Sunday 15th May 2022

I start off my blog today with congratulations to Thiyagarajah (Chan) and his wife Kanishiya, who celebrated the arrival of a lovely baby boy yesterday! He sent me a picture with a caption: 'How is your grandson?', and I replied: 'He has not been born yet! I only have 2 granddaughters!', only to be told that I am now an honorary grandfather to this lovely little boy - and extremely honoured I am to be too!

You might be wondering why this baby boy is at present nameless, but in true Hindu tradition, his name will be decided according to various factors. You cannot simply choose a name for your baby because you like it - that would be most inauspicious. I think this baby's name is written in the stars somewhere, but one thing is for sure - he could not have two more loving parents as he starts his little life.

There are Poya Days every time there is a full moon, but today was Vesak Poya, an annual occurrence celebrating the birth and death of Buddha, as well as the day he gave up being a prince to follow his destiny. The huge significance for me was that this national holiday is so special that the government would not dare have any power cuts today, which brought me more joy than you can possibly imagine!

No power cuts, and we even had brief interludes of sunshine during today's monsoon showers, so I took the opportunity to take some photos of where I am staying. Officially it is called 'Maii Inn', after Ananda and Lasanthi's second daughter. I have been here for three weeks now, and I have grown to love the place, and especially the family who have welcomed me so wholeheartedly into their home.











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