Welcome to the new conference!

[Guest guest]

Dear Prabhus

PAMHO,AGTSP

 

I have been desiring to start up a website or conference on this subject

matter for some time now.

 

Since I started the conference, I may as well briefly introduce myself and

explain my situation.

 

The reason that I wanted to start something was that I felt isolated in my

situation. I had heard of devotees in similiar situations but never seemed

to actually meet any.

 

I came into contact with ISKCON when I was 17 and after completing high

school, I became a temple devotee. After 7 years, I went to Vrndavana where

I lived around 8 months, I had some service there. My service abruptly ended

and I was left wondering what to do next. If I went back to South Africa, I

had a suspicion that I would have had to "get married". There was no-one

that I was interested in. On the other hand, I really wanted to spread my

wings a bit and study or work in London (living outside the temple). My

family had settled there after apartheid fell apart. So off I went to

London, my head full of ideas.

 

I was flying as an air hostess for British Airways and generally trying to

fit my spiritual practises into my lifestyle. One day I woke up and realised

that I really wanted to be married and share my life with someone else. I

suddenly also realised that I had a bit of a problem. When one moves out of

the temple unmarried and moves to a different country, especially being a

girl, the temple authorities don't know you and thus it becomes complicated

to meet and marry a devotee. No-one really knows you and what your standards

are. In short it becames tricky. Various female devotee friends came up with

ideas, I wrote to my spiritual master, and lastly had a bad experience with

a devotee website aimed at devotees meeting on-line. Nothing worked out and

I was wondering what one does in that sort of situation.

 

So I decided not to panic and went along with my life, until I met my future

husband,Cimi (at the time an illegal refugee), who also worked at the

airport where I did. Intially I rebuffed him as I didn't want to make a

relationship with a "karmi". Cimi was not about to go away easily, and I

gradually saw all the potential and good qualities that he possessed. I

wrote to my spiritual master about my general dilemma about not being able

to meet a devotee husband easily and naturally. I was surprised at what he

wrote. He encouraged me to maintain my standards and explain to Cimi my

lifestyle etc, and see what happened. I had positive reactions, and after

some time Cimi proposed marriage . My spiritual master met him and really

warmed to him, and gave his blessing to get married. He encouraged me to

make him vegetarian and help him spiritually.

 

We established some ground rules before we got engaged, as I was very firm

on particular issues e.g vegetarian house and kitchen etc, children and so

on. I also realised that he loved me for who I was because I was a devotee!

 

So that was 3 years ago. We got married in Albania in a christian church,

mainly because I wasn't comfortable having a fire sacrifice when he ate

chicken at work. Now we live in New Zealand. I am a beauty therapist and he

manages at a restaurant.

 

Well that's me ! That's where I am coming from. I was hoping in this

conference that devotees can share ideas to encourage our loved ones towards

Krsna, to support each other through hard times, and to know that you are

not alone by any means and its not a failure but a long-term preaching

mission designated by the Lord !!!

 

Hope to hear from anyone soon ...

Y.S.

Tirupati dasi