A Birthday
Saranagati, BC
With the sun warming up the valley, the rattlesnakes emerged. In the south end of Venables Valley I spotted a few in the past. They have already been poking around this spring. “One made his way under my house,” said Sarvabauma, one of the residents I went to visit. In Saranagati, not all creatures crawl, some fly. It’s the waterfowl that are plentiful here. In the spring you might find anywhere from 50 – 100 trumpeter swans sitting on the lake for a well deserved break during flight from the south. “They are in the migratory mode,” explained Partha, my host.
While here, I spent the bulk of my time with humans, more complicated creatures. On my list of visitations was a trip to Govardhan Academy once again for a class on lessons from the Bhagavatam, and to add extra spice, I conducted part two of a drama workshop.
At the north end of the valley, I engaged in the 8th stop of the day, it was the 56th birthday of Bala Krishna. An impromptu party was announced to the dwellers of the valley via word of mouth. “Hare Krishna to you Hare Krishna to you, Hare Krishna Bala Krishna, Hare Krishna to you,,” we sang with heartfelt purpose.
Bala is the progressive principal farmer in the valley and his physical labour and ideas keep him young looking I think. His yearly produce is all organic and to the credit of the valley residents, you are looking at a vegetarian community, and more importantly, a Krishna centric village, it is one of few on planet Earth.
5 KM
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