30 Seconds


After finishing a... shall I say... complicated?.... class with the LifeDance Troupe today, I was feeling somewhat discouraged.  One of the electrical chords for the sound system fried, so then we didn't have any music... which led me to using a little drum I found... but by that point everything had already turned to chaos!  Okay okay, chaos is a powerful word... But things were definitely out of control.  I spent time blaming myself for things that were out of my control, and it really took me some time to realize what I was doing.  Not to mention I was stung by a bee or some other bug at the end of class!  That wasn't cool, haha.  I tried to find the humor it in though... that was rough.

As I was packing up my things, I heard a voice calling out to me from outside the area where we hold class.  I looked down over the wall (I'll have to take a picture of the area for you later so you can see what it looks like), and there, under a mango tree, stood a smiling old woman.  From the way she was dressed I could see l that she was one of the campus field workers.  She didn't know my name, nor did she speak any English... so it's a wonder how I knew she was calling out to me.  Anyway, she smiled up at me and then proceeded to speak to me in Tamil.  While she spoke, she used her hands to point at the drum I was still holding.  I quickly realized that she must have heard me playing it in class, she wanted me to play again!  I set the tiny drum up in a comfortable position, and I started to play a syncopated rhythm.  As soon as I started playing, the woman began to dance!  She was moving her hips and swirling her arms and hands around in the space where she stood... It was beautiful!  This carried on for about 30 seconds, and I dare say, it was one of the most beautiful 30 seconds of my day!  When she struck her ending pose, I finish playing, and then we clapped for each other.  A few students that were passing by also chimed in with cheerful comments and clapping.  And with that, the Lady from the Field walked away.

It was amazing to me how God blessed me with the tender mercy of the Lady from the Field.  I went from feeling discouraged about the difficult class and the bug bite/sting to suddenly feeling grateful and humbled by the music and dance that we shared.  It lasted only 30 seconds, but that was enough time for God to soften my heart.

Thank you, Lady from the Field, for being a part of my day today-- for sharing those 30 seconds with me.

It's hard to see, but the sting is between my
thumb and index finger :( 
But it's okay!! :)

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