LOVE

I fall in love with someone or something new every single day. In Rishikesh, I fell in love with about 10 dogs that I took great pleasure in feeding and loving on. Then I fell in love with the locals who enjoyed watching me take care of the dogs, who then offered to continue to do so upon my leaving. I became friends with a 10 year old girl who said she never thought about feeding the dogs before because no one had ever told her that she should, but she loved watching my interaction with the dogs so much that she wanted the same experience. So we sat down and I wrote out a list of "how to take care of a dog". She is so excited about the responsibility. I then walked from store to store to let all the shop keepers know, who previously had a tendency to pour water on or throw rocks at the strays, that I loved all the dogs so much and that they should show them as much respect as they have shown me. They assured me that they would and I can only hope that they keep their promise now that I am gone.

I fell in love with the priests who conducted the Aarti ceremonies in the evening and all the children who sang the mantras to and with us all. I fell in love with my new friends from all corners of the world whose adventurous spirits led me to experiences such as hiking up a glorious trail at the top of the Himalayan Mountain to a beautiful waterfall then white water rafting down the Ganga River. Two experiences that will live with me forever.

And now I am in Dharamsala/ McLeod Ganj and continue to fall in love every day. The journey here began on a 12 hour train ride with Sarah and William in a third class non air conditioned sleeper car. Prior to coming to India, I was warned to avoid the back of the train, especially on long trips but I have to say I am incredibly grateful for the experience and actually really enjoyed it despite the grittiness factor. We arrived here at about 5 am, checked in to a hotel and passed out for a few hours. When I stepped out of our room, my eyes and heart were flooded with love all over again. It is simply beautiful beyond words here. The mountains are bustling with big gorgeous green trees and views of snow caps in the not too far distance. The roof tops are adorned with Tibetan flags flapping in the wind.

The Dalai Lama lives here and the town has become the headquarters of the Tibetan government in exile. Tibetan Monks walk the streets amidst students and travellers from all over the world. The energy here is incredibly peaceful and joyful. I have, of course, fallen in love with a female monk who lives on a mat in a tea shop outside of the temple. She has been living here for a year and a half and has devoted her life to Tibetan Buddhism. She has become a teacher of sorts to me. On our first encounter she gave me some sound, and very sweet advice: "From now on, every time you turn on a light, say a prayer to open your heart and mind a little bit more. Think only good thoughts, at all times, about all people and you will live a peaceful life." Something to aspire to.

I have decided to spend the rest of time in India in Dharamsala/ McLeod Ganj. Tomorrow I begin my first day of volunteer work here, with a group called Rogpa (http://www.tibetrogpa.org/), at a baby center. I will be taking care of about 45 children (with about 4 other volunteers). The work will involve feeding, cleaning and playing with the babies. All of the children's parents are Tibetan Refugees who are dealing with various struggles including feelings of isolation, unemployment and drug and alcohol issues. Despite multiple attempts to volunteer at various orphanages in Rishikesh, nothing ever panned out due to misorganization so I am thrilled that I can be of service here and look forward to falling in love with all of the babies and their families.

Each day presents itself with new lessons, new challenges and new opportunities to open my heart and mind a little bit more. I am so grateful for it all.

Sending you Love and Light from the Himalayan Mountains. xoxo

Open Heart, Open Mind

The new friends I have made here inspire me every day. In my mind's eye, my adventure seems extreme but having met the people I have met here I realize that my time frame pales in comparison to the journeys that they are on. Each are experiencing the world in a variety of ways for their own individual reasons.

Sarah is a social worker from London with a vivacious spirit and wicked sense of humour. She has been travelling around the world for the past year. India is her final destination. She will end her journey here with a 10 day silent meditation in Mumbai. She doesn't know what she wants to do when she gets back home to England but doesn't seemed concerned about it in the least.

Stefan and Linda are a married couple from the Netherlands. They have been together for 18 years and act like newlyweds. They have been travelling for 6 months and will continue to do so for 6 more. They were inspired to take off for a year when a close friend of theirs passed away. With this deep loss they realized how precious life and their time here was. They have travelled all across the US, down to Costa Rica, Australia, Malaysia, Nepal and now India which will be followed by Singapore and future undecided locations.

Rob and Louisa are also travelling for a year. They are a backpacking couple who have been living in Australia and decided to take off to experience the world en route to their final destination in London. Louisa works in non profit and Rob is an architect who works with sustainable materials. They travel around without a plan, pulled by wherever seems to draw them based on people that they meet along the way.

Lita is a new friend who arrived yesterday. She is a beautiful Italian woman in her 50s who has been living in Miami for the past 3 years. She lived in Los Angeles prior to Florida. She is recovering from chemotherapy treatment for Cancer and has come to India to heal her spirit. Her plan is to travel on her own around the world for the next year but, like me, felt an instant connection to India and may decide to stay here for the majority of her trip. She and I felt an instant connection. When we met with Swami Ji last night he encouraged us both to begin our community service here next week. I have inquired about working with children and animals, which she is interested in as well, and he will give us appropriate assignments soon. I can't wait to begin!

This past Sunday, a group of us took a walk up to the now defunct Maharishi Ashram where The Beatles used to stay and famously wrote most of the White Album. After having slipped a few rupees to the guard, the gates were opened to a magical world of miles of stone huts and meditation caves overlooking all of Rishikesh and the Ganga River. I instantly felt a wave of inspiration standing on the top of the mountain. Had I had a musical gene in me, I would have happily whipped out a guitar and burst into song. But alas, that not being my path, I came back to my room and sketched instead.

New friends arrive here every day. My heart is constantly flooded with gratitude for their kindness and generosity of spirit. I speak to almost everyone I come into contact with. There are lessons to be learned everywhere I go.

"You must not let your life run in the ordinary way; do something that nobody else has done, something that will dazzle the world. Show that God's creative principle works in you." (Paramahansa Yogananda)

Sending you love and light from the Ganga River.
xoxo

New Beginnings

I have only arrived in India six days ago and already have a steady routine in place. Every morning I am woken up at 4:30 am by monks chanting to the Divine. Prior to arriving in Rishikesh, I was nervous about not being able to wake up for 6:30 am yoga classes but so far I have not had any problems. I am up before dawn, I sit in my teeny tiny little room and meditate while listening to the monks' enchanting voices. A shower takes place by 5 am which entails short lived hot water and a bucket. By 6 am I am out the door and make the beautiful walk to the Yoga Hall. The route is lined with Hindu Deities and gorgeous gardens.

We have been instructed to wear all white clothing for yoga which is lovely. Mataji, one of our teachers who's name translates to "mother", informs us that white is the color of the divine and that we will be able to tune in with spirit more by wearing it. It is lovely looking around the room at a sea of yogis dressed in white.

Our yoga schedule for the next two weeks is intense. The first class begins with Pranayam(breath work), then Asanas (physical postures) and ends in Meditation. We then break for breakfast in the communal dining hall where silence is mandatory and meals are eaten while sitting on the floor in front of individual little tables. This is very different from my experience at Amma's ashram where the dining hall was very social and gave visiting devotees the opportunity to meet each other. Parmath Niketan encourages more of a relationship to Self and God and less to others which was intially challenging but I am still finding the time and space to make new friends.

After breakfast, we return to the Yoga Hall for Vedic Chanting, Mantras and Prayer. Our teacher, Indu, has the most beautiful voice. The feelings that come up during the chanting are pure bliss. We then move on to Yoga Theory followed by lunch which is usually followed by a walk through town. Afternoon Yoga is more Asana focused.

Rishikesh is intense. The poverty here is extreme and took me a few days to adjust to (although I know I will never fully get used to it). Initially I couldn't imagine ever wanting to leave the confines of the ashram walls in order to avoid the pain that I felt in my heart every time I did. But over the past few days, I have found ways to ease the pain and that is simply by giving back in every way possible. I do so by purchasing fruit (which costs pennies) and hand them out to women and children who beg for anything available and bread and milk for the puppies and dogs (the leftover bread usually ends up in the cows' bellies). I have of course fallen in love with one dog in particular who I have named "Shanti". She is a pathetically scrawny little girl with the sweetest disposition. My struggle is not to scoop her up and cuddle with her but I have educated myself enough about the rabbies epidemic in India to know that that would be plain ignorant. So feeding her twice a day is my pleasure. My intention is to get her nice and healthy over the next couple of months.

Evenings end with Aarti ceremonies on the Ganga River which are beyond magical. Boys and girls (students at Parmath Niketan and disciples of Swami Ji) dressed in traditional Indian garb sit across from each other divided by a fire pit. Devotees and visitors sit on steps which face out on to the Ganga River where a large statue of Shiva sits. A fire Puja takes place followed by chanting. I was called down to participate in the fire Puja at the first Aarti that I attended. It felt like India was welcoming me back home. My spirit has never felt happier.

The friends I have made here are kindred souls who have open hearts and travel spirits. Most are travelling for similar lengths of time as me if not more. I will get into their fascinating tales in my next entry.

Sending love and light from India and Mother Ganga. Om Shanti!