Last couple of months I have been doing some serious writing - writing a proposal for my upcoming PhD Comprehensive exams, its the 2nd out of the three exams of the entire PhD process. I can't wait for them to be done with, and enjoy the time off - not much really happens here in the US post-thanksgiving until the new year.
This year, we spent Thanksgiving dinner at my friend Suzana's house. I have known Tim and Suzana for 10 years now, and baby sat their kids when I was in graduate school. I used to be Tim's graduate student, and I am so happy to have been in touch with that family for 10 long years. Those years were among the best years of my life in Boulder, CO. We went around the table sharing the one thing we were thankful about, for me it was simple, I was thankful for the good health of all the people I am connected to were in. I really was. I have learned to appreciate the true value of good health.
A couple of days before Thanksgiving, we were talking to our friend Aprille, and she and I got talking about the feeling of "being toghether" or "feeling grounded" and how that feeling is mostly felt when we are with family or in our home town. For me, it is clearly when I land in Goa, and smell the salty air, and feel the humidity on my face. I love Goa ! And I can't even describe the feeling I get when I get home - my parent's house. Yes, that feels like home to me. I still call that home. I know I am married and my parent's house should not be home, but I can't curb the feeling inside me that say "HOME". I do miss going home to a houseful of dogs - we had two dogs - Lucky and Tuffy. I simply miss them. I miss going home to my grand parents. I loved them a lot, and I still do. Many times when I am in trouble, I still talk to my grand-mom - she was a woman full of confidence, and strength. She embodied those qualities. She always said a phrase before going to bed, and I am not very religious, but when I say that phrase - I get the same strength within me.
I grew up in a very close knit family - both my dad's and mom's side. Being doctors, my parents used to be on call when we were little, and my mom's sisters just picked us up the nights my parents were both on call. It was as simple as that. They took turns, and was not a big deal. As I write this today, and I think of how valuable that was - I realize how lucky we were. Every parent in the US, will know exactly what I mean. Till this day, we are very close to my aunts and their spouses. When I go home, I meet a lot of family - and I love it. I meet the people who I really love, and just ignore the other people. I have limited time in Goa, so I make the most of it. Sometimes I wonder, why don't we just live our life that way?
Goa is a land of beaches, beautiful beaches - living in the mountains for so long, that is clearly an attraction when I go home. But the last two trips, I realized that I do not care that there are beaches there. I want to be with the people I love, I yearn for that. Those are the people I grew up with, those are the people that make me "feel grounded", make me feel "rooted in the ground" and I feel such a strength within me that really transforms me into another person. My shoulders drop, and ears pop, and my palate is empty and as my yoga instructor would say - the sensation you get when you say "aaaah". No amount of yoga gives me that sensation. Its magical and very personal.
As I sat at the Thanksgiving table this year at Tim's house, I got very close sensations there. Those sensations that help me feel grounded, deep rooted. I felt a sense of protection there, felt that if anything went wrong, I will be ok. I never say what I really feel deep within except when I said what I was thankful for. No pretense in what I was thankful for, just words that came from my heart.
Thanks Tim & Suzana!
This year, we spent Thanksgiving dinner at my friend Suzana's house. I have known Tim and Suzana for 10 years now, and baby sat their kids when I was in graduate school. I used to be Tim's graduate student, and I am so happy to have been in touch with that family for 10 long years. Those years were among the best years of my life in Boulder, CO. We went around the table sharing the one thing we were thankful about, for me it was simple, I was thankful for the good health of all the people I am connected to were in. I really was. I have learned to appreciate the true value of good health.
A couple of days before Thanksgiving, we were talking to our friend Aprille, and she and I got talking about the feeling of "being toghether" or "feeling grounded" and how that feeling is mostly felt when we are with family or in our home town. For me, it is clearly when I land in Goa, and smell the salty air, and feel the humidity on my face. I love Goa ! And I can't even describe the feeling I get when I get home - my parent's house. Yes, that feels like home to me. I still call that home. I know I am married and my parent's house should not be home, but I can't curb the feeling inside me that say "HOME". I do miss going home to a houseful of dogs - we had two dogs - Lucky and Tuffy. I simply miss them. I miss going home to my grand parents. I loved them a lot, and I still do. Many times when I am in trouble, I still talk to my grand-mom - she was a woman full of confidence, and strength. She embodied those qualities. She always said a phrase before going to bed, and I am not very religious, but when I say that phrase - I get the same strength within me.
I grew up in a very close knit family - both my dad's and mom's side. Being doctors, my parents used to be on call when we were little, and my mom's sisters just picked us up the nights my parents were both on call. It was as simple as that. They took turns, and was not a big deal. As I write this today, and I think of how valuable that was - I realize how lucky we were. Every parent in the US, will know exactly what I mean. Till this day, we are very close to my aunts and their spouses. When I go home, I meet a lot of family - and I love it. I meet the people who I really love, and just ignore the other people. I have limited time in Goa, so I make the most of it. Sometimes I wonder, why don't we just live our life that way?
Goa is a land of beaches, beautiful beaches - living in the mountains for so long, that is clearly an attraction when I go home. But the last two trips, I realized that I do not care that there are beaches there. I want to be with the people I love, I yearn for that. Those are the people I grew up with, those are the people that make me "feel grounded", make me feel "rooted in the ground" and I feel such a strength within me that really transforms me into another person. My shoulders drop, and ears pop, and my palate is empty and as my yoga instructor would say - the sensation you get when you say "aaaah". No amount of yoga gives me that sensation. Its magical and very personal.
As I sat at the Thanksgiving table this year at Tim's house, I got very close sensations there. Those sensations that help me feel grounded, deep rooted. I felt a sense of protection there, felt that if anything went wrong, I will be ok. I never say what I really feel deep within except when I said what I was thankful for. No pretense in what I was thankful for, just words that came from my heart.
Thanks Tim & Suzana!
