I had my first Indian movie experience... no, not Bollywood - Kollywood! While the two India-woods share a lot of common traits, Bollywood movies are in Hindi and based out of Mumbai while Kollywood is based here in Chennai and the movies are in Tamil. My volunteer team, along with our CPs, went to see Ayan. This is the poster:
This epic movie has it all: musical numbers, a love story for the ages, slo-mo fights, hairy fingers, dramatic close-ups, and it walked an awkward line of being super-sexy while simultaneously upholding cultural dedication and devotion to the almighty concept of virginity. Fantastic!
The crown jewel of India, thus far, was hanging out with some incredible kids while we visited our local NGO partners. The children, infected and/or affected by HIV (affected in that they have lost their parents to the disease), welcomed us into their homes, sang and danced before we horsed around for an hour or two...
And a couple shots from around town...
I had more pictures that I wanted to upload, but I apparently didn't put all of them on my flash drive before I came to the internet cafe. Oh well.
In other news, I turned a quarter-century old today. So I guess my car insurance premium goes down but more importantly, I now have a fully developed frontal lobe which is kind of depressing, knowing that my chances of mastering the art of balancing work and reward are slim to none. I feel like the passing of a milstone age warrants well-developed thoughts and reflections, but alone-time has been few and far between since arriving in India so my thoughts are scattered at best, and mostly negative. (Que self-indulgent examples of said scattered thoughts.) I've been "okay" for about three years, meaning that I've actually been able to operate in the real world in a way that resembles productivity and good mental health; I can't help but wonder what I would be like, today, if I had gotten my shit together when it seems like everyone else did. I've been at least four different people in my life, very few of my relationships withstanding the transformations; again, kind of sad. I'm discouraged that it will, now, be a lot harder to mold my brain into what I want it to be. I wish I had decided to go to college before I was 21. And I still don't feel like a *real* person.
I probably sound like I'm bummed out but I'm actually in a very good mood, if only because I'm in India doing something "real," whatever that means.
I need to get back to the hostel - a couple of us watched the first episode of a TV show called Dexter and it's quite morbid and lovely, so we're going to get back to that before going out to dinner and a club. Yeh-yah!
Be well out there, good people!
Preston, you are so NOT "behind" in life. How many people do you/we know who don't get it together until they're 40+? Regarding education, it is said to be "wasted on youth." A little age makes the experience so much more meaningful. Frontal lobe development aside, 30 is the approximate age of "getting it together" for your generation. Enjoy the journey, dude. You're right on time! I love you.
ReplyDeleteI love and miss you.
ReplyDeleteYour pal,
Jasmin
awww, i'll join in the chorus of "love you's" too. because it's true, i do.
ReplyDeletelove,
nonny
Happy Birthday. Love reading your posts. Getting my shit together early hasn't helped my life be any less confusing, difficult or fluctuant. Enjoy your time and let those self-indulgent thoughts flee. You are a really "real" person.
ReplyDeleteHappy belated birthday!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear you are happy with yourself and your decision to do something "real". I really love the pictures as well!
Dexter=Awesome
Zoe W.
I know exactly what you mean as far as the brain development woes. I unfortunatley still feel like I'm 20 in many respects, but the reality is (as I type this from a computer at my dead end job) i don't really have much to show for my time on this planet. although I feel on the precipice of greatness, I am very envious of you truly making a difference, and initiating postive change in this often terrible place we live in.So please keep up the good work my friend. stay safe,and Don't trust robots, no matter how nice they seem.
ReplyDeleteHi. I know that I'm really behind on this comment, but I haven't had time to catch up on your blog until now.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry about frontal lobe development. Your brain has the ability to change throughout your life (just like your teeth are continually moving around in your head). It's scientifically proven. Absolutely. I know what I'm talking about. You have not reached any kind of end-point as far as that goes.
Additionally, I don't know anyone who feels like a "real" person. So I think it's perfectly, you know, "normal" to feel that way. As I'm writing this, I'm realizing that I have no idea what it even means to be "real" or "normal".... I think anyone who says they know what "real" or "normal" is has no idea what they are talking about.
Did that make any sense? No. I love being able to read about your trip. Thanks for sharing. You are a person to me - and that matters a lot.
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Love,
Mandy