HOW DID YOU LIVE THIS YEAR?
It’s not just about what you learn…it is also about how you put that learning to action…
All our feeds have been full of information, realizations, learning of the pandemic year. the year made us understand a number of differences: essentials vs. frills, compassion vs. possessions; health vs show & tell. The idea here is not to talk about 1) learnings 2) how tough it was. It is about what it made us DO. Let me start by talking about what it made me DO…
Find new friends:
You are defined by the company you keep. Your friend circle is bound to have an impact on your thinking and behavior too. In a year where conversations, physical meetings were restricted. I made more friends…my friends were authors and books I read. Books are friends for life. They selflessly give, never leave, do not come with expectations. Your most knowledgeable companion for keeps. The number of books I have been able to read in the last nine months has been more than I read at least last year. They beautifully hold you and transport you to a universe that is cut away from your daily life and helps you refresh, refuel, and face life each day.
Happiness= Putting pen to paper
In my case, it is writing. After procrastinating for years, this year I went about keying in those myriad thoughts and words that floated in my head. Writing for me is being the person who is visible in words and expression that is more powerful than the spoken word.
Yes, I would like to be more consistent and do a lot more of what I love, but if I were to compare it with last year, the consistency has been better. Sometimes when hardships and challenges surround your daily life, you need to look inwards and see what gives you happiness. What makes you light up because your sanity is in your hands. Your peace begins with you. My peace came from doing what I love.
Stuck to faith
For all who know me, know that I took to Buddhism close to ten years back. All these years there have been peaks and troughs in the journey. However, the past nine months were about being at it every day. Most people resort to some form of introspection or meditation, for me, it was my faith and my practice. You need a source of positive energy to tide through the day. We often depend on external sources for positivity. I realized that my faith and practice was my weapon. My unending source of wisdom and knowledge that continues to lead me on the path of my own human revolution. It says transformation begins with you, you have to be the beacon of hope and peace for your environment to reflect that. Every day is my journey to put faith into action.
Movement
A lot of what I read and hear leads me to think that movement is a flow. A state of being. You have to move your body to energize it. Being static serves no purpose. Despite days that would start late, end late, erratic sleep patterns I would move my body consistently a few times in the week. A run, 30 min yoga, weights, floor exercises…whatever be the call that day, I paid heed to it. Am I fitter, healthier? I do not know. All I know it made me feel better and lighter.
Being with Nature..is not just about traveling
A year where travel came to a complete halt. The twice a year ( sometimes more) vacations, went out of the window. Instead what came in was parks and park benches. I spent time in nature to rejuvenate myself. Calls, emails, writing, reading doing it all with my son playing cricket in front of me. I used to feel, I need a break, travel, be with nature to recuperate. Life makes us always question our beliefs, and we end up breaking our own cycles constantly. It is like those vicious cycles, we break one to create another. Mine was around my NEED to travel to breathe.
Acceptance
Structures and routines are great. They make life more seamless but when life throws pebbles at you unknowingly, you got to break away from the routine and either catch them or duck. There are good days and bad days, but both need to be lived. When asked how are you doing? I often said, “mostly good but the days when am not…it’s just a part of a pattern”. Knowing this and accepting this is important. Days will be bad; life will be tough. Accept it, don’t fight it. Doing what you can do each day and in each moment is the best that you can do. Night and day both exist and we live through it, similarly good and bad too need not attract extreme reaction. Watching extreme emotional behavior are the two ends of the spectrum and constantly nudging yourself towards the middle path is a daily chore.
While the year might be tough and continues to be; living each day, retaining the good that each one of us possesses is worthy. Modus operandi is ever-changing and that might be the biggest learning of 2020. What we do when times are tough, how we adapt keeps us nimble, keeps us young, and defines personal progress. How have you lived this year is all that matters.
