Christmas concert at the Forest Drive Baptist Church

The last Sunday (December 16) we were all invited by Chris for a concert at the Baptist Church on Forest Drive, less than a mile from the Walmart and a mile away from our first acco in the US - Extended Stay Americas. It was our first chance to witness protestant Americans worship and was truly a delightful experience. The event was just for an hour - an auditorium with lots of worshippers in the pew area and on the stage there was the choir. Also there was an orchestra. There were many songs - gospels and hymns - including some rock type gospels in the agenda. Next to where the choir stood was a huge display with lyrics flashing for the audience to sing along with the choir. It was all about christmas - the birth of the Baby, the Magi, the gifts, the concept of giving gifts and of life and eternal life. The message sounded so similar to what we learn in Hinduism too - meaning that the essence of most of the world religions are more or less the same. When we left the place, it was very cold and around 8PM already...the next thing planned out was the Christmas drop-in at Chris' place. We (Shveta and me, Hemant and Sonia) had gone to the Forest Drive stores to hunt for the gift and finally after buying it and all the gift wrapping material - packed it then and there and put it in the car before leaving for the concert.
Chris and Sharon's house is quite close to the church - just a mile's drive from the place, on Percival Road. They had invited virtually every Indian staying at Windsors and some 30-40 people had turned up!..As a matter of fact, Sharon and Chris used their cars to guide all the cars to their home. And the entire place was jampacked with our people. There was some beautiful Christmas decorations in their living room and the table had some delectable dishes - samosas, pakoras, turkey wings in honey, and a very delicious dessert - pie kind of a dish. Chris gave a small introductory speech where he introduced his parents, his guests and after a prayer, we all started off on the snacks along with meeting and talking to Chris and Sharon. We talked on a range of topics, including the Bible, their family, his twin brother in Orlando (incidentally he is an identical twin and lives in Winter Park), about how frequently they visit Windsors and about sports, etc. Was a great, great experience for all of us - truly...