Hey all,
made it to Pokhara! I am stying at the Green Peace Resort, not exactly the lodge I was hoping to stay at, but it's near the lake and if I want the gorgeous views I just have to get my ass up and walk two mins. This place is absolutely wonderful, I love it already. It's exactly what I needed and I can see me stay here for a long time! Later I might check out the Peace Eye that Jenny told me about for the sake of not being as isolated as here and maybe meeting some other travellers, but for now I am actually happy to be as isolated as this and just suck in the beauty and quiet of this place. I'm also all set for a mountain trek, so now all I need is the paperwork done (one needs a permission to go hike in the moutains here), a guide and maybe some company and off I go hoho up the Anapurna. I'll probably do the basecamp 1 trek, but who knows what other advice will come up the next days.
I am thinking a lot about the future as of late, maybe more than I should... the Saddhu told me I have to try and live NOW and stop musing over the future as much as I do. But how can I not think about tomorrow? I am wondering how I'm going to be able to pick up where I left off, to go back to school and teach, to live in Bruges again, to go back to the same old routine... I can't say I don't like my life in Belgium, I love it even, but there is some change needed and now would be the best time to get my mind around these changes. The changes are all about reorganising my life in order to be able to live it as integer as possible. The last months, years I have experienced that the biggest joy in my life comes from genuinity, originality, this feeling of truth manifesting simply and purely, straight from and back to the core of the beings involved. I remember people in Pushkar singing their traditional songs to me and how they moved me to tears. The temple in Udaipur packed with worshipping men and women of all ages and social classes, singing darshan, to live music so beautiful, it once again, made me cry. A family in Jodhpur inviting me in, sharing the little food they have, the mom giving me some of her own anklets as a gift. The good vibes shared with likeminded travelers. How good it feels to be myself and be appreciated for who I am, no more no less, surrounded by people who are just as real as anything else, without agenda's, masks or games. How good it feels to be part of this perfect creation, just one amongst the many but unique and great nonetheless, like everybody else.
Integrity is about being who you are, becoming the best you that you can possibly be, developing your talents, exploring yourself and the world around you to the fullest. I wanna be more aware of that and focus on personal growth towards that integrity not only in my personal life but also in the working field. I feel that in the world we deal with today, this process of growth involves so much more than just figuring out what job you wanna get and where, how and with whom you wanna live... Since the world is a village and we are all connected, there are so many responsabilities involved in that integer living. Our lifestyle has a direct impact on other people's lives. These days that impact goes beyond the community you live in, it goes beyond the country borders: it is global. Simply put: what the one person has too much of, is lacked by someone else. The food you put into your mouth, the clothes that you wear, the shampoo that you use, the car that you drive, the house that you build... what is their impact on the environment? Who took care of the processing, the packing, the transportation of the product? Did they get properly paid for it? Is the price you paid for it right? For many of you these questions must seem a headache, and not something one individual can or should take responsability for.... but that's exactly the whole problem: noone thinks it's really their problem so nothing ever changes. As consumers we are the boss though, we decide. Positive choices can be made.
I'm still struggling with many of those choices. It's not easy to be consequent, living and working in Belgium, being part of the system that seems to be living a life of it's own. Getting rid of the car, not eating meat or fish, not using harmful chemicals, not eating imported foods, not buying things that have been produced in poor circomstances by workers who have no rights,... it goes on and on and for many things I don't even KNOW if they are safe or not. Even labels aren't always as legitimate as we would hope. It takes an effort to change your shopping habits, your means of transport, your diet. Changing your lifestyle doesn't happen overnight. Still I feel that once the knowledge becomes an experience (come to India) it becomes almost self-evident to deal differently with certain things. You think twice before chucking great food that you can't eat anymore, once you've seen the countless beggars in the street. The injustice of the system is constantly in your face here, and it hurts, and there certainly are ways to change it.
So on the one hand I feel responsible for that change, since I am capable of reflecting on the matter and have everything my little heart can possibly desire, plus I just happen to have a problem with injustice. On the other hand there is also the realisation of the fact that this world or universe has EVERYTHING, so there is good and bad, rich and poor, sickness and health, joy and misery... and there might be no way out of this dualistic reality we are dealing with here... as my astrologist friend Charlotte once said: Earth is a pretty dark planet, it has light and darkness and therefore there are many trials, many challenges. Like a bootcamp for the soul...
I guess it's not a matter of changing the world, but a matter of changing yourself, taking your own responsabilities (that's basically what karma is about). The rest is out of your hands anyway. As my Indian friend Akshay said: You do your best, God does the rest. So that brings us back to the changes I wanted to make in my own little life. I shouldn't get into details here, I am supersticious and I wouldn't want to spoil my plans. Those of you who are closest to me already know what I am dreaming about... I pray that I have the strength to make it happen and not leave it to dreams alone!!
Ok, so far for today.
Thanks guys. Love y'all!
Greets & godspeed,
Tinie xox
made it to Pokhara! I am stying at the Green Peace Resort, not exactly the lodge I was hoping to stay at, but it's near the lake and if I want the gorgeous views I just have to get my ass up and walk two mins. This place is absolutely wonderful, I love it already. It's exactly what I needed and I can see me stay here for a long time! Later I might check out the Peace Eye that Jenny told me about for the sake of not being as isolated as here and maybe meeting some other travellers, but for now I am actually happy to be as isolated as this and just suck in the beauty and quiet of this place. I'm also all set for a mountain trek, so now all I need is the paperwork done (one needs a permission to go hike in the moutains here), a guide and maybe some company and off I go hoho up the Anapurna. I'll probably do the basecamp 1 trek, but who knows what other advice will come up the next days.
I am thinking a lot about the future as of late, maybe more than I should... the Saddhu told me I have to try and live NOW and stop musing over the future as much as I do. But how can I not think about tomorrow? I am wondering how I'm going to be able to pick up where I left off, to go back to school and teach, to live in Bruges again, to go back to the same old routine... I can't say I don't like my life in Belgium, I love it even, but there is some change needed and now would be the best time to get my mind around these changes. The changes are all about reorganising my life in order to be able to live it as integer as possible. The last months, years I have experienced that the biggest joy in my life comes from genuinity, originality, this feeling of truth manifesting simply and purely, straight from and back to the core of the beings involved. I remember people in Pushkar singing their traditional songs to me and how they moved me to tears. The temple in Udaipur packed with worshipping men and women of all ages and social classes, singing darshan, to live music so beautiful, it once again, made me cry. A family in Jodhpur inviting me in, sharing the little food they have, the mom giving me some of her own anklets as a gift. The good vibes shared with likeminded travelers. How good it feels to be myself and be appreciated for who I am, no more no less, surrounded by people who are just as real as anything else, without agenda's, masks or games. How good it feels to be part of this perfect creation, just one amongst the many but unique and great nonetheless, like everybody else.
Integrity is about being who you are, becoming the best you that you can possibly be, developing your talents, exploring yourself and the world around you to the fullest. I wanna be more aware of that and focus on personal growth towards that integrity not only in my personal life but also in the working field. I feel that in the world we deal with today, this process of growth involves so much more than just figuring out what job you wanna get and where, how and with whom you wanna live... Since the world is a village and we are all connected, there are so many responsabilities involved in that integer living. Our lifestyle has a direct impact on other people's lives. These days that impact goes beyond the community you live in, it goes beyond the country borders: it is global. Simply put: what the one person has too much of, is lacked by someone else. The food you put into your mouth, the clothes that you wear, the shampoo that you use, the car that you drive, the house that you build... what is their impact on the environment? Who took care of the processing, the packing, the transportation of the product? Did they get properly paid for it? Is the price you paid for it right? For many of you these questions must seem a headache, and not something one individual can or should take responsability for.... but that's exactly the whole problem: noone thinks it's really their problem so nothing ever changes. As consumers we are the boss though, we decide. Positive choices can be made.
I'm still struggling with many of those choices. It's not easy to be consequent, living and working in Belgium, being part of the system that seems to be living a life of it's own. Getting rid of the car, not eating meat or fish, not using harmful chemicals, not eating imported foods, not buying things that have been produced in poor circomstances by workers who have no rights,... it goes on and on and for many things I don't even KNOW if they are safe or not. Even labels aren't always as legitimate as we would hope. It takes an effort to change your shopping habits, your means of transport, your diet. Changing your lifestyle doesn't happen overnight. Still I feel that once the knowledge becomes an experience (come to India) it becomes almost self-evident to deal differently with certain things. You think twice before chucking great food that you can't eat anymore, once you've seen the countless beggars in the street. The injustice of the system is constantly in your face here, and it hurts, and there certainly are ways to change it.
So on the one hand I feel responsible for that change, since I am capable of reflecting on the matter and have everything my little heart can possibly desire, plus I just happen to have a problem with injustice. On the other hand there is also the realisation of the fact that this world or universe has EVERYTHING, so there is good and bad, rich and poor, sickness and health, joy and misery... and there might be no way out of this dualistic reality we are dealing with here... as my astrologist friend Charlotte once said: Earth is a pretty dark planet, it has light and darkness and therefore there are many trials, many challenges. Like a bootcamp for the soul...
I guess it's not a matter of changing the world, but a matter of changing yourself, taking your own responsabilities (that's basically what karma is about). The rest is out of your hands anyway. As my Indian friend Akshay said: You do your best, God does the rest. So that brings us back to the changes I wanted to make in my own little life. I shouldn't get into details here, I am supersticious and I wouldn't want to spoil my plans. Those of you who are closest to me already know what I am dreaming about... I pray that I have the strength to make it happen and not leave it to dreams alone!!
Ok, so far for today.
Thanks guys. Love y'all!
Greets & godspeed,
Tinie xox
Geen opmerkingen:
Een reactie posten