Reflections by Kunal Gupta

To connect with others in physical proximity has become a unique experience for the better part of a year.

While I am a neat and tidy person, my parents are not.

What I am discovering is that, unlike the currency used to trade money, I have my own currency in life, unique to me, as do you

This is a question of knowing versus thinking. The pursuit of intelligence is a pursuit of learning.

Fear seems to have a gravitational field, capable of sucking in everything that comes into proximity with it.

There is a desire that I often feel to let go of the bird in my hand, in the hope that there will be two in the bush waiting for me.

Many decisions, big and small, will be made over the next few months that will influence the direction of my life over the next few years.

This morning while on a walk with my father, I asked him innocently ‘how are you similar to your parents?’.

To know what it is that I uniquely believe does not come automatically. It is much simpler to figure out what I should believe.

To try to know is like chasing clouds. I cannot actually do it for very long, as everything changes.

Everything changes. I know this to be a fact of life. However there is often a strong resistance to change. 

I realize that my reality does not always measure up to my dreams and desires.

Over the past year, work from home has not been an idea but an experience.

In the past year, I have uncovered surprising and unexpected discoveries about myself. The world had to turn upside down first for me to turn my mind upside down and begin to look at my life differently than I may have before.

I have a confession. I am an aspiring perfectionist. I may always have been, and might always be.

It is in my nature to be in balance. That is what I have now learned. The moment that I strive for balance, I am out of balance. 

Yesterday, I took a walk by a frozen river while a fresh coat of snow fell gently to the ground. At one moment, I paused and heard something I had not heard for a while. It was the sound of utter and complete silence. No people walking. No cars driving. No birds chirping. No water flowing. No wind blowing. I stood there, quietly, in awe of the power of the sound of silence.

I have been reminded recently that my life is a canvas, and I am the artist.

A few days ago, I held my newborn nephew for the first time and I noticed how my attention was immediately captivated, unlike ever before.

Mindset is the bridge for me to move from surviving to thriving. And one that I have to continue to cross, as it’s a two way bridge.

The truth is that my journey through life is unpredictable. The question is whether I am willing to see and accept the beauty in this truth.

I see now that the reason that I believe this is because that is the culture and society in which I have grown up in. We all have.

As I have begun to notice what I notice, I have seen my curiosity for understanding why I believe what I do grow. 

While on my own path, there are some big decisions and many small decisions that inform where I go.

This is a sacred time of the year for me, more important and powerful than even my birthday.