Second Helpings

You know when something is just too good to stay away from? My friend and co-worker Indera invited me to her big sister's wedding. After a delerious set of escapades and tomfoolery, I made it ... wet, muddied, and so excited!

It was a beautiful ceremony. I am most impressed by two things. First is the sensory overload of an Indian wedding. Bright colors make your eyes open wide. Smells of tallow and incense burning, rain in the distance and enough food cooking to feed an army fill you. The sounds of the chanting and the sounds of the band punctuate the ceremony and keep your ears alert. It is a full-body experience.

The second thing that impresses me are the ritual offerings and requests to many of the gods to bless the union happening before us, and the sense of something being physically and spiritually joined and created anew. It was really a spiritual experience - even for me, a bystander.

The second helping was just as delicious as the first. I didn't even mind the mud, or the beetle-throwing (yes, tomfoolery, I said!), the pouring rain, or anti-fog-on-the-windshield duty. Thank you, Indera and Nadeira! Just BEAUTIFUL!!