A Penny for my Thoughts

Today was one of those days.  One of those magical days.  Brace yourself mom, I may "go all George Harrison" on you.

I was given the book Shantaram a couple weeks ago from a friend I had just met, Eugene.  The timing was impeccable.  It's like he knew what my mind and soul were craving.  Shantaram is a 933-page book; I am only on page 138 but I have already lost myself in it.  It's a story based on the life of the author, Gregory David Roberts, a robber and heroin addict who escaped prison and his nineteen-year sentence.  He fled Australia to the majestic country of India where he "came to find his humanity while living at the wildest edge of experience." 

It was a terribly rainy day in Melbourne so what better way to escape the dampness than to hit a cafe, sip on tea and lose myself in the words of a great story teller.  For the past few months, I have known that I want to go back to India and explore the entire country.  I have felt that a piece of my heart and soul are still there.  I have been trying to find the words to describe why India is the amazing place I believe it to be.  It always comes back to the people and the energy.  There is an excerpt from the book that struck a chord with me:

"You must be careful, here, with the real affection of those you meet. This is not like any other place.  This is India.  Everyone who comes here falls in love - most of us fall in love many times over.  And the Indians, they love most of all.  Your little friend may be beginning to love you.  There is nothing strange in this.  I say it from a long experiene of this country, and especially of this city.  It happens often, and easily, for the Indians.  That is how they manage to live together, a billion of them, in reasonable peace.  They are not perfect, of course.  They know how to fight and lie and cheat each other, and all the things that all of us do.  But more than any other people in the world, the Indians know how to love one another.  Without love, India would be impossible."

There is a magic in India.  If you can see past and just accept the hectic traffic, the sometimes awful smells, the rubbish and dirtiness in the streets, you too will fall in love.  It's a place where your mind is forced to open and embrace love for the people, the culture and just the enchanting place India is. 

As I walked home, I reminisced of my experiences in India.  I remember sitting on the steps at a beach in Kovalam with a couple of locals.  We chatted about life, love, yoga, India, and Canada.  I giggled as I remembered the older woman telling me to bring back some more Westerners for her younger friend and his friends to marry.  I remembered the little boy she had with her and how he wanted to touch me and hold my hand.  I remembered one man asking me if I had any Canadian coins for his son to bring to school.  I remembered eating a fresh pineapple the woman had just cut for me.  I remembered the smell of the Arabian Sea.  I remembered the feeling of true appreciation and the simple things in life that bring happiness.  Finally, I remembered that crow at the Ashram that flew over me telling me that I have made and am making the right choices and where my life is leading is exactly where I need to be.

I then began thinking about teaching yoga and the bliss I feel when teaching.  I had mentioned in a previous post how I was developing my own practise and how I wanted to take more courses before teaching asana classes.  It was the visit from my friend Gareth that changed that for me.  I realized that the aforementioned were just excuses and that ultimately, I was just lacking confidence.  He reignited the flame and gave me the boost and inspiration I needed.  It was a couple weeks after that a coworker had said to me that she always wanted to try yoga.  To her surprise and delight, I mentioned that I am a teacher; I now teach her and her friend two or three times a week.  And now that I am into teaching, I remember why I chose to pursue teaching.  The peaceful energy I feel among my students when our class is finished is what happiness and life are all about.

Melbourne has been an incredible experience thus far for a variety of reasons, many I have outlined already: the people I have met and the great vibe in this city mostly.  I suppose I should let you know that I have been working at a cycling apparel shop which allows me to talk about bikes and lycra all day long!  Along with that, I have working as a face-to-face fundraiser (which I have found a whole new respect for).  I've also been on my bike a lot and am starting to raise funds for my Ride to Conquer Cancer in October with two great guys I met when working for the Ride.  So basically, as I once proclaimed at the age of five, "Life is good!"

So do I know what is next for me?  No, should I?  All I know is that I continue to learn about the person I am and what life is all about - or at least how I believe I should live life.  To me, it's embracing every single day, never having judgment, appreciating the simple things, sharing my aspirations, listening to others' aspirations, inspiring others, turning negativity into positivity, and fulfilling my passions.

One other thing I am certain of is that I will return to India in the near future.  The compelling stories that fill up the pages of Shantaram have absolutely confirmed that for me.  Whatever else the future brings, only time will tell.  I'm just enjoying the journey.

Yes, today was one of those days.  Om shanti.

"...it unlocked this enormous big door at the back of my consciousness."                          ~George Harrison on India

Passing through a village in the state of Kerala, India on way to Neyyar Dam.

Thanumalayan Temple, Suchindram in the district of Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu.  L-R David from Galway, Aishwarya from Delhi, Tyler from Saskatoon and moi. Amazing, amazing temple. Amazing people.

A gorgeous autumn day in Melbourne.

The two Tracy's.  She is one person who has made Melbourne as awesome as it is. A friend for life.

"'Cause you gotta have friends..." Themed parties at their finest: Mafia.  L-R, Belle, Nina, Nick, Lisa, Damian, myself, Mick, Ingrid and Dev.

  

You can take the girl out of the country but you can't take the country out of the girl...

...and by that statement I mean the following:

I love the buzz of a city; I like the hustle and bustle, the city lights, the sounds, the entertainment and the excitement.  But I grew up in a small town where camping, fishing and just being in the outdoors was the best past time.  It is impossible to ignore that yearning for serenity and beauty that Mother Nature offers.  For me, being in the great outdoors is in my blood and an adventurous weekend was just what the doctor ordered.

Before my weekend adventure began, I had an awesome visit from a friend, Gareth, who I met through the wonderful world of travelling.  It was a day like we had that makes me love city life and everything Melbourne has to offer. After enjoying a Melbournian day complete with cafes, yoga, street art, relaxing in the park and parma (Chicken Parmesan with fries), I was excited to explore areas outside of the main city.

Melbourne street art at it's finest.  This is at Hosier Lane.

So what do you get when you have two Canadian (correction, British Columbian) girls itching for adventure?  Just that!  My friend, Nina, and I decided to have a weekend away and planned our journey the night before (typical...).  We wanted something epic but were not sure if anything would compare to the mountainous ranges in B.C.  After considering our options we decided on the Cathedral Ranges for an overnight camping trip.

First things first, we have to get there.  It's time to face the fear of driving on the right side..well the left side..wait, how does that work?   Anyway, opposite of Canada!  And I must say, I think I did a pretty stellar job but props definitely go out to Navigator Nina.  It took awhile for my eyes to stop drifting to the left and hugging the curb. Thanks to Neens for politely correcting me :)   Eventually, I got the hang of it and by day two it felt quite natural.

The road into Cathedral Range State Park.  This is Bernadette (Bernie), our rental for the weekend.

After two hours of driving through the beautiful Yarra Valley (this is wine country!), we reached Cathedral Range State Park.  Using a hand-drawn map and memory, we parked Bernadette at Ned's Gully car park, hoped we wouldn't get ticketed, threw our 35-pound packs on our backs, and off we ventured into the unknown range.

Up the hill we began and I soon realized that I haven't hiked a mountain for approximately eight months and forgot what a completely different form of exercise it is.  Must work on cardio - noted.  We had a short little break to enjoy the scenery (aka my heart was beating out of my chest and my lungs were shouting, "Amateur!").  As we munched on granola bars, both Neens and I spotted something in the bush.  I felt my heart rate increase (which I didn't think was possible at this point) and I felt that pit in your stomach feeling.  Basically, I was scared!  It was very hard to make out what creature was lurking but resourceful Nina was able to identify it as a Lyrebird.  Very cool!

After about another hour of hiking we then reached the peak.  My expectations were non-existent as to dismiss any potential disappointment but I can tell you, it was seriously breathtaking!  Sure, it's cliche, but I really felt at home.

So here I think that the hard part is over but the real hiking hadn't even began.  The next two hours consisted of some serious scrambling which I totally love but perhaps was ill-prepared for considering I was carrying a stupid amount of weight on my back.  About an hour in, my legs had started getting a bit shaky with trying to balance myself through the never-ending ridge. 



Ascent complete!  And this is why hiking is so awesome.  The rewards of breathtaking views are always worth it.

**Warning**  Mom, don't read this next paragraph.

I seriously almost fell over...and I don't mean scrape your knees fall on a rock, I mean tip over the ridge down the rocky cliff.  And not once but twice.  At the same spot.  Where it felt like I was tight rope walking.  On a cliff.  I lost my balance and my pack felt like it was pulling me to the right and for a brief moment, I felt my stomach leap into my mouth.  I steadied then literally four seconds afterwards, I almost lost it again.  I managed to recover before tumbling down the embankment and good news: I'm alive!  And honestly, I am stoked to go back (maybe not so much on my back next time though!).

We finally made it to the site and set up camp for the night.  Dinner consisted of salami, cheese and spinach bunwiches, Shapes, carrots and of coures goon (meaning cheap boxed wine).  After making some friends who had a (illegal) campfire, we were both knackered and decided to head back to the tent.  Did I mention it was 7:30pm?

The night did not end there though.  So yes, I am in Australia but yes, it does get freakin' cold!  I woke up in the middle of the night and had a memory of a camping trip a couple years ago on May long weekend that saw us waking up to snow in the morning.  It felt that cold here.  I then hear a shivering, desperate voice say, "Trrr-rr-acy? C-c-c-an we spoon??"  I shiver back, "Y-yy-yesssss." 

After a bloody cold night, morning arrived.  We packed up camp and started our trek back.  We took an alternate route; to be honest, I didn't feel like experiencing near-death again.  As we walked down the road back to Bernie, the sun was shining, the trees were lush and green, the birds were singing a tune and I had a "How amazing is this?" moment.  Sometimes I forget.  I am in Australia.  I live in Australia.  And there we were.  Just two friends on some beautiful and unknown road in Oz.  Literal.  And metaphorical.

Why hello Australia...you kind of feel like Canada!

Cathedral Peak!  Kind of looks like Pride Rock from Lion King.

Nina tackling the Ridge like a pro!

Much deserved vino.  And yes, we brought wine glasses...there is some class in us.

The night sky.  This is just one reason why getting out of the city is needed every once and awhile.

The descent.  A gorgeous Victoria day.

Couldn't be happier!

"Not all those who wander are lost."