3/11

I will leave in exactly one week and 6 hours. Thinking back to one week before I left for Raiganj, I can remember being frantic, nervous, and expectant. Strangely, I am none of those things right now. I don’t know if my time her has allowed another piece of my personality to blossom or if this is an Indian trait I have developed, but I do feel as though I have a newly acquired sense of ease in previously frenzied times. I am enjoying my days here, enjoying the moments, and not in the least bit expectant for being home in America. That’s not to say that I don’t want to go home, ideally I would like to be in more than one place at once. But since that’s not possible I would like to enjoy each place I am in to its fullest. Which means that I don’t want to spend my last days here waiting to be somewhere else. In this moment, I couldn’t be happier to be exactly where I am.
Exactly where I am, I am in Bishrail with Puthumai(previously misspelled Bisreal). I am staying at a parish with three very kind and welcoming Fathers. There is a parish, and English medium school, a convent, a girls hostel and a boys hostel.
We left this morning after my English class celebration, which was wonderful. The four girls came, even though today is a holiday, and we had snacks and sweets and just chatted. Both parties expressed gratitude, and I was most excited to find out that they are planning on seeing me off at the train station. I can’t express how touched I am by this gesture. They also presented me with gifts today. Yesterday Shanawaz gave me a very nice agenda, and today Pritikana gave me a photograph (long story on where the photo is from, you see apparently someone took the photo for her husbands work, because I am standing in the background of a program. Then she saw the picture and though that I would be surprised to see it, so she printed it and brought it for me), Mutumita gave me a really beautiful wall hanging of the goddess Kali, and Susmita gave me a very nice bracelet. I presented their certificates (which I have to fix, because I didn’t write their surnames) and we all wished each other a happy holi (the color throwing holiday that happened today). The students have been so wonderful to me during my time here, and are probably a large reason that I began to accept and adjust to Indian life.
Then Puthumai and I left with one of the staff members from S. Dinajpur, who was giving us a ride (his name is Joe-an-tha, that is my best guess at spelling). We drove for a while, and saw quite a few people with color powder all over their faces and their clothes. I didn’t see much color throwing, which is a bumme:, it would have been cool to see that. Then we had a huge lunch and Joe-an-tha’s house, and met his family. We had a sweet drink, then Bengali sweets, then tea, and then lunch. Lunch was rice, dal, a cooked leafy green/red vegetable, a sweet mushy green vegetable, fish curry, mutton curry, cooked potatoes and carrots, stringy vegetables that looked like asparagus but didn’t taste like it, mixed with bitterguard, sweet chutney, and then sweets again when we were done. I am even probably forgetting a dish or two, there were so many. I was extremely full and had to almost forcefully insist that I couldn’t eat anymore. Before we left the sister got out colors and put some on my forehead, which was cool, so even if I didn’t get to see it, I got to experience a milder version of it 
I didn’t sleep well last night so once we arrived at the parish I took a rest. Then we had a tour of the hostel and had coffee at the convent next door. Everyone here is interested in American politics, so we spoke about Obama and other political issues. Then Puthumai, Fr. Selvum and I watched Pirates of the Caribbean. We had a lot of fun, I enjoyed being able to explain it to them, and they seemed to enjoy the plot. After the movie finished we ate a really good dinner (the best fish I have had my whole time here and noodles for dinner).
Unfortunately during my evening bath a gecko scared me half to death. I yelped, but after a few moments made a truce with him: if he wouldn’t make any sudden movements, I wouldn’t either. It seemed to work relatively well, until he hid somewhere that I couldn’t see. I closed the bathroom door, and will tuck my mosquito net in extra tight, because the last thing I want in a gecko crawling on me while I’m asleep.
Sending love.