2008 – Round-up

2008 – Round-up

Highlights:
Indira is engaged to Manish
Daniel’s arrival – my status elevated to Grandfather
Stupendous Concert-Tour in Europe
Little Bharat scales new heights with three silver medals in Bali

2008 had its ups and downs, the highs and the lows – with enough and plenty to thank the Lord for. The year end has seen me with so much more than ever so many others who have less. With relentless tumult, turmoil and terror – ‘midst so much misery, violence and insecurity around the world, the Lord spared me and my near and the dear from adversity and want, and showered on me blessings I was not worthy of. This perhaps is the most precious heavenly gift to be remembered at this moment with eternal gratitude, as I look back in retrospect at the events that touched my life this year.

The highlights of 2008 included lots of travel and bonhomie with family and friends, and a greater and satisfactory productivity for self in the literary field (soon after the launch in November ’07 of my book “The other side of Policing” and the good reviews it got) and no less in the visual media – coupled with the stupendous experience of a multi-country Concert tour across Europe during summer as part of Delhi’s Capital City Minstrels. Between terrorism and atrocities there was neither respite nor a dull moment for my pen and laptop, not for appearances on television either, for impactful and fiery articles and debates.

On our maiden Concert Tour in Europe (May-June) we The Capital City Minstrels of Delhi performed in Hungary, Germany and France – sang jointly with two local choirs of repute, the Remsheid Vokal Ensemble (RVE) in Germany, and with the Suresnes Chorale Group in Paris; singing also in two historic castles – in Budapest at The National Gallery of Art in Buda Castle, and in Germany inside the Schloss (castle) Burg in Solingen... and in historic churches too – St Michael's in Budapest and Eglize St Elizabeth de Hongre on Rue Temple within Paris. We were felicitated at receptions hosted for us by the Indian Ambassadors in Budapest and Paris, and the French Ambassador in Hungary; as also by the Mayor(ess) of Remscheid (Germany) and the Mayor of Suresnes (Paris). Our performances attracted considerable interest and appreciation from European audiences and the media, making Werner Rizzi – composer and conductor of repute in Germany and Professor of Music at the University – declare in amazement to Gabriella Boda-Rechner our conductor that in all his 24 years of conducting choirs only on two occasions had he come across German audiences giving a standing ovation – the CCM being the second so privileged! Thank you Gabriela and fellow ‘CCM’ers for making this possible.

Though Paris was not new to me, other glorious touristic sights in Hungary, Germany and France were an added treat – including the ones in beautiful Budapest, Remsheid, Cologne and Paris, the awesome Cathedrals and Museums, places of historic and artistic interests, and the delightful boat rides over the three romantic rivers of Europe – the Danube, the Rhine and the Seine.... Thank you my hosts – Mechthild and Hans Dieter Hoffman (in Wermelkirchen/Germany) and Marie-Danielle & Jean-Louis Boivin (in Surenses/Paris). Thank you also Babby (Golak Chand Misra in Dusseldorf) for spending time with me.

Other travels saw me in Connecticut and California in January and February and again in June and July later – at daughters Indira’s in East Haven, and Sonal’s in Santa Clara/San Jose; also visiting family and friends on USA’s east coast and on the west coast. Though San Francisco was not a stranger, it was wonderful to experience its scenic splendour again with Sonal, thanks to whose energy and drive I could taste the wines of Napa Valley, gamble in Las Vegas over a crazy weekend, and also visit among others and see – Lake Tahoe (thank you David & Becky), Palo Alto and Stanford (thanks Rohan), Alamo heights (Aroon & Usha) Saratoga (Denis & Jennifer), Sunnyvale (Tina & Leslie, Asha & Roy), Stockton (Merlyn & Michelle) Sausalito, Muir Woods. Thank you Inidra for Mystic Aquarium and Gillette Castle, Trumbull (sister Marjorie & Bon), Poughkeepsie (sister Meera & Ted), Scarsdale (Neela & Ravi), Long Island (Ashok & Swapna), Fairfield (Sunil & Subasree) and Westport (Allan & Nirmala). Not to forget a delightful and restful sojourn in the Himalayan foothills at Nimi and Pawan Khanna’s Nandalya (thank you both) in Bhavali-Uttarkhand and a great holiday in our own Goa attending friend Estelle’s daughter Pia’s wedding (thank you Estelle and Rajiv) in Uccasain (Uskain) Mapusa, Betim, Candolim and Aguada. Thank you hosts Aneel & Nayen at Sur la Mer (Ashyem/Morjim) and Seby & Lourdes (Margao).

A landmark event of the year for me was when my status was at last elevated to grandfather when on Aug-4 son Prashanth (Anthony) and Sarah his wife were blessed with a bonny baby boy – my first grandchild and grandson, Daniel Ligoury Pereira (named partly after my dad Ligoury). There were other thresholds and landmarks too – among them, two more additions to the immediate family – baby Shona on Mar-19 to nephew Subash and his wife Bharati (third grandchild to my late brother Melville), and baby Benjamin – a grandson to my brother Manu, the second child to his daughter Arema and her husband Rodney.

Sister Meera and Ted’s youngest, Sheila – my godchild, graduated from school in June and traipsed off to Bryn Mawr College, while sister Bullu’s grandson Andrew entered College at the University of Pennsylvania and grand-daughter Adele with her musical troupe performed in Europe too.

And to Subash's son little 8-year-old Bharat (Melville's eldest grandson) in Bangalore goes the credit for being the youngest ever achiever in the family in an international arena, by winning three silver medals in Sport Climbing at The Asian International Youth Meet at Bali (Indonesia) in August.

On Dec-11 my Indira announced her engagement to Manish Chowdhary – her boyfriend of three years to fill our cup of joy no end. Manish, who studied in Panchgani, Bangalore, Mangalore/Manipal and in the US is currently an IT professional and entrepreneur with his own business in the USA.

This followed by Daniel's Christening and Baptism at the London Brompton Oratory on Dec-22 – at which I proposed the toast, and he had his entire paternal side of the family represented (on the maternal side we missed you Phil, Lee and Louise), was an occasion that called for celebration – which occasion obviously was a prelude for a family Christmas at Tony and Sarah’s in Putney, London. Thank you Tony and Sarah – the Lord be praised and thanked for making all this possible.

On the whole the Lord be praised for 2008 – the year that is gone, yet another year that He saw us through despite the surrounding adversities, with more to my lot to thank for than worry about. To mention the adversities that touched us during the year I am inhibited – if not personal, especially the ones on the front of atrocities against Christians that surfaced this year in our country, in Orissa’s Kandhmal and Mangalore – like the hydra-headed monster in real life – making us fear realistically for our future here. The Orissa carnage prompted a trip to Bhubaneshwar on the request of and accompanying Archbishop Vincent Concessao for a dialogue with the local constituents of the Sangh Parivar – leading to a bit more personal involvement than perhaps otherwise would have been. And on the financial front with the market crash and recession around the world which affected each of us in some way or the other, I suppose one can only try bury one’s head in sand Ostrich-style and pray for better times ahead. In conclusion, one would feel guilty claiming that the Lord saw me and my loved ones through it all comparatively unscathed as to feel any want or any physical hurt. (Much as it did hurt and cause concern, for the sheer ridiculous hilarity of it all now that it’s all over and done with, I do not rank my nephew Allan breaking both his arms this year in a single fall at tennis, in these categories of hurt!)

Thanks are also due to all family and friends (specially those in Delhi/Gurgaon and elsewhere – mentioned, not mentioned), without whose whole-hearted love, affection and active support, the year would not have been what it was! Thank you Lord for giving me such lovely family and friends! Make them last forever!

Tomorrow is a new year, and today on the last day of 2008, it is time to reflect and also to remember family and friends.... May we all be blessed with The Almighty's benevolence in 2009 too, the year that's next – with good health, productivity and progress, and a bit more prosperity to make our lives easier so we can thank Him more.
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