SOULspace

  50 things that make me Happy!  Gratitude rewires our brain and so does affirmations and positive statements. As I give Thanks to all that I have, this human mind will also wish for that little bit more. I wish that every positive dream of mine comes true and this list of 50 things, that is what I gift myself this year as I turn another year older!  50 Things that Make me Happy!! 1) Drinking sweet Ginger Tea! 2) Watching a mesmerizing sunrise or a sunset on the beach! 3) Sitting and talking to a friend on the sandy beach,watching the waves crashing onto the shore! 4) Taking long car drives with music playing! 5) Chatting with my daughter and son and loitering in the land of myriad meanderings! 6) Sipping hot coffee from my husband's steaming cup - just a sip! 7) Wearing a new dress that looks good! 8) Making and serving some delish food to my family or friends! 9) When friends and family enjoy what I make for them! 10) Choosing and buying a gift for a friend and they lik...

  Dear Narrative Practices and Ideas, How are you? Have you found all the people you need to find? My hopes and dreams for you is that you reach every storyteller-soul and re-author their thinking and ways of being! The song “Rekhe iddara sake” from kannada movie Chinnari mutha has the following words: Listen to the song here  Are mere wings enough? Birds need the sky to fly high. Are mere legs enough? Deer need speed to jump high. Are mere flowers enough? It needs the wind to spread the scent. Mere water is not enough A river needs the valley to make a river. Mere clouds are not enough Isn't Earth required for rain to pour upon? Are mere eyes enough? Do we not need objects to see? Is mere voice enough? Do we not need a song to sing together?!   This song reminds me that a person does not exist in isolation or in small confined relationships. We are more than that one relationship; we are all that we seek in our landscape. We are agent...

    Pic - Fishes in a lake - they stay away from the sides fearing birds, all cramped together. Suddenly one fish flips to it's back and dies! - Oh just an ordinary day in our LIFE!   Greed arrives in many forms, bearing gifts of clothes, jewels and food. I fail to resist and welcome them with eager desire. Ill will is a hazy person occupying my nether worlds, showing up at places and at times, that doesn't justify their presence. Sloth and Torpor are twins who live with me, I feed them everyday with procrastination. Restlessness and Remorse are cousins who visit me at times, inviting me to their games. I join them without thinking and regret in silence. Doubt, Oh Dithering as we may also call them, comes uninvited and occupies my mind. I don't know why I allow them to stay, even when I know that they are not wanted. Struggling with all these Unwanted Guests to my abode, I finally decided to invite Meditation and Mindfulness and they as guides are sending my unwanted gues...

    Memory – a reflection   A life of experiences they say, A life filled with memories I say. Looking back at what has gone is Sankofa, Taking strength to move ahead. Living the moment in recalling is Reminiscence, To savor the moment once again. Experiencing the here and now as seen before is Déjà vu, Perhaps a memory that is already felt before. Imagination and reality collide in Dreams, That takes us into many worlds of deep connection.   Past life memories are stored in our mind, Only reaching our conscious if we allow it to. Gathering and storing past memories The seeker has travelled many ages and times. Slowly as a ball of snow gathers speed, To descend as a mighty avalanche. So also, only when the time is right, When we can recall enough from our collective memories, When we have learnt enough from our past and memories, We can then choose to rise, To fully realize our connected humanity.     ...

Mullah Nasiruddin had never seen a falcon before and spotting it on the window sill, he caught the bird and cut its talons, clipped its beak and trimmed its feathers. "You poor thing, how did you get into such a bad shape" he sympathised, "Now you look better." ( from a collection of Hodja Tales by Idries Shah) All of us have to clip our feathers, trim our beaks and cut our talons...to fit into a framework that exists in another person's view or in the view of society. Lucky are those who are able to remain a falcon and fly the sky and be recognised as one. I have spent the last 10 years reattaching my feathers, beak and talons. To be the person I always thought I was and thought I wanted to be. Still I find a few feathers are missing and the beak may be more crooked than it used to be, but that moment of recognition when you realise you can regrow your talons, feathers and beak is priceless... I know I clipped my sense of fun and boxed myself into ...

Ammi midiththu, Arundhati parththu is a saying that is part of the Tamil marriage culture. Arundhati was the wife of Sage Vasishta and meant to be the epitome of pativrata. Traditionally most women like my Grandmother would idolize this role and play their part to the "t", even eating off the same plate! I wanted to know more about Arundhati and I found a very learned woman who could coach her husband when he had no answers (thats pretty normal and true in most cases!). Yet the story that is amazing here is connected to my opening words... At the wedding ceremony couples are asked to observe the double stars of Arundhati and Vasishta, (Alcor & Mizar in the Ursa Major constellation). Both these are binary stars visible to the sharp eyes. You would believe couples are asked to look at these stars to signify the union should be like the mythological characters - pure and perfect. Nope, that's not it. The real reason behind it is that these stars display a unique beh...

The hangover continues...as correctly pointed out by my friend /storyteller! I have not had a more fulfilling time with stories as when she and I put together an event that revolved around women.  "My Grandmother's Hands" is a personal story that tells about my Grandmother and how I remember her through her beautiful, hard working hands.  Wanting some more depth to this story, I looked around for a story that I could tell inside this one - Yes, a Story within a Story.  I got two!! Cut the chase and let me take you to the other story, that inspires me to share it here: SavitriBhai Phule. What really caught my eye, is that married at the age of 9 years to Jyotirba who was 13 years old, this child carried a dream with her to her spouse. This dream was not only recognised by him, but he helped her grow wings and taught her to fly and taught many others to fly too. They belonged to a lower caste and in their village of Satara (near Pune), girls were not allowed any...