Thank You!

Every moment of our life is a learning opportunity from ourselves or others. It is not only formal education that gives us learning opportunities but every interaction, every incident, every moment where hindsight may make us feel that we could have handled something differently.

I am a firm believer of life itself being an opportunity for learning, learning at all levels – spiritually, cognitively and emotionally. It is for us to recognize these lessons and their meaning in our life to evolve further and progress on our journey.

I also believe that all relationships are of give and take, people come into our lives and move on and re-enter as and when we are ready to receive more and grow. This is true of both good and bad relationships. All of them teach us something. It is our wisdom or lack of that helps us move on and grow or live in similar patterns creating similar outcomes in our lives.

It took me a while to realize this and use every opportunity and incident as an opportunity to learn and evolve. Today, I care deeply about these experiences and am ever so thankful for them. As I look back, there have been many positive influences on me that have shaped me into who I am today. Every time I look back at my life, a certain component of it comes to mind. It really is impossible to recollect every incident each time. But each that comes to mind has its own lesson. The grade III Hindi teacher who hit students on their knuckles with a duster taught me to be kind, the grade V Math teacher who shamed me for scoring 58 in retrospect taught me courage to face difficult situations and overcome them, my grandmother’s addiction to every news transmission on the radio taught me how to be thorough, a dog being hounded by young boys for fun taught me compassion, working parents taught me independence, my daughter’s following me around in her early years like my tail taught me unconditional love, my dog waiting for me at the door every day of her life taught me loyalty, my favorite cousin walking away from my life taught me acceptance, my brother’s love, encouragement and gentle nudging to do more taught me confidence, my husband’s support gave me wings, my mentors at work at different times of my life taught me to be grateful, to forgive, to make mistakes and learn from them, to honour my word, to fulfil my commitments, to soar as high as I want, to pursue my dreams, to try out anything I want to and so much more. My friends taught me to laugh, to be myself, to enjoy little things, to be there for the other.

I am sure if I think harder, longer, I will find many more lessons of life, people that taught me to be who I am today. And then there would be many who may still not come to my mind for no real reason and certainly not for their lack of contribution, but just because I am human and didn’t get reminded of them today.

I spent some time today interacting with one of my favorite mentor who has always inspired me, encouraged me to do more, push myself, taught me so many life lessons and continues to do so even today. My lesson today was to go out and appreciate others, acknowledge their contribution in my life, tell them that they matter to me and humbly apologize for any inadvertent miss that was not meant, close the loop and move forward, celebrate and learn together, pave the way for more endearing and deeper relationships in every way possible. This one is therefore for you. Thank you!