From tears to triumphs: Give it time.

Dearest gentle readers,

(Yes, a Bridgerton reference at the very beginning. I’ve been MIA for about a year now, so expect nothing less from me!) I promised myself that I’ll publish a blog before 2025 ends, but was so wildly clueless about the premise. I explored options, and traversed a wide variety of routes — tech blogs, motivational pieces, emotional musings, short poems, and what not. But something, some petite thing just did not seem to sit well. And then, I just decided to do what I always do best — trusting my gut and going with the flow. Well, the flow has now begun and I’m not sure where it’ll lead to, and the only way to find out is to stick with me through the next few paragraphs till the end of this blog.

This year was nothing less of a roller-coaster ride for me. I went through a whirlwind of emotions, experienced a plethora of extreme feelings, explored a lot more than I actually thought I would, and somehow reached a strange sense of placid silence.

For starters, I started appreciating the little things a tad bit more. I started falling in love with the mundane things that once drove me crazy. Frankly, it’s not as easy as it sounds, but with a slight change in perspective, it sure can be. For instance, I’ve always been a big ol’ crybaby about my city of work — Bengaluru. I fell in love with Bombay so hard that I began hating on other cities for no fair reason. But after a major rift with someone special, I started appreciating Bengaluru’s beauty more and more. Perhaps, I was trying to fill an existing void. Or perhaps, I was trying to distract my troubled mind. Either way, this outlook somehow instilled a sense of peace within me, slowly but firmly. Inculcating this outlook was not easy either, but a little bit of math helped me master it. Yes, math. Plain and simple math. Whenever I found something to be bothering me, I counted it as a “negative” and tried to substitute it with a “positive” to balance my outlook.

This is how I made it work — Yes, there are no beaches in Bengaluru. That’s bad (too bad, honestly. I’m a freaking beach baby!) But there are beautiful cherry blossoms blooming everywhere — That’s great, and that’s something new too! Yes, the traffic in Bengaluru is the absolute worst. But it does give me some “me-time” to sit and ponder, creating a safe space for me, with just my thoughts and music. Yes, (some) people are (sometimes) not warm and welcoming. But with the owner’s kid at the juice shop, the cheta at mobile repair shop, the panipuri bhaiyya and the hair salon akka, I made new friends — and language did not seem like a barrier at all! Yes, I missed my Bombay vada pavs. But hey, I got the best dosas and filter coffees at every possible nook and corner! Yes, I missed my childhood and college friends. But my work friends had my back. They gifted me their paintings, took me to cool food spots, made fun reels with me, showered me with gifts and treated me like one of their own. Applying this substitution technique to life really helped me get through some trying times and (marginally) helped me take charge of my emotions.

Also, with time, we tend to realize that although things change, and they are expected to too, some things and memories will forever stay the same — like the sudden hit of happiness when it’s all dark, cloudy and just about to rain. Like the first sip of adrak chai. Like a familiar comedy scene hitting you just as hard as it used to when you were a kid. Like those regular scoops of gossip with your mom and your favourite cousin. Like you and your old friends ranting and laughing at bad jokes for hours. Like when you give your best, reap the rewards and quietly realize that you still got what it takes. From tears to triumphs, it’s gonna be one hell of a ride. But it will be a lot more easier if you decide to embrace it rather than fighting it, and to do so, all you need to do is to give it time.

Until next time,

Lady Enigma (Had to close the callback loop, right!?)