...it's me again!

...well I didn't just drop off the face of the earth! It may have seemed that way but a little secret was kept from you. I guess I owe you an explanation!

I won't go into too much detail... a little storyboard will suffice...

hello... my name is luca joy!

An Indian Summer...

I've just stumbled across a new blog, thanks to one of my subscribers, angel whispers. Although there's nothing eco, green or sustainable about it, it's truly scrumptious!

Interior design, Indian style. Bhavna Bhatnagar has jumped right into my dreams and recorded them in her blog 'An Indian Summer'.

In my perfect world, where we all live simply and happily, I would be swanning around barefoot in a pretty little place surrounded by swaying coconut trees and beautiful vivid colours, drinking freshly squeezed watermelon juice.

Anyway, back to reality... enjoy!

Solar Power of God...

Hindu devotees observe a solar eclipse through specially-designed viewing glasses as they take holy dips in the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna and the mythical Sarawati River, in Allahabad, India

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

(AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)

more photos here

Home...

Take some time to watch this with your family. It's beautiful, amazing and very poignant...

Some People are Just Wise...

Be the Change You Want to See in the World...

I did it...

Erenia needed another $25 towards her agricultural loan... she can buy her vehicle now... 

Good Luck Erenia...

Thanks Kel for the inspiration...

You can do it too... It's easy... you can even pay by Paypal... and it's only a loan so you'll even get it back (if you want it) or you can use it again to help someone else...

Kiva

I'm Ready for a Holiday Now!...

Finally I have another quick chance to check in...

We have been rushing around recently trying to sort out furnishing our new apartment in Goa. We have spent a few weeks in Kerala with C's parents and now we are in Cochin staying with a friend before we take the train back to Goa tomorrow night.

Apart from not having anytime to relax and be peaceful... I'm really happy and enjoying the stress. I do however really miss catching up on my google reader. When I get back to Goa I'm going to spend sometime in a wireless cafe and just read and read...

I've noticed I've got a few new followers and commenters and I haven't even had time to think about new blogs, so to everyone who is keeping up with me I will be back soon! And to all my fellow bloggers, I hope you are all happy and I look forward to catching up with you all x


Angel, however has been having the time of her life!

Diyas and Rangoli...

Today the world I live in is celebrating the 'Festival of Lights'...

Diya's and Rangoli decorate the doorsteps of every Hindu, Sikh and Jain home on the eve of Diwali...

One of the most intriguing qualities that puts India in my dreams, is that no day goes by without flashes of patterns and colours that bring your senses and emotions to a split second standstill...

I guess it explains why I love photography so much too. To capture a moment of life that we rarely get a chance to savour in all the rushing around from here to there...

To sit and have the privilege of studying in detail the colour and depth of such minute detail in the never ending story of the busy world you are living in...

To take time to be grateful for what you have...

I find it beautiful that where money is scarce, the colours seems to become brighter, people surround themselves with beauty in a more passionate manner...

The senses are given more importance in life to enlighten and awaken the soul...

Colours are brighter, music and prayers are shared, food is sweeter and you are transported to memories past at every corner where a chai stall sends the smell of ginger and cardamom to your nose...

The fate of an Indian lies in Gods hands, the passion for their culture and religion is so alive in their hearts, it is hard for it to not rub of on you when you walk past..

Life is full of beauty when you take the time to look...

Happy Diwali to you all...

May the journey you are following be full of colour and light in every way...

***

Thanks Sharon... x

India With Passion...

(Image my own, taken from 'India with Passion: Modern Regional Home Cooking' by Manju Malhi)

I won't be around for a while.

So I'm going to leave you with a photo for each day that goes by...

I won't leave you any captions, quotes or poetry,

Just a simple moment of my life, that has made me who I am today...

All of the photos will be my own,

All of them would have been taken in India,

All of them will be close to my heart,

All of them will show to you the beauty of 'Where We Belong...'

One question I get asked a lot, is:

"Why India?"

Well, This is my answer...

***

I will be back as soon as I can battle through the technological wonderland of Indian Cyberspace...

To ensure you don't miss out on any adventures, 

subscribe to my posts in a reader by clicking on this button in the sidebar...

or follow me by clicking 'Follow this blog' on the sidebar at the top of the page...

Please, please continue to leave comments for me too, it really makes my day and I'll be more than excited to read them in a hot and sweaty internet cafe with a squeaky fan and no air conditioning...

...'til next time,

I leave you with my love and thanks, for being there when I needed you...

emma x

Stop and Smell the Roses...

I'm taking your advice and taking it easy... 

relaxing...

being happy...

enjoying Autumn (with a scarf on)...

and foraging in the garden...

there are no more blackberries left now!

...And Then There Was Light

Diwali The Festival of Lights

Well... the bright lights of Leicester are all blinking behind us now. Which is a shame because it's Diwali soon and Leicester is supposed to have the biggest Diwali celebration in the UK... we are praying we will be in India by the 28th for Diwali celebrations big time!

The last few days have been a bizarre mix of calm and chaos. We are one step closer but still in limbo land. There is still no date set and emotions are being drowned in melancholy.

I've been lurking around my google reader and watching your lives move on 'business as usual', but feeling quite numb to the world of blogging. I'm leaving you all comments in my head (can you hear them?) but right now it's not that I don't have time (I have too much) but my energy has gone on holiday without me.

I read a book. I haven't read a book for a long time. If I start a book then I can't put it down until it's finished, so life gets put on hold. I only have one fiction book at the moment, so I read it again before I give it back. 

'A Thousand Splendid Suns' by Khaled Hosseini is a beautifully written book, just like his first, 'The Kite Runner'. It's books like this that bring my simple life into perspective. I'm lucky and I really have nothing to complain about. It's as simple as that.

Angel has a horrible cold, runny nose and is miserable.

C is outside working in the cold, helping my Dad lay a path, missing his family and is melancholic and miserable.

I have hurt my back either through lifting boxes or stress or both (I should have listened to you Jack) and I am miserable.

But we are safe, together, free and alive.

I'm grateful for that..

Diwali signifies the triumph of good over evil and it is also about new beginnings...

****

Kum ba ya my Lord, kum ba ya,
Oh Lord, kum ba ya

Someone's crying, Lord, kum ba ya,
Oh Lord, kum ba ya

Someone's singing, Lord, kum ba ya,
Oh Lord, kum ba ya

Someone's praying, Lord, kum ba ya,
Oh Lord, kum ba ya

'Leicester Mercury' Article...

It seems there were two articles written about the 'Leicester Canal Issue', they were published in Tuesdays 'Leicester Mercury'. Online you can read them here and here. It was interesting to read the comments left on the main article. It's always good to see the messenger being shot at!

I left my own comment too, but it hasn't been published for some reason, maybe it has been delayed in the system. Here it is just in case...

Dear Robert,
I was taking a walk along the canal with my husband and 2 year old daughter on a Saturday afternoon. I do not usually take bin liners with me on our walks, but I often take my camera. I always take my rubbish home with me as I prefer to recycle what I can. I very often pick up other peoples rubbish as well and deposit it in the nearest bin. I do not however feel self righteous when doing this, just very sad. I did not contact the newspaper to 'moan' about the problem, only to make it known to the public the results of their disregardful actions when they throw litter. I would not know if this was a new or old problem as I have only lived in Leicester for 6 months.

Dear Kim,
I am concerned. This is the planet where my daughter and her future generations will grow up. I do a lot to ensure that I teach her about respect and compassion for the world and it inhabitants. I am very happy that there are people who have the sense to organise volunteer projects. I would be very happy to volunteer for any type of environmental project that is happening in the area. Unfortunately I am leaving Leicester in a few days, so as well as not being able to enjoy the beauty of Abbey Park anymore, I will also not be able to participate in any voluntary clean ups.

Dear Niki,
You have some very wise comments. I agree that we have to educate our children first, to make a difference. You may be interested to read my post about sustainable development in UK schools:

http://indian-earth.blogspot.com/2008/09/helping-hand-in-sustainable-development.html

Please feel free to view my original post and photos at:

http://indian-earth.blogspot.com/2008/09/helping-hand-in-sustainable-development.html

Regards,

Green as a Thistle...

A special mention for 'Green as a Thistle'...

Vanessa, a journalist for the National Post, Toronto has written a must read post with some great article links on the subject of:

"Brad Pitt’s biodegradable body wash, 

WWF’s scare tactics 

and the truth about organic food prices"

... there's also a sneak preview into Vanessa's new book deal 'Sleeping Naked is Green'

A Helping Hand in Sustainable Development...

Foundation for Sustainable Development  on Facebook

I set out to discover what is 'really' being done to educate our country in the move towards being green. 

Now, I know from experience that when you sit a child down in a class with a book and preach about the world and it's issues, things get a little boring and out of perspective. It's another lesson to learn, another snippet of information to revise and another minute of a life wasted.

Get me out of the classroom, make me feel special, give me some responsibility and a chance to have fun and I'll remember the day for the rest of my life.

There is of course a government initiative to educate our children and reeducate our adults. Reports have been written, agendas have been set and all will be published for the world to see. This has been happening over the last few years, but of course unless you are involved directly or are scouring the net for answers, the results are hidden in a mountain of paperwork and promises...

The 'Sustainable Development' Government website states that:

"Formal education has a crucial role to play in raising awareness of sustainable development among young people. It gives them the skills they need to put sustainable development into practice in later life and form good habits at an early age.

On behalf of the Government, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) aims to ensure that sustainable development is embedded in the core education agenda across all education and skills sectors. In 2003 they launched the Sustainable Development Action Plan for Education and Skills. The action plan is organised around four objectives :

• Education for sustainable development
  
• The environmental impact of the Department and its partner bodies
  
• The environmental impact of the education estate
  
• Local and global partnership activities

Sustainable Schools website

DfES is developing a web-based service, Sustainable Schools , which will bring together sources of advice and practical support for teachers and school heads and governors. Sustainable Schools is designed to provide an on-line community, disseminate good practice and offer a shop window for the many schemes to promote their service to schools."

***

DEFRA, The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is a UK government department. Their ultimate aim is 'to enable everyone to live within our environmental means'.

Reading through their Sustainable Development pages, they are obviously moving in the right directions in theory and practically speaking doing everything they can to filter down the 'action' through schools, teachers and communities. The introduction on the main page is a direct, straight forward, no nonsense statement, we all need to listen to:

"The past 20 years have seen a growing realisation that the current model of development is unsustainable. In other words we are living beyond our means. From the loss of biodiversity with the felling of rainforests or over fishing, to the negative effect our consumption patterns are having on the environment and the climate. Our way of life is placing an increasing burden on the planet - this cannot be sustained.

The increasing stress we put on resources and environmental systems such as water, land and air cannot go on for ever. Especially as the world's population continues to increase and we already see a world where over a billion people live on less than a dollar a day, more than 800 million are malnourished, and over two and a half billion lack access to adequate sanitation.

A widely-used and accepted international definition of sustainable development is: 'development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs' - Globally we are not even meeting the needs of the present let alone considering the needs of future generations.

Unless we start to make real progress toward reconciling these contradictions, we all, wherever we live, face a future that is less certain and less secure than we in the UK have enjoyed over the past fifty years. We need to make a decisive move toward more sustainable development both because it is the right thing to do - and because it is in our own long-term best interests. It offers the best hope for securing the future."

Extract taken from the UK Sustainable development Government website

***

Now I feel a little better that so many things are in place, being ticked off and implemented, but a small cynical part of me says it may be there in theory, for the sake of reports, to show the world we care. But is any of it actually flowing through the system and watering the 'grass roots'?

I know that when I step outside the door, when I turn on the TV, all I see shoved in the face of 'communities' is the marketing magic of consumerism. At every turn, in every view on every bus, it's there. So where is the knowledge and encouragement we need from our 'so called elders'?

I have seen a few new hoardings for the 'Love Food' campaign and Leicestershire's reusable bag's ad (I didn't know the are given them away for free!) But I still feel that these green issues are all a bit 'alternative thinking' and that I'm only noticing the tiny changes because I'm looking for them.

As I don't have a child of school age, I can't tell you if the teachings are hitting home yet, I'd like to hear from others, in any country, what is your child being taught and how? Do they come home excited about environmental issues? How to you encourage and develop these ideas?

It's all very well having a mountain of websites to scour through, games for children to play online, reports and agendas, adverts and ideas, but truly the best way to teach your children is through spending time with nature. Learn about the basics of life, water, air, weather. Let your child see the beauty in the world and learn to respect and admire our planet.

A River Runs Through It...

Here is a view of the canal that runs past Abbey Park in Leicester...

...beautiful isn't it? ...and another one...

Now take a closer look at the patch of white in the centre of the photo above...

...then, just to be sure...

...plastic bottles, a car wheel, a sofa cushion, a football, a yoghurt pot, a few pieces of fence post, a million plastic bags, an extended family of rats (yes I did see them scurrying across the island paradise they live on!)... a complete and utter disgrace!

... then there is the bank that leads down to the water, perfect for family picnics, groups of hooded junkies, tramps day out, school kids smoking place and nearby bus stop litter bin...

...and if your local council doesn't have a recycling and refuse depot, feel free to fly-tip your unused and unwanted clutter over the fence...

...it makes a perfect playground for the rat babies... (sorry they are so quick, I couldn't catch a shot!)

Don't forget after your picnic lunch from Sainsbury's, to leave behind some bonus marketing for the local store. If you can't be bothered to walk to the bin or take your leftovers home, don't worry, leave it hanging in a conspicuous place for someone else to clean up!

We live in such a beautiful world, full of beautiful people... 

Shame they don't have any consideration for the gift they have been given...

Sad that their parents have neglected to teach them about sharing and compassion for others...

Do you ever feel completely lost and powerless in this powerful world?

****

Email to the Editor of 'Leicester Mercury' and  to Leicester City Council...

I would like to bring to your attention some images I took on a walk along the canal in Leicester.

I know that litter, recycling and refuse are an important issue at the moment in Leicestershire.

I have only lived in Leicester for a few months and I'm very impressed with the rejuvenation work and love the beauty of Abbey Park.

It's just a shame that this beauty is lost on Leicesters untidy residents.

I realise you don't have time to pursue all emails and I am not asking for a reply.

I would simply like to let you know there are some residents who do care for the world and it's beauty.

I have written a few posts in my blog about the issue of rubbish, litter and recycling in Leicester.

If you have time please read them, the photos are in the first link...

http://indian-earth.blogspot.com/2008/09/river-runs-through-it.html

http://indian-earth.blogspot.com/2008/09/filthy-liars.html

http://indian-earth.blogspot.com/2008/09/todays-newspaper-in-india-landfill-of.html

Thank you and regards,