On Mangoes
It is Mango season. For much of Maharashtra and Goa it is akin to a festival. We select a cool shaded dry place in the house for laying out the hay and arranging all the mangoes on it for them to perfectly ripen. The house is filled with the smell of mangoliciousawesomeness. Have you ever noticed? every single mango is unique, there are hardly ever two mangoes that look or taste the same. Each has a distinct sweetness, texture, and softness. And this is despite the fact that many of them are made by the same tree using the same soil and sunlight!
I found this observation thought-provoking. Humans are much more layered and complex in creation than a mango, we are each so unique.
On Reminders
Our doggo - panther is a huge handsome strong doggo. One fine day in a desperate attempt to come into the house he discovered that with a nose-leg coordination, he could actually open the door himself. Since then he comes in at his will, except, he sometimes completely forgets that he can open the door, and he stands outside whining, asking us to open it for him. This reminds me of Hanuman’s story in Ramayana. Hanuman was cursed to forget how powerful he was until and unless he was convinced otherwise by someone else in the future. Accordingly, when Ram was in need of a messenger to reach Sita all the way in Ravan’s Ashoka Vatika, Jambhuvanth came forward to remind Hanuman of his power. Hanuman was not only gifted with Bala (strength) but also with Buddhi (wisdom) and Vidya (knowledge). Now imagine someone trying to convince an intelligent and logical being that he could grow big and fly! But Jambhuvanth did it and Hanuman grew so tall and strong that he could cross the mighty ocean in one big leap!
We must find our Jambhuvanth(s) and keep them close.
On Travel
I had the chance to travel quite a bit in my school-going days, and most of this traveling was without family/parents and it was hardly ever luxurious. When I traveled with my dance troupe we stayed at really small and unkept apartments, when with my basketball team we stayed in school dorms, and during my NCC camps we stayed in godowns and barracks. These travels were supra massive learning experiences. I learned to be responsible for myself, to keep my belongings safe, to pack small and tight, to tolerate a variety of foods, to be conservative and calculative about expenditure, to judge strangers and places and decide whom and what to be wary of, to build camaraderie with teammates, to survive on the bare minimum, and to make homes out of strange places. These experiences also gave me (and my parents to let me) the confidence to start solo travel at the early age of twelve - the first one is still a very vivid and dear memory.
At 25, I’ve been thinking a lot about how to approach travel now. I have been searching for some ‘theme’ to base my destinations on, some thread to weave all travels together… and I think I’m onto something. India already has that thread and it is meaningful and historic. The 51 Shakti Peethas, The Char(4) Dham Yatra, The 12 Jyotirlingas, and The beautiful mindblowing larger-than-life temples of South India which are tied together in political, historical, and spiritual symphony, - these are an itinerary for a lifetime! These are destinations that are affordable, beautiful, informative, transformative, and grounded and marinated in age-old folk culture. This thought slowly evolved into the idea that I needed - I want to experience the story of India. Her ancient wisdoms and diverse cultures, her wars and traumas, her flora and fauna, her rivers and mountains and beaches, her engineering marvels and political catastrophes… I want to hear her breathe and cry, her story is my peoples’ story.
This still probably means I will visit the same places I would have otherwise, but I have the same feeling a mason would when he knew what he was laying the bricks for.
On Singlehood
It is good, it is also bad, as I am sure being in a relationship is too.