Lazarus from Nazareth!

Hallo Sarah-Jane I hear you are reading my blog at home with your mum over the Easter holidays clever Mum for finding it! (Sarah Jane is one of my pupils at RBS).
That's a very apposite title isn't it, it is one of the things that made our 1997 trip so memorable, that I actually knew someone called Lazarus who lived in Nazareth. Yesterday we went to Nazareth after school, a small town around 45 minutes away, and met up with Lazarus (one of our 1997 visit drivers) and his wife Benedicte, I go to see them every time I come to India. That makes it an 11 year friendship - it is just so unheard for local people, that a driver should have links with a white visitor. The main purpose of our visit to Nazareth though was to meet up with the family of Jeya (the other driver) who died in 2006. His eldest daughter is named Sally after me and will be 10 next month, his younger daughter is Jessy who is 6. Sadly the message that Sugurna would be in and ready to see us was incorrect, she now has a teaching job in Tuticorin, 20 miles away and does not get home till 9.00pm. We had to leave at 6.30. We saw the girls though and the picture below shows Lazarus and Benedicte, Maggie and I and Sally and Jessy... who looks just like her Dad! I'll go back again and hopefully see her then, time here though is running away from me.
the sunset was taken on the road back from Nazareth... Wow!
It has been suggested I mention again that if you click on one of the pictures, it will open up as a full page pop-up window... I may have said that already recently but there you go that's what happens when you get older.!
By the way, it has stopped raining! You may also notice in the pics that I gave into pressure and wore UK clothes to school today, it felt very strange, the first time since November, I kept trying to pull my blouse down lower like my suits. People were generally complimentary though.

We've had a busy couple of days in school and out! Unlike the UK we don't have Easter holidays, but we had Good Friday off. Yesterday, Monday, Buneshwari & Santhosh were in first thing and then Anand after break. The two little ones are doing well and the two mums are giving each other support which as I have said before was one of the aims of my project to develop a support system for parents. Anand is just coming on hand over fist. When he came he sat with support and did next to nothing,his parents said they really wanted him to begin to respond to his name. Now, he is walking a few hesitant steps, 5 today to get to me blowing bubbles! He is playing on his own with objects, exploring them visually and tactually. I am not claiming credit for teaching him to walk, I haven't. I have though helped to motivate him so that walking is a useful thing for him to do and thus he wants to do it! He actually had a temper tantrum today when it was time to finish... what more could I ask for.
Maggie took around 100 pics today, so I am only going to put a few up, but you can just see the sheer joy in his face. I know the pic of him laughing at the bubbles is shaky, but he was rocking back and forth with laughter and didn't stay still for a moment as he tried to catch the bubbles. The little boy in school uniform is called Viki (short for Viknesh) and he just loved the bumble ball. I've never heard him speak before, but he came into my room today and said 'Thank you madam' (- that he had been asked to come) I couldn't believe it. then later I am almost sure ... and Maggie heard it too... that Subbaiah said my name and he does not say any words, only makes sounds (and no Mike, that is not because I do not recognise the sounds and words as Tamil.

The parents keep looking at the equipment I am using and asking if I brought it from the UK. The only things I brought were a small red hand held light and a Mathmos rechargable coloured light ball. I've found everything else in local shops! Yesterday I found a bumble ball, but as well as moving around, it plays a tune (not a fisher price type nursery rhyme but an Indian pop-type tune and lights up...I may bring it home, what do you think customs would say! Methilda even asked if I had brought the tubes of bubble mix from the UK as she had never seen them before. I just don't think that people look or see the potential for what they have available. I have bought hair tassles which are made of shiny foil type stuff, light weight bells and a ball which lights up if you pull a string with just a touch of your finger, all to hang for Buneshwari who has not strength in her arms and can't move my heavier noisy things. I have to say I am having such fun shopping and hunting things down. Sometimes though, as you can see in the picture of Mariam laughing, you don't need anything else, you can have fun when two people interact with each other.