Sorry I’m late with my blog, is it just me or is life on fast forward? Everything is accelerated right now as we become more and more conscious at record speeds. This is common knowledge in the spiritual community but I feel like my life, my days, are just a blur. I’m doing my best to stay grounded and centered but I’m constantly aware of my feet and the fact that they are not so grounded, often standing on the sides of my feet rather than connecting with all four points as we are taught in our asana (mat/posture) practice in yoga. So I try to take a minute and feel the space on my heels at each side as it grounds down then the same at the top part of my foot under the big toe then under the small toe. I lift my toes and place each one back down feeling mother earth beneath me. I do what I can but then the hurricane of the day hits me which is interesting because my life is simple and not filled with many demands yet I sit on my bed each night having gotten my son to sleep and often wonder “what the heck just happened” I have to admit I’m not feeling much “balance in my soul.” Alas this is the task of my journey, so I inch along and cut out a piece of time gifted to me by my napping baby and a day of fasting so no need to head to the kitchen, ah a free hour she thinks as he stirs by my side, so I type quickly.
A lot of you asked about the head shaving ritual; this is something every Indian goes through at least once in their lives, “caste” determines what age this happens, for us it takes place within the first year. The purpose of shaving the head is simply to allow thick lustrous hair to grow in and since I undoubtedly live in the country that has the most beautiful hair by far I wasn’t going to deny this experience for my son. The majority of our family headed out towards our fathers village for this experience. It was not at all what I was expecting, I had images of us sitting by the Ganges River (known here as Ganga Ji) a soundtrack of mantras played in my head but it wasn’t really majestic at. Two car loads of us headed out of town, my husband, son and I in a seven seater that seated eleven of us on this particular day, not bad considering Indians are quite comfortable with squeezing in like sardines, but I actually had some room to maneuver so I’m not complaining. First we stopped at a beach for ritual bathing in Ganga Ji, the water was cold but filled with energy, it is known for its healing properties, I felt alive as we played in her water splashing and laughing. We then went to a temple and paid homage to the divine Goddess, behind the temple were two men squatting on the ground shaving heads of children. I watched them shave heads without changing the blade; my family was quick to source brand new blades for each of the four babes about to endure this somewhat traumatic rite of passage. My son was the last to go, my husband held him and he did great. Maybe being handled in the hospital so often during his first few months of his life has afforded him a comfort in unfamiliar maneuvers.
This week we also had his introduction to solid foods. He is just shy of six months which is when in the west it’s recommended to begin, here in India it is similar but since my son has completed his fifth month he is in his six month so the time is now. I along with two sisters and our baby’s babies went to my husband's oldest sister's home; she had prepared Kheer which is a traditional Indian sweet dish of rice, milk and sugar. My son proved himself to be a tanker, he was given his first spoon and it disappeared down his throat, his arms waved in excitement as the second spoon approached his mouth, he inhaled the food. I believe his ability to be able to “chew” and swallow the food so easily is a result result of having to take his medicine orally. He impressed all of us by devouring the entire bowl, my sister attempted to stop feeding him and he cried for more. I was concerned it would be a lot to digest but everything was pretty normal, a little more gas than usual but all in all he did incredibly well.
He’s awake now, the wind is picking up, I take a breath, plant my feet and smile for this beautiful gift…
A lot of you asked about the head shaving ritual; this is something every Indian goes through at least once in their lives, “caste” determines what age this happens, for us it takes place within the first year. The purpose of shaving the head is simply to allow thick lustrous hair to grow in and since I undoubtedly live in the country that has the most beautiful hair by far I wasn’t going to deny this experience for my son. The majority of our family headed out towards our fathers village for this experience. It was not at all what I was expecting, I had images of us sitting by the Ganges River (known here as Ganga Ji) a soundtrack of mantras played in my head but it wasn’t really majestic at. Two car loads of us headed out of town, my husband, son and I in a seven seater that seated eleven of us on this particular day, not bad considering Indians are quite comfortable with squeezing in like sardines, but I actually had some room to maneuver so I’m not complaining. First we stopped at a beach for ritual bathing in Ganga Ji, the water was cold but filled with energy, it is known for its healing properties, I felt alive as we played in her water splashing and laughing. We then went to a temple and paid homage to the divine Goddess, behind the temple were two men squatting on the ground shaving heads of children. I watched them shave heads without changing the blade; my family was quick to source brand new blades for each of the four babes about to endure this somewhat traumatic rite of passage. My son was the last to go, my husband held him and he did great. Maybe being handled in the hospital so often during his first few months of his life has afforded him a comfort in unfamiliar maneuvers.
This week we also had his introduction to solid foods. He is just shy of six months which is when in the west it’s recommended to begin, here in India it is similar but since my son has completed his fifth month he is in his six month so the time is now. I along with two sisters and our baby’s babies went to my husband's oldest sister's home; she had prepared Kheer which is a traditional Indian sweet dish of rice, milk and sugar. My son proved himself to be a tanker, he was given his first spoon and it disappeared down his throat, his arms waved in excitement as the second spoon approached his mouth, he inhaled the food. I believe his ability to be able to “chew” and swallow the food so easily is a result result of having to take his medicine orally. He impressed all of us by devouring the entire bowl, my sister attempted to stop feeding him and he cried for more. I was concerned it would be a lot to digest but everything was pretty normal, a little more gas than usual but all in all he did incredibly well.
He’s awake now, the wind is picking up, I take a breath, plant my feet and smile for this beautiful gift…
