Reviving the Festival Feel Within.

Today lo and behold! Woke up in the morning with the thought of what I'd like to get done today for Diwali! 

I came up a few things:

Contemplate the biggest hurdles I face now
          - experiment with the power of positive and rational thoughts 


Make Diwali cards for the policemen on guard on this festive day
          - experiment with random kindness - mostly practicing mindfulness 
          - revive my creative strengths
• Write to some people I may have caused harm to or hurt                                                                            - experiment with the idea of triumph of good over evil, humility and the deepest level of  fearlessness to ask for forgiveness

Putting this in perspective, a festival-ish thinking is totally unlike my 'old' me - having lived a non-family life for many years - these festivals were just a much-needed holiday from the rush and run that 'life' had become. I would be like - so yeeeaaaah - its Diwali - what do we have here - 4 days! - let me just lie in bed and switch channels, sleep, meet friends, wash clothes, drink, watch movies.....basically, I just never got up enough energy and/or sufficient parental wisdom and enthusiasm ;) never got passed on to me to want to change from my grey pajamas to a bright salwar kurta, uncombed hair to combed, lying in bed to saying some prayers, being lazy to taking initiative! 

And now, with my most precious possession - my time being truly mine for the last 10 months, I find that  this space to really determine what exactly I 'want' to do with all this time is supremely liberating but also a big responsibility! 

The first - of contemplation with only positive rational thoughts was productive. Its worked largely. Not one pulling negative thought, no wishing ill to anyone, no killing or worrying myself over something I could have done better. Wrote down the biggest issues and what's happening with it. Chill - smile - what goes around comes around!  

The second - the idea of drawing and painting (which I used to love as a kid) to make Diwali greeting cards turned out to be quite a challenge! I guess the 'schooling' in me killed that interest long long ago. Kept pushing it till today, till Diwali arrived! Took me 3 hours and 3 tries to get the final design right. It's too simple but well, I have got started with the old, dried water colors, the waxiness of wax crayons, the art of cutting paper smoothly (the thicker the paper, the more the scissors do their tandav!), the feel and smell of gum on my fingers...and oh! the message in Hindi script was a good 10 mins to write the 1st time - terrible for a north-born, north-bred (lesson: got to write a few lines in Hindi every week!) 

Essence: I loved it! There's something endearingly soothing about working with the hand and the mind with the purpose to serve without expectation.
Result: Trip to Mayur Vihar police chowky and the happiness and hand shakes and beliefs faced is a story for another blog following soon!

The third - and the most difficult one - I haven't done yet. Some from the first has gone into its prep. Tomorrow's a new day! :D