By: Sukhcharan Kaur, 11th Grade

Water drops falling from the sky, just another rainy day at Amritsar, India. Everyone is hiding beneath ceilings and umbrellas, closing stores, suspending activities, running back home and desperately trying to stay dry…everyone but MPA students.

What is so “dangerous” about the rain? Why do people always run away from it? After all, water is one of the most precious gifts of Mother Nature. We are lucky to get it, avoiding it just keeps us away from being part of the miracle. Yes it is true, your clothes may be wet, the hairdo or makeup could vanish and you could even get a small cold. All of those reasons are not enough to avoid the sensations of water running all over the body, the sight of all the plants and trees being watered by nature or the fun you can get without having to pay a cent.

One thing we have been taught here is the power within ourselves to turn things as we want them to be. Bad things can only become bad when we let them; it is just matter of perspective. We can take something, complain about all the negative effects of it while hiding from them, or we can take the same thing and think what we can do to make it useful and

pleasant. And by following this philosophy, Silver House was given one of the greatest times our squad has spent together this year.

Playing in the rain.

Everything wet, all full of mud, at any time you could just slip and fall right on the ground. What is the best thing to do about it? Run to the Kabadi field! There’s no better place to spend a quality rainy squad time than a whole field where everything that surrounds you is just a flat ground full of mud which, by the way, is designed as a wrestling space. Our Squad Leader, Akaljeet Kaur, took us to enjoy the rain to the maximum as we ran and fought under it.

“Her shirt is still clean!” that’s all we needed to hear to run after one of the girls and throw mud all over her. From our feet to the last end of our hair, every single girl of our squad finished covered in sludge. Wrestling, running, fighting and enjoying the gift of water was how we decided to have fun together. It is hard to put into words the experience and sensation of having done that, but I can say that it brought back the kid within us.

People who decided that rain was not good for them and preferred to stay away from it allowed the situation to affect their life. By using our mind to remake the situation according to our desires,  we opted to live in the moment and enjoy what we were given. We turned “a rainy day” into “our rainy day.” In the end, the sun shone upon us and a big rainbow arose to our delight.

What will you do on your next rainy day?

Results of the Cambridge Exams for 10th and 12th Grade have not yet been announced.  The following students earned a 3.5 GPA or higher thus far:

• Siri Avtar Singh Khalsa
• Tashi Nyima
• Narayan Singh Khalsa
• Japji Singh Khalsa
• Gururaj Singh Khalsa
• Guru Partap Singh Khalsa
• Gurusundesh Singh Khalsa
• Simran Kaur Narang
• Gurudev Singh Khalsa
• Simran Kaur Khalsa
• Andrea Viviana Garza
• Ramneek Kaur Brar
• Har Narayan Singh Khalsa

• Our first ever Cambridge Examinations have begun!!  After the first day Kirandeep Kaur reported: “Our first CIE have finally begun. The grade 10 students began their examinations with the Combined Science practical examinations and the History Paper 1 examination. One examination in the morning and the other in the afternoon.
  According to the students the Combined Science practical was easy in parts (Biology and Chemistry) and a little tough in Physics. However, they attempted the examination with confidence and complete composure. After the examination was over, they felt that they had scored “well”.   After this examination they sat with Arvind and revised for the History examination, taking a short break for lunch. The questions in the History examination were not tough and Arvind had covered most of the material in her classes and during the academic intensive.  Again the students, attempted the examination with skills, which are displayed by students who are used to taking such arduous examinations. The A/Cs are a boon in the examination classrooms as it is so much more comfortable for the students and they can concentrate on their examination instead of the heat.”
• Before leaving for home the students participated in demonstration classes using the three new Smart Board’s that will be employed next year:
• The first ever web-conference meeting between Kirandeep Kaur, Academic Principal and interested parents was held at the end of April.  Present were:  Gurumeher Singh, Guruprasad Kaur, Siri Daya Singh, Simran Kaur (parent and board member), Siri Shiva Singh, Guruhans Kaur, and Gurumustuk Singh.  Guru Meher Singh wrote “We all felt a lot of appreciation, and more in touch with what is happening for our kids at MPA. The notes reflect our desire to continue and build on this positive experience.”  We hope to make this kind of valuable collaboration a regular tradition!
• You’re invited to the Miri Piri Academy Graduation Ceremony for 2010! See details here.

• Enrollment for the 2010-2011 school year is now open. Please start your application today! Financial Aid applications for new students are also being accepted. If you have any questions please contact Pooja Vohra at .
• We invite you to subscribe to the newsfeed of our official MPA Blog so you can stay in touch with what the children are doing!

Akaljeet Kaur, 12th Grade

Students at the Golden Temple

Before coming to Miri Piri Academy I heard that we had to go to some temple at two o’clock in the morning to wash it. Why would people want to do that?  The first time I went to seva I understood why. There is nothing more beautiful than serving. To surrender yourself to God without expecting anything back, you serve.  And that is the beauty of it, without expecting, everything comes, because when you give, God gives to you.

That’s the experience I have when I go every morning to the Golden Temple. When I enter the temple I have the feeling of being home, when I see the sangat I see my family, and when I serve, I see myself. God gives me everything, and I feel it, every time I sit to wash dishes, when I take peoples shoes, when I sweep the parkarma. I know HE is there with me. The feeling of complete surrender, no ego, just me and Him.

It may shock some to know that waking up at 2:30AM every morning is something that I look forward to. It keeps me invigorated and excited to think that I will be at the Golden Temple every morning, in the presence of sangat, listening to divine banis. There is no other experience compared to going to the Golden Temple for forty days straight, to serve, be with the sangat, meditate on the parkarma and have some delicious Indian chai.

This is my last year at MPA and nothing breaks my heart more than the thought that I really don’t know when I will be blessed with the opportunity to serve at the Golden temple again.

• You’re invited to the Miri Piri Academy Graduation Ceremony for 2010!  See details here.
• Forty-days of Parkarma Seva at the Golden Temple is nearly over, with more participation and enthusiasm than ever before.
• Students are studying long hours and have started their final exams .  Those students who are not sitting for the IGCSE or A Level exams will be heading home May 8th.
• Enrollment for the 2010-2011 school year is now open. Please start your application today! Financial Aid applications for new students are also being accepted.  If you have any questions please contact Pooja Vohra at .
• We invite you to subscribe to the newsfeed of our official MPA Blog so you can stay in touch with what the children are doing! You are also invited to contribute your own thoughts, videos and pictures of the school for the blog.