It comes, always does. I am not sure if it is because of the jet lag or the culture shock but at some point within the first 48 hours of arriving in India I tend to have a moment in which I freak out, and I mean "completely" even by my yogi standards.
It happened over the shala card. I lost it.
I mean, I waited for years to be able to co-create this trip, registered early, got here, got to practice with Sharath, and then get home and loose the card? How can that happen? How can I be so careless?
You may think it is not a big deal, and it probably isn't, but for me it felt embarrassing to have to go back to the shala, get an extra card, show the world how silly I can be. I even cried.
I decided to do two things. One, calm down and turn a glass around. This is a South American tradition, or maybe just an Argentinean tradition.
When you lose something down there in the Southern latitudes of the world you grab a glass (emtpy may be better) and turn it around, then you tell it you will not un-turn it up again until whatever you lost turns up. (picture from here)
Two, I prayed to Ganesh, the remover of obstacles in Indian traditions.
The card was in one of the many bags I had used to carry groceries and juices from the supermarket. It turned out fairly quickly once I relaxed into the jet lag feelings and surrendered to the forces that be.
Now get this, the freak-out moment did not just happen to me, oh no!
Husband arrives and within 48 hours he lost his wallet.
We even had to talk to the landlady, look everywhere, go through everything. He was calling the credit card companies to cancel everything when it turned up...
Guess what I did? Yeap! 1) the glass and 2) Ganesh
Do you get your own freak out moments when traveling to India or anywhere else?
It happened over the shala card. I lost it. I mean, I waited for years to be able to co-create this trip, registered early, got here, got to practice with Sharath, and then get home and loose the card? How can that happen? How can I be so careless?
You may think it is not a big deal, and it probably isn't, but for me it felt embarrassing to have to go back to the shala, get an extra card, show the world how silly I can be. I even cried.
When you lose something down there in the Southern latitudes of the world you grab a glass (emtpy may be better) and turn it around, then you tell it you will not un-turn it up again until whatever you lost turns up. (picture from here)
Two, I prayed to Ganesh, the remover of obstacles in Indian traditions.
The card was in one of the many bags I had used to carry groceries and juices from the supermarket. It turned out fairly quickly once I relaxed into the jet lag feelings and surrendered to the forces that be.
Now get this, the freak-out moment did not just happen to me, oh no!
Husband arrives and within 48 hours he lost his wallet.
We even had to talk to the landlady, look everywhere, go through everything. He was calling the credit card companies to cancel everything when it turned up...
Guess what I did? Yeap! 1) the glass and 2) Ganesh
Do you get your own freak out moments when traveling to India or anywhere else?
yes, always a time whre it seems that everything is wrong somewhere else, last time lost my camera and the coconut guy give it back to me, lats time on my way home, i lost the neckless that a japanese friend gave to me, so when i found it out, at home, i cried...
ReplyDeletehere in bali, i lost nothing, but i did get so stress with the noise, i get out of husband motobikem left him alone of motorbikes that i cried walking back hotel...
dont woryy , even if we dont say it very often, we all have those frea out on the orad
I love the idea of turning a glass over until the thing that's been lost returns! I'll have to try that sometime.
ReplyDeleteMy housemate thought she lost her pass yesterday too and had a bit of a moment. But even if you did, you can always get a replacement (and even if you had to pay for it, how much would it really cost, right?) This morning, I found her pass in the changing room and saved it for her. You must've turned your glass twice for her too! :)
ReplyDeleteI think those "I lost it" moments are part of the travel experience where we accumulate wisdom/perspective. We step out of our routine into the unfamiliar and we lose things, panic, and then realize we are still alive & unharmed. We miss the flight, panic, and then realize we are going to be okay. travel offers a lot of opportunities to freak out and recover. Travel: The best University money can buy!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with sereneflavor! Although I do lose things all the time at home too, not just during traveling :P
ReplyDeleteLilasvb, that is such A GREAT story, the coconut guy returned your wallet? amazing!... I feel the pain on the other loses too... but then it feels so good to find them... guess you are a total world traveller!
ReplyDeleteEllie, yes, I love it too, in Argentina is a well known thing, and it seems to work, magic? witchcraft? I don't know, all I care about is that things turn up... if you try it please would you let me know?
Jaime, that is another of those amazing stories or "cc" (cosmic connections), as the swami told you, I am LOVING that expression as you can probably tell, I am dropping it everywhere... and directing people to read your post on it because I find it so true. Your roomate must have been so happy you found it!
Sereneflavor, absolutely, that is what it is, everything is so unfamiliar, especially here where there is a cow facing you on the street, then a rooster, then a pig, a baby horse, and that is the beginning of a day, it is just different, fascinating, out of the comfort zone, confusing, I think you phrase it well when you say it is the best university
YYogini, that is honest... guess if I think about it maybe I do too... hee hee
Aye, lo siento corazon! Que gracia que todo salio' bien.
ReplyDeleteYo tambien tenia my primer freak-out esta semana... te dire' un poco del cuento cara a cara. Nos vemos pronto!
Que tenga un muy buen dia con el esposo- el se ve muy simpatico y junto uds son adorables. XX
Ovo, no sabia que tambien hablas en espaniol!!!! estas llena de sorpresas! que bueno!
ReplyDeleteOK, me cuentas cuando nos vemos entonces, ojala podamos conversar pronto y puedas conocer mejor a James, el es muy lindo :-)
abrazo
Necesito practicar - estoy perdiendolo! Un almuerzo, tal vez el Jueves? Hasta entonces estoy un poco loca...
ReplyDeleteOh my I want to hug you both!!!! I freak out all the time & I don't even have to be in India.
ReplyDeleteBoodiba, hugs received :-))) I know what you mean... maybe I do too and just dont notice...
ReplyDelete