आंबा प्रेम

माझ्या आईची आजी मालदोली ह्या गावी रहायची. चिपळूण जवळ हे छोटेसे गाव. जास्ती वस्ती नव्हती. तिकडे वीज ८० साली आली, जेव्हा मी शाळेत होते. त्या आधी सगळे तसेच वावरायचे वीजे शिवाय. पणजी एकटीच असायची पणजोबा गेल्यानंतर. तिच्या हाताशी भरपूर माणसं होती कामाला. आमराई मध्ये काम करायला, फणस काढायला, गाई म्हशी चरायला न्यायला इत्यादी. मे महिना म्हटलं कि आंब्यांचा पाऊस असायचा तिच्याकडं. वरची माडी आंब्याने भरलेली, माजघर, स्वैपाकघर काही विचारू नका, आंबेच आंबे. पाहिजे तेवढे, पाहिजे तेव्हा. माझी आई आणि माझी अंजु मावशी ह्या माझ्या पंजीकडे, म्हणजेच त्यांच्या आजोळी होत्या काही वर्ष राहायला. त्यामुळे त्यांना त्यांच्या आजीचा खूप लळा होता आणि आंब्यांवर विशेष प्रेम. आमरस म्हणू नका, पन्ह म्हणू नका, नुसत्या फोडी करून, किंवा चोखून. मज्जाच मज्जा. आणि आंब्याचे प्रकार ही इतके, आता तर ते बघायला ही मिळत नाहीत. 

42 hours of water fasting - My experiences and learnings

Someone rightly said, "our health lies in our hands"—the choice to be healthy, strong and thriving needs to be made consciously. And the determination and will to do should also come from within. No one can force you to suddenly take up a healthy lifestyle, or no one can convince you enough to give up certain things that are harmful to the body. You should feel a deep calling from inside, and then you can really do wonders with your body, mind and health. 

First Anniversary of Urja

Exactly a year ago, when the pandemic had just started and was yet to take its aggressive nature, we had launched Urja. What is Urja? It is a word in the Marathi and Hindi language, which means energy. It's a platform that we have established together to celebrate women, celebrate womanhood, learn together, walk together, and be there for each other when the need arises. 

Sarwari and I took significantly less time to think and decide that we would start Urja, bring forth different experts from different fields, and have exciting and educational sessions for all the people interested in learning and having some time off for themselves.

After the pandemic set in, we had no choice but to hold sessions online on Zoom. The summer session was especially exciting, with a variety of speakers ranging from meditation to storytelling. Gynaecology, positive psychology, health and wellness, postpartum depression, Kathak dance, Hindustani classical music were some of the other fields offered as online sessions at Urja. The response was positive, but we couldn't figure out why the participation was so low. The women who needed to attend these sessions were somehow missing. They were somehow lost in their daily chores, and we couldn't bring them out in the forefront. 

Nevertheless, we decided to continue with what we were doing without thinking about whys and how's. We had taken this up. We were doing with all our hearts, and we didn't want to give up because the participation was low. Every big thing begins with small steps, and our motive was honest. We were not looking at any monetary benefits. We just wanted to reach out to more people and be available as people who would provide contacts in different fields for different issues. 

The past one year has made Urja and us stronger. We have many participants who regularly attend the sessions. It motivates us and helps us keep doing what we are doing. It is essential in life to have a fulfilling passion, a thing that you look forward to, something that ignites that fire inside you and keeps you flowing and glowing. Urja is that to us that has given us something to look forward to, something to cherish and be proud of. And it has made our understanding and friendship only stronger. 

Thank you to all participants and the speakers who graced the different online sessions. 

Thank you to our husbands and kids, who let us do what we do and support us whenever we need it.

Thank you to our parents, friends, well-wishers, who stood behind us as rocks every time. 

Thank you, God, for giving us the courage to start something like Urja. 

This is the Facebook page for Urja in case you are interested to join.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/urja2020

The curious case of the lost iPhone

Winter in Germany was not very cold until two weeks ago, in February, when the temperatures plunged to minus 18 in a place like Karlsruhe, which usually is the warmest city compared to other cities in Germany. With lots of snow everywhere, the last leg of Winter was still on. The schools were not open; it was still the crazy "home-schooling" period. The kids couldn't play outside, and mostly they spent time indoors playing different online video games.

2021 - New year, new challenges

Everyone was happy that 2020 was finally over. People had to readjust their lives in a manner, which they had never imagined. The hope was on the next year, 2021, which looked good and promising. But the beginning of the year was not so great, at least in Europe and Germany. Germany is in lockdown since 10th December 2020, and the lockdown is still going on. The politicians are very well aware that if they had announced the lockdown in December till Easter, people would have revolted. But they tactfully did it phase-wise, for a month, every time. And people are hopeful that after 22nd February, the country and people's lives will slowly limp back to normalcy. But that's just a projection. I am sure this will go on till Easter, and even after Easter. By then, the temperatures will slowly start rising, and many people would have taken injections by then.