KERALA ASHRAM: A Spoon of Kindness

The diversity of India was reflected in my travel as well. The time came, after a reckless taxi ride from the airport; I was standing behind an ashram gate alone. No front desk or a receptionist to ask a question, only high heat of South Indian sun on me and confusion in my soul.  At first, it felt like being in a not friendly area with an invisible sign above their door “VISITORS please go HOME!”  In my awkwardness where to go, I was cross- questioning this spiritual journey of mine, blaming me for all troubles I got into and asking “What now, you smart girl, standing on a street where nobody around speaks any English?” I solved a problem by jumping into a first rickshaw to drive me to a place of a final destination, Santhigiri Ashram Guest House which became my last homestay in India.

Excerpted from EBOOK: Facing Your Destiny, India 2016 written by Veronika Prielozna as a Traveling Lady Moon.https://www.facebook.com/TraveLadyMoon

MEETING MY GUIDING ANGEL: DANIEL

“Are you my Angel?” I asked him. “No. I am Daniel.”
“Then you are my Daniel Angel.  You are a godsend to help me find my way around this ashram.” I asked this question a young man wearing his whites at the Guest House office. He had no idea that my morning angel’s card came with a name of Daniel Angel.

He smiled at a new stranger, a western Lady traveler, who just arrived full of bees from a stressful road. “Then, you must be VERONIKA. I heard your name in my dream last night. ”
I kept rambling about a terrible South India traffic, ignoring his note. “I am not who you think I am, I am a simple a bridge builder, building connections from a heart to heart so others can follow later!”  I just identified my journey mission by this line. I know it is so much to catch in one sentence of a nonchalant communication, so common in the West. It goes ‘deep and light’ in a matter of one breath

“I am hungry and thirsty, can angels get hungry too?” he took me to a local dinner/ cantina for a food. A place was run by the ashram as well. The food was Divine! Yes, I was so happy eating! My days from 5 stars hotels with King like breakfast omelets and lassi (yogurt drink) were over. Now, I was on INDIA DIET – a local food which is tasty but noticeably lack proteins for me to feel balanced.

Our dining time together allowed Daniel to give me a brief Ashram orientation. Basic info how to behavior what to ’do and don’t’, so I could yield a wave of Ashram life flawlessly.

Here is my summary and advice for ashram visitors:

You must walk barefoot on the holy grounds, you only wear white colors, there is no smoking or drinking or consuming meat, you do karma work and focused reflection. You eat with your hands unless you have your travel utensils in your pocket from home. Have your cell phone loaded with data to make a connection with the outside world if needed.

Then he was gone, he kept stopping by my room during evening time to check on me. I love his mature energy and wisdom of this fella who is 19 years old university student with outstanding healing journey behind. I treasured his presence and our sharing was on a higher level of grounding spirituality. As you might guess, I made him laugh with my westerner questions a lot.  But he noticed an extraordinary mark on me as well, I mean on my travel story.

“I have never ever met anybody like you, Traveling Lady MOON! You are full of wonders, aliveness and your smile rings!” He couldn’t believe what I did:

You not only dream your life, you live your dreams fully!

We built up a special bond and shared our spiritual writing experience. I taught him how to reflect on a dream and then, how to plan and act on your soul calling. He used his ashram terminology and I have been profound only on my own but when we compared our notes we were on the same page. BINGO!

A SPOON OF KINDNESS

Ashram provides all lunches and dinners for free. You must take off your shoes, wash your hands and meals will be served on one plate in front of you. The tricky part for me was to eat meals by hands only; no spoon provided. (Tip for future visitors: bring your travel utensils in your pocket with you.)

I knew about it but practical part was more difficult than I imagined. I observed their way of scooping and turning food into a bite to swallow. It couldn’t be so graceful, as they were.  I was far away from their well-mannered way and being looked at by dozens of Indian table mates didn’t make my “awkwardness” easier.

To be somebody else, I might never return for a next meal.  Not me!  My “pig headiness” paid off, I ate it all daily.  But I rather not mentioned a level of enjoyment here!

A miracle happened unexpectedly!

On my next meal, being surrounded by my Indian observers who kept ‘enjoying’ my meal time, a spoon was delivered to me. A food server, a man who kept giving me extras, he suddenly pulled out a spoon hidden in his pocket.  Of course, I accepted my SPOON OF KINDNESS with a big smile.

That meal, my friends, was eaten with delight and a divine “click sound” — once my spoon hit a bottom of my empty plate – altered everybody around that I was done with meal fast and happy. The girl in me quietly enjoyed her VICTORY! On my way out, passing by my food server, my eye winged on him, his eye blinked back….we became partners in trouble waters and we shared our silent victory together!

His act of kindness embodied a true meaning of Namaste for me!

You might wonder why I call it a miracle. For me, it was not only a spoon. That spoon from no name man for me was not empty. Actually, it was overflowing with KINDNESS and GENEROSITY. One act of kindness can take your day from unbearable to enjoyable in a heartbeat. Because being kind is showing someone that they are seen and heard and that they do matter. Little small acts of kindness can add up to a big movement….that was about to be throw up at me soon after.

Part 2 will continues…

Excerpted from EBOOK: Facing Your Destiny, India 2016 written by Veronika Prielozna as a Traveling Lady Moon.https://www.facebook.com/TraveLadyMoon

________________________________________________________________

VERONIKA PRIELOZNA, MA writes as a Traveling Lady Moon who blissfully makes her mark as an independent Travel Writer and Happy Customer Consultant. She has visited luxurious hotels and spiritual destinations around the world including Europe, her motherland, the Caribbean, Mexico, Canada (her adopted country), USA, Dubai & India. She writes based on personal experiences only. Her mature energetic insights for her work are deeply rooted from professional experiences as a nurse, yoga teacher & spa therapist. Her sense of humor, witty mind and playful curiosity bring a reader’s delight for spiritual travelers or pleasure seekers purposes around the globe.

Save

Save