The power of imagination

So, this blog is for all those wanderlusts who are caged in their houses due to the “you know who” virus.

This pandemic has given me a very profound understanding about myself. As in some of my self-reflections also put light on the fact that I just say that when I’ll have all the money I want  – I’ll travel the world. But the truth is, I just like the idea of spending carefree moments chilling, soaking up nature. 

In fact, the last couple of travel trips that I had, I could not sleep well because of the new locale, new bed, new noise. One hotel room was so horrifying because I knew there were 2 big lizards on the ceiling and I spent the whole night being so alert to noises and its movement that sleep was pathetic and so was my mood the next day of this trip 😴

Anyhow, I realized while I may have some struggles with it, I do like the notion of travelling and seeing different places, new cultures and new breadth taking views. But it would still be nice to have my own bed and my own comfortable room to sleep in at the end of the day. This gave me the brilliant idea 😎 I could have best of both the worlds during this pandemic 😇

I have started watching youtube videos of different places that catch my fancy for the day. I have learnt that you can put the key words “4k”, “utra HD”, “drone view” after any exotic place you wish to see and you will get a fantastic tour of the place. Put on your horse blinders and just focus on the sights - imagining yourself at the place. With practice, you will start feeling as if you really are there - soaking all the beauty in front of you. All this in the comfort of your pyjamas, in your bed, in your bedroom and in a very cost-effective way 😺

And while this may not be a very appealing idea to the traveler in your heart, come on buddy, it’s still a good option with the current restrictions of movement due to the “you know who”.

So, thanks to the power of imagination – I am both visiting all sorts of beautiful places creatively and getting the same feelings of thrill, excitement when watching a beautiful sunset or a beach with blue waters.

What are the ways in which you have been using your imagination and creativity in this phase of your life?

P.S: Ibiza, Positano, Switzerland, Como Lake, Iceland with the beautiful sighting of the Northern lights are all the places I have visited and enjoyed 😀 Needless to say virtually on my HD screen 😉

Calm In the Chaos

I’m back from the ashes or should I say ‘life’😀

Fear, Uncertainties, Insecurities, Pandemic, Corona Virus, national lockdowns, new life new schedules – I rest my case 😓

When Corona Virus hit India and me specifically, I didn’t know how to deal with it. And because I didn’t know myself well enough (more on that later), I exposed myself to all possible news about it. And each time I heard a negative news about the numbers going up, God knows, I sure did panic from knowing life is uncertain. The fear of facing a virus with no remedy is very very real.

After a while, I was able to pick myself up and find ways to deal with it.

So here are a few habits I learnt to deal with chaos:

1.     Embrace the reality: As much as I would have loved to avoid being in such an unpleasant world of pandemic, I realized the first step towards sanity was accepting and embracing the reality of the situation. Facing the reality at hand does help you calm the emotional turbulence within.

2.       Ignore the news: After a certain point, I realized reading the news is causing me more damage than making me aware of the current situation. I already had sufficient information on how to follow basic hygienic practices of wearing a mask, following social distancing. So, there is no point in following the increasing numbers of the impacted. Believe it or not, after I stopped following the news, I became much more peaceful. Afterall, ignorance is bliss.

3.       Practice Gratitude: I always knew about the benefits of gratitude. But in recent times, counting my blessings consciously really helped me 😇 I literally write them down each and every day (even if they are the same points like safety of loved ones, food, clothing, shelter etc). They say where focus goes, energy flows so essentially you are forcing your energies on the good rather than the gloomy.

4.       Know yourself better: This might be a very silly or profound point based on how well you know yourself. For me, I realized very late in the game that I am a sensitive person who can turn into a super neurotic one with the slightest of stimulus. Bad/sad news turns my mental frame of mind into total crap. And the cycle will not end in a few couple of hours, I tend to sulk and ruminate on the news forever. I might also manifest all sorts of symptoms of ‘the said virus’. I may not even sleep well for days together due to same. So, it is good to do some self-introspection and find ways to soothe ourselves. Doing things you love and NOT doing the things which hurt you are definitely a good starter.

5.       Keep yourself busy: I can’t really take full credit for this one 😅 But well, being the housewife has its own perks. Cooking meals 4 times a day (4 hrs. in the kitchen), cleaning & dusting your house, all other menial tasks to keep a house running used to be boring earlier. But in this pandemic, I chose to use these to become a better “errand girl” version of myself. Also, I try to listen to happy music, interesting podcasts while doing the chores which bring in some fun element into the monotonous. Remember our mothers listening to radios while cooking? Boy, were they smart!

So, here’s hoping to new times, new beginnings where we are safely out of this pandemic. I pray with all my heart that each one of us comes out of this situation with more health, vitality and resilience to face life after the worst is over 💖Amen!

P.S: Thanks to the lovely one who pushed me to start writing again 🙏 Your nudge may have awakened the writer in me again. Hopefully this blog does not feel very preachy or indicative of diarrhea writing disorder 👍