As I sit in my room, thinking back about my trip to India and trying to see if i accomplished what i set to do. I came for many reasons 1) to continue my training in public health (population health) 2) to travel and see the world 3) and being born, raised and educated in Edmonton, i felt stagnant, unchanging and not growing as a person. When i was traveling up North, i met an amazing American (50+ years old and a proud grandmother who traveled India for 6 month by herself). She told me that even if you don't travel India physically, India is an internal journey... and boy, did she get that right.
Bruce Lee said that, “When there is freedom from mechanical conditioning, there is simplicity. The classical man is just a bundle of routine, ideas and tradition. If you follow the classical pattern, you are understanding the routine, the tradition, the shadow - you are not understanding yourself.” I had to escape from the routine.
India for me has been a roller coaster of extreme emotions (frustration, anger, anxiety etc) and thinking back this is exactly what i wanted. I wanted to escape from the mundane, routine life that i was living back in Edmonton, where i would wake up every morning and pretty much can go through the whole day as a zombie because nothing would change. I longed for something more and always wondered what else was out there... what experience am i missing out on. In Edmonton, i would cling to the hope that something new would happen or something life changing; maybe i will meet this amazing girl, or something like that... but as always... nothing would happen and i would go through my day, researching, eating, and sleeping. It was an easy decision to go to India for me, even though i had my doubts in the back of my mind.
In the end, being away from the comforts of home for 6 months in India has allowed me to appreciate everything so much more. This may be a little bit cliche, but being away from home, makes you realize what you already knew (even more). In a sense, i believe everybody knows what they have to do to make their lives better, but are unable to put the thoughts into action. It's that inaction, or that unwillingness to accept what you have to do, that plagues today's society.
I honestly don't know what to write, and i don't want to make this sound like some cheesy post... but i guess it can't be helped. I'll be as professional as i can be.
Thinking back, there are only a few things that i remember and that i will take with me for the rest of my life. First of all, I don't remember any of the places i visited. I remember vaguely the Taj Mahal, and some beautiful temples and can only remember what they looked like by looking at pictures. Kinda sad, but true.
My most vivid memories are the ones i have with the great friends i have encounter on my journey: memories of late nights in the computer lab, memories of sitting and chatting in Tifany's eating another Mini Meal, memories of hanging out in CCD, drinking coffee and eating mediocre chocolate croissants, memories of biking through monsoon rains in November after a late night in the lab, memories of wandering the streets of Varanasi, memories of sitting on a bench in front of the Taj Mahal, with 3 travel books open, trying to figure out where to eat, memories of birthday dinner outings at Sangeeta and Amethyst, laughing, talking, and having fun over some good food and some good drinks (meaning lassi - i love lassi...Yummm... banana lassi), memories of hiking down the mountain at Tirupati, memories of sitting around drinking in a hotel room in Pondicherry, memories of sitting around candle light and playing Uno and listening to the sounds of waves crash against the shore in paradise, and memories of just laying in bed, listening to music and forgetting the world around us. It's the simple things, the things people tend to take for granted and overlook that really matter. Leonardo da Vinci said that, "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." So simplify, simplify, simplify!
They say you only need 3 things in life to be happy: 1) good food, 2) good drinks, 3) good company. We had all 3! Thank you! Thanks for the memories! Thanks for reading! Miss you all... it's never goodbye, it's just a "see you soon"!
See you soon!
"We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend" ~Robert Louis Stevenson~
"If you always put limit on everything you do, physical or anything else. It will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." ~Bruce Lee~
"The medicine for my suffering I had within from the very beginning, but I did not take it. My ailment came from within myself, but I did not observe it - until this moment. Now I see that i will never find the light unless, like the candle, I am my own fuel, consuming myself." ~Bruce Lee~
"The world is your mirror and your mind is a magnet. What you perceive is in this world is largely a reflection of your own attitudes and beliefs. Life will give you what you attract with your thoughts think, act and talk negatively and your world will be negative. Think and act and talk with enthusiasm and you will attract positive results." ~Michael LaBeuf"
“Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.” ~Bruce Lee~
"Real living is living for others." ~Bruce Lee~
"Love is like friendship caught on fire. In the beginning a flame, a very pretty, often hot and fierce, but still only light and flickering. As love grows older, our hearts mature and our love become as coals, deep-burning and unquenchable." ~Bruce Lee~
"I'm only asking that you turn the page, continue reading...and let the next story begin." ~Mr. Edward Magorium, from Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium"
Robin's Adventure = To be continued...
Miss you! Hugs and kisses!
With love.
Robin
