"Your will above all else, my purpose remains, the art of losing myself in bringing you praise..."

"Everlasting, your light will shine when all else fades..

Never-ending, your glory goes beyond all fame

And the cry of my heart is to bring you praise

From the inside out..."

I can't get over how beautiful it is here. I'm sitting here on the balcony outside my room just taking in how big the world is and how big our God is. To create all of this... I can't even imagine but I love being a part of it. 

I was thinking this week.. "Why am I here?" Not in a regretful sense but in more of a contemplative sense. Yes, I love to travel and see different parts of the world, meeting new people is always great too... but that's not it. I just want to give. I want to serve. I want to encourage. I want to be used. I pray that God uses me in whatever way he needs no matter how frustrating or challenging it may be for me. If just one person is changed or feels the love of Christ it is all worth it. Every morning I ask that God prepares my heart for the day ahead...

"Create in me a clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation 

and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me."

Psalm 51

(Thanks to Bri for this... :) )

On to the everyday happenings...

It's been pretty hot the past few days. Monsoon season was thinking about getting underway, but then retreated. Today is looking kind of hazy though so hopefully it will rain. I love it when it rains here. It's a warm refreshing rain and the kids go crazy! I taught them how to run their hand under the roof and fling water at each other last week. That may or may not have been a good idea.

A couple nights ago, a few of us went exploring at this "amusement park" down the mountain from our house. I was a little apprehensive but a couple of the guys bought a full package for all the rides. Beth and I stood on the side, like parents do at the fair when their children are on the carousel... and they wave every time you go around.. yeah, that was us. All the while fearing for their lives and planning what we would do if we had to rush them to the hospital. Everything turned out fine though... and Himalayan Wonder World was good for some really good laughs.

Last night we had a presentation from a traditional dancing instructor and her students. They are known world wide and are really amazing at what they do. I had no idea that every hand motion had a different meaning and the dance is a type of sign language telling a story. The two girls that performed for us have been training for 15 years and have all of the motions memorized. Just one hand position can have 42 different meanings depending on what motion they use... and that's just one position. Another group joined us for this presentation at the house. They are from Palampur. We ended up playing musical chairs (mostly to entertain the staff, I'm convinced) that turned into some bitter group rivalry. It was a tad uncomfortable and caused a lot of tension between some people. It was awkward and it has scarred the game of musical chairs for the rest of my life... all I could do was laugh. 

Off to placement today.. the president of the school is going to be there. That's a little intimidating. I've been really frustrated with the whole placement thing, mostly because of the language barrier, but yesterday was a really good day and I hope that it just keeps getting better. I only have another week at this school before I change placements. I believe I am going to be working with college aged women when I am finished at Harmony school. But I guess we'll see where I end up...

That's all for now..

Good morning India, Good night America!

"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else

is the greatest accomplishment."

Ralph Waldo Emerson