My five life changing events..!!

There are many moments in your life that you consider as a inconsequential... But there are few that leave an impression and changes you forever.

As the old sage says, 5 key moments in your life have a lasting impression and if you are yet to experience them then you have an opportunity to be aware and make sure that you are present in that moment when it arrives.

If you have already been through that moment, then you can cherish it as a memory and introspect you are learning from it. But these moments are transforming and life-changing.

• ?Marriage: It can be quite confusing these days with all the different relationship statuses out there. It is hard to keep up with terms like living-in, Living-Out, Committed, non-committal, complicated, and so on. In the past, things were a lot simpler.

Marriage for me was a big decision. I had cold feet to even give it a thought, but then you find that person.. whose presence makes you feel complete and you decide to spend the rest of your life sharing and creating memories.

Married as per the Hindu faith, with chants being carried out as I was walking around the sacred fire during the ceremony gave me a surreal feeling of responsibility and safety because I knew, now I had someone by my side – My anchor and rock.

• ?Birth of your first child – Oh… that moment was unforgettable. The first touch of your child when you take him/her in your arms is no less than experiencing El Toro for the first time with your heart racing at 220 BPS.

As I stood there outside of the NICU, while doctors made sure his basic statistics were ok, tears rolled down my cheek with joy and fear... How are we going to manage that tiny little one? How will I know if he has a stomachache... if he is hungry... What if he has a bad dream, how will he share...!! Why is he not smiling at me, am I looking scary? Millions of questions …and questions and questions...!! but...One thing I promised myself, is that I am going to re-live my childhood with him... I am still there at that moment frozen in time…!!! ??

• ?Migrating to another country – I was like a lost soul, as I walked out of Dubai airport for the first time for my interview with Emirates Bank International (Now ENBD). Intimated by large buildings, fast-moving cars and the bright light of Dubai, my heart was sinking as if I was falling through a rabbit hole. When I got the offer 2 months later, I was unsure if I was happy or scared.

My first month was mayhem, as if life was broken between hotel, office, and house search. Not only the diversity of the country was fascinating, but it was also overwhelming due to my ignorance of understanding cultural nuances…!! How to meet and greet, how to put my ask across…Will the traffic actually stop, when the light is red... In India, it is a choice and not a mandate ??...?After 14+ years in this country, with so many good memories… I still smile at those moments when I recollect my early days.

• ?Death or a prolonged illness in close family – Both these experiences are humbling; they make you think if you have thanked enough every day for the life and time you have. I still remember the loss of my maternal grandmother. I was in the second year of my job, in a different city, when I received the news. Although I had not seen her for over a year but that sudden realization that I would not be able to see her made my heart sink in sadness.

That night as I was half asleep in my apartment, recollecting my memories of her presence in my life, I suddenly saw her ... just there smiling at me and blessing me for my future, could feel her scent and warmth around me as she just vanished in that darkness...!! I felt lightheaded not with fear but with a feeling of gratitude and realization that one day, we will all perish... However, if it is my only chance then why not live it with gusto and cheer and create memories that last forever?

• ?Meeting a Monk – You can feel the power of their positive energy. I had a chance to grow up amid such few monks, this was due to my dad’s association with Ramakrishna Mission Ashram. My early memories of meeting one of them for the first time is still marked in my heart, as he held his hand out to give me a chocolate. Every time I saw them around and they called me, I used to run away...!! Not that I was afraid... but there was an aura of magnetism around them, and my restless mind was afraid of that calmness...!!

Sitting next to them to meditate for 5 minutes was like a lifetime… but that silence was so addictive, that my head used to explode inside with that stillness...!! My heart always kept drawing me toward that zone of peace, even if I could not understand the the reason...!! It is in one of those interactions, that one of the monks once said to me…"if ever in doubt, look inside your heart.. no one else knows better than your self…!!!"

This would be my last edition of the year... As much as I tried, could not deliver all 12...This one is special as it brings back some memories that life has curated for me...!!!

I wish you all a very happy new year and an amazing 2024... Keep smiling and sharing joy..!!!