India, Oregon and Other Stuff

Christina and Don for 4th of July

So I have been back from India for a week and it has been a very warm welcome home. I have to say that I will miss my family in India for the moment. I am really happy to be with family here in Eugene. We went to Alton Baker Park and had some great food, a delicious beer and watched the fireworks.

I love the feel of Eugene.  Its small enough that you can pretty much get anywhere by bike and the longest its taken me to get down town is like 10 minutes.  I don't remember getting to LA that quickly when I lived in the valley.  I will say I took my written drivers test 3 times.  I failed it the first 2 times because I didn't read all the answers.  I finally passed it on the 3rd try.  What is it they say, "Three times a charm".  Maybe that will be true with marriage too, oh wait, I have only been married once.  

I have started to really enjoy the small town life.  I can walk to starbucks or Market of Choice.  There are banks nearby and there are some great walking trails here.  I look forward to being able to take advantage of the hiking and biking up here as well.  

Encinitas, Eugene and my Stops Family are home to me.  I am so blessed to have the experiences I have had. I have often looked at my life as choas because of not having a typical job, or typical experience as many would define it, but my life has brought me here and I can only pause, breathe and say thank you!  Sometimes we look around and see the confusion of it all, the uncertainty, but when we breathe and appreciate (and meditate), the mind begins to quiet down and everything seems to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle.

A large part of my heart resides in Delhi with the incredible people I worked with: Pankaj, his lovely wife; Pallavi, my great friend and laugh confidant, Devanshi, a first impression: Sonu, A wonderful friend who would made sure I was eating lunch; Harshit, The guy who was up at the crack of dawn everyday to make sure we were fed and had Chai Time; Sourav, my friend; BP , and my replacement Chintan and many more, not to mention all the AMAZING, friendly, lovely, considerate and adventurous travelers I met through the hostel.  If you haven't liked the pages and your friends with me, do so here: Stops Hostels, Stops Hostel Delhi and Stops Hostel Varanasi

Some of the lessons I took from India (and if I haven't mentioned it, I am not even close to done with India).

  1. Be grateful for all you have and be super thankful when you wake up!
  2. Recognize the true friends you have in your life on a regular basis. Often times we focus on the crap in our lives and with a little bit of re focus, you can change the thought process
  3. We are not on the same paths as "everyone else".  Celebrate your individuality.
  4. Your talents are real and you have to surround yourself with people who value and realize those talents, otherwise its like trying to light a fire with wet matches.
  5. Seize every opportunity that comes your way, even if it leaves you broke, clueless and maybe homeless.  You never know what will happen when you say "Yes"
  6. Bollywood movies are awesome
This last one here is silly but, its true and allowed me to get in touch with some much needed emotions.  You see in India, they believe in love first, work second. Work is something you do to provide, but love is the glue that keeps everything together. Its a lesson we can all learn from.  Your work will NEVER define you, it should enhance the resonating fibers of who you are.  If you feel like all you do and are is work, its time to move on. Change is the only branch you can grasp ahold of in the falling tree of life.  You are in continual free fall whether you like it or not and it is imperative not to hold on too tight.

In a few weeks, I am going to be traveling to Denver to work at Young Life Frontier Ranch at the request of Tunde and her Husband Todd.  I was blessed to be asked to work the camp and spend some time with them.  Its going to be a great experience and truthfully I have no idea what to expect, but as I always say, "Im here to help" and have a feeling that it is that motto that has led me to this experience.  I say "Thank you" for the opportunity and stay open world, you never know what's around the corner.

Until next time..





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