This gallery contains 16 photos.
Originally posted on Pacific Paratrooper:
16 August 2015 is the 75th Anniversary of the United States Airborne, of which my father Smitty belonged when he volunteered for the 11th Airborne Division. My best wishes go out to ALL the paratroopers…
Elllis Island in the harbor of New York City was the gateway to America for 60 years. Today immigrants are still coming to America but in different ways and with different means.
David sent me this link today and I am sending it on to you. The text is about a successful IT man named Sundar Pichai and is a quick read. I hope you will watch the Australian immigrant entrepreneur in the video in at the end. This is not the perspective of most in the PC community of the world today, but quite heartwarming because it is from part of our immigrant community in the United States, today.
Thanks Judy!
What if she had said, “No?”
The Sikh’s Golden Temple is one of my favorite Indian sites. Here is a previous post of mine. Thanks Judy for this video. . . . Don’t Freak, I Am a Sikh ! They are wonderful people! If you haven’t seen my video about Sikhism, please check it out!
Yale music school performance hall. (Google public domain)
I decided it is time to restart my Music Monday posts when I was jogged by my friend Joey Fala . Joey, some of you may remember, was to be in our group to India this spring but he just couldn’t squeeze it in between, finishing his degree in Architecture in May while simultaneously working on a master’s degree in lighting this month. Well, it turns out that while we were in India, Joey was working in a number of organ recitals around the country as well as applying for a master’s program at Yale. You guessed it! He leaves Troy in August and then off to New Haven to the very select program working for a Master’s degree Organ Performance at Yale. There are 6 students in each of the two years in the degree program. This is an update since my first post about this young Renaissance man.
Joey sent me a message and the video about Benjamin Zander who is one of his heroes that I might want to use in Monday Music. ” He is a stellar conductor and teacher but more importantly an effortless communicator.” (Joey’s description. ) It is long and I watched the whole thing. Zander and his student (cellist ) deeply touch the viewer’s heart including mine. I hope you will have the time and interest to watch it until the end as Zander shares how music transforms the musician and the listener. There is a lesson here for each of us no matter our vocations or avocations in life.
Joey, blessings to you as you follow your dream!
“Dark Places” was adapted for the screen from a novel of the same name written by Gillian Flynn who wrote “Gone Girl” both as a novel and adapted for the screen. She didn’t adapt “Dark Places” , though. Both are dark tales of contemporary life in America.
Libby Day, Charlize Theron, is the only survivor after her mother and two sisters are killed in the dark of night on their farm in the heart of Kansas. Libby testifies to witnessing her brother Ben as the murderer with the consequence of him being in prison for life. It is now 28 years after the terrible murder. Ironically, Ben has found forgiveness in his cell ( she asks him sarcastically if he has found Jesus. There was no reply.) Libby is still living in her dark place symbolized by her constantly hiding behind her baseball cap. ( But who could look more beautiful in a baseball hat and no make-up than Theron?)
This story may sound familiar to some of you. In the late 70s in the Kansas heartland, there was a family murdered in their farm home. Truman Capote wrote a non fiction account of the story, “In Cold Blood” which was also made into a movie. I remember reading it straight through one night. We were living in Manhattan, Kansas at the time. Kansas with its friendly people , middle American lifestyle and temperament for kind gentleness seems totally out of place where such a thing could happen.
Forgiveness is the over riding theme of the film. These are the questions the characters are struggling to answer . *How can one reconcile her past while living in the present? *How do we forgive ourselves and still acknowledge consequences as a natural result of our actions? (CT movie review)
It seems to me that most if not all of us are trying to escape our own “Dark Place” and to reach the light. Though not all this was resolved in a two hour film, there seemed to be hope. Charlize took off her baseball cap. When she visited the old farm house at the end of the film, it was bathed in light as a stark contrast to the deep darkness at the beginning when her family was slaughtered.
I
I imagine I have gotten your attention with that title and image ! Probably not what you expected from me! Well, let me start at the beginning. . . . .
Several weeks ago, I was clocked on radar doing seventeen miles above the speed limit on a road I travel almost daily and often several times. I had a perfect driving record for the many years living in Troy! I hadn’t even had a parking ticket. That is how my family gave me the above title, because I don’t drive like an old lady, yet, but neither am I am speedy driver. I usually just go with the flow ! Except this time!
Thus began this journey resulting in a court appearance this week. My immediate thought was that my insurance would rise and I would have the dreaded points added on my license. Telling my tale to whom would listen, I learned some interesting facts. I should not sign and return the ticket saying that I was guilty and pay for the ticket. But I was guilty. . . well it turns out pleading not guilty doesn’t mean that . . . . lawyer speak , but not guilty means you want the process to be seen by a judge or letting the process proceed. If you plead guilty, you will get a fine, points, and your insurance company will be notified resulting in a rate increase.
My day to appear, I got to the court 20 minutes early to find already a serpentine line of about 100 people, I am estimating. We waited and waited. Finally 45 minutes after the scheduled time , each person was called to sign-in. Next we went to the courtroom where the jovial judge gave us our four options. I wish I could remember what they were but I was waiting for the last one, #4 where I would be given a chance to plea down from a moving violation to a lesser charge of non-moving violation. That plead down group was taken to another room where we were we met with an attorney to plead our case for lowering the charges. ( Mine was a flawless record.)
My first question was whether there was an accident involved. “No.” Any other charges such as phone involvement or alcohol, “No.” I was eligible for a non-moving charge, but the fine would be nearly $200, ouch. . . but that was the best I could expect. All the offenders with the high speed tickets were expected to appear before the judge to see if he agreed with the results of the conference. Nervously, I reentered the court with about half of the original group. I had noticed others leaving after speaking to the District Attorney , they just went to pay their fine and left. There speed must have been less.
Each defendant had to stand and address the judge. To say I was nervous was definitely an understatement . but he turned out to be rather low-key and friendly.
“Mrs. Bell, you will pay the fine and there will be no points or notification of this transaction with your insurance company. If you need time to pay the fine, that will be arranged. Do you accept this judgement?”
“Thank you , your Honor.”
I was trying to quickly exit the courtroom when someone grabbed my hand. I looked up at this large bear of a man whom I didn’t recognize. He told me I had not seen him since grammar school, 4th grade to be specific and, he had grown mostly up rather dramatically since then. He, too, had one of the large fines and must speak to the judge. I gave him a hug and said, thank you ever so much for speaking to me! Gosh, did you recognize me? He laughed but didn’t say. I wished him luck and left.
As I was walking home, I remember with great fondness this student who had been one of my all time favorites. Yes, teachers can’t show it but we are human, we do have favorites. At least I did. I was so happy to reconnect if only in passing. Come to think about it, he probably heard my name called and didn’t recognize me but he did make the effort to speak to me! That was a special moment in a long day at court the resulting in paying for a darn expensive “parking ticket!”
Louis Kahn was an amazing architect but an absent father. Nathaniel Kahn made this film from his journey to discover his famous father, Louis. This great spiritual man who was famous for saying, “I ask the brick what it wants to be,” when asked about his designs, was unknown to his son. The sculptor architecture of Ahmedabad ‘s Indian Institute of Management is shown in the clip. It was Kakn’s last building complex. If you are interested , google Bangladesh /Louis Kahn/architect or watch the documentary, “My Architect” the complete film documentary made by Nathaniel Kahn
Here is a picture of IIM.
This Is Architecture of Louis Kahn
Here is the group of 17 Republicans running for the presidential nomination in the 2016 and tonight is the first debate. Well, there will be two debates.
Here are the top 10 candidates based on the average of 5 poles. They will meet on stage in Cleveland, Ohio tonight at 9 PM. They will have the prime time slot of 9PM tonight set in a huge basketball hall in Cleveland Ohio where Lebron James plays magical basketball.
Here is the colorful set where both debates will be set. The questioners from Fox News. as they are sponsoring the debates. are excellent questioners, Bret Baier, Meghan Kelly, and Chris Wallace.
There are comments that the debaters from the 5 pm debate may use live tweets to make themselves a presence during the second debate.
Also there is talk that this might be the most watched cable program in history! Tune in if you are interested and able with time differences. Will LeBron James’ magic show up in a candidate or two?
This Is the Beginning of the 2016 Election Cycle for President of the United States.
As I walked through the ancient windy streets of Varanasi, at several places, I was able to stop, stretch out my arms and touch the sides of the buildings. I think you will believe it after seeing this picture !
The first time we were visiting this ancient, holy city was during the huge nearby Kumbh Mela festival in Allahabad. It is the largest gathering of religious pilgrims in the world. The educated estimation of people attending is 100, 000,000 souls! Yes, one hundred million! At the end of the one and a half month Mela, many Hindu pilgrims visiting from around the world would make a stop at the near by sacred city of Varanasi. In 2013 we were in Varanasi during this time. There was absolutely no way tourists with passports or not, were allowed anywhere near this temple. Our bags were checked, our passports were checked and then we were told we had to leave them in a shop with a guard! All this was done just to go near enough to see the top of the dome over a stone wall. 
As our guide lead us through the narrow streets, there were throngs of Indian people waiting to enter , pray, and worship. 
Just as we approached the checking station where all non-Hindus must check-in, we realized one of the girls was missing. David turned and left but whispered to one of the students in the front, “Don’t say you are a Christian,” and to me as he passed.
How jolting to people who have never had to declare their faith system. There was only a few minutes to decide what to say. Would they ask us individually or one person(me as the only adult) to declare for the group?
My faith as a Christian is too important for me to deny and I decided what I wanted to say within a minute or so. I, of course, didn’t feel that I could speak for each of the students. In countries with national religions, it is expected that everyone in the US is a Christian, which of course is not true.
I decided to say, “I am a Christian, but I can’t speak for the others. We are here to visit India to learn all about her culture, including her faith systems.”
Well, it turned out that the Indian policeman asked only one person ( a male student) and it wasn’t me. ( After all, I am a women.) The student said something similar to me. “We are architecture students from America who want to learn as much about India as we can during our time here.”
We were allowed to enter the entry courtyard of the temple that you can see is built into the fabric of the ancient city. Someone stayed with us and told us some details in broken English.
Now I don’t want anyone to think that I am implying in anyway we would have been hurt or imprisoned because we were Christians. We may have been refused entry even into the entrance . But we have all heard recently about Christians being beheaded by haters, and persecuted and thrown into jail. Christianity and the church has become marginalized in the world, it seems. And that is partially the fault of the church and her members ( my opinion) and our lack of love and involvement in the world to “love our neighbors, and work for justice”.
This was a day full of thoughts and not just sights for us. I am sure it was for the students as well !
This Is Incredible India! 
images from Google public domain
TalesAlongTheWay 