Today I received a phone call from Mahesh, a young, Class 9 student from Nepura. He called to tell me that he’d meet me at the bus stop, so I didn’t have to walk alone into the village.
At the village I was greeted by Rashmin, Manju, and Narindar. Narindar offered me some water and apologized for not having any more curd to give me since his cow was no longer producing milk. Now I realize how precious that offering to me of curd was during my last two visits!
I showed them the piece of sujuni that I had been working on. I tried to tell them that I lost my large needle with the big eye in it. They showed me a needle with a small eye, but I have one like that already. The large needle allowed me to stitch with two strands of embroidery floss. The women said that they only used the small needles. The women assured me that they had a small needle I could have, but I have plenty of those small-eyed needles in my sewing kit.
Luckily, I found my large needle the next morning between my bed sheets. When I lost the large needle though, I was presented with the situation of not being able to finish my piece of sujuni, with the thought that I should be more responsible, and with utter embarrassment at having lost the needle in the first place. I didn’t have a clue where to buy a new needle. I attempted to ask at a shop near the bus stop but it was the wrong kind of shop (mostly electronic gadgets). I thought maybe trying the hardware shop or I could try to ask one of the tailor shops. (So, this is life without having everything available by just hopping in the car and driving to the store!!)
Rashmin showed me the sari blouse she expertly made for me. I tried it on over my clothes and it was very tight fitting. Manju pulled it closed and they said something in Hindi. I thought maybe Rashmin would start pulling out stitches, but instead she finished sewing on the hooks and eyes. When I got home and tried it on, it fit perfectly. With a few more stitches, she hemmed the sari for me, too.
Using my Hindi-English dictionary I tried to convey my wish for some placemats and napkins to take back to the US for my friends and family. Manju showed me some placemats made out of silk and cotton sewn by Pooja Kumari. I commented on these wonderful pieces of art. Then we discussed napkins and Manju brought out an assortment of cotton fabrics. Two colors were chosen. She measured the fabric against the placemats and then folded it into a triangle using a little geometry to make a perfect square. Then she cut the fabric and we talked about the design.
Later, I asked about Renu’s new grandson and they said I could go see him. Manju walked me to Renu’s house where I met the proud father, Renu, and happy little Anshu Priya. Renu brought out the little baby boy who was sleeping contentedly and then took him back to his mother. I said “Hello Baby” to Anshu who ran into her mother’s room and parroted in perfect English “Hello, Baby” for her new baby brother. Anshu Priya showed me her baby doll and she placed it in the net covered bassinet. Then she took it out and rocked it just like her mommy.
After having a cup of tea at Renu’s house, Mahesh walked me back to the bus stop where a man from Rajgir introduced himself to me. On the bus I sat in the front and met a man who was working for Citi Group here in India!! It's always interesting riding the buses here in Nalanda!!
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| Mahesh |
At the village I was greeted by Rashmin, Manju, and Narindar. Narindar offered me some water and apologized for not having any more curd to give me since his cow was no longer producing milk. Now I realize how precious that offering to me of curd was during my last two visits!
I showed them the piece of sujuni that I had been working on. I tried to tell them that I lost my large needle with the big eye in it. They showed me a needle with a small eye, but I have one like that already. The large needle allowed me to stitch with two strands of embroidery floss. The women said that they only used the small needles. The women assured me that they had a small needle I could have, but I have plenty of those small-eyed needles in my sewing kit.
 |
| Me working with my very small piece of sujuni |
Luckily, I found my large needle the next morning between my bed sheets. When I lost the large needle though, I was presented with the situation of not being able to finish my piece of sujuni, with the thought that I should be more responsible, and with utter embarrassment at having lost the needle in the first place. I didn’t have a clue where to buy a new needle. I attempted to ask at a shop near the bus stop but it was the wrong kind of shop (mostly electronic gadgets). I thought maybe trying the hardware shop or I could try to ask one of the tailor shops. (So, this is life without having everything available by just hopping in the car and driving to the store!!)
 |
| Rashmin stitching my sari blouse |
Rashmin showed me the sari blouse she expertly made for me. I tried it on over my clothes and it was very tight fitting. Manju pulled it closed and they said something in Hindi. I thought maybe Rashmin would start pulling out stitches, but instead she finished sewing on the hooks and eyes. When I got home and tried it on, it fit perfectly. With a few more stitches, she hemmed the sari for me, too.
Using my Hindi-English dictionary I tried to convey my wish for some placemats and napkins to take back to the US for my friends and family. Manju showed me some placemats made out of silk and cotton sewn by Pooja Kumari. I commented on these wonderful pieces of art. Then we discussed napkins and Manju brought out an assortment of cotton fabrics. Two colors were chosen. She measured the fabric against the placemats and then folded it into a triangle using a little geometry to make a perfect square. Then she cut the fabric and we talked about the design.
 |
| Manju choosing cotton fabric for napkins to match the bodhi tree placemats. |
Later, I asked about Renu’s new grandson and they said I could go see him. Manju walked me to Renu’s house where I met the proud father, Renu, and happy little Anshu Priya. Renu brought out the little baby boy who was sleeping contentedly and then took him back to his mother. I said “Hello Baby” to Anshu who ran into her mother’s room and parroted in perfect English “Hello, Baby” for her new baby brother. Anshu Priya showed me her baby doll and she placed it in the net covered bassinet. Then she took it out and rocked it just like her mommy.
 |
| Anshu Priya with her babydoll and her grandmother, Renu |
After having a cup of tea at Renu’s house, Mahesh walked me back to the bus stop where a man from Rajgir introduced himself to me. On the bus I sat in the front and met a man who was working for Citi Group here in India!! It's always interesting riding the buses here in Nalanda!!
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