I knew when I was planning this trip that I would be stepping into another world. Not just the Indian world, with all of its particular disctinctions (like speedy rickshaw drivers in insane traffic in noise-ridden cities) but also the world belonging to Melissa for the past year. The past 3 days in Mumbai have been an upclose glimpse into her world, her work, her friendships, her life...and also a time of watching her say goodbye to many of those things.
Her closet in her room is full of goodbye gifts from friends...A beautiful pashmina scarf, a salwar suit from her co-workers, the complete 3-season set of 'arrested development - her favorite tv show...I sense the fullness of her time here. I've seen the love and tears on the faces of her friends. They spoke words of affirmation and deeply rooted tenderness for her. In a year of living here, Melissa has lived it fully and lived it well.
And now she's moving on. And it is a privilege to be a small part of this transition.
Today (in 3 hours) we leave for Nepal. Seeing Kathmandu, backpacking in the Himalayans near Pokhara, watching the sun rise over the highest peaks in the world - that is what's in store for us for the next week and a half.
Goodbye, Mumbai. Hello, Nepal.
"Justice and Power must be brought together, so that whatever is just may be powerful, and whatever is powerful may be just." Blaise Pascal
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