4 Monkeys Jumping in the Tree!

  Hey friends!
 This past week has consisted of learning Kannada, doing school, and two very ineteresting things.
   The first was Diwali. Diwali is a Hindu holiday that celebrates the light, and the goddess Lakshmi. During Diwali, it is tradition that everyone buys new clothes, if they can afford it, sets off very loud fire-works, and lights candles, which they set up all around the wall of there house.
   Last night, I walked down the street with some of the people that are staying in one of the flats downstairs, who are from California. We could only walk about 4 blocks when we had to stop because of the locals setting off fire-works (here they are called "crackers") in the middle of the street. We stood there and watched the crackers for about 20 minutes before coming back home.
   Now for the second very interesting thing. Today, while I was sitting here writing this blog, I looked out the window and saw a monkey in our tree! The parentals and I went out on the balcony to look at it. Turns out that there were about 6 of them. We looked up at the roof, and there were two little baby monkeys looking down at us!!! Right after that, a family of monkeys congregated and started chasing each other. (Picture on the left.) Then they all started jumping around through the tree, and chasing each other. They were so cute, I wanted to go on the roof and look at them from there. But then, I remembered that they have been known to steal cameras. Between that and my mom telling me that they might jump on my head, I decided not to.
      Over all, we have had a very exciting week, with lots of loud crackers, and curious monkeys. We continue to look for housing, and we appreciate your prayers!

   That's all folks,
          Birdie

Rain, Rain, and More Rain

     Here in India, there's a monsoon season and a dry season. Right now, it's supposed to be the dry season. However, it has been raining since yesterday morning!!! Not only is it raining, but it's 68 degrees!!! I find it a tad bit on the cold side.
      The cause of the rain is a cyclone, which is hitting a city that is east of us. The city that the parents of Bobby Jindal, the governor of Louisiana, are originally from. For all you people in south Louisiana, a cyclone is like a hurricane.
      For an abrupt change of subject, last night, my parents and I went into the home of some friends. Every Wednesday night, they have a bunch of street kids come in for a children's church service. Also, these friends of ours feed the children, who are all dirt poor and living in extreme poverty.Those kids were so sweet. I think it's amazing how these kids have next to nothing and are still so happy.
        On Sunday, my family and I went to the movie theater and watched Skyfall. Over here, they cut out almost every bad part. Also, in the middle of the movie, they add in an intermission. The good thing is, you don't have to miss any of the movie if you need to use the restroom or need some kind of snack. Unfortunately, there is a bad thing about this. They paused the movie in the middle of a sentence.
         We started language last week. We are learning Kannada and, thankfully, it isn't nearly as difficult as Thai was. Our language teacher is a Christian, and her husband leads 5 house churches!! Talk about a lot of preaching.
               
            Well, that's all for this time,
                          Birdie