High School Students tour Gurdwara

Friday, April 28, 2023

The Chardi Kala Project hosted 85 high school students from Lynden Christian High School, with their teachers and principal, at the Guru Nanak Gursikh Gurdwara (Pole Road, Lynden).

85 students! Two school buses are full. And none of them arrived with head coverings.
No problem; the Gurdwara has lots of kerchiefs for people to wear. But getting them all tied on so many heads, all at the same time was challenging.

Yet soon, everyone washed their hands and got delicious vegetarian Indian food in Langar Hall. The magic of Langar - sitting together and sharing a meal - had its usual universal mellowing effect.

After learning about the tradition of Langar and eating the delicious meal, we went into the Worship Hall. The students got to see the Sri Guru Granth Sahib (Sikh Holy Book and Guru), and ragis (musicians) played gurbani kirtan (Sikh hymns) for them. All the basics about the Sikh religion were shared. And questions got answered.

Almost every student reached out to say "thank you" as they left. The principal and teacher asked if we could do it again next year.
"Absolutely!"

Eighty-five students is a large field trip, and high schoolers can be a challenging audience, but today was a delightful and grand experience. Fully satisfying and fun.