ELIZABETH MY BITTER HALF PART II Mt.ABU

Liz's ordeal with "Takayasu arteritis" 

As promised, I am here to continue my story concerning my bitter half. After the removal of her small toe, I brought Liz home to Abu. It was bitterly cold as it was the month of January. To keep Liz warm I made sure the room’s temperature never fell below 22 C, mentally and physically worn out. Her ordeal had just begun. Her life changed with Takayasu arteritis, but she was fortunate it only affected her ankle as it can be terminal if it affects the heart. The nights were terrifying as she went through agonizing pain; even powerful painkillers had little effect on her. Her toes turned black and began to resemble something from a horror movie as blood flow decreased. Dry Gangrene had set in.

I called Dr. Anandan in the Maldives and inquired how much longer Liz would have to bear this bombardment. He responded calmly, saying they needed to wait and see how much damage there was before deciding on amputation. I am a complete cynic; his soothing remarks left me shattered. Liz, on the other hand, had complete trust in her mentor's prognosis; she endured the pain with dignity and awaited his return from the Maldives.

Dr. Anandan couldn't make it on his scheduled dates, which made me worried. Liz seemed a bit anxious, something I hadn't seen before.. Her big and second toes were gone to charcoal, shrivelled, and were not a pleasing sight to behold.

A lot has happened since I posted my last blog on her. Today I am in a better frame of mind and do not have the proverbial ‘sword of Damocles’ hanging over my head. After the removal of the small toe, the other toes followed suit. Here are some photographs taken by my web camera of her foot to forward to Dr.Anand.

Dr. Anandan who was one of the chief physicians to the President of the Maldives and had to be away for long breaks, kept in touch with me via e-mail. Here is one such extract.
Dr. Anand.
M.S., M.N.A.M.S., F.I.C.S.,
Dip. Laparoscopy (Germany),
Consultant surgeon,
E-Mail - dranand108@yahoo.com
Dear SIR, NICE to get your mail. You can continue to use the ointment for the foot and request Dr Sharma to have a look periodically to see the foot to decide whether further disarticulation of the toes is needed. Since they have requested me to visit another hospital to take care of a few more surgical cases, I may have to delay my return to Mt Abu. I will try to come as soon as possible. Meanwhile please send me mail often
Anand---

Ainsley wrote:

> Good Day Dr Anand,

How are you? Here is a report as to the progress of my better half, Elizabeth. Although she's improving, there's a minor problem - her skin opens up and there's a reddish and yellowish fluid coming out of her foot when she walks. The third toe at the joint is pink, but the rest has turned black, she has stopped taking painkillers and does not experience the pain that she had previously felt. Also between her toes, she has some raw skin which is difficult to clean. Should we use some medicated cream to keep these parts moist as the climate has turned very dry and the skin also has turned dry?

Do you believe in miracles? I do not, but what I have witnessed is certainly a miracle, the miracle of wonder drugs that have made the impossible possible. Sal Hospital doctors suggested that amputating Liz's leg above the ankle was the best solution to save her life. They did the angiography in 2003 in the month of December, it’s now five years and the team of doctors who had attended to Liz still cannot believe that this adorable woman is still alive and kicking. She’s still on medication, moves around and is in good health. Her foot does give her trouble, especially in the winters, so each winter we leave our Abode in the Mount and head like migratory birds for warmer destinations; Goa, Madras, Ahmadabad and Bombay have been a few of our winter destinations these last few years.
The tide that had taken a turn for the worse in our lives with Liz’s ordeal has helped us to come out of it with a better understanding of what life is all about. We know we are not yet out of the woods, but are thankful that we still have each other to tide us over if the next tsunami hits. Her foot has healed but she has to be very cautious and careful that she never hurts her foot accidentally, as it would take ages to heal. This is a snapshot of her foot as of today.

To have a better idea of this rare disease "Takayasu arteritis" click on the links below

http://vasculitis.med.jhu.edu/typesof/takayasu.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takayasu

Mount Abu "Garasias"

  The Flower Moon

May 2, 2007

The Full Flower Moon. Abu’s hillsides are in full bloom. Out here in India, it’s called “Buddha Purnima”. The full moon this year fell on May 2, 2007; it commemorates the birth anniversary of Lord Buddha. On special days, many people go to Indian holy places to ask the gods for their favour. What fascinates me is the large number of "Garasias" who come to my hometown.

These Garasias throng to Abu by the hundreds and that too on foot, they hoof it all the way up from villages all over Rajasthan. They come in enormous groups singing and dancing in their local dialect till they amass around the famous Nakki Lake at Abu, their final destination.

For the Garasias, "Buddha Purnima" is an important day as they decided on marriages on this day. The Garasias pay the bride's "price" to her father after elopement. Should this agreement not work out, the girl returns home with her father, who receives some money for the inconvenience caused.

The Garasias, legend has it is descendants of the Rajput tribe of the Chauhans. Apparently, the Chauhans, after being defeated in a battle aeons ago, fled and mingled with the local Bhil tribe to form a distinctive group. The tribal population of Garasias are concentrated around the hills of Abu and the KOTRA region of Udaipur.

The Garasias have a Bhil culture with bows and arrows for hunting and self-defence. I Still fail to understand how they have a higher status than the native Bhil. Perhaps there is some truth in the legend of the Garasias origin (the fallen Rajputs)

The zest for the life of these people left an impression on me. I’m posting a few snaps of these fun-loving folks, Happy viewing.

"Garasias" who come to my hometown.

"Garasias" who come to my hometown, during Buddha Purnima"

Garasias throng to Nakki Lake

Mount Abu "POLO THE ELITE GAME"

Mount Abu

Polo the elite game
I did go down for the finals of the polo match played in the heart of the city at the Trevor's Oval . This year the organizing committee had done an exceptionally well planned endeavor, striking invitation card were handed to VIP’s, the field was in a much better shape and the games drew spectators from all walks of life. The Games opened with pomp and show.
The name polo is said to have been derived from the Tibetian word "pulu", meaning ball. It is now generally accepted that modern Polo originated in Manipur. In Manipur the game was played in villages, with few rules and the number of players limited only by the number of horses available. Long, narrow lanes were usually used for a field. Players protected their legs by attaching leather shields to their saddles and girths. This game was considered by the nomads as the supreme test of courage and horsemanship. British soldiers and planters who witnessed the game played by Manipuri tribesmen imported the game to UK in the 1860s. The English, modified the rules and made it popular around the world
The outdoor game consists of six 7 minute chukkers, during which players may change mounts. There is a four minute interval between chukkers and a ten minute halftime. Play is continuous and is only stopped for penalties, broken tack or injury to horse or player. The object is to score goals by hitting the ball between the goal posts, no matter how high in the air. If the ball goes wide of the goal, the defending team is allowed a free 'knock-in' from the place where the ball crossed the goal line, thus getting the ball back into play.
This year there was a mishap in the second day’s play. One horse broke its leg and had to putdown, for which the animal activists wanted to take up the cause and make an issue of it. The news paper did make a mention of it. The storm that was brewing in the tea cup blew over with the games concluding on the 15/4/07.
Polo has been revived in Abu to attract tourists and to make it more popular. Another sport that’s on the agenda is going to be Golf. Golf was played in Abu till the early sixties, and then just faded away. A snap of the old golf building.

The Rajputana Golf Club

Spectators

Game in full swing

Whew,this post almost got my goat after umpteen attempts I finally managed to upload only a few snaps

Mount Abu PALM SUNDAY

St. Anne's Church Mt.Abu

St.Anne's Church Mt.Abu

The Catholic Church St. Anne's Mount Abu

This is how Passion Week Begins in

Mount Abu

Some parishioners or a parishioner is using the church and the parish priest’s shoulder to .fire his personal vengeance against none other than Mr Aubert’s family. Mr Aubert, one of the staunch pillars of the church, is being targeted, as anyone can see by the notice splashed all over the church. This is the notice.

Notice in church

Dog Menace

Till to date, DOGS have troubled none of the parishioners over the last few years., a fact they have been a blessing keeping vandals away from the church property. If a parishioner taunts, pelt, and excites sleeping dogs, would he expect an animal to be submissive to his tantrums? This behaviour has excited the dogs to react by barking at this parishioner. Animal behaviour is understandable but mature Parishioners go out of their way in connivance with the Parish priest and target ONE of our PILLARS of the church. How is the parish priest allowing this personal vendetta to take place in the house of God? Is he also involved in this Farce? “Preserve the Sanctity of the church” makes me laugh. They had strewn the church with this printed notice all over the pews, on the toilet door, etc. How was this allowed? Oh, the Catholic church! God be with it.

The Agnostic,

Ainsley

PHOTOS TAKEN INSIDE THE CHURCH AND OUTSIDE

Notice in front of church

On the church entrance door,

On the church notice board
Also
In all the church Pews

On the church bathroom door

Finally

On the Pulpit.

Been at this post from palm Sunday and am still struggling to upload it as my dial-up connection is a real pain ........

Today is the Finals for the Polo Matches at the Oval, it's a beautiful day with clouds in the sky. I was hoping to be there but as luck will have it have other commitments. If I do go, I'll post a small comment on the same.