happiness and food

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Ever since I started penning a monthly gratitude list a couple of years ago, this August was the first time I couldn’t write one. First we were travelling and then it was too late. But I couldn’t forget. That to me is the power of gratitude. It brings you back thinking about it even when you see you are drifting.

So here I am tugging along my happy list of things for the two months gone by. I know today is the last day of September but hey, we are now in October. Almost.

The last two months did not go by in a blink. There were days that were too long but they did pass. If you are wondering what happened, there is more to come. Our travel turned out to be too adventurous than we could imagine or prepare for. It took us time and a lot of money to get back things to normal. In hindsight, road trips are meant to be unpredictable and this was our first taste of what it means to be stranded on the road.

Let’s talk more about that later.

Now is the time to get to my happy list from the 61 days gone by. Are you ready?

♥ The month started with a two-day conference in Gurgaon, new learnings and a whole lot of happiness. It came unannounced and brought me a much needed break. This trip made me think that we should wish for things. They come true and in a way that we can’t imagine.

♥ I met Shalini this month and like I have shared before, she braved traffic and rains to meet me. It meant a lot to me. Like I always say, the connections we build matter and this one is here to stay. I also had a chance to meet my schools friends and one of them, I met after 20 years. That was so heart warming.

♥ I got a lot of time with family during these two months. Such things don’t happen so easily this side. My brother, cousins and VT’s parents. I loved the change in scene and the presence of people who I know since childhood.

♥ At the Tech HR conference that I attended in August, I won a Twitter contest and that made me happy. The conference had a good line up of speakers and all that I did was share what I learnt. It was easy but looks like it was also good for the organizers.

♥ Together with Corinne and Shalini, we launched a monthly blog hop, Words Matter. If you are a blogger, you must have seen my tweets. I am grateful that I got to work with Corinne and Shalini and that so many bloggers are joining and enjoying since August.

♥ This year on Raksha Bandhan, I had family and cousins around after decades. Glad that day was Independence day too so it was a day off and we all had the time to meet each other. Two of my cousins and chacha-chachi came over. My usual happy bunch of friends were also home.

♥ I worked out but not as much as I would have wanted. Travel took away the focus from every day routine but when possible, I tried different formats. One of the days at Yoga, we practiced 54 rounds of Surya Namaskars and that was fun.

♥ I am grateful that we took a road trip to Spiti valley in Himachal Pradesh. It was an adventurous trip and things did not go as planned. But we came home safe and made some memories that we will talk about for many more years to come. Travel teaches you tons and this one made us reflect a lot.

♥ I love the mountains and on the road trip, I was happy looking around. I am still so overwhelmed with our trip that I don’t know where to start documenting. So grateful that it happened.

♥ This blog found a mention as a Best Photography Blog 2019 and I am grateful to my readers. This one is for you guys. Thank you!

♥ We celebrated VT’s birthday and my godchild turned 5 this September. Funny stories but happy times with friends. We ate together and laughed. I know these are the days that will remain as happy days of life.

The two months had its downs too but like it happens, it is an integral part of the game called life. I am excited that October is here. It’s festival time and I will head home. More family and food time to come. Work has been good and it will become challenging. Don’t we all know of stepping outside the comfort zone? Blogging took a back seat but I intend to get the focus and rigor back. Thursday Tree Love has been going great and I am grateful for the support that I get from fellow bloggers. Thank you!

If there is one thing that I would like to leave you with (and tell myself too) is to make peace with situations. Life will never be as we plan. It will have surprises. Some good ones and some not so good. So keep living every single day.

So, what are you grateful for?

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Linking up with Vidya’s gratitude circle this month.