details details

so i suddenly realized that i should let y'all in on a few details...
i'm leaving austin on november 1st. don't worry, i'll vote early! i may not come back if bush wins so i have a lot riding on this election. just kidding. well, sort of. anyways, after re-storing all my odds & ends at my parents' house in dallas & saying my goodbyes & gathering up gifts for the relatives... i'll be off on nov.5th to london & probably off to france to see my cousin ali & his adorable family the very next day. i reckon i'll be back in london by the 12th. plenty of time to catch up with esthermonkey, di & m, & my darling host james (who may join me on an adventure through south india! fingers crossed...) & then i leave for mumbai on the 18th of nov. arriving that very night to begin the six months that my visa allows. i expect mumbai will be a whirlwind as it often is & i look forward to reconnecting with all my family there. i can't wait to see how much everyone has grown! by the 25th of november i will be attending my cousin aliza's wedding in dahod, gujarat. i will visit with my family in dahod for some time & then fly/train/drive to chennai. it will be exciting to see my cousins there & also to experience an entirely different side of india. mid-december to mid-january will be adventuring time. from chennai down to kanyakumari up through the kerala backwaters & the karnataka & goan beaches back to mumbai & then to ahmedabad hopefully in time for the kite festival. by the end of january i will begin my volunteer job at Manav Sadhna (Gandhi Ashram) where i will be for the next three or four months. i'm not sure exactly what i will be doing yet but the organizers sound like amazing & transformative people & i can't wait to see what project we will envision together to help promote peace, justice, and religious tolerance in gujarat. for more info on the organization, here is their very informative website : http://www.manavsadhna.org/
& here is another one for a wonderful project there that i may be helping out with as well: www.bigcirclemedia.com/ahimsa
i found both of these projects thanks to a remarkable non-profit called indicorps that my friend leena turned me onto. i am very very grateful! their website is here : http://www.indicorps.org/
this blogging thang is rather strange & new to me but i was introduced to it by a few friends who are also on volunteer journeys around the world & so i thought i would give a shout out to them for inspiring me & for being such lovely examples.
vini & dawn are at : http://mzinga.blogspot.com/
& mansoor &hannah are at : http://8inindia.blogspot.com/
you can find me here. sometimes. www.wanderish.blogspot.com
i will attempt to send emails as well but if you wish not to get my babblings from across the pond & over the ocean at this e-mail address (or any e-mail address for that matter) please let me know...
i am very very excited & scared & a bit wobbly at the moment but i know that i have your support & well wishes & that keeps me smiling! thanks for that.
love,
ish

after nights of thematic uncertainty

after nights of thematic uncertainty
i blame it on the number 13 & my baggage
contained 7 days & 6 nights exactly.
i flung it like salt over my shoulder & left.
leaving does not require much. movement.
perhaps two or three words. a kiss on the cheek.
tears. for effect. a backwards glance. for effect.
it is easier to leave than to think about leaving.
after nights of thematic uncertainty & maps
strewn about so damn casually there is nothing
left to do. there are so many ways to leave
& i want to try them all. to find those two or three words
& a more passionate kiss. blame it on the number 13.