The Bay of Bengal
Adyar, Sunday 22 September 2013
Last Wednesday at 3 a.m., we arrived at Chennai Airport in a barely half
full airplane from one of the Gulf States. Being back in India was giving a surprisingly good
feeling. People are friendly and helpful. The airport- and taxi-business are
well organized.
In our apartment or student’s room at Leadbeater’s
Chambers everything was in order and almost in the same state as when we left it
three months ago. Some repairs of the doors have been done, which gave a good
impression for the newcomer we are. The people at the Green Gate consider us to
be a “regular”. When entering this morning through the Main Gate, there has
been no delay, because as soon as the guard had recognized our face, the taxi driver
could take his old-timer car further into the compound.
At lunch and dinner, there was some company to make
conversation.
In the afternoon we went to say hello to the President
and had an long conversation about our whereabouts, our Section and the TS in
General. The president was appearing in much better physical condition than in
June. She confirmed that she is working regularly in the office during the
afternoons. She wanted us to go and work in another department and manage its
financial administration. This is a more tangible position than the one we had
in the department, where we were employed from November till June this year. So the next day we reported to work in this other
department after a hello-goodbye visit to the colleagues at the old department.
Internet has been working every day, but sometimes the
signal was too weak. After dinner, we just managed to download the software for
the T-Classic disk, before the first study group started at 7.15 p.m. The good news is that LBC will have Wi-Fi, which is to
be operational during the Convention, this year. Workmen are also busy to
refresh the whitewash of the ceilings and walls in the rooms. New floor tiles
are being put in the shower rooms and the woodwork will be repainted during the
same exercise, which is to be finished before the Annual Convention begins at
the end of the year. By 15 December, a new elevator should be installed at LBC
and be operational.
These first days, we took a lot of rest by having
siestas after the meals, except after dinner, when there is the study group. In the new department we have been introduced to the
colleagues. A small two page description of the procedures has been made by the
colleague, who left. Within two weeks, he will come back for one week to give
us some explanation about the actual work. This seems just like being back in our
old job again. The person responsible for housing shall see when we
can move to our new house, though he said that nothing had been prepared for
that yet. He has the age of 79 years, but he said that he feels like 25. We replied
that we always feel like a 14 year old boy, who knows nothing of this big, wide
world.
During dinner our colleague told us about the visit of
a man, who had been a successful investor and came to the TS in Adyar with the
intention to help the Olcott School, where the colleague is teaching. The man
has become member and wants to come to the Annual Convention in December. We
promised to send our co-worker, who is living here at the dormitory, a copy of
page 35 from the August Theosophist, where the conditions for participation at
the Annual Convention are stated.
Getting up in the morning is very easy here, firstly,
because every day before breakfast we make a walk to the shore of the Indian
Ocean’s Gulf of Bengal and secondly, because we sleep here like a baby. When we shall have moved to our own house, we shall be
able to make our own breakfast, which will be a little bit more like what we
are used to, with fruit juice, yofu, muesli, nuts and fruits. On our lap-top the internet is working in the office
and in the apartment. We have been updating the websites and going through the
e-mails of the last several weeks, when we were preparing for our deep dive
into this ocean of peace and harmony, which India seems to resemble to.
Very much aware we are of the special grace we have
received in being allowed and in having been given the opportunity to accept and
live a considerable part of our life here in this special spiritual place.
Sunday, day of rest, was highly applicable today. Most
of the time the internet connection did not work on our P.C., because if
connected it usually said either “limited” or “edge”. We thought to have
learned in school that the weekdays and the one day of rest were from ancient
Indian origin. At lunch nobody could confirm this. So there definitively is a
need for a more advanced study center here. If and when LBC will have Wi-Fi, we
could look these things up a little easier than it is the case now. We met the new International Secretary in his office, today,
where he was working with two assistants. Hopefully he will manage the business
and the Convention will be a success.
This evening, luckily the internet connection worked
and we could answer the e-mail messages from our home countries.
Our colleague at the dormitory left, because there is
an end-of-term school holiday of a few days and he was invited to go on leave
with some of the other teachers. Temperature is of 30° to 31° C. and stays about the
same during the day and the night. We managed to go to the shop today to buy the
necessary toothpaste.
That’s all for now,
Mr. Brooder
