Be willing to change because life won’t stay the same.. Happy New Year 2021

 

As the new year is unfolding, a retrospective of this year definitely makes sense to me. 

At work many times, Engineering is heading to deliver and hence to pause after each sprint to have a retrospective is often ignored or passed on for next time. And often we forget the value that it adds to each one in the team.

"It is fine to celebrate success but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure" ~ Bill Gates

I believe its always good to have a retrospective which can always enlighten us because we often don't think much when we are doing something and it often shows how dynamically we work under high-pressure. Similarly year 2020 was a roller coaster ride for everyone around the world.

I am sure like every year, this year also analysts will have their retrospective but how are we individuals looking at it?

One thing I was happy that this year beginning I was with my loved ones and my parents hence could spend some quality time with everyone. It was the beginning of corona year, by the time I reached home in California.

The way we say it was in the air and so was in the news but were we scared or prepared? No!

By the time I came from India and rejoined with my team at work, stay at home was induced and we all were planning to work from home.

I was prepared but I always thought it would be a short period of time and then we all will be back to normal. This is how it is taught in the Defense, one may be on vacation but be ready to go to the war whenever there's a call from your unit and that can be anytime.

"Every success story is a tale of constant adaption, revision and change." ~ Richard Branson

And I was so confident about this going back to normal, that everyday I woke up and dressed up as if I am going to work and got into my usual calls and meetings. 

I was never worried about a bad hair or bad dressing day as I was always ready for anytime video calls because I am at work and so I should be ready - isn't it?

The weeks turned into months and I figured that my movements are getting restricted because of my work, and my schedules. Well, a routine is a must and hence my daily walks kicked-in, and after my meeting whenever I got a chance I came to my backyard spent time looking at the mountains, the orange tree, the guava tree, the oak and the chirping birds would grab my attention as they would jump on the roof to grab the worms.

During this time, lot of things happened while many were dying due to corona virus. I developed new hobbies such as bird watching and learning about them and taking care of them in my backyard. 

Everyday after my breakfast I change their water and make sure the feeder is filled with seeds and they all recognize me today when I do that. Its a friendly relation with nature which I always built no matter which part of the world I lived in.

"The great solution to all human problems is individual inner transformation." ~ Vernon Howard

Healthy eating and exercising is my way of living and hence that continued but one blessing in disguise that happened was I got to stay at home and enjoy my home which never happened before. Because I am always at work and weekends mostly we would travel out locally or long trips during long weekends. 

This pandemic gave me the opportunity to look and feel each corner of my house and mainly not inside but outside of my home. Nature has so much to offer I was able to share it with my family too.

The Birthdays, Festivals, Thanksgiving, Team celebrations and lunches, Christmas celebrations you name it, everything was celebrated well with food, drinks and dessert and most of them were cooked at home with family being together in the kitchen. How fun is that!!! 

Life is what we can give and life in return rejoices us. 

Giving and taking care is what I have learned always and this year was nothing new, rather it enforced everyone to think through and follow the norms.

This year many life perished due to pandemic and or due to many other reasons. Some close ones and known ones have died and it has only made me worry more for my loved ones that are alive.

There is only one life and if we live selflessly and care and share what we have with others it will only multiply the happiness and friends.

I wish we all don't miss any learnings from this year 2020 and carry those into 2021 with more gratitude, empathy and consistent in keeping everyone safe and healthy by wearing mask and social distancing!!!

"A man should be never be ashamed to own he has been in the wrong, which is but saying ... that he is wiser today than he was yesterday." ~ Alexander Pope

Happy New Year 2021!!! 

Celebrate endings - for they precede new beginnings ! 

~ Dawn

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end. ... !

I want to wish everyone a very happy new year 2019!

This is my first post in this year and I hope I can be more active this year as last year I changed to a new job and it needed more of my attention from process implementation and leading for team to adapt it. Hoping this year things will much aligned so I can spend time in writing and doing my exercise.

As the year was ending, things seemed like working for me as I thought so... with related to work, colleagues and at family front. New job didn't make me stressed in fact I enjoyed the way I could give my sincere time to the job that I chose after 6 years of comfortableness. It gave me a change of experience with work, new learning, new beginning and meeting different people from different domain. I am enjoying this change, one should always be a student only then we will be open to learn and accept that we don't know everything and even if we know something based on our learning and experience, it should only bring humbleness.

"You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing that we call a 'failure' is not the falling down, but the staying down." ~ Mary Pickford

One thing is clear that for new beginnings you don't have to wait for new year, you can make new beginnings anytime and its all up to you and your willingness. If there's a will there is a way- and I do believe in this quote.
Since my new beginning started last year...by the time Christmas holidays came up I was totally exhausted and this break was much needed. Visiting Vegas was more or less a relaxation as there was no set agenda as I have been making frequent trips to Vegas previously and this was after a five years gap. 

"Food is the ingredient that binds us together." 

Santa Barbara was something I was looking forward with some more relaxation and more time with nature. Exploring different restaurants was one of the key activity, and so did visited different cuisines such as Indian restaurants Tamira and Bibi Ji - I won't say they are Indian restaurant but it is more or less a fusion for West. There was another place which I found it cool called Public Market, initially we thought its a grocery shopping place but we were looking for Empty bowl gourmet noodle bar and it took us to this Public Market place which has many different cuisines serving food and I felt that was the best place where all kinds of people came together to eat different food under one roof - I loved the food and the concept of this place, something worth visiting at least for once.
I am a foodie and hence this was an amazing journey to explore some of those things.
New Year is here and frankly speaking I have no new plans and resolutions because I don't believe in those. If you need to make a change you don't have to wait for the year to start, it can be done anytime and that You can decide!
For me, this new year is more to be cozy and be home and I blame it all on the weather and the holiday times... where it spoiled my routines with late nights and late waking up and breaking all rules...! I know I will roll-up my sleeves but will wait until next week.. ;)

Until then I wish everyone a good day, month, and year with new hope, aspirations, love and peace!

"Live, Love, Eat"

~ Dawn

A new year is unfolding – like a blossom with petals curled tightly concealing the beauty within…

 

New Year’s Eve is a moment when you happily and content-fully say – Good-bye to old year and welcome the new year with lots of hope and aspirations.

My this year’s 2010 New Year’s Eve was well spent with meeting my blog friend – Pria.
Yes, I always have made plans with my blog friends based on my visit to a particular city and so far I only got lucky meeting Pria and her family in my favorite city Toronto.

It’s so easy when your thoughts match on the blog world with friends, it doesn’t take much to connect with them when you meet in person and that’s the feeling I got when I met Pria at her residence.
The eve is leading to the new year with the hope and aspiration of meeting more and more friends from all over the world…and I am hopeful with that thought with a kick-start meet with Pria.

As I say good-bye to this city Toronto, I also wish good luck to my friends for everything to go well as the new year approaches…I am sure things will change for better and it will…


Happy New Year To All My Friends…this year’s motto is :

“Drive yourself happy instead of crazy. Every minute spent stressing is one less minute being happy” – so let’s enjoy and be merry

“A new year is unfolding – like a blossom with petals curled tightly concealing the beauty within.”

Every parts of India its celebration time as ‘New Year’ with the harvesting season and what not.
All, I remember is celebrating with food and sweets :)

It reminds me the poem written by William Arthur Ward….

“Another fresh new year is here . . .
Another year to live!
To banish worry, doubt, and fear,
To love and laugh and give!
This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest . . .
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!
I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs!”

I would like to wish everyone a Happy, Prosperous and Peaceful New Year.
And to those its Vishu – Happy Vishu …:)

During Vishu you get money from elders as blessings ;) isn’t that fun!!!! I remember saving lot of money that I used to get but hesitated to spend as I thought my parents will scold me …lol

What is Vishu? I have always heard stories and read articles so there are various stories depending on the region of Kerala State. Some what I heard as a kid ;)

Once the custom of Vishukani gets over, people take a dip in the holy water or take bath at their home and visit nearby temples to offer prayers. To celebrate the festival of Pooram Vishu, (as commonly called in Kerala) people of Kerela wear new clothes specially worn on auspicious occasions. People of Kerela multiply Vishu celebrations by traditional singing and dancing. They also burst firecrackers. Then its time for lavish meals. Women prepare sadya (feast). These are special dishes prepared using jackfriuts, mangoes, pumpkins and gourds hmmm mouth waters as I write :D.
The best part is Payassam (porridge could be of rice or made of rice called ada etc), Malayalam feast is an equal proportion of all tastes!

Gosh, I got lost in it …as I describe…but this year few friends organizing this ‘sadya’ unfortunately I wont be there to enjoy as I will be in Lake Tahoe.

Well my dear friends I will be away so have a great one you all

“Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.”

“Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.”

“We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.” ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

I am bit late but this is the beginning of the year and I would like to wish all my friends a

Very Happy, Joyful, Peaceful and Prosperous New Year 2008


I also take this opportunity to thank all my friends who already wished me through their greeting cards and special notes for the season.

Let the year be a rocking one ;)

“Every person should be born again on the first day of January. Start with a fresh page. Take up one hole more in the buckle if necessary, or let down one, according to circumstances; but on the first of January let every person gird themselves once more, with their face to the front, and take no interest in the things that were and are past.”