May be Africa has some thing to say to the world!

In war-torn relationships of Northern Uganda, forgiveness is complicated. Betty was a teenager when her village was raided by the Lord’s Resistance Army, a rebel army known for its brutal tactics and widespread human rights violations. She was kidnapped as a sex slave for a commander and ordered to commit callous acts of violence as a child soldier, until gradually she was broken and became an active member of the LRA.

After six years of bloodshed, however, Betty managed to escape, running across the country to freedom. But coming home would not be a simple matter of returning. She had committed violence against the very people she hoped to rejoin. Her own guilt and shame was as palpable as the mistrust and anger of her village. In her absence, two of her own brothers had been killed by the same army Betty fought alongside.

In the midst of such loss, with so many permanent scars, forgiveness might seem hopeful, but naïve at best. Is reconciliation even to be desired when brokenness is so irreversible? Does forgiveness cease to be hopeful when neither party can ever be the same again? From where I stand, these are painful questions to even begin to answer.

But the people of Uganda are trying. For hundreds and hundreds of children like Betty, terrorized by crimes they were forced to commit and returning home to terrorized villages, tribal elders have adapted a ceremony to make it possible for both. In a ceremony that includes the act of breaking and stepping on an egg and an opobo branch, the returnee is cleansed from the things he or she has done while away. The egg symbolizes innocent life, and by breaking and placing themselves in its broken substance, returnees declare before their village their desire to be restored to the way they used to be. In a final step over a pole, the returnees step into new life. In many cases, women returnees come home with babies who were born in the bush, usually a result of rape. When they arrive at the broken egg, the child’s foot is placed in the substance, too.

May be, the spirit of reconciliation, is what the world needs!

This is what the cross symbolise and may be that is what the world needs to know from Africa.

Take a bow sir! You are godly

Kya bhaiya, 30 rs TK tho. 40 rs jaadha hain ( what brother, 30 rs is fine, 40 is a bit too much) argued my friend to the rickshaw wallah. I had just had a bad fall and was hurting in my ankle and so did not have any strength to stand. I immediately boarded that rickshaw without waiting for them to finish their negotiations. Further, we also had two full cylinders with us. My friend climbed on too; may be he realised he did not have any option though the rickshaw wallah did not agree for the bargain.

The journey was a difficult one for him, especially with two heavy weights on it and moreover an additional ten kilos of gas cylinder added to it. Every time he had to slow down, again to start it back it needed enormous effort from him. My friend asked about the pain in my ankle; though i did not want to show, I was a bit finicky.

As soon as we got down, I noticed the rickshaw man's foot was heavily bandaged. I asked him what it was. He said, he had a crash with a bike some time ago and had a bone fracture. I was stunned! He was driving with a fractured limb! And here I am complaining about a twisted ankle; why can't you take rest, I asked? Kaana peena katham hogaiya, kya karo ( no water and food, what to do) came the reply.

I had no answer! Took a 50 rs note from my wallet and asked him to keep it. He said, nahin sir! And gave back ten rupees.

I saw his face under the light. It was nearly 9.30 pm. Fully dark. He was sweating profusely. Yet, his face was bright. He had taught me one of life's toughest lessons in a second.

Honesty, is a rarity; that, in times of adversity is godly;

I may not meet you sir again! But you deserve a bow! Mankind will survive.

Getting ready to marry!

"It is ok ma. Sari ok. I will buy that! Ya sure, it looks good! Believe me, it really is. Sari now keep the phone down, I will call you back". My friend replied this for the seventh time after his wife had called him to know about the purchase he had done for her. I stood there wondering what the problem was all about. May be, next time when Obama visits India he had promised to visit her house, I thought.

Nalla velai tower poiruchu( Thank heavens tower went off), he turned back to me. I could see his radiant face. 'M' was the guy who got married first in our class. I never thought cell phone towers can bring a man so much peace. After all he has the most experience in class. Aduthu(next) I will buy some thing for my sister, he said. So the entire process started again. What have you bought for your sister? The call came again! Is it the same as mine? Same colour? Orey(same) design ah? Try some thing new na? So after we selected a kurta, the call came again. Now! Which of the two you have bought is better? My friend of course is experienced! Unaku vaanginathu thaan ma( the one I bought for you only), he replied. Then ok! Is this kurta only or chuddidhar? I almost had a heart attack! I thought both are the same. So, unashamedly we asked the shop keeper and he said, pants you will ve to buy separately. Tk Tk! aap kya chaaiye, he asked? Pants or legumes? Legume ah, I thought they were plants.  Then one other guy clarified it as leggin! Leggin? Then where do they put the pants? In hands? I was confused! After seeing them both and after another phone call we are finished with one shop.

Now to buy something for my daughter, he said! By now I was almost fainting. Really thankful that his daughter is only 2 years old and yet to learn to operate a mobile. We went to a small ornaments shop. So we started off with ear rings, the smaller ones and slowly the larger ones for the mother, then to bangles of different colours, then to bracelets, anklets, some clips for hair; some for pony tails, some for long hairs, some for short hairs, some for the back side of the hair and some for the scalp portion, some nail art, hair bands and some for the eye brow and some for the fore head and every thing in the same colour! My eyes were almost coming out, when I heard my friend say, " nalla velai phone varalai"( thank heavens the call did not come).

What next, I asked my friend! Should buy some thing for Appa he said and added, it is ok, last year I bought him a watch and it is still running.

So we decided on watching Lincoln, even as he was thanking that the shopping got over very fast. We had spent only 3 hours in those two shops he said. May be, last time he took his wife also, I thought!

As soon as the movie started I dozed off after a tired days work( I mean the shopping). Suddenly, my friend woke me up and said, you can be the president of America, but you have to answer your wife! In the intense moments of his life, when he was fighting to pass the greatest legislation of all times to abolish slavery, Lincoln constantly answered his wife's wifesh questions with similar aplomb. May be that is what made him the man he was!

Do you think I'm getting ready to tie the knot?