A dedication and fond wishes to my daughter on her Graduation Day!
Congratulations and many blessings!!!!š ā¤ļø š
Today as I prepare to attend my daughters graduation ceremony in one of the prestigious institutions in France, serendipitous moments washes over me of the many memories of nurturing my child.
I present here, one of my older posts written when my daughter was a growing teenager… but still true in every word.
On Staying Happy In the Now….
As a mother of a growing teenager I have been witnessing a number of amazing experiences that only a mother and child are privy to and I hold each of these moments close to my heart. I watch as my child is evolving into a vivacious yet emotionally intelligent teen, bubbly,full of life yet practical and sensible with a heart and mind of her own.
Although my heart oft yearns for some of these wonderful moments to stay on forever, I know I have got to let it go, as time and tide waits for none. But each time I have this immense respect for this power of the infinite to carry on creating, and wonder where all this harnessing of energies is taking place. And to this divine form, which could possibly be creative feminism or the power of Shakti, the creator I humbly bow and hope that you bestow some of latent creative potential on all the beings around for them to evolve to the best of their beings .
Coming back to the silent amazement that I feel is the way in which a child is moving from a situation of pure bliss of ignorance on to the happy in the here and now state of existence and later on moves on to a state of awareness of the world with all its actions and consequences.
Gradually the child starts searching a meaning to this life and its relation to the world at large.
More than everything else I watch as the curiosity leads to discoveries and at times frustrations to accomplishments.
I, as a parent can try to necessitate an awareness in my child to be holistic in her thinking process. For instance, from a very young age, if reading and writing are made an enjoyable habit, it definitely hones & helps balance thoughts, as one learns to be aware as well as acknowledge the sequence of changes bound to happen…
After all change is inevitable and the natural order of growth . It enables one to have a beginning, middle and an end to a thought or action and thus helps you learn to be present in the moment and also let it go. This makes you less prone to being a victim of situations & circumstances of life.
Happy in the here and now is a wonderful habit to cultivate for all of us; however it is equally necessary to have a focus in life and necessitate actions towards that goal and evolve further. This adds meaning in to life and life begets the ultimate satisfaction of having lived consciously.
Loving every moment of life and learning to be aware and conscious of each moment as it passes by is a fact ,which also can be so easily learned watching your own child grow…
Thank you dear child as you teach me the lessons of life and living fine.
Practice is to engage and rehearse repeatedly in order to perfect a skill to mastery , but not all who practice acheive the level of an expert even with structured and deliberate practice standards in place . So we can safely say practice makes one better gradually.
A consistent practice of any talent or skill will begin to show results for sure. It could be tangible jump or it could be a little step according to the amount to time, focus and energy given to practice. In time the results could be exponential in its rewards as well.
Practice can be truly rewarding and a great source of confidence.But practice needs not only consistency but also determination in perseverance.
A few tips to improve and implement a practice routine..
Be ready to self reflect so as understand why you are motivated to continue practicing.
Be willing to develop the learners mindset and maintain it.
Be mindful of your behavioral changes as you improve and work on it positively to sustain you.
Be engaged proactively to adjust your practice levels as per requirement.
Be focused to set short and long term goals and work on achieving them.
Most of allā¦
Continuity of practice is important after achieving a set goalā¦
Intelligence Quotient (IQ): this is the measure of your level of comprehension. You need IQ to solve maths, memorize things, and recall lessons.
Emotional Quotient (EQ): this is the measure of your ability to maintain peace with others, keep to time, be responsible, be honest, respect boundaries, be humble, genuine and considerate.
Social Quotient (SQ): this is the measure of your ability to build a network of friends and maintain it over a long period of time.
People that have higher EQ and SQ tend to go further in life than those with a high IQ but low EQ and SQ. Most schools capitalize on improving IQ levels while EQ and SQ are played down.
A man of high IQ can end up being employed by a man of high EQ and SQ even though he has an average IQ.
Your EQ represents your Character, while your SQ represents your Charisma. Give in to habits that will improve these three Qs, especially your EQ and SQ.
Now there is a 4th one, a new paradigm:
The Adversity Quotient (AQ): The measure of your ability to go through a rough patch in life, and come out of it without losing your mind.
When faced with troubles, AQ determines who will give up, who will abandon their family, and who will consider suicide.
Parents please expose your children to other areas of life than just Academics. They should adore manual labour (never use work as a form of punishment), Sports and Arts.
Develop their IQ, as well as their EQ, SQ and AQ. They should become multifaceted human beings able to do things independently of their parents.
Finally, do not prepare the road for your children. Prepare your children for the road.”
Life reflects itself through the things you do, the people you meet as well as in your passions and perseverances, in so many intriguing yet enthralling ways.
One such beautiful reflection I experienced in my travels earlier in France.
A sense of deja vu, a throwback to the fond memories of teaching dances to people in the different places, all thanks to the Dance & the magic of movements.
While visiting France I met my colleague from the world of dance, Celine Maheo who resides in Rennes Celine is a practicing clinical psychologist and an Argentine tango dancer. What’s beautiful is that she is a dedicated professional who uses the dance therapy for helping Parkinson’s patients with their movements through Tango dance sessions.
My interest was piqued, as earlier I had been conducting very similar dance sessions as well, especially remembered our Seniors Dance for Wellness workshops back in India.
So over a beautiful meet and greet sipping cups of hot herbal tea at the Les Grands Gamin at the heart of Rennes, ensued a free flowing conversation where we exchanged notes on each others life. Our passion for dancing was the visible to see as we hardly knew how moments passed by.
To dance is to sense connections beyond the dancing bodies.
To dance is to honour life and its unique expressions in the movements.
Savvy Raj
And when Celine invited me to her next Tango Therapy Workshop, it was an offer I could not refuse. I was actually keen to understand whether and how the cultural differences change the way of conducting and experiencing workshops here.
Dancing can improve the mobility and balance in senior adults. Adapting the dance to suit the requirements of the group, like simplifying the steps, the placement of the feet, improves their coordination, mobility and balance.
The dance session was deeply engrossing & truly inspiring to witness and participate as well. The music played that day stayed with me well after the session.
So the next step turned out to be me conducting a Chacha session for them. The challenges of language barriers were surrmounted easily as Celine offered to translate my teaching from English to French.
Everything fell in place beautifully and voila time flew again.We danced a bit of Chacha that day and also some more in the next few sessions as well. I was told later by the learners how much they enjoyed it!
It was an amazing experience sharing the joys of movements and I thank Celine for her inclusivity in requesting me to conduct the dance sessions as well. And I deeply appreciate all her beautiful learners that I met,connected and danced with. It was a truly warm and wonderful time spent with them all.
After the sessions we would gather together and discuss opening many facets of the learning and imbibing. It was a beautiful way of empathising and understanding each other.
Some of the beautiful souls I got to interact with in the few months I was there.
Dance has a way of soothing your entire being and bringing forth and connecting you with the depth of who you are. That is when dance begins to feel meaningful and transforms life. The dance connects established, in those sessions is a beautiful memory etched in my heart, that I will cherish forever.
I chanced on these beautiful moments again as I found the photos I clicked back then and I decided to give them a little artistic effect.
All across the world April 29th every year is celebrated as International Dance Day, although every day is a great day to dance!
I dedicate this post to all my dance friends and colleagues and all the dance educators in the world who are making the world a better place, with every step in time.
‘Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children‘ Kahlil Gibran
A life well lived
Includes experiences
That makes us who we are.
We are not set in stone
Or cast in iron that cannot mould
Our emotional being cannot be suppressed
We are life living breathing and exploring possibilities.
Our infinite ways of expressions is unique to our being
A plant needs the right amount of nutrients to grow Like just enough water and sunshine Not more not less For both will weaken the life within That is the wisdom of moderation. Apply it to life and living Life wilts in the extremes. Choose to respect life And not tilt the stability.
When you supply everything beyond need There is no drive towards the higher purpose. The foundation is taken for granted And might eventually get weaker Suppy enough to keep it nourished.
Nurture life with a balanced approach Just enough to fulfill its purpose. Let the strength of resilience develop. For when roots are deep and grounded They withstand the onslaughts of nature.