Namaste India

Posted on December 18, 2014

Travel to me is not about how many countries or big cities that I visit. Neither is it about the length of time that I’m away. It’s more about getting to know myself in environments that may challenge me, having to learn a new language or even having to live with different ‘societal’ rules.

So often I hear ‘why are you there? What’s so good about it? Don’t you miss home? Oh I would never go there, I’ve heard it so dangerous. I don’t like ‘that’ culture or ‘those’ people. As strangers to a city or country that we may only be visiting for days or weeks, many of us can be oblivious, rude, insulting or just nieve to the customs of these cultures. In this little time that we have we may not get to know the people and we spend alot of the time generalizing these ‘people’ and their culture as one because of one bad experience or because of what we have heard on the news.

I have also been guilty of generalizing in the past but I am so much more aware of it now and I consciously am not influenced by the fear we are fed through media.

But many of the best things that come by being away and living in different countries is learning about the culture and people of those who live there.

Currently I’m back in India (6 months this time until April) and every day I fall more and more in love with this place. I’m learning the names and stories of the locals. Their smiles and positive attitudes blow my mind each day. It’s such a beautiful thing, it’s adds gratitude to my day and is a reminder at how truly blessed I am.

My friends, the locals. They are raw, many uneducated, under fed, under nourished, poor from money but so so rich in soul, with so much love and happiness.

They work long days, many walk around in the sun selling, cleaning and working to make cents for food, some children and families sit for hours repeating the same sentence ‘come see my shop, looking is free, my friend, what is your good name’. This makes me smile and you know what they accept what is, they are happy and have so little (in a way of material things which so many of us believe will make us happy in a western world).

Being here, teaching yoga, practicing yoga, learning languages, being creative, being present, disconnecting with my ego & others egos, slowly drawing away from social media, my belongings or my lack of. When being one with myself and present in now – I feel I am more like them – happy, believing & trusting that everything will work out.

My new friends, I will dearly miss and dread the day when it’s time to say goodbye in April.

“The moment you grasp living right ‘now’ this there is a shift in consciousness from mind to being from time to presence. Suddenly everything feels alive, radiates energy, emanates being. ”

Love

Stacey ☼