tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12194127655643357752024-03-11T20:44:05.920-07:00random musingsMusingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.comBlogger122125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-17854368065107449392018-08-27T23:49:00.005-07:002018-08-27T23:49:53.231-07:00Your Child is NOT a Mini You.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>Being an Extrovert Mum to an Introvert Son </b></div>
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Yes I am writing about extrovert and introvert and yet I feel
these are again just some of the boxes. Not everyone is a complete either. So there
are times my introvert hubs and son go out in the world and deliver a lectures,
extempore and speeches. Both of them are amazing speakers btw. And me the
extrovert develop jelly knees if I have to address a hall of audience. Yeah not
many people understand that I can turn into a bundle of nerves, since they do
know me as a vivacious gregarious loud human. </div>
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However, there are certain traits and especially in social
set ups where I see this play up and come to the fore the most. So while it is
easy for me to talk to people, laugh and joke like I always knew them, my son
will come up with a variety of answers ranging from hunn to ah to yes as
conversation sentences (yes that hunn is a complete sentence for him…the beginning,
middle and the end) with people he knows intimately too. </div>
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For well meaning humans around me when he was little, not
talking or preferring to remain alone with his nose in the book was something
like a dis-order and not normal. And since I hadn’t had any experience with introvertism,
I would also think that maybe this is not the norm. everybody around me used to
say, oh he will become ok when he grows up, don’t you worry and worry I used to
much. I used to take him to many kiddie birthday parties and social gatherings,
where he as an infant used to howl and kept sitting in another room in the
venue or howl so much we had to leave. All my close relatives will vouch for
this. </div>
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Anyways as a well meaning, unconscious and unaware mother I only
took it for social shyness and the poor kid used to be subjected to peer
birthday parties. Here too, he would cling to me, sit with me, not swing or
slide. To say that only he was distressed is half the story, I used to be
equally if not more stressed, first prepare him to go, then cajole him, then
come back with tears in both his and my eyes and wonder yeh theek kab hoga. </div>
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One day we were both sitting in the park, and watching kids
play and run around. He was just about 5 years only. I asked him, “arnaav why don’t
you enjoy?” “don’t you like to go out there and play?” he calmly asked me
another question, a simple question that just entirely shifted my perspective. He
said, “ mamma why do you think I don’t enjoy. I am enjoying just observing and
watching. You know I enjoy books and being at home, do you think these kids
enjoy the same?” it was a huge moment for me and something that completely
shook me out of wherever I was at that time and whatever I was doing to make
him fit in with others. I internalized that if I was asked to keep my gob shut
and my giggles contained, it would be such a punishment for me, and by that
logic if I am snatching his peace of solitude and aloneness I am actually
punishing him. I learnt my lesson then and never subjected him or myself to
another birthday party with magic shows, jumpies, games and blah. </div>
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Just one simple step towards acceptance, that we are both
completely unique and different personalities brought in a lot of peace in both
our lives. My son is not a mini me. Infact he is not a mini anyone, he is who
he is, a unique person with his own likes and dislikes and way of living life. </div>
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Today, he accepts my loudness and I his quietness. We still
do tend to get onto each others nerves sometimes with this and when we do we try
to convey it politely. </div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-60508160241216098752018-08-03T00:02:00.004-07:002018-08-03T00:04:17.922-07:00Every Day Hero: Shiivaani Mahajan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>When the Wound leads you to Your Purpose</b></div>
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Life is uncertain. What we take for granted today, can any
day turn out to be what we desire, the most. I feel, it is not what happens to
us that makes our life what it is, it is what we make of what happens in our
life. This is a story of a courageous woman who literally smacked adversity
right in its face and not only won her battle, but also found her purpose. From
having healed to become a healer, and be that agent of change for others going
through their pain this is an incredible journey of my hero, Shiivaani Mahajan.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I met her at a
retreat, a lovely vivacious girl with an infectious laugh, a chatterbox and a
gorgeous person. I naturally gravitated towards her magnetism and enthusiasm
for life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjelqiwrO-DH1Nl4qmhbYtAT2ddTVTgkcM1h3dC5WDibB5cp0-Mcln-4xjCYhFMFAMbuXQSYVXP-V7d4ze5b-4jtWmlOkgPClb6ayPQRXxvxegz7EFbdrpAb9f_xCxLG3GrpseguMYFLM0/s1600/IMG-20180802-WA0012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="864" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjelqiwrO-DH1Nl4qmhbYtAT2ddTVTgkcM1h3dC5WDibB5cp0-Mcln-4xjCYhFMFAMbuXQSYVXP-V7d4ze5b-4jtWmlOkgPClb6ayPQRXxvxegz7EFbdrpAb9f_xCxLG3GrpseguMYFLM0/s320/IMG-20180802-WA0012.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Soul Sister</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
One night as were strolling around in the lawn, she shared with me
her life’s story and I feel it is a story of courage, love, will power, faith
and surrender. It’s a story worth its weight in gold. Read on, her story in her
own words: <br />
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Life is a journey
full of twists and turns, and one has any idea where this path will lead
him/her to. We can plan with details to ensure a smooth ride, chart out a route
and calculate all the pit stops on the way, but none of this guarantees a
trouble free drive to the destination. Speed breakers, punctures, engine
failures or empty fuel tanks are very much a part of your learning curve.”<br />
<br /></div>
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Shiivaani began her work as a complementary therapist, pain
management expert and a healer almost a decade ago. She recounts, “It was in
the year 2007, I was walking down the stairs of a cinema hall and suddenly I
lost my balance and held on to the railing lest I fall. I had not imagined in
my wildest dream that it was just a beginning of a year long ordeal.<br />
<br /></div>
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My body was on a revolt and kept deteriorating with symptoms
like vertigo (24*7), electric sensations in my tips and toes, tingling,
numbness, pins and needles all over, brain fog, memory loss, vision problems,
headaches, lifelessness in my legs and shoulders and a feeling of chronic
fatigue and depression. I had lost the ability to stand with balance, visiting
malls was a terrifying feeling as my ears started buzzing with strange sounds
in the enclosed huge spaces. My hands would tremble while taking money out of
my wallet. I was limping throughout the day, was forgetting where I had kept
things a few minutes ago and much much more. <br />
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What followed was a series of doctors’ visits in the best of
hospitals in Mumbai without any concrete results. The orthopedic would refer to
the ENT, ENT to the Neurologist and back to orthopedic but to no avail. This
went on for six months and I dreaded waking up each morning as that would mean
living in a difficult body. A feeling of hopelessness seeped in and I had no
answer to my dis-ease. Amidst all this chaos, the only thing that kept me sane
and strong was my two little children who needed me and all that I wanted was
to get back on my feet for them, to feel normal for them. This indeed became my
blessing in disguise. It was a sheer will of a mother that kept me going. I had
no other way out.</div>
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And the path finally showed up when my intense prayers were
answered during a family visit to Delhi. It was then that my mother insisted
that I visit her orthopedic surgeon in Delhi, Dr. Sanjay Nijhara, who was known
for his diagnostic skills and was treating people in non-invasive ways. Like
all moms, my mother’s advice proved to be angelic intervention for me and a
turning point in my life.</div>
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On my first visit to his clinic, he pressed a few points on
my wrist and for the first time in 7 months, my eyes lit up. I could really
“See”. He then put my mind to rest and ruled out brain tumor or MS or
Parkinson’s in my case. My condition was diagnosed as Chronic Myofascial Pain
Syndrome, a musculo-skeletal condition which disturbs the normal functioning of
the body causing a lot of distress and discomfort in the daily functioning of
life. Finally, I had a diagnosis and I knew I was not dying <span style="font-family: "wingdings"; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span>.<br />
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With boundless hope and faith, I started my treatment under
his supervision and would rush from Mumbai to Delhi every month for the
sessions. I would feel better with his treatment but frequent travel and long
stays was a big challenge to deal with.<br />
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As luck would have it, my meditation teacher asked me to
visit one of her students, Freny, who was practicing “Bowen Therapy”, a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>very gentle technique that did not involve
any manipulation whatsoever. I had no reason to doubt and Ianded up at Freny’s
place. There was an instant connect with her and I surrendered my body with
complete faith and gratitude. <br />
<br /></div>
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In the meantime, Dr. Nijhara, a believer in holistic healing
methods<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a>, gave me a go-ahead for Bowen and asked me to continue
the sessions in Mumbai. His recommendation and his confidence in Bowen Therapy
gave boost to my confidence and eventually my visits to Delhi reduced after a
few Bowen sessions. This therapeutic treatment was proving to be a miracle for
my condition and my body was responding miraculously, week by week. I was
feeling stable and normal again. The balance had returned and massive shifts
were occurring within. It was as if one link led to the other and I was guided
to my highest good. Things like walking, dancing, seeing, thinking that I had
taken for granted were taken away from me and then restored magically. It was
nothing less than a surreal experience.<br />
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I was so awed by Bowen’s incredible healing power that I
decided to learn the technique myself in order to help people in pain. I saw
them all around me, looking for solutions to their physical challenges. Little
did I know that I will touch innumerable lives by bringing ease and joy in
their journey. It has been close to a decade of practice now and I would not
have it any other way. <br />
<br /></div>
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There is still a long way to go and learning will never end
but this profession has brought so much of abundance, love and divinity in my
life along with a sense of fulfillment that is irreplaceable. So, it’s alright
if plans don’t work out as desired and the journey becomes arduous for a while.
Because eventually we all come out victorious with a little determination, love
and a lot of prayers.<br />
<br /></div>
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There is no end to my joy when my clients call me “ A
Miracle Worker”. By the way, they don’t know that<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I practice The White Witchcraft.”</div>
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<br /></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJHAmgN5UVXboAZq_frwACA9MJTU3y6eLgHzrl1QL93l-ZEzQ-YvNAfytselSpqOmEZYM2wRC7-gZ_OQ4OPVe6fzQygwm7WQ91lHyEcGi521irUef2Qww6EyCz_PnF1vNfCFFFAwuUEPs/s1600/IMG-20180802-WA0014+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="1152" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJHAmgN5UVXboAZq_frwACA9MJTU3y6eLgHzrl1QL93l-ZEzQ-YvNAfytselSpqOmEZYM2wRC7-gZ_OQ4OPVe6fzQygwm7WQ91lHyEcGi521irUef2Qww6EyCz_PnF1vNfCFFFAwuUEPs/s400/IMG-20180802-WA0014+%25281%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At her Healing Space</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC4XP-4NXgRezNjmqo0em0l0C-xj2TLoumcAVzQu4QQthQhQdmRzswzidGW_XynMBy_tO-HJKzlAAI-3QhtKBLG4IZN92AnmpIS4ybxz5dkZ1v03l-CC3MkMsczigKTAH8PBTEgYiiRLI/s1600/IMG-20180802-WA0007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="1152" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC4XP-4NXgRezNjmqo0em0l0C-xj2TLoumcAVzQu4QQthQhQdmRzswzidGW_XynMBy_tO-HJKzlAAI-3QhtKBLG4IZN92AnmpIS4ybxz5dkZ1v03l-CC3MkMsczigKTAH8PBTEgYiiRLI/s400/IMG-20180802-WA0007.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the healer Shiivaani with Gaur Gopal Das, </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggktrDR3_kMy6eUZliRR7kZQ8x3EjXh4Fk7YdbCOEWp5vf5tW338b7tFjaC9zUU_Hs3bczAXH6p9Zs0peuN5gPiFyrJSNlF75xQu89sqA-3Q-BYPaFELqDH31PgdIpDna5P4YsU8pu3K0/s1600/IMG-20180802-WA0008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="380" data-original-width="380" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggktrDR3_kMy6eUZliRR7kZQ8x3EjXh4Fk7YdbCOEWp5vf5tW338b7tFjaC9zUU_Hs3bczAXH6p9Zs0peuN5gPiFyrJSNlF75xQu89sqA-3Q-BYPaFELqDH31PgdIpDna5P4YsU8pu3K0/s400/IMG-20180802-WA0008.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">at an exposition </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I don’t know about the white witchcraft my friend, and what I
do know is that it is a hero’s journey.<br />
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To know more about Bowen and to get in touch with Shiivaani:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Call her at: 9619116531</div>
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https://www.facebook.com/shiivaani.mahajan </div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-28029356715448147812018-07-30T00:05:00.003-07:002018-07-30T00:08:28.772-07:00Badrinath and Mana Village<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Bolo Badri Vishal ki Jai</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well in the land of Dev Bhoomi and char dhams, you
expect this don’t you? yes this was the cry before the tempo traveller rolled on
for any and/or all our sojourns. On reflecting back I think it was very apt
cause we did need divine intervention to save our bums and our knees in the
cramped TT with NO AC when it was ascending. Infact some of us (I wont name,
you know who you are) got soooo angry one day that if we had broken an egg on
her head it would have scrambled and fried. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The second day en route to Govindghat, though it
wasn’t in the itinerary the guide and WOW buddy, weather permitting agreed to
take us all to Badrinath. Fortunately the weather was great with a clear sky
and shining sun, and off we rolled. We reached around lunch time which was perfect
and checked into our Hotel Bhagat. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">room with a view </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The rooms were nothing to talk home about
but omg the view from my window was breathtaking with a small stream flowing
into the gurgling river and just flowing onwards and a helipad on one side.
Couldn’t go dip in my feet in the rivers here due to paucity of time but the
way it roared at night when it rained was both, beautiful and scary. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Post lunch we headed to meet the lord at Badrinath
and reached the temple premises around 3.45pm. our timing was perfect as the
lord had just woken up from his siesta and the crowds had not yet descended.
The temple looked beautiful with myriad colours and patterns on its façade,
more like a Buddhist monastery rather than any temple I had seen before.
Beautiful gorgeous colours and a lovely dome with Om sculpture, topped off with
glistening golden spires. The architecture of the temple was a symphony joining
in two distinct temple architectures and bringing them together. As we climbed
up the steps to enter the garbha griha we were greeted by the bells and sounds
of the hymns. We requested the priest to tell us about the temple a bit and he
obliged. The darshans were relaxed with no jostling around as I am told does
happen on certain busy days. Prasads and circumambulation later, we stepped
down to the sulphur kunds and dipped in our hands in the very warm water. </span></div>
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As is
on any place of popular interest there were many vendors and photographers and
we got a group picture done. On our way back, Abhimanyu pointed out to the
NeelKanth mountain top covered with snow, visible only on clear days.<o:p></o:p><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0BWwu9A7xImjMLX81MCM8FFr39x4blCdKOqJasfai0xEX3eylqLqRNOXY1LVnrRKU4kAZuE4I4hVER3suNKOTOSSkukDLX31WehvdbbTqXb9tzSV4lbaMA-U6ysqiyOulPtsFik9WUbc/s1600/bd10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="346" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0BWwu9A7xImjMLX81MCM8FFr39x4blCdKOqJasfai0xEX3eylqLqRNOXY1LVnrRKU4kAZuE4I4hVER3suNKOTOSSkukDLX31WehvdbbTqXb9tzSV4lbaMA-U6ysqiyOulPtsFik9WUbc/s320/bd10.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neelkanth</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Feeling blessed and lucky for all that we saw and
did in Badrinath, the happy lot now proceeded to the last village Mana. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnM_mo3LcagL_J3HnV7ybGujEIqPW93BzZsWDmnEWMDczgHCHDVhfu1xF68B6MLZbtIoDhz22F25PR8rWpo6DPMWbrxMQdm1tqTRWeK2-udPggEtSCcsHpEJX-LEMsEae4DiPY62OfncE/s1600/bd3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="460" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnM_mo3LcagL_J3HnV7ybGujEIqPW93BzZsWDmnEWMDczgHCHDVhfu1xF68B6MLZbtIoDhz22F25PR8rWpo6DPMWbrxMQdm1tqTRWeK2-udPggEtSCcsHpEJX-LEMsEae4DiPY62OfncE/s320/bd3.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
This
village on the Indo-Tibet border is a characterized by small houses opening up
on the trekable road and with smiling women knitting woolen caps and small
rugs. A cave called the Ved Vyas cave and a Ganesha cave at the end of the trek
upwards is considered to be the cave where Ved Vyas is said to have composed the
Mahabharata.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2XQw19QMYuvW4mNzuNaqX6qzjY0FTszZYwvQOd6QoTwp1UBBrl7OWhwNI0Z0t5rnI_ExFdidjA9leVih_biYXo4p3tEQ26kCNCg6jbORZenIE0yhyphenhyphenjhGIBef76Bd3JzFhToN8pLmqtB4/s1600/bd7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="1090" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2XQw19QMYuvW4mNzuNaqX6qzjY0FTszZYwvQOd6QoTwp1UBBrl7OWhwNI0Z0t5rnI_ExFdidjA9leVih_biYXo4p3tEQ26kCNCg6jbORZenIE0yhyphenhyphenjhGIBef76Bd3JzFhToN8pLmqtB4/s320/bd7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-FQc0Fkh3FeDSTFSWFhSyrGGo6gPf3UXo9k9Aev6DzZ_WJpPjouTup4RTU1L4Mb9DYKg9J4Kg4hD7sLk4v7ZzmYIHrGPSHxZgxPdX6MN33IAzkeDtYDRV8leLUH22G9AyyskWLU2mfo8/s1600/bd8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="346" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-FQc0Fkh3FeDSTFSWFhSyrGGo6gPf3UXo9k9Aev6DzZ_WJpPjouTup4RTU1L4Mb9DYKg9J4Kg4hD7sLk4v7ZzmYIHrGPSHxZgxPdX6MN33IAzkeDtYDRV8leLUH22G9AyyskWLU2mfo8/s320/bd8.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We trekked up to the Ved Vyas cave and found a small tea shop that
is considered to be the last chai ki dukan this side of the border. The climb
up was not difficult on retrospect considering the trekking we all eventually
accomplished but on that day it looked pretty much.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCFX4yBFAOz1UFn85QdBuy39nCRskPim6LO-ztor_dE7U3FyZ7k3QG1aCnj_4nk1giK401M0WGI9_0g46wzVNRuu12tigWw3YEsQD0maih0X88ynqvl2HvDFY9msYFPZacSx_sEd6D92w/s1600/bd4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="460" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCFX4yBFAOz1UFn85QdBuy39nCRskPim6LO-ztor_dE7U3FyZ7k3QG1aCnj_4nk1giK401M0WGI9_0g46wzVNRuu12tigWw3YEsQD0maih0X88ynqvl2HvDFY9msYFPZacSx_sEd6D92w/s320/bd4.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pic Courtesy: Tanya Gupta </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On the way up our guide pointed out the Vasudhara
falls in the distance that looked like a ribbon fall and reminded me of Brides
Veil of Niagara. This fall is the fall that lore says was the one crossed by
the Pandavas to reach heaven. On one corner also lies the Bheem bridge which is
actually a huge boulder that Bheem is supposed to have kept so that Draupadi
could cross the river. There are many tales attached with the entire thing and
we enjoyed each one as was narrated by Abhimanyu, our guide. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">In the evening on our way to the hotel, we stopped
at yet another temple which is the abode of Nar Narayan in the winters. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg10kdEToGI5O1du_aI7PCO2hg_gX5Y6xQOG2z9pHGQ-zN1mTzd2GXGtQUFL8bZSqev4_7u3HJ7qZKRA7IgD4tfy9FBQWzkMmKjy1hiBBAVv-xnSowPP6j41SQxbXTvRguUVam3VsvRuWc/s1600/bd6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="346" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg10kdEToGI5O1du_aI7PCO2hg_gX5Y6xQOG2z9pHGQ-zN1mTzd2GXGtQUFL8bZSqev4_7u3HJ7qZKRA7IgD4tfy9FBQWzkMmKjy1hiBBAVv-xnSowPP6j41SQxbXTvRguUVam3VsvRuWc/s400/bd6.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yog Badri </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
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At the
twilight, looking at this small ancient temple in the hills with its black
stone, a red flag flying high and sounds of small streams and waterfalls
standing testimony to the ravages and beauty of nature was a sight I cannot
forget in a hurry. Away from the family, facing and living with many questions
and the unknown of the days ahead, a conversation with the deity was an experience
I cannot even put to words. All I can say is, this was the beautiful beginning
of what would turn out to be some of our most memorable days together. And what
a beginning it was.<br />
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-15319504711999956472018-07-27T08:04:00.001-07:002018-07-27T08:06:50.686-07:00The Dirty Dozen and then some …<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig4Mr3_uktHUKFjNujSDAS6FyxQFst1_1EQD1XXxTIF3ZqWsKLQe5fR6RYMDKt1n6FtSz9rI1AimQk7wye8lQpc7qaFki04-LvaXuc4_nvfOMoQfuwq1GRUZckrKl-F5hMBLcYcfJNbPs/s1600/camp1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="817" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig4Mr3_uktHUKFjNujSDAS6FyxQFst1_1EQD1XXxTIF3ZqWsKLQe5fR6RYMDKt1n6FtSz9rI1AimQk7wye8lQpc7qaFki04-LvaXuc4_nvfOMoQfuwq1GRUZckrKl-F5hMBLcYcfJNbPs/s400/camp1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I was preparing for my trip, my father asked me,
“so beta are you going with friends?” and I said “no papa, I will make friends…”
and to think how prophetic were those words. The characteristic giggles and
selfies started even before we met at the airport, thank god for whats app. A group
was created and all were excitedly putting in their whereabouts and as some of
us were taking the flight from Delhi, the breaking of the proverbial ice
started at the gates itself. A couple of minutes into the conversation, Rama
was coronated the wise one, and with a mop of silver hair and signature
wisecracks the title sat very well on her. Then there was Doc Geetha, and a doc
on board gave everyone a secure feeling…as is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">lag raha tha pahad chadna hai bhai</i>. Sheela in her inimitable style
and beautiful smiles looked very friendly and also no nonsense. Like Mala told
her, “very corporate”. While Bindu’s laughter echoed all around and Hema
enjoyed all the mirth. In waked Ipsita with her small big bag, I mean small for
being the “only” bag and big if you think carry on. And compared to my largest
suitcase this one looked as if holding only “bare essentials”. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Our buddy Tanya from WOW played really elusive and
none of us could guess that she was on the same flight. She very nicely let us
all create ruckus while waiting and when we asked her later why she didn’t respond
to “who all boarding from delhi?” on whats app replied, “ah well, if I had then
it may have become formal so I let you all introduce yourselves and that made
my job easy!!” Hmmmm….smart kid huh!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The half hour flying time flight from Delhi to
Dehradun got an hour late after boarding, and that meant we missed our lunch at
Padmini Palace which sounded pretty palace like and instead ate daal chawal
with mix veggies at a Dhaba. AH well…we met the rest of us at the Doon Airport
and settled in the tempo traveler taking some random positions that actually
became almost fixed throughout our journey. The 5 or 6 hour journey was pretty
much like ass whipping and leg cramping at the end of the day but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">chalo koi nahi abhi toh pahad chadna hai</i>.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As the journey and days kept progressing we kept
finding each other and ourselves more and more. The first round of comedy was
always trying to remember names, so Geeth used to scream out Anubhaaaa when I was
right next to her thinking that Bindu was Anubha…and she took a long time to
get over it but thank god before the trip ended. Shalini was actually Shailini
and the one who couldn’t sleep any of the nights except one when she had slight
fever. Tanya the “little buddy” was the youngest of us all and with a very
solutions approach, managing 11 headstrong women is no mean task! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Poor Abhimanyu, our guide on the trip was a soft
spoken guy who used to either blush or avoid us hearing loud conversations. He was
inspiring and I guess had good experience too in how to field the queries
pretty well. However, it always seemed to me that he true to his name was in a
chakrahvyu of women with no escape for the next couple of days. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The camp site provided for a lot of laughs too…my
question to Radhika was always, “kitni dandi hai” which meant how strong is the
signal on her BSNL phone cause that was the only network working. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Yeh airtel ki ladki ko koi batao bhai</i>…like
I said I felt pretty much at home cause I don’t get a signal there too. Mala
was always smiling and had everything in her arsenal from dirty jokes to band
aids and much more. Dipti the other kid on the block was the quite one, never
hungry and nibbling on food after everyone had finished. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Some of the hilarious moments came after every trek
cause trek <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pe toh hum pahad chad rahe the
na. saala saans hi nahi aati thi hansi toh </i>….the camp were luxury tents
with attached bathroom, albeit the slope, that always made it an act of balance
to sit on the pot. Everytime my very <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nahane
dhone waali</i> (I am opposite) roomie kept her shower gels etc on the seat
they would invariably tumble down. I don’t want to get in graphic details as to
how we managed! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The camp after the first trek from govindghat to
ghangaria looked like a spa, with all the ladies half pants pulled up till
knees getting massages done. Eeww at 200 bucks just for the claves it was a
pain literally and yet unavoidable kyonki yes you guessed it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">abhi toh aur bhi pahad chadne hain. </i>While
I shared my affirmations with the group, Ipsita shared her observation of how
laughter yoga in her park was done, Ha Ha, Ho Ho, He He….had all of us in
splits. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Post each trek the care takers were the ones who
used to be most bullied, “bhaiya hot water…”, “bhaiya 2 cups black coffee(1is
too less for me)”, “bhaiya maalish walaaa”, bhaiyaaaaaa….. I am sure they must
have heaved a sigh of huge relief after our departure. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After the valley of flowers, the camp turned into a
mini dhobighat, with all wet clothes hanging along with the colorful flags in
the camp. Wow the waterfalls, the moss laden and lush mountains, frothy clouds,
pink sunsets and wet pants furling in the wind.</span></div>
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The shoes came out too and then
came another vendor who believe it or not had the business of drying clothes
and shoes in some bhatti. Now we all gave our shoes at a princely amount of 200
bucks a pair cause abhi <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ek aur pahad
chadna baaki tha na</i>…Abhimanyu kept shouting out instruction, “please ladies
put all your clothes and sandals inside before sleeping cause it will rain at
night…” and we all did. And rain it did. And the next morning before hemkund
sahib trek Abhimanyu emerged in chappals…like hello what happened? Sheepishly he
confessed, “mam I forgot to put them in at night”….rofl. <o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rama with her two poles used to trek with focus and Sheela
with no poles had a ramrod straight back a small pouch on her back and surety in
her gait. Radhika was the determined one, always self motivated and inspiring
others. Bindu and Sheela stuck together and Hema used to be with them or on her
own. Sheela after the treks wondered out loud how could Bindu chatter so much
while climbing, so I guess that means Bindu babes you rock girl! At one point
in the trek, Sheela and Bindu chose to negotiate one shortcut which was a
little rocky and kind of tough and while they were doing all of this, Hema
emerged from the normal route wondering what these 2 were doing?! And these 2
were jaw drop…and then rofl…you know what I mean. I am unsure if they told Hema
this ! On the VoF trek while we were all scattered Shailini made friends with
another group too and after the previous days trek wondered how she was so
charged with the horsepower to today come first and went far off. On the last
day too she was fueled and all charged up and came back down much ahead of the
rest. In turn, making more friendships and knowing more groups. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Many hilarious incidents happened and one of them
was, the horse Geeth took to Hemkund Sahib, that was named Hema. And Geeth
would go on and on describing her attitude and gait and how she was so
competitive that she always wanted to be the first one ahead. Now we also had
Hema in the group and at one time when we were all sitting in and chatting Mala
whose horse was towed with Geeth’s Hema said, “Hema shat on the way…” and in
the split second before it registered, I had weird visuals…as did Geeth…and the
rest of us…before bursting out loud…please don’t ask me to elaborate now. At
Ganga arti also when they started singing hey Maaaa….our thoughts turned to our
own Hema who was oblivious to all the natak happening around and got told
later. By the way, she was also the star of the last day as it was her Happieee
Burdae…and yes we had all come down in one piece and yesss…celebrations were
double cause <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ab toh pahad chad chuke
the!!!! <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">All said and done, it was one of the
most beautiful experiences and we will all remember it ever so fondly, having
experiencing it together. Though we all may have experienced it our own way, and
added our own flavour to the group, one thing is for sure, my words did prove
prophetic. I made friends. The testimony to all of it were the wet eyes, promise to remain in touch and tough to sa Goodbyes. So long girlies...Group Hug !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-44426749774475511902018-07-26T22:27:00.001-07:002018-07-26T22:27:12.239-07:00Life is a trek <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Recently I went trekking to Valley of flowers and Hemkund Sahib; both challenging and by that extension equally satisfying and transforming. I have noticed that most of the things in life are actually microcosmic reflection of the macrocosmic qualities of life and art of living. Some of my musings and life lessons I gathered from the experience are as under:</div>
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1. Everyone is on their own unique journey<br />2. Everyone has their own pace and that is OK<br />3. There is ample support available and yet you have to move your own bum and take your own responsibility<br />4.Travelling light is easier than travelling with baggage. Keep it light baby<br />5. Cause, You gotta carry your own load<br />6.There are resources available all around you, you have to decide which ones suit you and remain in allowance of that choice.<br />7. Your resources are your own, don’t judge others for what they are choosing. You never know when you may need those same ones.<br />8. And if you do need those resources that you may have mentally shun earlier, take it with chin up.. don’t judge yourself<br />9. Make a goal and then forget the goal. In this case the goal is to reach the summit and yet that’s just a goal.<br />10. the minute you arrive at one goal, the goal post shifts. Once you reach the summit, the goal is to reach the base.<br />11. As in life goals will keep moving, enjoy the journey<br />12. Hustle and pause both are required<br />13. Mindful small steps will make you literally and figuratively climb mountains<br />14. Pause to breathe in the beauty, gaze at the waterfalls and smell the roses. Look around, life is beautiful<br />15. Dont judge the pace of others. Everyone is on their own path. Koi aage koi peeche<br />16. You never know you may meet people who were behind you, go right up ahead<br />17. Don’t compare your journey with anyone else. Be kind<br />18. No one will get a medal on reaching the top. Life is not a race to the position<br />19. How “you” arrive matters. What does not matter is what others think of the resources<br />20. Those resources could be your own or hired towards the goal. So be it. Don’t judge yourself or others<br />21. You never know what’s lying at the next bend. You may need that exact same help or support.<br />22. A smile or a kind word spoken to/by the stranger is a big gift. Give that gift. Receive that gift. You never know who you are inspiring<br />23. Kabhi dhoop kabhi chaon. Its not important that the weather changes whats important is how you weather it.<br />24. There are human angels all around someone offering you a sip of glucose just so that you remain revved up in your journey is amazing<br />25. Give and receive with equal joy<br />26. Gratitude is supreme- grateful for this body, life, spirit, nature and everything and everyone. Express it!<br />27. You may need both mantras and affirmations -energy from divine and empowerment from within<br />28. When you are in synch with your breath you are optimal<br />29. Age is actually just a number. You are as old and capable as you think you are<br />30. Growth and expansion happens outside your comfort zone<br />31. If you think you can, you can!<br />32. Celebrate your micro wins<br />33. Keep the humor alive<br />34: In the end though it may seem that YOU have climbed the mountain and done it all. I don’t think you can do it without the support of your fellow travelers, whether they are cheering you from home or walking along. Support is both visible and invisible!<br />35. Last but definitely not the least, it may seem that life is a zero sum game- you reach the peak only to come back to base, in my opinion it is not. Cause you are far richer with all the experience and ready to face the world with renewed vigour.</div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-90273796936165287612018-07-25T08:40:00.004-07:002018-07-25T08:40:49.638-07:00Hemkund Sahib Trek <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Day 5: the trek
to Hemkund Sahib <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">From day 1 most of us had been consistently asking
our guide if the trek to Hemkund Sahib was difficult and all we were getting as
an answer everytime was “one day at a time mam”. Finally on Day 4 he sweetly
says that yes it is a difficult trek and if any of you would like to take the
mule up, after the Valley trek, please do. Some of us opted for the same. To be
frank before I booked for the trek i had spoken to a friend who had done this
tour with WoW and told me that she had opted for the mule and that it saves a
lot of time and energy leaving much more time at the Gurudwara too. I was like
ok I will do that too. However, I got so inspired by the ladies in the camp
that I decided to give the mule a pass and trek it up, all the while thinking
that if I am not able to walk, I will be kind to myself and take the mule from
anywhere en route. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The night after the trek to Valley was painful as
one had climbed down in all the rain negotiating all those stacked up kind of
stones. My knees and legs were hurting and as was in the camp, I couldn’t sleep
beyond 12.30 am. Each time I turned in the bed there was a silent cry out of
pain. I had liberally applied Moov spray (the smell of which I hate) and also
wore the knee support for a while. Anyways in the morning at 7 am post
breakfast, I popped in a Crocin for pain relief and with renewed hope and
enthusiasm began the trek with the group. Being in the group the dynamics of
inspiration and the feeling of “can do” becomes stronger. I can now relate to
that saying of “if you want to walk fast walk alone and if you want to walk far
walk together.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Taking it slowly yet surely we all set out on our
different paces, pausing at every 5 minutes to inhale and look around. After
crossing the Ghangaria bazaar we reached the fork path from where, today we
moved towards Hemkund Sahib. At the base of the mountain we looked up and saw 2
seemingly very small poles that from here looked like pin heads at the peak of
the large large mountain and yes, it was where we were to go. I cannot even
begin to describe how it felt at that time. It was so far away and the fatigue
of last 3 days was catching up too. Gathering all the strength from within and
with a prayer we started the climb up. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The path here is wide and cemented with rocks and
there are mules aplenty, which also means navigating and saving yourself from
them. The path is swept very regularly and is clean. It definitely is steep
though. Today, it took all ounce of energy and will power to move and I kept
mentally switching from mantras to the affirmations and everything in between. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9w-naJ_xNviqCV44MtjsAt5v-hNVd3NWUynAIPDw8MJ_rHxLbPaVP3KA0de45fp_-wyCAiDuxSKyVLd9FpFp3fAhQaRaaqN2fe9RFVGoTAvRo5m7as_4pZxlbK1Oxrbfe5kr48TwWFv4/s1600/h4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="345" data-original-width="613" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9w-naJ_xNviqCV44MtjsAt5v-hNVd3NWUynAIPDw8MJ_rHxLbPaVP3KA0de45fp_-wyCAiDuxSKyVLd9FpFp3fAhQaRaaqN2fe9RFVGoTAvRo5m7as_4pZxlbK1Oxrbfe5kr48TwWFv4/s320/h4.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It was important to remain self motivated and moving. Faith, they say can move
mountains and I saw can make you climb mountains too however majestic they may
be. On the way I saw so many people going up with small babies and old parents,
some on foot, others on mules and pitthus. Each one on crossing saying “wahe
guru”. It was this and a smile that one gave and received by the strangers that
also became a source of energy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As soon as we crossed a milestone we all felt “galat
hai. Ho hi nahi sakta…” we walked so much and it still showed that it was just
a kilometer that we had done. Anyways, it also started to rain and the ascent
became even slower. We finally thought we have achieved a feat when we spotted our
guide waiting for us at a shack and asking us to rest. As soon as we tumbled in
he said, “half hua hai”. I rolled and fell only, mentally and physically. Took
the bench quietly and sat looking at the beautiful red mountain finch that were
pecking on soaked rice. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPy86wkjUHCKYip7UwZHhJCpKsUVNXIEEzWN3YlIYF-33XsB76uJ1lvxWg5Q3nl2rRgmw4XcIosHd45-v9-mP41FLUCE61p7YxjOzoCD9Xj_nSqfYO4oQgdsYyRmmqtRhpw4Fum-sU-zg/s1600/h7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="460" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPy86wkjUHCKYip7UwZHhJCpKsUVNXIEEzWN3YlIYF-33XsB76uJ1lvxWg5Q3nl2rRgmw4XcIosHd45-v9-mP41FLUCE61p7YxjOzoCD9Xj_nSqfYO4oQgdsYyRmmqtRhpw4Fum-sU-zg/s400/h7.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">mountain finch</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Anyways when my walking partner Radhika reached there,
I told her, “radhika he is saying its only halfway (I seriously thought he was
lying) what do we do?” Radhika coolly replied, “nothing we have decided we will
do and so we will.” That sentence and her calm demeanor worked its magic on me
and off we started again. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After having walked a distance again, now we could
hear some shabads from the gurudwara and walking in the rain listening to those
while fully mindful of each breath was nothing short of a walking meditation.
We crossed a couple of streams on the way that were flowing right on the path
making the entire landscape surreal. The air had thinned further. Fortunately
none of us encountered any breathing issues or dizziness. We kept moving step by
step. At one place someone going down offered a sip of glucose and that gesture
in itself was one of the most beautiful ones. I felt so touched and realized
that in life as in this trek we really do meet earth angels if we are open to
receiving. We received and gave many blessings. Most of the flowers that we saw
at the Valley were all here too on the mountain slopes, and it was a delight to
see them. Everytime I spotted blue poppies it was like encountering a friend I
now knew. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At a turn when we were pretty close to the
gurudwara, we – me and Tanya – had the option of taking the stairs or the path.
Some people coming down the steps said the steps are fairly good and we also
felt that now if we don’t reach the ardaas will get over, so we chose to take
the stairs. The initial stairs were very steep and then they became pretty
consistent and not very high. If we looked up the stairs seemed never ending
and reminded me of my very favorite song, “stairway to heaven.” The long
winding stairs were beautiful, however at each couple of steps I needed to stop
to catch my breath. Tanya, the youngest one was leading the way, she was
looking up at the stairs and me at her. By the way I later read somewhere they
were 900 of them. Anyways as with the stairs, they ended. Yes they ended. And
opened up in to the gurudwara compound. Oh my good god, we had made it, we had
climbed, we had reached! After a minute or two of catching our breath we
started to feel cold and quickly ran in the gurudwara. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGbA9V3vgVXZfo3EHQkk-oM-bcsVb3fITwPogmFBCrPkHzLACc5r-VPdXkbSXVsV_ZZVv8iTDoLA0SimZckBOVGBYFAoQ5pOPAgMbc4WZisRIWUi_JeKVXXMFOqaI8kySfyRXH33kKeI0/s1600/h8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="460" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGbA9V3vgVXZfo3EHQkk-oM-bcsVb3fITwPogmFBCrPkHzLACc5r-VPdXkbSXVsV_ZZVv8iTDoLA0SimZckBOVGBYFAoQ5pOPAgMbc4WZisRIWUi_JeKVXXMFOqaI8kySfyRXH33kKeI0/s1600/h8.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the entrance</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0qVX-G3xosLb1DLuuRQUWsSQmj9Vz3Zp_QdOvGZh0SBjFWtzZWdNj3278pUjEI1hb1Sny1tM4h4cFmUWtJ4rAV7Yn9qU2IM7TLgb-dlF6DKII_vkSPF8et_Zpa1DcAwkpghz4TSuq_0I/s1600/h12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="1152" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0qVX-G3xosLb1DLuuRQUWsSQmj9Vz3Zp_QdOvGZh0SBjFWtzZWdNj3278pUjEI1hb1Sny1tM4h4cFmUWtJ4rAV7Yn9qU2IM7TLgb-dlF6DKII_vkSPF8et_Zpa1DcAwkpghz4TSuq_0I/s400/h12.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Once inside, we went to a small prayer room and then
into the main hall. It is so endearing to note that there are many blankets
available in the gurudwara hall for people to wrap them and sit for the
prayers. As soon as I reached in and sat, it was like opening up of floodgates
within me. I was all tears and very wet eyes, I cannot explain the feeling,
maybe surrender feels like this. After having toiled, pushed mental and
physical limits to simply just reach the divinity within and out, it was the
most beautiful experience I ever had. In a minute or so bhai ji came and doled
out a huge ball of halwa Prasad and we ate hungrily, the manna from heaven. I
prayed for everyone, each and everyone I know, have known, and then just every
one. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5RDertgXKl6ZdbGe9du9Pb7LZI-kYnf-iwZjDpRtLyVtIMErE49QCW50XHDPiBQsN0YCGhwMV0ar0S8WNWORkGEpPbSVT6-a4w3fvWt9hJMAskhaMeFEZ9lGe2f2B2vvmvV2qfNb-69Q/s1600/h3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="345" data-original-width="613" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5RDertgXKl6ZdbGe9du9Pb7LZI-kYnf-iwZjDpRtLyVtIMErE49QCW50XHDPiBQsN0YCGhwMV0ar0S8WNWORkGEpPbSVT6-a4w3fvWt9hJMAskhaMeFEZ9lGe2f2B2vvmvV2qfNb-69Q/s1600/h3.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Darbar Sahib </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Thankfully we had reached in time and had some time
to spend in the gurudwara. We were allowed to take photos and we did. Finally
at the end of the ardaas they started announcing that all return as weather was
becoming bad. It already was misty and raining and it seemed will rain more.
Anyways we went to the langar hall and were served khichri and tea Prasad, most
yummy one I had ever had. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After having our fill, we were just around when
Abhimanyu started to call out for us, “jaldi aao”. We rushed and saw that the
mist over the “kund” lifted just for those 30 odd seconds before it came down
and engulfed the lake again. It was a sight I won’t forget in a hurry. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDwK4lsOjDfoFhPLyjkhs54DKk6NWq_B3HiHwH47b2fpoNcWGnelu0e-fWJQibOh_7gNI3p4jnGTFx-QzYZSeNCzw55UmH29AcTxE447dO899jKmWAZiI71g_ZDpVD7Ul7pUNX2xFjdcY/s1600/h5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="345" data-original-width="613" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDwK4lsOjDfoFhPLyjkhs54DKk6NWq_B3HiHwH47b2fpoNcWGnelu0e-fWJQibOh_7gNI3p4jnGTFx-QzYZSeNCzw55UmH29AcTxE447dO899jKmWAZiI71g_ZDpVD7Ul7pUNX2xFjdcY/s1600/h5.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">just for me the veil of mist lifted </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNVF4UjG563sjBw3LMsQx4VTgK4igZnzKTq-aBumz8VDiv2pH8m8B9U48QXjHCPWZb8HXdNoIWQs-5dcYARv-ptWW-qw_711AWoyDjQff01P0WOwZXxP23QQNKQKcdA3hso_Sw6nBUIso/s1600/h9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="1152" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNVF4UjG563sjBw3LMsQx4VTgK4igZnzKTq-aBumz8VDiv2pH8m8B9U48QXjHCPWZb8HXdNoIWQs-5dcYARv-ptWW-qw_711AWoyDjQff01P0WOwZXxP23QQNKQKcdA3hso_Sw6nBUIso/s640/h9.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">in the morning before we reached </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And with
all done, we started now to begin our descent. Oh yes, and while we were coming
down suddenly right next to the long winding steps we had taken Tanya pointed
out to a most gorgeous multi layered waterfall, which believe it or faint we
missed seeing while going up. Yes, and we also spotted the elusive Brahma
Kamal. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSIcbmLCp0OPpupnY7efIMTfyFXz_LWcktGOVO36f-ASOO2nGOCBollI1pxrQsH4wpnhf5kxT-CAD6yEN2nLYC3W_ccDGmAxL7jYWPBK_uihlQpRjuqe9g7bFxnscjeDDQkxZ-zHOxIWc/s1600/h10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="1152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSIcbmLCp0OPpupnY7efIMTfyFXz_LWcktGOVO36f-ASOO2nGOCBollI1pxrQsH4wpnhf5kxT-CAD6yEN2nLYC3W_ccDGmAxL7jYWPBK_uihlQpRjuqe9g7bFxnscjeDDQkxZ-zHOxIWc/s1600/h10.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brahma Kamal </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One step and one breath at a time. The coming down
was not as difficult as the day before and it was raining all the while but
became excruciating with the knee hurting and ankles swollen. But with joy in
each step and pride of having done it and group mates sharing their personal
stories made it worth its while. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Just as I came down, a group of youngsters stopped
me and asked me if I had trekked it all the way up and down? I was elated and
said yes yes. The exhaustion and the elation was I am sure writ large on me. They
asked if it was tough and steep and the 1000 doubts and I motivatingly replied
to all of them just as someone had earlier replied to me. It had come a full
circle. I was back at the base, richer and enriched.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhymhhjDtFRvh6JacXpwMUM7Ee80NBvui-P3Ga7K9Zj9J9kgg74PQaq2q8CIA070SuTM2V_7f9Jcc5_QINVrVlO3YaP-o_BZVPLXGiSyESswNaUtrPYRQdfUBaTg8SafYQmiGWFlpAV3cg/s1600/h11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="1152" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhymhhjDtFRvh6JacXpwMUM7Ee80NBvui-P3Ga7K9Zj9J9kgg74PQaq2q8CIA070SuTM2V_7f9Jcc5_QINVrVlO3YaP-o_BZVPLXGiSyESswNaUtrPYRQdfUBaTg8SafYQmiGWFlpAV3cg/s400/h11.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">PS: Some pics are clicked by me and rest by others
in the group. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br /></div>
Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-21739591502756205372018-07-24T22:24:00.001-07:002018-07-24T22:24:24.385-07:00Valley of Flowers <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Day 4: Valley of Flowers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">All right so we got cosy in the camp and slept early
to be rested well to start for Valley of flowers. The best suggestion our guide
doled out was to not have a shower in the morning and instead come back and
bathe…and anyone who knows me knows I am most ecstatic with this piece of
advice. Legs aching and hearts hopeful, I slept sending healing to self and
hoping it will be a clear day tomorrow. Since I am not used to sleeping so
early I mean 9pm is in Delhi time for me to start making dinner, I woke up at
exactly 12.30 and kept lying dead in the bed. It was pouring and thundering (is
that a word?). Sending prayers for a clear day, I kept drifting in and out of sleep,
and before we knew it, it was time to get up and have breakfast at 7. Cause at
7.30 we had to move out dahlings!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Thankfully it was a clear day, and with this I mean
it was not raining at that “moment”. We crossed the already awake and buzzing small
bazaar of Gangharia and reached the small office from where we needed to get our
tickets etc to the VoF. It was crowded and we were told that since at night it
had rained heavy, the bridge had got washed down. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk2_OUSIyRYvMmWjLkZfe6TKKj9SDbNslIvp5Qk2msy07zL-LtZYtUGfu28JgnX5wUIreic8q9X-dUuSD9dM-hbbxANjL3_5Rvl1vPEAGvzEnb6hHucvgRtqNhoZSPvTvbMgMDfhNK6hU/s1600/vof1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="345" data-original-width="613" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk2_OUSIyRYvMmWjLkZfe6TKKj9SDbNslIvp5Qk2msy07zL-LtZYtUGfu28JgnX5wUIreic8q9X-dUuSD9dM-hbbxANjL3_5Rvl1vPEAGvzEnb6hHucvgRtqNhoZSPvTvbMgMDfhNK6hU/s400/vof1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">waiting at the start </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The authorities concerned had
made some make shift arrangements and helping people cross over by stepping on
big boulders etc. What seemed right from the beginning as an awesome river
flowing and gushing suddenly seemed scary and barbaric. It was gushing with
full force and the thought of stepping on slippery stones was not very inviting
and there was no option but to cross it and so we did. Each one holding the hand
of the guys helping there and heaving a sigh after having achieved it. Human
memory works in small bursts, the minute we all crossed over, that same river
again started looking amazing and selfies worthy. Well, well, many poses later
the ascend began. </span><br />
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</div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvUoc52EhKgPeQBGnvvx4CZ91i7-hIhgsKb5F03Sz6BKWPKN-dpsbpgP11UDV5QuwdGq8oeBFTuzlqg_kF_UNtWMvQ0IjZAuIEe6fxQDX9iFz00fg3pViO0DaYIfJdlZZrrksp9CajZBU/s1600/vof4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="346" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvUoc52EhKgPeQBGnvvx4CZ91i7-hIhgsKb5F03Sz6BKWPKN-dpsbpgP11UDV5QuwdGq8oeBFTuzlqg_kF_UNtWMvQ0IjZAuIEe6fxQDX9iFz00fg3pViO0DaYIfJdlZZrrksp9CajZBU/s400/vof4.jpg" width="225" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The air was full of mist and the morning looked bright and
promising. The path was a different story altogether. The entire path leading
up to the valley is as if strewn with stones of varying shapes and sizes and as
Geeth said, “lego pieces waiting to be fit”. Well she was right they hurt like
lego pieces too…remember stepping on them bare feet ….ouch!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL6n2AH7VJJQgfzgwaNKIUjU29dSXU8hPb1qHeQ__6DD2j0KlLfKK5toj8D5B7MhjQoRMoDs9HsdkA27Sckdf4tsO-5-X9trWgK-Zl7Goq77nHwW8z0U3OKD0DZQ1XLgqwlm7HjFBFuRI/s1600/vof24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="460" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL6n2AH7VJJQgfzgwaNKIUjU29dSXU8hPb1qHeQ__6DD2j0KlLfKK5toj8D5B7MhjQoRMoDs9HsdkA27Sckdf4tsO-5-X9trWgK-Zl7Goq77nHwW8z0U3OKD0DZQ1XLgqwlm7HjFBFuRI/s640/vof24.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Path </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The 3 kilometer stretch was mostly a climb up and
the respite came only at the last half a kilometer or so when it was flattish
(not flat …haan)! Again we all went at our own pace and with adequate stops to
breathe. No mules and their shit on this path. The path is much narrower and
there is help in terms of pitthus, the guy with the tokris (like the ones you
see at tea estates) who offer to carry you up. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As we were trekking the vistas kept changing from
beautiful to amazing and to exceptional all in its full glory. Before we
started the trek our guide had amply warned us to not think of valley of
flowers as some tulip lined farm or something. It is replete with flowers in
the wilderness and is speckled with colours of myriad hues, but it is all
natural and not cultivated or manicured. And I think there in lay its beauty. There
were flowers of all shapes, sizes and colours; big ones, tiny ones, rare ones
and mundane ones. All in all it was a beautiful bouquet that reminded me of paintings
of the age of Romantics.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After having crossed various small streams on the
path and gaping awestruck at the lush green mountains and waterfalls that could
be spotted far away through the rolling mist and white feathery fluffy clouds,
we finally reached the expanse of the valley. Now hungry we found a spot on a
huge boulder and opened our picnic lunch of paranthas and alu subzi. Post this
we all wandered off into the valley to see more sights and flowers of course. There
are many small streams with bridges made of aluminum planks that we crossed and
kept moving through the bushes of flowers on either side of the now kachcha
muddy path. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Besides many other flowers, we also saw very low
lying almost buried in the soil fresh blueberries and oh my god, I have never
seen such a stark blue as that ever. unfortunately I ate up the blueberry
without first clicking it ;p and the season has just started so couldn’t locate
more. Another one that really stood out were blue poppies with bright yellow
center. The guide had told us that there is a laughing mushroom in there too
which if you eat you keep laughing for 2 hours, I so wanted to but couldn’t find
it and the botanist who was with us was playing hide and seek…more hide than
seek. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Anyways the clouds had started rolling in and
becoming darker and ominous and we had to turn back to exit the valley. There is
no provision of staying back. It’s a UNESCO protected site and does have any
stalls or vendors or sheds like the trek to Ghangaria. Before we left the
valley the three of us decided to dip our feet in the deliciously flowing cool
stream and we did. But seriously the water was soooo chilled that not more than
4 or 5 minutes and feet start to feel numb. Now though we wanted to savour the valley
and do everything in slo mo we knew we should ideally start back and so we did.
Not long and it started pouring. Rain jackets out and the descent began. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now this was a challenge I never realized. I always
in my head thought that climbing up is difficult and going down easy. But it
seemed pretty much the opposite here, since the path is stacked with stones,
the climb down was a hard test in balance, especially with rain lashing too. I think
I managed to save myself from slipping at least 5 times. And while on the way
up, mindfulness and pauses were the tools, on way down, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">saare bhagwaan yaad aa gaye</i>. Anyway slow consistent steps and
absolute concentration took us down to the stream from where we crossed to the
other side. Thankfully they had made a better crossing over arrangement now
than in the morning. The next kilometer or so to the camp was full of reverence
for the feat accomplished. On reaching the camp we couldn’t stop raving about
it all and though it was the most satisfying trip as such, a feeling of not
enough lingered. A hot shower and foot massage later we were now all of us
getting ready for the tough one to Hemkund Sahib now. Cause this was again just
a teaser my friend….jaw drop….really!!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-85471516576743181072018-07-24T08:21:00.001-07:002018-07-24T08:21:19.911-07:00Off We Go to the Valley of Flowers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">Govindghat
</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">to<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Ghangaria <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">On the 3<sup>rd</sup> day post a night stay at
Govindghat we all woke up at crack of dawn (at least for me it was that….who
ever wakes up at 6 and has breakfast at 7…). Yes this was the beginning of our
real trekking days, the trek we did a day before was just a teaser. Anyways trekking
boots on, pole in hand and a backpack stuffed with rain gear and water bottles,
we were ready to start. The stuff for the 3 nights that we were to stay in
Ghangaria was to come on the mule, thank god for the same. We first reached
Govindghat base and got in the queue for a biometric scan. I don’t know what
was the purpose of that, but it felt a bit like “pata nahi kya hone wala hai
trek pe”. From here we all got into the jeeps and to the shout of "jai badri
vishal" were off to a 3-kilometer stretch where we got off and had to start
walking.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">Here started the trek to our camp in Ghangaria, from
where we would trek onwards to Valley of flowers and then Hemkund Sahib. Many ponies
were available for those unwilling to walk it. Infact the entire route is
crowded with ponies, thank god the road is wide enough to take human traffic
and ponies. Our instructions included how to ward stand on the mountain side with
our sticks thrust in hand almost like a warrior pose, should the ponies decide
to come close. Thankfully all close encounters were warded off well. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOTdezFFiiQpqcqpUnVTSPfAjYRYsS2BnhNJ5xvqMXDnkHGRymS5l2uT_H-4ZFjgKhfZ5lJeeDDvPQF2ZdkIOO1GYo4AgMQx8XnlN1HubRYBMesx6QZn5Lonekn8xMtbzFLeJ7tg1qk_E/s1600/GG1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="662" data-original-width="496" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOTdezFFiiQpqcqpUnVTSPfAjYRYsS2BnhNJ5xvqMXDnkHGRymS5l2uT_H-4ZFjgKhfZ5lJeeDDvPQF2ZdkIOO1GYo4AgMQx8XnlN1HubRYBMesx6QZn5Lonekn8xMtbzFLeJ7tg1qk_E/s1600/GG1.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Awesomeness of the jungle views </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">The mountains, the cool breeze and ofcourse various
streams and waterfalls make the scenic landscape along the trek. It is a long
trek of almost around 10 kilometers and as soon as one crosses the stream the
ascent begins. 2 minutes into it and we were huffing and puffing atleast I was.
at that time didn’t know how we would actually “do it” but yeah the mind that
was completely made up. And it started to actually look like a case of mind
over matter. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">The entire stretch is lined with small shacks and vendors
selling various namkeens, chai and maggi ofcourse. What is it with the
mountains and Maggi? I wonder. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">As we all 12 of us moved, obviously each one had a
different pace and small groups got formed. To each their own pace, we would
climb a bit, remain aware of who is leading and who is at the back. Before we
started we were given the instruction by our guide, Abhimanyu, to not sit
however much we were tired. And every minute I wanted to rest on my bum, I would
hear his voice mentally and just stand to catch my breath. And trust me it was
almost after ever 5 to 10 minutes, depending on how steep the climb was. The
beautiful landscape and the clear blue sky, the colour that one never gets to
see in Delhi works like a balm. We would stop gape at the scenery around, look
at the lush green trees lined up ever so beautifully and start again. The weird
thing was however much we climbed the next milestone always revealed that we
had done only 1 kilometer. That was quite a bubble buster. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">En route we stopped for some yum fresh fruit chaat
and small bites later revved up for the chadai once again. Slow steady steps,
small sips of water and motivation from those coming down worked like elixir. However
the stretch felt unending. Many poses and selfies later and still not coming to
an end kind of feeling, I and my partner Tanya got pretty bored too. Imagine getting
bored of walking more than getting tired of trekking. Anyways onwards and
upwards we kept going. Finally at a place I spotted 10 Rs a minute call STD and
stopped to call husband who wanted to keep talking way beyond my 20 Rs that I set
aside. No phones work inspite of the Airtel girl promising whatever….it doesn’t
even work at my home…so actually I felt pretty much home :p <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">Walking more and still yet more we hit a beautiful
expansive landscape that reminded of the vaadiyan of Switzerland, psst not that
I have been to Switzerland. Infact it was more reminiscent of chiffon sarees
and romantic locations as in Yash Chopra films. Anyways the rolling valley with
a gorgeous view of waterfall and green pastures where the horses were grazing
made a view that made me and my trek partner keep aside all instructions of the
guide and plonk on a big boulder to click some picture postcard kind of photos. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Verdant lush Valley</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhh95L51glnCB5vfO9e0VQ18iQMRhWe6OksNGQiCnLU9tZAs9zTg2fPA9GXhZEY0j1W-ggnvry-NB8Jp4GkYKnENHZRz77_JocOYOkWTHkskQslnvGkgGg2_HYRNrEjptMUZ2HWuk4Hpw/s1600/gg4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="613" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhh95L51glnCB5vfO9e0VQ18iQMRhWe6OksNGQiCnLU9tZAs9zTg2fPA9GXhZEY0j1W-ggnvry-NB8Jp4GkYKnENHZRz77_JocOYOkWTHkskQslnvGkgGg2_HYRNrEjptMUZ2HWuk4Hpw/s1600/gg4.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yeh Haseen Vaadiyan..Yeh Khula Aasman</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">And then lo and behold we look right and up and see the white tents pitched
just ahead of the helipad and we shrieked in joy. We had reached…almost
reached. Yess!! That made our resolve to sit even more strong and heave a gigh
of big relief. The trek to Ghangaria was accomplished….now next day would be
the Valley…One trek had ended and another was about to begin.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look Ma! Camp Site </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 115%;">Tired and hungry when we finally put our feet up,
there were 2 guys who had come to the camp to massage our calves and that was a
welcome relief. A hot shower later and an early dinner we all retired to bed
with all the oohs and aahs, hoping for an easy trek to VoF. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset from the Camp </td></tr>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-39501075770920122452018-07-05T01:30:00.001-07:002018-07-05T01:30:49.066-07:00Everyday Hero: Black, the movie <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Everyday Hero<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Inspiration can come from anywhere. Yes anywhere and
actually everywhere. I am a volunteer recording books with the Blind School for
more than 12 years now. I have actually always had a soft spot for the blind. As
a young little girl when we used to distribute food or make any donation with parents,
I used to ask them to give it to the blind. Maybe some kind of a past life
connection and who knows? As a very small girl of just about 13 or 14 years
old, I was so driven that I pestered my mom to fill out the form for me and
donated my eyes. I remember we did not even have a permanent address at the
time since papa was in a transferable job. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As a young adult of 21 years, I wanted to do a
course in Braille. And spotted an ad in the paper for the same. My then
boyfriend (now husband) and my mom talked me out of it since they felt it may
become too overwhelming for me to be working with the blind students. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">However, I kept getting this calling of “doing”
something and all I could do at the time was donate some money and/or rations. Now
I had become a mum with a toddler, when this movie Black by Sanjay Leela
Bhansali was released and it inspired me no end. It is then, that I decided to
visit the Blind School near Oberoi and talk to the people around. I came to
know that I could do what they called voice donation. I was taken to the
basement and an old gentleman who was then the in charge of the studio took my
voice test. And to my utter joy I passed. I think another thing that really cut
the deal with him was that I could read both hindi and English equally well. He
did say that so many people come for English and not many are available for
hindi. i had to confess to him, “I do not know hindi counting more than 30.” And
he gave me the leeway of saying the years or wherever I encountered numbers in
hindi in English, and I was good to go.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My tryst with recording began then in 2006. There was
a huge hall and the gentleman used to prompt me with his hand gesture and start
the recording in the audio cassettes. I used to read and only stop when Side A
used to get over, and while he used to flip to the Side B. I only had that
break when I could sip on water and get back. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I came out of the studio after recording the
first time, I can’t even tell how I felt, words are not enough, it was the most
satisfying experience I had ever had. To record the books for the blind, copies
of which would be made and sent all across india and other institutes! it was
the most humbling experiences of my life. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Today the scene has changed, the recording studio
has moved to the first floor, has an AC and a modern recorder that I can pause
anytime I feel the grating in my throat, sip my water and continue recording. While
so much has changed, what remains the same is the way Blind School treats its
volunteers, with utmost respect and joy. I love working with them cause they so
value me and my time and my contributions, even though it is just a drop in the
ocean. They receive it so beautifully and this is when they really don’t have
any dearth of volunteers. My bottle of water is ready in the studio, I am made
comfortable, the AC temperatures regulated and I feel like an honored guest. Another
thing that has not changed is how I feel after recording. It is like
meditation. When I am in the studio I am in alert awareness and focused. I know
any sound will hamper the quality, turn the page ever so quietly, remove my
bangles, and what really comes alive is my voice. By the way any number beyond
30 I still record in English :p<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I do this I realize it is not me making any
donation, infact I receive so much. I always tell Raja, that I have never
experienced this kind of satisfaction even in high paying jobs. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For me it all started with the movie Black. For me
in this case the movie is my hero. Have you been ever so inspired or touched by
a movie that it created a lasting shift in you and moved you to taking inspired
action? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-46482147826698790772018-06-19T00:04:00.003-07:002018-06-19T00:04:41.227-07:00Power of Personal Stories<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">As a Life Coach and i am fortunate that my clients trust me
with their deep personal stories. There are times they feel sheepish when
sharing their vulnerability and I had one of them saying, “is it only me who is
going through all of this?” the one thing that I told her was, “look you are
unique and not special.” What this really means is my friend, that you are not
alone. Yes, we all are human beings having an experience on this amazing planet
and are made of the same pixie dust isn’t it? Then what makes us even think
that other humans are devoid of feeling the same shit as ours. What makes us
bash ourselves for feeling this and that. Yes, all the emotions are a paradigm
of human existence, we all feel angry, sad, happy, joyous, amazing, wonderful,
irritable, frustrated and yes, fearful. Then what makes us sit up and ask “why
me?” </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What I have realized is that vulnerability has little place
in society. What it does to our collective psyche is create a feeling of
isolation and of being lonely. All the time, we wear masks of thousand shades,
and prance about hiding under layers and layers of what we truly want to
express. No wonder, when someone shares their intimate personal story that may
have been hiding for ages, there are many me too’s. What an amazing place it
would be if we could actually meet, see and hear each other truly. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I realized this when I was feeling particularly vulnerable
and confused with how I was feeling. And I did not have the courage to talk to
anyone for the fear of their judgments. However, I did talk about it, and
realized that I was not alone when they said “me too”. That I was not alone
gave me solace and comfort making me less critical of myself. As a human the
largest gift that we can give a fellow human is hold a safe space and our
presence. Aren’t we anyways walking each other home?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">No doubt, we all have our own paths and our own way of
looking at our personal stories, and what lifts off the burden is the courage
to share it. You know it is also the stories that we tell ourselves that make
us and our lives and creates subconscious operating patterns for us. Some
stories serve us and some keeps us in a negative loop and a whirlpool
disallowing us to let go or forgive ourselves and/or others. What happens when
we expose the mental movies and own up is that we tend to create a shift within
us that allows for a perspective change, be more gentle with ourselves and know
that we are not alone. And you know another very powerful shift that occurs
sometimes is, that we change our stories and rewrite our experiences and
future. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I read somewhere and it fascinates me to no end. Are we the
creator of the stories OR is it that our stories are creating us? </span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-75363640801138289872018-04-30T22:42:00.004-07:002018-04-30T22:42:50.244-07:00Every Day Hero – Episode 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Look around
and you will see a hero in each one and in you, the entire life doesn’t have be
heroic, there are many instances in which you will catch a glimpse of a hero or
be one. It does need courage and guts to overcome a challenge, kick the glass
bubble of comfort, break out of a limiting belief, step out of the ordinary,
show compassion and touch lives simply by getting connected to the luminosity
within. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Today I
salute the hero in my grandmother, my dadi. A beautiful woman she served many
years of her life as a nurse with my grandfather who was a Doctor. I always
knew her as a loving granny bent over her sewing machine and magically creating
frilly frocks for me that I would wear proudly and prance around. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I was born
the year after my dadu passed on. For a very long time I just knew that he was
hit by a taxi while crossing the road and did not survive. What I did not know
was the incomparable courage my dadi had displayed in the hospital. She must
have been in her early 60s when this accident occurred in Delhi. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While
crossing the road, dada ji was hit by a taxi and the taxi guy took them to the
hospital. It was a mayhem around with the doctors rushing in cause dada ji was
hit seriously. Amma ji (as I called my dadi) realized that her husband is not
going to survive this and told the taxi driver to escape cause if her sons
reach the hospital they will thrash the driver and if the police does his life
will be a mess. He had told amma ji about his little kids and was pleading her
to forgive him. She literally told him, “yahan main dekh rahi hun, tu bhaag
ja.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Looking back
I realize the large heartedness and compassion that the lady displayed in the
time of her extreme distress. It is so difficult to even forgive your own self,
yes we are our harshest critics, leave alone any other. For me she is a hero in
this incident. Yes she is. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidpk9vTElIH8UMGH9xR5hjpC-3AYyouV8vXpUeF1WbiMd-jTZf7oKyxsAry9ngAQ9YapHmbA-5gI4dTY7D0EQ-A7QPt51wzyQ9aIJFR1VWu1VS8tS0QzHEV2qphx6oLTiVcesJT0eBAJ8/s1600/amma2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="346" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidpk9vTElIH8UMGH9xR5hjpC-3AYyouV8vXpUeF1WbiMd-jTZf7oKyxsAry9ngAQ9YapHmbA-5gI4dTY7D0EQ-A7QPt51wzyQ9aIJFR1VWu1VS8tS0QzHEV2qphx6oLTiVcesJT0eBAJ8/s320/amma2.jpg" width="180" /></a></span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-33511000110583133372018-04-15T21:25:00.003-07:002018-04-15T21:25:40.719-07:00As if Today is the Only Day <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This year I was seeing my brother after a gap of 2 years. We fight,
we scream, hell we even break each others’ hearts and that’s beside the point
na. love for a sibling is so much more larger than all the petty stuff. It just
IS.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">However he was here in delhi only for 2 nights and all I got
with him was 2 days and 1 night. And to say that we lived it up is an
understatement. We maxed out each moment, laughing, sharing banter, him playing
cricket with my son, enduring my uncontrolled beer giggles, we shopped, we ate
and thankfully we gave fighting a miss. What stayed with me is the way we made
the most of it in just about 2 days, we were truly present to each other and
made it large. When I go visit Canada, I usually go for a month and we do all
these fun things and everything in between, all the while thinking there is a
lot of time and that time flies off and sometimes leaves me wondering how it
did? And sometimes even unfulfilled with feelings like wish we had more time,
wish we had done this and that. You know a bit incomplete kind of. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And I am thinking how amazing would it be if we approach all
our days like this? Not like we have loads of time but as if we were in “no
time” (not less time). How amazing would that experience be? How much power
will the Now have? How much life would be infuse in our days? What all will be
possible at all levels of our days and relationships?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-64676006875306482018-04-15T09:18:00.000-07:002018-04-15T09:18:02.013-07:00As the Sun Sets<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 21.4667px;">I am an eternal lover of sunsets, and my love for them grows each time I am immersed in watching them. And if the setting is a beach or mountain, I am overjoyed. On my vacation to the hills this year, every evening I religiously grabbed my balcony seat to watch the amazing show put up by the Sun. The setting is always gorgeous (for lack of a deeper word) and its various hues, wash the sky with myriad colours from the palette, that if a painting was replicated on the canvas, it will seem unreal. The molten orange against various shades of blue, mixing with white fluffy frothy white clouds deepening them with an aura of orange and then slowly disappearing right in front of your eyes is a showstopper. Add a couple of tall standing deodars as a background and majestic hills as mute witnesses giving me company and you have a unbeatable show.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 21.4667px;">No camera can do justice to its unmatched beauty, though I am trigger happy and clicked various pictures. However, the last evening there filled me with some sadness. And while in a convo with my husband I told him, “Oh! there will be no show tomorrow” and immediately it hit me that of course there will be a show, only I won’t be present at that spot to watch it. Ah! the reminder of mortality and the “show must go on”, is achingly beautiful.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 21.4667px;">The song playing in my head is yeh zindagi ke mele…duniya mai kam na hoge…afsos hum na honge ….<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-33092995221836314012018-03-04T06:46:00.003-08:002018-03-05T06:16:55.871-08:00Every Day Hero<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">Having seen some bit of the world in my 44 years of existence, I do believe that there is a hero within all of us. We just don’t give it much recognition. We only think that heroes have a consistent heroic life and are out to save the world. We have grown up fed on the stories of superman, he-man and more recently shakitmaan. Those are amazing I don’t mean to take their brand of heroism away. And look around or better still look to yourself, there have been so many times when you have faced your fears, leapt with faith, taken over the unknown, jumped into a challenge and risen above the banal.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 21.4667px;">Today, i want to share a story that for me is a huge story of extraordinary heroism, something that has always tugged at my heart strings and sometimes warmed me and sometimes melted me. This is the story that is an ode to my mother in laws courage.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 21.4667px;">In December of 1998, we as a family went through the darkest time of our lives, we lost my best friend, my baby bro-in-law Sumi to an unfortunate accident in Pune. He was the darling of the family, absolutely pampered, most loved and cherished, and since he was the youngest; he was indulged in for every whim. And trust me he had multiple whims </span><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 21.4667px;">J</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 21.4667px;"> and loved to live life fully.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The night of
3<sup>rd</sup> dec, my husband was travelling and at 3 am our door bell rang
incessantly. Not realizing the foreboding of that bell, I opened the door and
in walked Sumi’s roomies parents. A couple of minutes into the conversation,
when they told us about the accident, they broke the news that shattered the
world around us. We were in a state of shock and disbelief. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I can only
now imagine the pain a mother would have gone through losing her young one at
the age of 22. I can only now fathom how life must have moved on for her. In a
daze we did all that was to be done. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And as luck
would have it, a couple days down, end of December a wedding in the family of a
dear cousin had already been scheduled. They were willing to postpone it and
spoke at length with my mother in law. However, mummy said the wedding must be
solemnized and finally the aunt relented saying it will happen only if she would attend it too. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I as a young
girl all of 24 myself, was shattered and did not know how to process my
feelings. Mum paved the way and all credit to her she went on to attend all
the functions, I just the wedding. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For me, it
was a huge step that a mother took. Today I look back and think of all the
courage it would have taken her. For me this act was heroic. For me she is the
hero in this story. For me she rose above herself. It also taught me that no matter
what, the show must go on!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-91446573123635824352018-02-06T06:48:00.000-08:002018-02-06T06:52:09.270-08:003 Ways to Remain Connected to YourSelf <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We as a
generation seem to be plagued by the busyness syndrome. Isn’t it paradoxical
that while we are “doing” so many things, we keep losing focus, are not really
able to concentrate well and get distracted at the rate of a mobile
notification sound. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One day
while walking on a busy road I was so immersed in staring and reading into the
phone that I simple lost track of where I was walking and who I was walking
into. And in that sudden moment when a car whizzed close by, I came to the
realization that I was so not connected with either myself or my physical
environment. It really is very easy to get distracted and get lost either in
the external chaos around us or the internal chatter. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4fYL9MrkkMOpqnJaE1piS6b1TlEUFCUmfwgqAPsOS7j8SL1FxOa8Ns-iXdiQFfQzh_YAIK-9URWKUmxTP_pEZYZbNB7SqnWogpSgq0cv2ufZ6HELgn7pbWXtRb4d7W1cQe9sMteMUtGg/s1600/DSC08722.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4fYL9MrkkMOpqnJaE1piS6b1TlEUFCUmfwgqAPsOS7j8SL1FxOa8Ns-iXdiQFfQzh_YAIK-9URWKUmxTP_pEZYZbNB7SqnWogpSgq0cv2ufZ6HELgn7pbWXtRb4d7W1cQe9sMteMUtGg/s320/DSC08722.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here are
three very simple yet amazing practices that will ground you and connect you to
your body and up level your awareness quotient. These exercises are very
effective for everybody from a busy professional to a student, and the best
part it is that it is all free. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Breathe</b>:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yes the good
old focus on breath and a couple of deep breathings will bring you back to your
bodily awareness. Take a deep breath with the intention of breathing in love
and joy and with the exhalation release all that is stagnant and not serving
you. A couple of deep breathings with this intention before an important meeting,
an interview or an exam will center you and connect you to the moment. I call
it my personal quick fix.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>I AM Aware</b>:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">An exercise
that I find very effective is saying this to myself while doing any task. For
example when I am writing and tend to get lost in my thoughts, I bring back my
focus and concentration by simply saying “I am aware I am writing.” This can be
extended to any activity that you are doing or not doing. I am aware I am
sipping my tea. I am aware I am walking in my lawn, I am aware I am lazying and
sinking into my couch. Anything and everything, this really simple yet very
effective exercise will allow you to live and enjoy your day with enhanced
mindfulness. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Thought Less</b>:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We are all
inhabiting our bodies yet mostly living in our thoughts. Notice and be aware of
how you go about the day and you will quickly recognize this. Infact, energy
healers say that because of this we tend to fall sick and get unwell. If only
we start living more in our body than in our mind we will heal better, live
better and feel better. As soon as you start to get lost in the mental
narratives and stories, bring yourself to an awareness of your five senses.
What are you seeing? Hearing? Touching? Feeling? And tasting? Yes just the
aliveness of this will bring your awareness to your body and raise your vibe,
conscious and consciousness. This is a most effective manner that allows you to
fully feel into your emotions and expose the feeling into awareness. For
example if you are feeling angry and you expose your anger to yourself by
feeling from where it is arising in your body and how it is rising and
enveloping your energy field, how it is showing up for you, how are you
looking, what are you hearing or saying; you will loosen its grip on you and
will be able to unhook yourself. I do it all the time, feel my emotion, its
origin, its trajectory and then allow it to gently let go.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While there
are various ways to connect to yourself, these are some of the simple ones that
you can do at any time of the day and for anything that is showing up for you.
If you start developing this muscle of mindfulness through practice you will
soon become a pro.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-30633450376117993952018-02-06T00:00:00.002-08:002018-02-06T00:00:32.085-08:00One level Up<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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wake up before the wake up call !<br />sometimes life throws a googly and depending on our ability to respond we respond to it. my wake up call came early in life when i lost my brother in law- my best friend and at the same time my husband went through challenging professional times. Personally and Professionally we started from ground zero and built up whatever we have today. we are ofcourse very grateful for all the support we got at that time. however our issues were our own t<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">o deal with. even in that our coping styles were very different.<br />over times i went in and out of phases of self empowerment then self doubts, depression and then more facing of fears, struggles winning some and losing some.<br />this year has been very gratifying with loads of self work and rework. i am an absolutely different person than i was a couple years ago and i take pride in my growth. wont have it any other way.<br />However, i also realise that though we all have stories and struggles of our own, if we are taught to believe in ourselves, have faith in the larger design and yet steer our destiny, love ourselves as easily as we seek love from the other, trust ourselves and develop inner strength, become self empowered and reliant; our response ability will become so much more powerful.<br />Its like building your physical immunity so that body is more prepared to fight the illnesses etc. its like building an earthquake resistant building, its like preparing for a test, its being prepared so that the ground zero is one level up !<br />Evolve and Grow. Cause there is no limit to that. Thankfully!<br />Gift yourself the gift of your highest potential. Batti jali?</span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-18372596499212385242018-02-05T23:59:00.001-08:002018-02-05T23:59:13.806-08:00the New Me <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">i am so happy with myself that i could finally forgive the one i thought i will never be able to my entire life. while sitting and thinking back to the year gone by, i was thinking of all that i am grateful for in 2017 and i am most grateful for my growth. And i was also so grateful that my family and friends have accepted the transformed me and are putting in their faith and working with me as their catalyst for their growth. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">and while i allowed all of that to sink in, i re</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">alised that i was soo tough on someone who is trying to change from what was and that i was holding on to the old persona and not forgiving the earlier trespasses.<br />this was a true batti jalli moment for me. i realised i should be seeing the person as she is now and not as she was. that was an aha moment for me that washed me over with the attitude of letting it all go.<br />i accept the evolution in you as much as i cherish the same in me. one of the quotes that i read comes to mind; if you are, what you were 5 years ago, you havent grown.<br />Today i choose to celebrate the new you and the new me !</span></div>
Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-85155568386385120682018-02-05T23:58:00.002-08:002018-02-05T23:58:17.118-08:00State of Calm <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Its such fun that wonderful learnings and batti jali moments emerge while in a coaching session. Not just for the client for me too. Really this path of self discovery and evolving is magic. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">So in the session, my client said i do get v uncomfortable when i am stressed and i asked how about when you are calm and he said whats to think about that. And it was as if this remark opened up so much about how we live each day, unmindful of peace taking it for granted cause actually that is our innate centeredness and when we are off center we feed that state by throwing tantrums, shouting and allow it to become an energy vampire. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">How wonderful would it be if we fed our state of calmness and carry it with us mindfully and being fully aware. </span><span class="_5mfr _47e3" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;"><img alt="" class="img" height="16" role="presentation" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v9/fc1/1.5/16/1f495.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">💕</span></span></div>
Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-86627896435295019692018-02-05T23:57:00.000-08:002018-02-05T23:57:02.538-08:00art of giving and karma connection<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">My mum always told me whenever i complained about how i have done so much for this one and that and blah blah and its so thankless. She always said That if you have done something for others and they are not reciprocating maybe you had to give last janams karz etc and if not and you are doing and they are taking the karz. And this used to always give me lots of courage to move on and keep doing what i thought was the right action to do. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Today while in similar discussion talk</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">ing of blessings and gratitude with her, my little batti came on alive. That if we have done cause of our past karmas so be it. And if it is from my side i drop it. Dont want to get enmeshed in further cycles. And thats when i understood why they say नेकी कर कुए में ड़ाल ( this saying in hindi means that if you have done a good deed forget about it and expect no returns on the same. I mean free the receiver from any debts so the giver is free too <span class="_5mfr _47e3" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;"><img alt="" class="img" height="16" role="presentation" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v9/fc1/1.5/16/1f495.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">💕</span></span>). What came to my mind was also this incident my papa used to narrate: once a soldier did not salute the general so the general punished him saying now salute me a 100 times and the soldier did. And with each salute as the courtesy demands the general had to salute back !<br />Yes thats what it means. In my gita devdutt patnaik talks of a point of return(rebirths) and point of no return(no more rebirths).<br /><span class="_5mfr _47e3" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;"><img alt="" class="img" height="16" role="presentation" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v9/fc1/1.5/16/1f495.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">💕</span></span></span></div>
Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-10103466368915576662018-02-05T23:54:00.001-08:002018-02-05T23:54:28.466-08:00Open Letter to the Students from a Parent <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Dear students </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">I know how tough it can get just before the exams. We have gone through it too. The problem is that sometimes we parents forget that. We project our unlived dreams on to you and you have to bear the cross of our unfulfilled ambitions. I am sorry as a parent i feel like calling out our bluff. It is actually about us not about you.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">You are definitely loved and cherished. It is mostly about our fears and not your career/colleg</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">e blah blah. We want the best for you but forget that, giving you pressure or stress is not giving out best to you.<br />Standing where i am i can see it more clearly. As a parent to a class xth student all i want to say is this:<br />I love you and that this love of mine does not depend on your marks.<br />All will be well. You will be fine trust me i know<br />I used to flunk math sometimes psst most times and look at me i am fine and doing well too.<br />Kids in my class i used to think were buddhu are all doing very well in their careers.<br />Not getting a college of my choice is just that. It does not mean that my life is over.<br />Comparison with another is a recipe for disaster and depression. Hope you dont want to brew that in your life.<br />There are only x amount of factors that you have control over. Seek to inflence that "only". Like you can choose how to prepare but you cant choose the exam paper or the marks your examiner gives. So best do what you can and leave the rest to the higher force. Trust yourself.<br />Make doable meausrable goals for everyday<br />Raise your own bar. Like you do in gym: a little first then some more and then some even more. Stretch your capacity. "Your" capacity. Thats the key.<br />A result is just a feedback to, what is it that you can do more of, less of, start or stop. Its not a decree on who you are.<br />Do not let peoples opinion of you matter to you. You are amazing. Treat yourself as that.<br />God bless you<br />Anubha</span></div>
Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-50633339838949859782018-02-05T23:52:00.004-08:002018-02-05T23:52:50.238-08:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Remaining rooted in your intention is very freeing. I realise it more today than ever before. A well meaning comment by a friend who said post my session that "you know you spent so much energy and some of the kids will go out and say negative stuff." This statement would have dented my confidence and made me feel very heavy a year ago. And not now anymore. I understand that when you open your hea<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">rt and gifts out to the world, you are also opening yourself out for bouquets and brickbats. They are both part of the game. And to say that they don't have an effect on me is not true today for me. But i am so much more in acceptance of it and the brickbats have lost their hold or sting on me. And i realised that it was because of my immense grounding in my own intention of love and courage that arises out of it. Freeing and liberating.</span></span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-3299623487015063472017-10-31T22:08:00.004-07:002017-10-31T22:08:30.510-07:00I Accept <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Acceptance as a thought/idea/way of life is rising up in my consciousness from the past couple of days. First in a long discussion with my mil, I said that if we all were to accept situations, things and self as we were 90 percent of our problems will be sorted and she brought up the issue of choice, saying when one does not have any choice one has to accept. I think that there is no point in our life when we do not have a choice, we can choose to accept and move on or we can</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> choose to not accept and wallow on. We do have a choice and in cases of death when we don’t give ourselves the choice to accept we remain in grief.<br />Anyways acceptance has in it the seeds of possibilities. One that of choosing to stay the way we are and be in the energy of “I am like this only”! the other when we accept the current situation, it opens us up to the possibility of taking an action and choosing to make a breakthrough.<br /></span></div>
Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-87135285275212600822017-10-30T22:24:00.002-07:002017-10-31T21:51:29.639-07:00Pottery Musings<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I think pottery is an art form that is closest to the Creator and Creation. Just like we are made of panchatatva, earth, air, fire, water and akash (ether) as is a clay pot. the clay has air, is shaped using water, dried in air, then fired and when shaped as a pot holds the akash or the nothingness within itself. A pot becomes a pot in which something can be held, only because of this nothingness, if broken it is this that gets lost, rest just goes back to mi<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">x in with its own essence. It is this nothingness which is everything that is the soul, the shape that holds the expanse is the body.</span></div>
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The clay as shaped by the potter is unique, no 2 pieces are alike and mostly never can be, however much they belong to the same family; just like you and me. Its uniqueness/quirks/ imperfectly perfect character is what makes it so endearing and loving; just like you and me. The cracks that develop are the cracks from where the light enters into its soul; just like yours and mine. The akash/soul that its shape holds and makes it what it is, is something that is never born nor dies; just like you and me. The akash/soul blends in with the super soul when the pot breaks; just like you and me.<br />
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-32775838801234177712016-11-07T06:04:00.001-08:002016-11-07T06:04:53.436-08:00Birthday Musings <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
43 learnings that took me 43 years and hope to live them the rest of my earth time.<br />
1. This too shall pass - good or bad<br />
2. There is no age for learning. Want it, Go for it.<br />
3. The tree with the heaviest fruit lies the lowest. Humility is a good way to lead a lifetime.<br />
4. Never forget ur roots. Soar high remain grounded.<br />
5. You are not your label. Someones daughter, someones wife or mother or sister. YOU are all this and more. Pause and think about the more ever so often<br />
6. Loving yourself means accepting yourself zits and all. It does not mean that you are selfish.<br />
7. Go out and have some casual friendships, it means people you can laugh with, people who do not know your baggage and dont care to.<br />
8. Reinvention is the name of the game. Dont say but idk how these kids do it. If you want to, pls figure it out. Keep up with the generation.<br />
9. Humara zamana is the most bs thing i have heard. Till the time you are breathing it is your "zamana". Dont let anyone make u feel otherwise.<br />
10. Girlfriends who make you laugh is the best therapy. Get some. <br />
11. Everything is a tool. How you use it makes it good or bad. That includes ur notions of money, love,sex, knowledge, fire, spirituality, religiosity everything<br />
12. We dont have to tolerate others' views on religion, we just simply need to let us and them "Be", respect it. Tolerate seems to carry negative connotations and an unease about it.<br />
13. Dont shy away from owning up if you have messed up. I don't whether prof or personal. <br />
14. There is no age to start volunteering for social work. Dont wait till you retire. <br />
15. Travelling teaches you more than text books. <br />
16. Travelling solo is empowering as is watching a movie alone.<br />
17. If you dont own up your responsibility towards you being happy who will?<br />
18. Doing your own work whether it is making ur bed or changing a tube or even clearing a blocked pipe is not lowly, it is a sense of ownership <br />
19. People try to box you, it is upto you to live in your essence. I am not a CEO's wife so i dont need to behave or dress as per that i never was a chief enggineers daughter and so behave with certain airs. I was born to my papa and i married my best friend. When their labels shed i am.still ME and they are them. Most beautiful souls radiating their inherent goodness.<br />
20. Each of my scars tell my story. I want to age gracefully though i still may hate puffy eye bags. <br />
21. Physical challenge is just that, a challenge we the society make it a disability for those afflicted with it. Make wheelchair ramps, provide safe access and braille instructions and see them empowered just like u and i<br />
22. If you can be a candle to someone be. I used to feel bad when people use to call me "only" to ask for help. I soon realised that maybe i am blessed that they think of me as their candle when the wind is blowing strong for them.<br />
23. If you can help someone without troubling yourself or compromising with your principles, do it. <br />
24. Goodness always comes back sometimes in forms we dont understand.<br />
25. Saying No or claiming your boundaries is empowering. Try it. Anyways no point.doing stuff against your grain.<br />
26. Credit shd def be given where due. As a creative person it feels heartbreaking if someones thunder is stolen. <br />
27. Nothing lasts forever not diamonds, not situations, not relationships<br />
28. It is easier to make bahanas than showing up. Note to self: make less bahanas<br />
29. Art of receiving is tougher than art of giving. I had a major block in receiving i felt burdened and one day i just realised that what what when I give and ppl receive it reluctantly? the joy for both go. I am becoming more gracious in receiving now, it means i am lovingly accepting compliments, help, blessings and even gifts.<br />
30. Art of giving is art too. Having volunteered with NGOs i have seen people give stuff what they dont even need anymore as charity with an attitude. They think they are doing the world a big favour. Giving as well as receiving both require humility. Put a blessing out there while doing each.<br />
31. The amount of satisfaction i get from recording for the blind no high paying job can come close to it. Its a deep penetrating sense of calm<br />
32. Nothing is free and it should not even be. If you buy you value more. <br />
33. Thats why i dont like to gift my pottery pieces. Cause if i do, you will think its free for me, no it is built with my sweat, blood and love. If you buy, you will get heartbroken if it breaks and savour it longer.<br />
34. If you want to compliment go ahead, but unless u are my mother dont ask me why i have lost or gained weight. Why i look a certain way or anyone looks a certain way that they do. Its uncouth in my dictionary to make fun of physical appearances. You dont know the struggles of that person, keep it at that. <br />
35. Judging is not a bad habit. Its a tool, how you use it makes it good or bad. You cant even cross a road without judging the manner in which to cross it. Its a natural human instinct.<br />
36. Rituals unless they leave you glowing with positivity are just over burdening. I love the smell and community family feeling of doing havan in the house. And i hate to feed over fed pot bellied pandits with more food or dakshina to appease my stars.<br />
37. Karma is not a bitch. Its a word that denotes action, you can always transform your karmas to suit yourself. It is not static though whats done cannot be undone, you can steer future actions.<br />
38. Love is overrated. "Connection" is underrated.<br />
39. No one "likes" to live or die painfully. Please dont say in front of the family of someone who is suffering, that i want to die in my sleep blah blah. They would too if they had a choice.<br />
40. Which brings me to i dont want to die strapped to pipes in a hospital. I dont want futile treatments, teary eyes and broken hearts around me.<br />
41. My prayer ceremony shd have beer and srk movie. Who wants to sit and listen to crap. Not my soul.<br />
42. Each time u think of me think with a beaming smile.celebrate me , like a i try to celebrate my Sumi<br />
43. Picture abhi baki hai mere dost. Life abhi chalu hai. </div>
Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1219412765564335775.post-50868479291267061072016-11-01T08:10:00.004-07:002016-11-01T11:16:38.424-07:00Just BE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Sometimes a stranger teaches you a lesson that even
tomes of gyan cannot. At the pottery classes we had a senior lady who joined pottery
but was mostly not able to work on the wheel. A dignified quiet lady, with
unsaid sadness in her eyes always wearing a saree and politely conversing with
the teachers. On the other hand, it was the rambunctious us always chatting and
me in the typical loud Punju voice. She used to sit quietly on the wheel and
try to center a lump of clay, mostly unsuccessfully, but her dedication was
exemplary. We knew she was doing pottery to keep busy and get over some recent
grief, but beyond that we knew nothing of her story. Soon she discovered that
she can hand build with clay rather well. She has the patience of a monk, and
her pieces- small statues of Krishna with a cow or the gopis were amazingly
detailed, intricately carved and life like. Many times seeing her carvings I did
my oohs and aahs in chirpy encouraging sort of way. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I left the studio when my tenure ended and life continued,
till one day I was at the colony fair and someone announced that “do not miss
the ceramic stall”. Being a potter I naturally gravitated towards the stall and
instantly recognized her work. At that time she was away from the stall but spotting
me rushed towards it and shyly hugged me. I was happy to see her and as usual
my bubbly self. At the time of saying my byes to her she hugged me once more
and said “do keep in touch”. She had tears in her eyes and I was a bit
surprised, she sensed my confusion and said, “you know what I had a daughter named
Anubha I lost her”. I was shocked to say the least. It hit me that though my
story is playing out in a completely different set up, she probably was always trying
to catch a glimpse of her daughter in me. I cant explain how I felt but realized
that for her it was enough that I am Me. My Just Being. Simply Existing. That’s
it. Isnt that beautiful? We spend our whole life being this and being that,
playing several roles, juggling various tasks whereas, all we need to do is
just Be. </span></div>
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Musingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05140576098779665821noreply@blogger.com4