DELHI, INDIA — DEC.13.2007

Dying never sounded so sweet, the propsect of the release of suffering, the seduction of the release of all pain so appealing.

Curled up in bed, stomach wrenching, chills, non-existant fevers, and other unmentionables, for the three hours I was awake during the day I wondered what of the variety of food and street vendors I had sampled over the past couple days had passed to me this wretched virus, this stomach infection, this god-forsaken illness.

It was the worst I had ever felt in my entire life.

But then to the rescue came the Gandhi family, my hosts in Delhi. A call to an uncle, a prestigous doctor, and a quick trip to the pharmacict for a course of antibiotics, and I was on my way to recovery.

The following day I was at the travel agent’s office, enjoying their warmth and hospitality, their great advice and help, their admonishments to be careful with what I eat, and I was set for a ten-day trip through Rajasthan.

And that evening I enjoyed a taste of the urban Delhi socialite life, the business present and entrepreneurial future, and the company of friends old and new.

And this, in just a couple simple exchanges, provides a glimpse of the one truth that many claim defines India: diversity.

I have been in India about two weeks, and have seen a various slices of life, sometimes alternately wonderful, wrenching, painful, lively, insufferable, friendly, inquisitive, aggressive, argumentative, emotional, passive, social, warm, cold, ignorant, tremendously helpful; together a rich social life that defines peoples’ lives and permeates its entire culture.

And more is to come. Excitement, nervousness, sublime beauty and highs and lows await. Welcome to India.