Favourites of the week 27/4-3/5

You often see a few cows or buffalo or whatever meandering down the street, but my favourite is when there is a whole big herd blocking everything. And they couldn’t care less if people are honking or trying to get around them. They take their own sweet time doing whatever they want to do at the speed they choose.

I was walking and saw a couple of pigs, then the more I looked, the more I saw. They blended in so well, and I was surprised to finally see just how big the herd was.

There were a lot of birds in this field, but most were smaller birds. This was the only bird of prey there. He sat there regally, as though surveying his kingdom. However, I wonder, when I see birds like this, do they feel lonely? Are they happy to be perched there on their own, or do they want a friend or a mate there? Are some creatures created for solitude? It might make life a lot easier.

All of this area was spotted with fires where people were burning rubbish. It filled the little valley with a haze of smoke. And then I saw this guy standing in the midst of it all, talking on his phone. He looked completely mellow, as though he wasn't surrounded by smoke and fires. I'm sure it was just sort of everyday life, but it was an impressive look.   



In a way, I was disgusted by the fact that this was actually a blanket of smoke from burning rubbish. Not exactly the thing that you want escaping into the sky. But sometimes, less than ideal situations can make for a really neat photo. I like the way the Moula Ali dargah is rising out of the smoke in the background.  



A political rally going through town. Everyone gets involved with it, and it's crazy hard to get anywhere. Fun to watch though. I stopped at a little shop for a cup of sugarcane juice, and watched the 'parade' go by for some time.

This guy was surprisingly friendly considering the twitch scar on his lips and various other scarring on his head. He kept wanting more attention and would whicker at me when I walked away. He is a full grown stallion, but acted like a foal when he had someone who was nice to him. Another example of a horse who doesn't seem to have many reasons to trust people, but does anyway.

A sweet little baby. It had been so long at this point since I was around horses, so to be able to spend some time with a foal was super fun. His Mom had a bit of an attitude though, and every time I went to pet this little one, the stallion in the next stall (see picture above) would try to call me back to give him attention.

Went out for a drive and discovered I wasn't terribly far from where I stayed while I was in B'lore last year. And it was a beautiful evening to boot.

Favourites of the week-20/4-26/4

 No matter how much I fly, I don’t think I’ll probably ever get to the point where I don’t care about the gorgeous cloud formations. When the clouds are like this, it looks as though one could walk across them without sinking through. It feels that you would find unicorns or dragons or any number of mysterious creatures in the crevices and spaces of the clouds. I know it doesn’t really work that way, but it doesn’t stop my imagination. Honestly, who knows what is in the sky?

 

 The night I got home from traveling, I found this little guy inside my mosquito net. It took quite some time to get him out, as he sort of panicked and ran all around the inside of the net. I was afraid I’d smoosh him.
Anyway, the lizards were definitely the best part of that flat.

 I was buying some fruit and happened to glance out the door to see this. So flipping cute, and right in the middle of town. Pretty sure the fruit seller thought I was nuts, because I stopped right in the middle of paying for the fruit, ran outside with my camera, and took a couple of pictures. There was no way I was going to pass up an opportunity to get this picture. Mini donkeys sure do seem better behaved here. But perhaps I just have the world’s most spoiled mini donkeys…

Right after I took this picture, the dog freaked out and tried to attack me. Fortunately, I wasn’t close enough that he could reach me, because I think he was genuinely ready to kill me.

Right place at the right time, and I thought the sun over the tower made it look like a candle. I like the way it lined up just right.

The background of a village built on rubbish behind an elderly man and elderly walls provides an interesting contrast. You’d think you could never find dignity in places such as this, but there is dignity, love, honour, etc., everywhere you go.

I quite like goats. And they photograph well. I’m not sure what this one was focused on, but it was incredibly still for a goat. They usually enjoy bouncing around.  

This pack of dogs was walking around as though they owned the place. I liked how it turned out with the dogs being the main focus of the picture, though I was originally taking a picture of the wall behind them.

Old walls with the modern town behind them. There is such a mix of old and new all throughout India. It is always intriguing to me. I wish I knew the history behind it.

Moula Ali Durga overlooking the city.  Some things crumble, some things remain standing. There’s no telling when you build/write/design/make something how long it will last, but what matters is the joy you take in making it in the first place. It is better to feel joy while making something that will last only 5 minutes rather than to be miserable making something which will last 500 years. This at least is my opinion.

This boy’s smile makes me smile. It is such a beautiful smile. He was right in the middle of the other boys there. There were several younger boys, who were innocent and silly. Then there was a handful of older boys, who were bordering on creepy. This one was right in between age-wise, but his smile shows him to be far more innocent without tending toward creepy.

I like sunsets. I love INDogs. Need I say more?

I’m not even sure how I saw this little toad. It was dark, there were no streetlights, but somehow I saw him. Maybe passing headlights. I like seeing things when I can’t work out how I managed to see them.

Brave Knights and Heroic Courage

I was watching Merryn, the 4 year old daughter of a friend the other day. I had been watching Doctor Who before she came in, and she didn’t want to switch it. I was much happier to continue watching Doctor Who than I would have been watching Barbie, or other things of that nature which Merryn usually likes to watch. But I was a little concerned about giving her nightmares. When I asked her though, if it was too scary, she pointed to the Doctor and informed me that he would save everyone. This was her reason for not being scared. And apparently when was telling the truth, because her Mom told me the next day that there were no nightmares. Because she understood that somehow, the Doctor would make everything ok.

C.S. Lewis said, “Since it is likely that children will meet cruel enemies, let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage.”
I’ve always been impressed with Merryn’s parents being cautious about how much “scary” stuff she’s allowed to watch. But she’s at the age that she can understand things like good and bad now.
If I have kids, they will learn from a young age about knights and courage. Lewis’ Narnia books are a good start for that. And Doctor Who. Stories that show that not everything will be perfect, but everything will become right at some point.
Courage and fear are the two options available to a child, and I would much sooner my children learn of courage.