Day 109, Year 5: Sadness Doeth Prevail
Date: Friday, February 12, 2010
Weather: Back to Sunny and Warm
Location: Bolgatty Hotel Anchorage, Cochin (Kochi), India

Mark’s mother always said “Sadness Doeth Prevail” when there was a very sad situation. The sad situation is that my brother passed away, but he went quickly and painlessly after the life support systems were removed. For that we are thankful. So on Thursday, February 11, 2010, Richard Lee Martin left us. And that leaving has left a big hole in my being. He was just the best big brother that any little girl could ever hope to have and I will miss him so very much. I so appreciate the messages I have already received from some of you. It is just so very hard to be here when I really need to be with family, so any messages are certainly welcomed. I talked with my sister and my children this morning (Thursday night East Coast US time) and then talked with my sister-in-law Conda this evening. She is doing as well as can be expected and has a wonderful support system of family and friends surrounding her. She understands our decision to not travel home for the funeral and is planning a celebration of my brother’s life once we get home in 2011. My brother’s funeral service will be on Tuesday afternoon, and we are hoping to be able to connect via Skype with family and friends on Monday and Tuesday evenings. In the meantime, we are going to continue life as planned, as I know that is what my brother would want me to do.

For some time now, we have been planning to leave Cochin tomorrow by bus and travel inland to the Periyar Wildlife Reserve. We put those plans on hold once we knew of my brother’s condition, but now we have decided to go. It will take us five hours by bus to reach the reserve. We are trying this trip using public transportation and Lonely Planet travel tips on where to stay and what to do. If this doesn’t work out, we hire a driver with travel experience for future trips, but we shall see. We will be back here on Monday so that I can talk with family gathered for my brother’s funeral, and then we will prepare for our next trip south of here.

It is possible that we will have no communication for the next three days. We are hoping to be able to send our logs from internet cafes, but we are told by others that cell phones and wireless internet dependent on cell communication does not exist in the hinterlands. So if you do not hear from us for three days, don’t panic. Just know that we will be out there communing with the animals in the reserve and thinking of family so far away..