Morning Prayers Recited:
• Om Saha naavatu (My Prayers, page 6)
• Karagre Vaasate (My Prayers, page 43)
• Sarasvati Namastubhyam (My Prayers, page 44)
• Guru Brahma (My Prayers, page 9, third shloka)
Vedic Chanting:
• Praarthanaa with Panditji. (Chinmaya Book of Vedic Chants, page 3)
• Medha Sukhtam with Panditji. (Chinmaya Book of Vedic Chants, page 35)
Bhajans: None
Storytime with Swamiji: Today the children watched an episode on Narasimha, an avatara of Lord Vishnu.
Art Projects: Toran making, beadweaving, and cotton spinning
Shaanti Circle Discussion: After our morning prayers, the aunties put the challenge out there ... we didn't think the kids could do it. But they did -- 4 whole minutes of silence, and nearly every one of our campers gave the correct pebble count! By far, one of the best game plays we've done yet. Good going, kids!!!
We did not have time to discuss the Chinmaya Pledge today, as planned. Instead we very happy to spend our circle time learning a new song with Sheela Auntie. She will be joining us every Wednesday afternoon, with guitar in hand. In addition to reviewing the song she taught us last week ("Come to Me, Lord Krishna,") she introduced a new one dedicated to (and about) Gurudev, which she wrote. The tune and lyrics are absolutely lovely, and we really appreciate her sharing her experiences with Gurudev. Her descriptions of Swami Chinmayanandaji gave us a wonderful, personal feeling about him ... it was truly inspiring to listen to stories from a devotee who spent time with him. This is such a treat for the children (and the aunties) -- and we look forward to learning more songs and having her share her experiences every week!
End of Class Prayers: Poornamadah, Chinmaya Pledge
Photo Gallery: July 15 (click here to view)
Comments: July is really the birthday month for us. A very happy Birthday to Aishu! She turned 10 today ... we wish her many, many more special birthdays to come!
Today Panditji told us that our chanting was good -- and what a great feeling that was for all of us. His only comment was that we needed to chant louder. So, tomorrow, we have all agreed to chant really loud ... so much so that we hope to disturb our neighbors -- which happen to be about a mile or so down the road :-)
Believe it or not, our Lego Table was not missed today after all. Instead of the table being the hub of activity for our younger campers, we found them checking out the other stations. And, we were very excited to find that they spent most of their time at the takhli spinning center! Uncle was sharing his experiences with them of having to learn spinning in school when he was a young boy. The kids were pretty shocked -- and thought he was really lucky that he had to make yarn in school :-) We are extremely proud of all the boys who took time today to spin -- and hope that they will continue learning this remarkable art.
And, because the takhlis came out in full force today -- we had some older boys revisit the book charkhas. Man, oh man, so much productivity today -- cotton spinning, bead weaving, macrame knotting, puzzle solving. We're guessing that everyone is going to sleep nice and hard tonight ...
