1/9 and 1/10 in Diu

I've gotten into a little routine here (with all the constant change in my life this year, a little routine feels good). First I go to the omelet wala and get a two-egg chili omelet. Then I go to the chai wala (next door) and get a large cup of chai.

After that, who knows. Sometimes to the beach, or a bike ride, or maybe I have to do some wash or sew something that ripped.
Yesterday afteronoon and evening a wandered along the coast line for about 4 hours until the sun set.

I don't know what time the sun set yesterday. At 6:16 it got lost in the evening haze on the horizon. I guess everything and everyone gets lost sometimes (not just me). Or maybe it's the earth that got lost. I don't know.

The waves started telling me it is time to move off the rock I was sitting on, but I was not ready (I can be a little stubborn at times). So I got a little wet. It's hard to argue with the moon.

Ashoka, Maykal and me this morning

I ran into Maykal at dinner time after the sunset. I took him to a little night stand on the wharf and shared a plate of chili fried noodles. Then we went looking for the peanut and roasted corn wala to bring some peanuts back to his brother Ashoka, but the wala was know where to be found. So I went back to my room where I had a stash of bananas and oranges and I met Maykal and Ashoka at "our spot" the wharf and we ate fruit together. I told them that there are no cows, goats, or monkeys that wander the streets in America. There are even very few dogs, for they need to be leashed. They didn't quite comprehend how this could be so. They asked me about what animals were in the jungles of America. I told them that there were no jungles, but we do have forests and mountains where there are bears, deer, antelope, etc. I tried to explain what a bear was. The look of comprehension came to their eyes. "Godzilla?" they asked. "No, I told them, Godzilla was only in the movies." So then they figured it out. "Dinosaurs!" And I had to explain that there have been no dinosaurs for millions of years. "Why?" they asked. "Did man kill them all?" Even if I knew the reason for the end of the age of dinosaurs, I doubt that I could explain it to them. But somehow they figures out about climate change and the waters drying up (that's as much as I know).

I want to thank Sheila, Lisa Z., Suzy J., Candy, John and Sylvia, and my parents for their generous offers to help Maykal and his family (see previous posting: Maykal's story). I realized last night what a gift it is to me to give a gift to Maykal. It confirms what I am free to do, a blessing for the life I have been gifted. If anyone one else is interested in helping Maykal and his family, please let me know by Sunday 7:30PM West coast time (which is 9AM Monday morning here in Diu). I will check my email one more time before heading to the ATM machine with Maykal, and then heading off to Palitana, unless I stay another day, who knows.