It's been three and a half long winding years since "my" tide turned it's swashbuckling face towards this blog.
I am back after a pregnant silence, ready to explode with all my might. So beware!
My blog has a brand new look, which I so adore; so the option of switching to Word Press is out.
It's been a mighty interesting 2010 with it's myriad nuances. New friendship bonds here, precarious tear drops there, a heady work experience in the rural alleys of Bihar, family ties that bloomed in all there bounty.
A truly experiential 365 day journey and a brush with life's little nuggets of gold.
The year started of on a painful note-very exacting to the pain I mention here, in the true physical sense of being. As we bade 2009 adieu, I suffered a shoulder injury, and the traces of the pain stuck to my shoulder like super glue right upto the first quarter of the year. Refusing to part from me, it's unwelcome company. Innumerable rounds at the physiotherapist was anything but helping.
My favourite quote when I was a kid used to be: "Every cloud has a silver lining" and so the glistening silver lining chose to glean into my life at the right time. It was at this time that my good friend, Seema from UNICEF who had worked with me in the development sector offered me an assignment to cover the Total Sanitation campaign drive in rural Bihar. I was to travel with the Public Health & Education Development Minister who was physically helping construct toilets and creating an awareness about health and sanitation. Ironical, that even after 50 years of Independece people still don't have the basic right to health and cleanliness. It was a truly enriching and heart rending experience. The link to my story goes like this:http://www.unicef.org/india/wes_6128.htm
It was this first, chunky work project after almost over a year and a half that hurled a fresh lease of life to my sagging spirits, related to work opportunities. I traveled the rural alleys of Bihar sporting a spondylosis collar and managed pretty well. I had taken a long sabbatical from work after we moved to the Philippines and Singapore. Maybe a tiny project here a tiny project there, is all I had done since 2006. This project with UNICEF gave those pain ridden shoulders a fresh lease of life to soar upon, and the tide turning in my favour. In the very language of Louise L Hay and her reasoning towards psychosomatic causes of illness, she points out that any shoulder related ailment stems from the fact that one doesn't feel supported by life. And so it was for me, and soon enough I noticed a whole new horizon of hope open out to me: within and in the world outside of me. It was this project, and the indomitable spirit of love and support that Alok put forth on me; allowed me to heal physically and emotionally and pop my champagne bottle open. This apart, I tried a few spiritual healing techniques, which were just a temporary balm. As the shoulder pain did reappear time and again.
It was then that I also enrolled into a Yoga class and my body started slowly but surely opening up and began to sync in with the gradual process of healing. In the days I didn't have the Yoga class I would work out in the gym and that is where Micki, a friend from the condo I live in, introduced me to two wonderful people, Aditi and Rashmi. It is with these two women that I was to form a beautiful bond of friendship. Especially with Aditi who was similar to me in more ways than one.
In the interim UNICEF offered me another project, this time a mammoth one. The work entailed writing 15 health panels in Hindi. I began the project with a full throttle of confidence, but somewhere in between stumbled giving up hope of writing in Hindi. But there were people around me, Seema & Geeta Maheshawri included who helped revive my faith in myself and boost my depleting confidence. And I was back with a bang, seeing the project to completion and bringing in my Birthday month at the same time.
August sure had it's adrenaline rush.
Family and relatives, SILs included, threw in a surprise birthday bash for me, and that was
really, really touching, to say the least.
Thereafter Alok and I took off for our weekend getaway (minus the kids) to Tarudhan valley, a breathtaking locale nestled by a hillock in Haryana. It was my bright idea (ahem!). I managed the bookings too, courtesy, dear friend Pulak Chakraborty. The open arms in the picture are a true reflection of how I was opening up my spirit to abundance flowing into our lives.
September proved to be more promising than ever. Alok booked us for a holiday to Cassa Susegard (Home for Relaxation in Portugese) in Goa. We spent 5 gorgeous days relaxing in the lovely locales of Salcette village and beach combing innumerable monsoon drenched beaches of Goa. Norman and Carole were the best host anybody could ask for. Carole's culinary delights made the holiday oh so lip smacking and added those extra kilos to Alok's and mine, already ballooning frames!
October proved to be another promising vacation in the land of Nawabs, Lucknow. 10 days spent in the company of Goddess Durga, parents, bro, the boys and SIL warmed the cockles of my heart in more ways than one.
November struck like lightning: both the maids decided to take off for a month long vacation. Thankfully one returned in 15 days and the other has since then been absconding. But I managed to get someone to fill in her for her, and as of now things seem to be in control. Cross my fings and toes, for that one!
A noteworthy addition to this year has been my initiation into hard beverages. And it would be a shame if I didn't give out the credits to Ritika and Aditi. On one such plan Ritika and I were making, Ritika suggested, we should go try the Long Island Ice Tea at TGIF, and I looked at her flabbergasted and retorted, "Why go to TGIF to have Ice Tea?!" Such was my knowledge of alcoholic beverages, until, but recently!
November was also a month of innovations. Alok & I chose to go on a diet and opted for the famous Shikha Sharma diet. By the time the month wrapped up I had lost about 5-1/2 kilos and Alok some 8 kilos.
We also ushered in Diwali with a round of Teen patti, gambling with Ritika and Himanshu. Was great fun. Again a first for me, being initiated into the game of cards. This was followed by a pre Diwali evening spent gambling with SILs and mom-in law as well.
December was a month of celebrations galore. Ma & Dad visting from Lucknow. Our first brush with the winter chill was at Uncle Jalali's, daughter's wedding.
Aditi and I spent a lot of time bonding and sipping innumerable mugs of coffee. We even went shopping for boots just before New Years eve. We wanted to look boot-licious you see! Our Christmas tree was up around the second week of December. So the girls-Rash and Aditi suggested we have an X'mas party at our place. The cake, pasta and wine made it a memorable evening, as did the giggles and squeals of laughter from the kids when the opened three different presents.
Arusha also did a fabulous job of creating a wonderful gallery walk, for the Bikaner trip they had from her school. Mighty impressed by all the hard working and writing she put in along with her friends, to showcase the trip and it's myriad nuances.
December also brought in a job offer from VHAI-Voluntary Health Association of India, as a Consultant Editor. With it's flexi, two times a week, half a day timings; this was an offer I couldn't resist. I grabbed it hands on, and was assigned the prestigious assignment of working for a HIV/AIDS publication with imminent people from the field.
2010 has been a year to be so grateful for. New learnings, new beginnings, new horizons-all clamored into one little space. That's what made it not just worthwhile, but something to write home about.
