I have spent several days in the hospital in Galle with a pain in my right side which the doctors said was probably an infection of either the kidneys or the urinary tract. I had been advised to go to the hospital in Colombo, but did not want to travel so far. After my stay in Galle (6 miles to the east), I see why the advice was good: facilities in Galle were so wretched that all the extra help and favoritism I was given did not compensate, and I returned to the Island several days ago with a severe cold and a slight Fever - though apparently my kidney is now all right. Am taking aspirin, enteroviaform, cold tablets, and a native medicine which is rubbed on the skull (and which seems to be very effective against colds, headaches, and mosquito bites). Also drinking lots of orange juice. The oranges in Asia, by the way, are green, not orange, except when they are green, at which time they are yellow; and are very acid and require lots of sugar to be palatable.
I've been thinking for some time about taking my higher ordination, and, while I'm not decided that I‘m fully prepared for it - there are a few difficulties in the way - I would like to be as prepared as possible. One of the requirements for the ordination is to have the permission of one's parents, and so I would like you to give me your permission so that that can be settled before proceeding further. Note that I do not require, nor do I ask for, your approval - that is hardly to be expected - but only your permission. (If you don't want to give me your permission then, of course, I will be obliged to continue with only my lower ordination, which may, eventually, make progress more difficult for me, but will not prevent me from progressing.)
Thinking back, it seems October is hospital month for me, isn't it? Last year it was hepatitis, before that Israel, before that Beirut. Oh well - finished for this year, at any rate…
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