Petrichor

The last few weeks have been very humbling. I have been visiting Edmonton to present Isha Kriya to people. The crowd hasn't been crazy et al. But close to 25 new people know about Sadhguru and Isha Kriya. And the change is already showing. We are having Surya Kriya programs in Calgary and Edmonton. I barely slept 5 hours on 2 days; Saw my daughter probably half of the time she was awake; thanks to a supportive husband, I forgot that I had a family. Every time I stood before people, I trusted every word I said. There is probably nothing in this world that I would do with this much conviction. It made everything worthwhile. This is the best aspect of being a volunteer. The process is humbling and the end result so worthwhile. There is something that makes me feel like nothing. I am able to place myself aside. I become someone I can only dream of becoming. Those moments...when i dissolve...don't exist...how can i express in words? It is the most wonderful feeling I have ev...

Woke up to snow this morning. :) First snow of the season. Made all of us smile, specially S. S wanted to dress up warm & go out to play in the snow to make snow balls, but it melted away by then. Then it became sunny. On the way to pick up S from school, from nowhere I saw a weird shape of a cloud. I was really wondering what would this cloud bring. In less than a minute, HAIL...where I was. but 1 km away the sun was shining bright. I love this lovable city. The top reason for the love is the city's unpredictable weather. Can't really say Winter is here. Can't say it is not here as well. Weird. But every bit beautiful. :)

It interests me to realize how much I can settle down. Being so high in latitude, 4000 ft abv sea level and so close to the Rockies...yet I expected somewhere for the Summer to last(not forever, at least a little longer). Well! at least Fall. The weather over the last few days have been so alarmingly different through the day. Two days ago when G mentioned that the low was -4C, I was like, "WHAT???" Seems like I was in la-la land all along. Seriously, when did Fall fall away? Six months of grrr weather ahead. It gives me the chill just thinking of it. I honestly forgot how cold it gets. How cold does it feel!!! No Calgarian is (probably) prepared or ready to welcome it. But it comes. When it has to. :) Today was a different day(like every single day). As I was driving S to her school, I saw the weather change. It wasn't subtle anymore. I smiled. It was beautiful. How nature has its ways of waking me to reality? I am in no way prepared to think of the next few months. But ...

I am blessed to have the opportunity to meet some wonderful people everyday. When I take S to classes. Those people don't work. The work they do cannot be done if they have no passion in what they do. So, I often have inspiring talks with some of them to hear their experiences from over the years. Each of them have been dealing with children all their lives. Their stories are...dramatically inspiring, to say the least. One was a case worker in the North-really North, where the temperature dips to -40C when the Sun never shows up(& those are many days). It was disheartening to know they would need a Children case worker in such areas. The enlightening information I received through him was that the natives, unlike I expected, are abused by drugs. They load themselves with alcohol heavily & constantly force their children(some as young as 3 years) to drink as well. Why? was my first question. The answer was disgusting to say the least. Apparently, the government pays them to ...

I am not an avid shopper. Okay, I am becoming one...sometimes. So, I had to go to the mall to buy something specific. But got drifted towards Old Navy. S stepped in & had one look at the insides. She immediately knew that it was not a toy store or a candy store or a play area. One look at me & she says, "Amma chalooo"(pointing hand in the exact opposite direction of the store) making a body language used by farmers to move the bulls. As in Go, go, go. She stops it only if I make the move in the said direction. Heights of embarrassment when performed in a crowded mall. This is not the first time, but I am still dumbstruck. Needless to mention G is a happy father, extremely proud of his daughter. Ugh, family!!!

I went for a walk today. Temperature reading -13C something. But the wind was howling horrendously. I wanted to feel the wind on my face. But G gladly gave my balaclava to save my face. As I walked out, a neighbor greeted. Seeing me all geared up, he said, "I don't think you are going out now. It is -29C". The windchill, he meant. I smiled & walked down. The minute I walked out into the cold, I realized, "-29C! What was I thinking???" I just had one layer of Jeans. The magic # is 15 or -15 to be specific. If the temperature reads below the magic#, I should be using 2 layers. Even more, snow pants. Alas! Too late. I could not feel my thighs in a little bit & the wind was bellowing from behind. I did not think of my way back just yet. I decided to walk as much as I could. It felt so good. Just being in that pinching cold. I was decently dressed. Winter boots, jeans, a down jacket over a t-shirt, gloves, balaclava & my parka's hood. I was considerab...

S planted her first seed 2 days ago. She was so excited trying to dig a hole, put the seed in & pour water. It's a given that Canada is populated with immigrants. And the Government is doing so much for the new generation. They have art programs, gym time, indoor play area, movie days, Help me grow times for kids. And it is all free. I learnt about this recently & have benefited greatly in just 2 visits. S absolutely loved being in the garden. They use organic fertilizers(I am yet to find out what they are) & the parents get to reap the veggies. I picked up a bunch of spinach & mint leaves. My cooking yesterday costed me nothing, we all ate organic food & I am also glad that we contribute to the community. Next week, we will go check on the zucchini that we planted & plant some more. From the post, if it is obvious that I had more fun, maybe you are right. I am getting to learn so much from all that is available. Hopefully, I gather enough information to sus...

Finally Settled! Kinda. Settling so soon has everything to do with IKEA. Just a weekend in that one stop shop. God, I love the store. As much as I'd like to get a local store experience, I am so relieved when I see a Costco, IKEA & Walmart. With these stores, I know what to buy where. This is the view outside our window. What's not to love? I seem to have forgotten Bay area already. That's funny. Because, when I left India to settle in Bay Area, I was holding on to India like it was my life. And every instance G showed a slight hint that he had forgotten about it, I'd remind him all about how terrible a husband he was for having brought me away from Amma, my city & my country. If I was G, I'd have sent myself happily back home. Poor G! I have loving people back home("home" is now a relative term). I still love them. But I don't seem to miss them. Not that much where it would kill me. I have realized that everyone has their way with life & I...

Just fixed a new car. Then the move to the new apartment. So, would be a week or two before we start our travels. In the meanwhile, about Calgary: 1. This city is definitely developing infrastructure-wise. Construction everywhere all the time(maybe they can do it only during Spring-Fall). 2. Calgary seems to be the hub for oil sands, internet & technology. 3. Weather is obviously the best in all of Canada. Never seen no rains here. It is either sunny, cold or it just snows.:) 4. Easy to spot a Canadian. He always ends a conversation with an "eh?". 5. There are pubs everywhere. (a quick reminder: I live in the downtown, eh?) 6. People smoke. More than I am used to. 7. People do not look that they are doing a favour by making a conversation with you. 8. Customer service in banks, offices are way better(than I've known). 9. When it snowed yesterday, we were the only people who were watching it out the window like a natural wonder. People were going about their business a...

around where we live now :) Where we go for a walk everyday(notice the warning for coyotes...I was a little amused the first time I saw it) Where S plays almost everyday - on princess island park I haven't done this city justice through photos. Still settling down. But will post a new entry in the travel blog soon.

It truly amazes me to know how much accepting I can be when I just don't resist. When I just let things be. This country, Canada & its people are soooooo friendly that words fall short. People at the Federal office really don't need to please people. They don't have the need to bring in customers. Today, I had been to their office to apply for SIN card & I had no palpitations when I met the officers - which is straight opposite to my every single experience in the US. My last name is pronounced close to what it should be & I don't feel familiar or alienated. Fewer people in a city than I'd ever see in my entire life(I'd been to Alaska in Summer- so that doesn't count). The Bow river borders the downtown & for a change the downtown feels relatively safe. The buildings are not as unique as San Francisco, but they are not grey & blue like in Vancouver. I am not ready for Toronto, yet. And so! There is nowhere else I'd rather be now, tha...