Reflections of the heart

As I boarded the gruelling 16.5 hour SQ flight to LA on the evening of Thursday, July 7th 2022, I had no idea what I was about to experience. In the next 5 weeks, I would form core memories, filled with a spectrum of emotions, some new, some rediscovered.

In the beginning, I had one question on my mind, what do I do with so much time? I thought to myself, that it’s going to be just another holiday… the kind we are all used to. Where we go see places, people, where we take a break from our daily lives and live it up a little. And this was going to be no different.

Over the years, I have told family and friends about my aspirations for my 5 year recharge (Meta offers a one-month paid time off to every employee for every five years of service) - shoot a documentary about football and how it connects people from all over the world; volunteer at a coffee plantation; join a running team across South America; go to a music festival to see my favourite musicians. All great ideas but executing them alone seemed far fetched and intense. Only one thing was certain. I had a lot of time on my hands.

I did see people, I did see places but the difference was reconnection. No surface level, no small talk, deep, down, the real stuff. Meeting the ones I love from around the world and rebuilding old bonds is what my dreams are made of and this time, they came true.

I learned a lot.

Growing up in our 30s

We were truly engaging with each other after years. Although we stay in touch via WhatsApp, occasional phone calls, even meetings, I was blessed with a lot of time on this occasion. As we warmed up to each other, talked about how beautiful or hot it was, and started to dig deeper, the clouds finally appeared, some with sunshine and some with rain. It wasn’t easy to hear but what comforted me was the strength with which they live their lives. They don’t know whether they are doing it right but they believe, they hope, and go through with it, most times with a smile. One of them smiled and said to me, “the best you can do is to take care of yourself and everything else will hopefully fall in place.”

Pyaar do, pyaar lo (in Hindi, translates to “give love, get love”)

We crave love. We crave connection. For me, that is my love language - I want to get to know people, well. I want people to trust me and love me for the person I am. I am lucky to have a few people in my life who do but it never feels enough.

In one conversation, a friend said, “Pyaar do, Pyaar lo”. It reminded me of a Bollywood song which we both started humming but a moment later, he further explained “only if you genuinely care and show interest in a person, should you expect to receive the same back.” I saw his philosophy in action, during his many interactions with people, people he did not know, like his local späti worker or the stranger in the park who was sitting by themselves. His point being that if you don’t recognise the presence of other humans (known or unknown), you cannot expect to be recognized or appreciated, much less loved. Project kindness towards all and love will take form.

Just stop and smell the roses

In these 5 weeks, I lived through countless moments of fun, silence, laughter, sadness, of just letting go, of being one with nature, all reaffirming the belief that life is not meant to be filled with many things to do. That it’s meant to be appreciated, to be lived in the moment.

Life desires this recognition.

I tried to run in every city I visited and on my runs, the constant were the breeze, the trees, the sound of silence, supporting me and whispering that I am on the right road and that they will always be with me, no matter what. In those moments, when I stopped for the view, I was joined by rolling hills, flowing lakes and rivers, blooming flowers, all asking me to slow down and spread the word to others too. Without a doubt, these are the biggest perks available to us and we don’t even have to work for them.

Heart is full

How many kisses and hugs did I give and take! As this cycle comes to a close, the faces of my favourite humans appear in front of my eyes. You are reading this because you know that I love you. And I want to truly thank you for filling my heart with an unimaginable amount of love. I will always remember you.