Shifting my paradigm gradually
Childhood is indeed very different. The fact that I am writing with a bulbously swollen thumb, still throbbing from its attack, would have been insanely unachievable in those days. To say that they were carefree, I wouldn’t agree with it much. I was afraid. Afraid of people mostly. Of speaking to them, being in their presence — of being bullied or embarrassed. So, I suppose I am faring better as an adult. Recently, I made a trip to the most happening place in India — Goa!
A solo trip it was — another step towards breaking the walls of my comfort zone. Well, Goa to me, in fact, any place for that matter is never attractive to me for its party scenes. What attracts me or rather every cell of my body is antiquity and cultural heritage. I picturise the world in its pristine state, nature in its best form. Gradually civilization juxtaposing with it and finding its own place — like all other things in this universe do. I love to travel, to see the world. However, people being there everywhere, made things difficult for me. It is said that if you change your paradigm, your life changes. Hence, I wrote about sixty times in my diary — “I attract everything that is good in this universe”. A fellow Instagrammer inspired me with those words.
Thus, I packed my bags to see what would satisfy my soul. This time making sure to be mindful of the present. That is the journey and not the destination.
The Portuguese heritage amongst the subtle palm trees adorned with the western ghats in the background sent me into a transcendental state of mind. Every house with its tiled slopes, portico, and canopied verandas made an ethereal presence in front of my eyes. I could see everything. The way they talked, lived, and fought life’s battles. The windows, bigger than our doors through which the pink bougainvilleas played peek-a-boo must have been a favorite spot for the colonizers to smoke a pipe after a toilsome day.
The forts skillfully cut through, sits on the cliff of a hill — giving the owner a spellbinding view of the sea dashing on rocks. The horizon making way for seagulls, an inaccessible lighthouse, and a sunset that makes life worth living. The past gradually came alive. Even though I got burnt, the sun seemed to dazzle on the farm fields and the narrow palm trees lined roads. Every road either led to a quaint church of the bygone days or a house whose residents distant now, if not never to be found.
The journey filled me with feelings that I associate with enlightenment. Standing face to face with the ocean, I could sense the energies of the universe vibrating inside me. This journey to goa was indeed a journey to reach the SELF that lies within me!
