The year 2023 has been happening, insightful, busy, challenging, and loads of fun! Like every year, I’m reflecting on the year gone by, with some head shaking, sighs, smiles, and gratitude.
Service365 Challenge
The 2022 Moved By Love retreat seeded the wish to do more acts of kindness in 2023. From there, it catapulted to opening it for others to join. So began the Service365 initiative – committing to acts of kindness throughout the year. It started on a high and many people joined. But in a few months, the participation reduced even as some stuck to the end. Did it change anyone? Yes, it did. And it certainly changed the three of us – Saee, Deepali and me.
Psychodrama Journey
This year I began my journey to become a Psychodramatist. In December 2023, I was certified as a Psychodrama Coach Practitioner. Throughout the year, I have been serving clients and friends through this powerful psychotherapeutic modality and also taking the therapy myself – leading to an astounding amount of inner work and emotional healing for myself and others.
The in-person sessions in Gurgaon have led to some lifelong friendships and unforgettable memories as well. And they gave me some breaks from my routine at home and work and some good time with myself.
Nonviolent Communication (NVC)
This year, I started taking peer learning sessions on NVC every week. A tiny consistent group of people attended, learned and practiced. The method is so powerful and should be part of all basic education systems. I am grateful to the group for the invaluable insights that came up in the practice. The sessions were finally closed because of the low number of attendees.
Vipassana
Three years back, if someone had suggested a 10-day silent meditation, I would have never believed I could do it. But I went to Tiruvanamallai and completed the 10-day meditation retreat. The practice is difficult to explain, the effects of it even more so. All I know is that I came back more sorted, aware, and accepting of what-is. And I felt healed on physical, mental, and emotional levels.
Understanding Trauma
Psychodrama, Vipassana, and NVC, all pushed me to learn more about trauma as I came face-to-face with it in my sessions with clients. I read and listened to many books on the topic that seemed synchronously timed just when I needed to support clients a certain way. I am grateful to authors such as Bessel van der Kolk MD, Dr Gabor Maté, Peter A. Levine PhD, and Julie Smith who have shared their knowledge for the benefit of so many. This study has also helped me get in touch with my trauma more deeply, process it, and move forward with resilience and faith.
Reconnections
Travelling to Gurgaon also made it possible for me to meet relatives up north. It was wonderful to reconnect with Uncles, Aunts, and cousins, something I miss out on in Bangalore. I also met friends from school and college, and I’m looking forward to doing more of that in 2024 too.
Creative Growth
The knowledge of Psychodrama has seeped into all the Poshak Life programs where we have shifted from knowledge unloading to co-creative learning. The learning has made us all softer, calmer, fluid, and accepting of emergence. We have grown out of the compulsion of perfectionism, fear of failure, and rigidity. This has led to a creative surge in thoughts and action.
The Thrive program for emotional growth and healing was an outcome of this process, as was the Diabetes Special 21-Day program, the Farmer Markets, and the partnership with Farmizen Academy.
Intense Days, Speedy Growth
On 5th July 2023, Poshak Life turned a year old. And in all the work, planning, marketing, and preparing, we missed the day! That’s startup life for you! Through the year, we’ve incorporated technology and other skills to improve our sales, marketing, and customer experience. Expenses went up as did revenue. Opportunities and recognition also came our way.
The new year will bring some significant changes to our team. Where will the new challenges take us, we wonder, as we look forward with excitement?
Celebrations
There were many milestones to celebrate this year – Saee’s mother-in-law’s 80th birthday, my mother’s 82nd birthday, Poshak Life’s 1st anniversary, and others. And there was also the realisation to celebrate and revere the life in each day. To see our children grow, see our partners evolve, see parents and parents-in-law grow older, observe our growth, help where we can, participate in nourishing events, make new friends, reach out for help, and learn from living gurus – there is no end to the celebration of life!
Stronger V3
Even as the three of us (Saee, Deepali and I) traversed our independent paths, we stayed united in our goal to advocate natural health through services and products. We also stayed committed to each other, and decided to take the hard route of 100% transparency with each other. Using NVC, after some rocky starts, we’ve deepened the channels of our friendship, making us better partners and friends.
Noble Friendships
All my life, I have been blessed with good friends. In the last few years, I have met incredible people as a volunteer in ServiceSpace – people who don’t fall into typical categories. I have met people with an immense capacity for love and service. I have met people who live life lightly but with grace. I have heard from wise people all over the world, whose words and presence have enriched my very soul.
In my psychodrama coaching, I have met teachers with exceptional clarity and presence, whose generosity goes beyond the sharing of knowledge. I have met friends who have held me and I have held them, and we have formed closely bonded relationships. In this safe circle, I have met incredible people with unique qualities, and each one has been a teacher.
Gratitude
Every day I wonder what I did right in my last life to receive so much love, care, opportunities, and security … it’s an endless list of gifts. Every day I thank God for all His blessings, for the chances and second chances that come my way to improve myself and build a better life.
For the next year, I hold big dreams, small acts, acceptance, flow and spontaneity in my heart and mind. With these intentions, I step into 2024.