follow.  Instead his creation was good, but our corruption has turned his good creation bad and thus we suffer physical death because of our disobedience to God.  In spite of this, we know deep in our hearts that life bringing death is not true life, which is why God has graciously provided us with a “second chance” through His Son Jesus Christ.  He is the one whom God has empowered to take the punishment of sin on our behalf and thereby restore us unto Himself.  While we still have to experience physical death because we are unable in ourselves to undo the corruption of our sin, Christ’s suffering enables our souls to be preserved from the eternal condemnation we deserve for our rebellion against God.  For the one who trusts in Christ, we can be assured that though we die (physically), our souls will live eternally (in Christ).  In this time of grieving and remembrance, I cling to the hope that my God will never leave or forsake His people.  I thank God that my grandpa knew this truth and therefore we celebrate his death because he is now with His Lord.