Seeing Amma

It is hard to believe that one year ago Ben sat with Amma for his first real food eating. What an incredible year it has been! The road trip to see Amma was miraculous in and of itself. We left in the still of night so Ben could sleep as much of the 10 hour drive as possible. Though we left an hour later than planned (sorry lisa who was waiting oh so patiently for us to pack the toys, 17 outfits and countless books needed to entertain a near 2 year old!) we nevertheless sailed across rt. 80-through sticks, stones and the toothless truckers with no hitches at all. Alex did almost all of the driving and while I straddled much stuff in the backseat, we arrived with no incidents.

We pulled up at the hotel, checked in and flopped into the double bed and were able to enjoy some restful hours before the program began. ben was taken with the hotel lobby waterfall. He was amazed at the grandeur of the patterned carpet and the shiny elevator buttons. The washer and dryer coin slots and trash cans were also very attractive-it never occurred to him that we were there for anything else since the hotel held such treasures.

The first night of programs we arrived to the hall with all of our stuff. Through the satsang talk we thankfully sat in the back with buddy Claire and some other wiley toddlers. The stackable rings provided an excellent lesson on sharing. By far ben's favorite word is mine! mine! but he also enjoyed passing the rings to Claire. After every mine! outburst I saw that he shared his toy with her and he complied. They played along while munching on dried mangoes. The three of us got a long awaited hug that as so very special. Ben had fallen asleep so he cried but I thought to myself that it really did not matter. We left the program at 2ish and squished into the bed all 3 of us. Alex would snore big zzz than ben would snore small zzz for an amusing little duet the whole night through.

The next few days are now a blur of quiet special times and just chilling out in the amma vibe. Ben slept in with dad and I got some needed quiet meditation time at the program in the morning. Ben was enjoyed by many admirers. He danced to the bhajans, did seva (walked trash from the snack tables over to the can and slammed dunked while waiting for a cheer of praise. then dusted his hands off.). He chased his ball and interrupted big boys playing with cars (who eventually shared after their moms insisted). He made friends with lots of small kids and bonded with Seesa, Lisa. He walked around saying Amma! Amma! and even though he screamed each time we went up for darshan, I have no doubt that he too enjoyed the beautiful atmosphere of her presence. We took him to have dinner at her table. He got a blessed popadam and dipped it in his icecream. I look forward to a darshan that will come when he plays with her and makes her laugh. Thank you for a wonderful trip!!