To everything new that enriches our lives
“I can hardly wait for tomorrow, it means a new life for me each and every day.” ~Stanley Kunitz
Five years ago in the cold winter of December, I had joined an all women trekking trip (courtesy Women On Clouds – http://www.womenonclouds.com/) in Uttarakhand. A group of complete strangers, we had climbed together the Chandrashila summit at 13000 feet and seen one of the most spectacular sunsets ever (as seen in this image). This trip holds a special place in my heart, as it gifted me one new experience after the other, touching my heart in the most beautiful ways. At the end of that trip, I was a different person! It was then that I had made up my mind to do something new every year – build a life with enriched experiences and bring more meaning to my existence with deeper connections.
In the last few hours that remain of 2016 in my continent, I choose to look back and recall everything new that enhanced my life this year. I summarise:
NEW EXPERIENCES:
- Scuba diving –A desire to go scuba diving was long nursed, especially after watching Hrithik Roshan in ‘Zindagi milegi na dobaara’. It was simply fabulous to dive in the deep clear waters of Thailand, giving me a new high after I surfaced above the marine world. What a psychedelic existence there is down under! One beautiful adventure off my bucket list.
- My Blog – Maybe sometimes you have to live your story before being able to write your story. I’m glad I began ‘SoulMom’. Writing here is proving to be cathartic for me.
- 10 km. marathons – Though I have always been a fitness freak, running is something that never appealed to me. It seemed arduous and looked like an effort. Perhaps why I decided to venture, from a yearning to step out of my comfort zone. Ever since, it has turned out to be such a liberating experience. There I was struggling to run one km. at one go, and here I am having completed three 10k marathons this year. It truly feels like a huge feat – I have come a long way, literally.
- Santoor recital by Rahul Sharma – Music lifts our soul, but listening to Rahul Sharma playing the santoor goes a step further for me – my senses resonate to his tunes in some sort of spiritual harmony. Watching him perform live was such an ethereal experience. Another strong wish ticked off this year.
- Flying in the Airbus A380 – As kids, it was such a joy sitting in the red double-decker buses in Mumbai, quickly running up to the upper deck and grabbing the first seats in the front. I was curious to know what it feels like to fly in a double-decker airplane. Well, I did happen to fly in an Airbus A380 this year and marvelled at the engineering. But it did not come close to the gratification of the upper deck front seats of the bus.
NEW CONNECTIONS:
This year has been abuzz with Indian companies riding on the start-up wave and creating some of their own. What is even more heartening is to see the number of start-ups that have been founded by women. I happened to attend a few exciting events in 2016 and meet some of the most dynamic women in their workforces. Women who are making a difference in other women’s lives, who are passionate to turn their dreams into realities and who are hurdling umpteen challenges in their way. While I had the pleasure of interacting with several self-driven women who are making a mark in their own unique ways, I would like to make a special mention of a few who left a mark on me. I sincerely admire them for their indomitable spirit as well as humility. I feel quite challenged to describe them in only a few words, so I choose to just mention their names and links here:
Sairee Chahal, Founder-CEO, Sheroes: https://sheroes.in/about/
Aparna Vedapuri Singh, Founder and Editor, Women’s Web: http://www.womensweb.in/about-us/
Shaili Chopra, Founder, SheThePeopleTv: http://shethepeople.tv/shaili-chopra/
I feel lot of gratitude for all the ‘new’ in my life. What an inspiring 2016 it has been in an otherwise insipid year for me. I look forward to converting these inspirations into something more productive for me both professionally as well as personally.
The sun has set on 2016. Ring in the new 2017!