Tag: Family

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N.25 The Enigma of Return

And so it goes, my grand travel adventure comes to a conclusion amidst a peculiar temporal fluidity. As if I’d never left, I find myself in the same places being a whole other man.

My vision is fresh and my choices are now imbued with a freedom from ancient concepts.

I’m rediscovering the daily.

The same drop of water from my old apartment’s water faucet taps to the same rhythm, the endless roadworks and the same passerbys with fleeing eyes at the sight of my huge smile.

I’m not sure exactly what I’ve done for this but I am coming back to Montréal in an ocean of love. I am welcomed as a great guest and I’m getting seduced to get back into the city’s thriving cultural life.

The friendships that bloom in my existence are one of the grandest riches that a man can ever be given. I am truly moved.

I am back in town only to find a large garden. I do not recall planting so many flowers.
Maybe they’ve sowed themselves?

It’s quite unique to roam around in the city’s streets in the fall to imbibe the atmosphere. I’m playing the game of smile, salute and look in the eyes.

The people seem tired and thrown off by a stranger’s smile.
I have hopes to find reciprocity of joy in the coming days.

And so, I find myself in my town, back in Québec’s culture, tango dancing with the mysteries of what shall present itself as a new life. I have so many friends to see, it’ll take me at least a month to get through them all.

My travels have brought me this trait that I now choose joy in my heart irrespective of what’s happening outside of me.

We have the freedom to create our internal environment and to ascribe meaning or not to the events of our lives.

The human experience is a malleable clay. By our actions, we can mold it the way we choose.

With this newfound freedom, I’m writing on the balcony warmed by the morning sun.
Here I am, back into Quebec’s day to day.

I take a deep breath and I tell myself:

‘’It’s good to be alive’’

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N.23 ”A new Life”


As my time in Kerala comes to a close, I breathe in the moment.
Perched atop my home for the last three months, surrounded by jungle, blanketed by the bright blue sky above and the sounds of the sea in the distance, here I am once more.

Oh, how a place can change you.
I come here every morning and evening these days. There’s a silence here that nourishes me deeply. Somehow, the grandiosity of my surroundings helps me gain a fresh perspective.

I could never have known or planned my stay here. It seems to have happened by virtue of fate. When Life mingles with your affairs and sets a course tailored just for you, it may be the right time to throw away your petty plans and hop on that ride.

Who knows who you shall be coming out the other end?

As for myself, my old stories are now dead. My old self has been buried in Kerala. From my experience, there is no mistaking it: a new life’s beginning.

It’s hard to put into words what is so intimate and visceral. Birthed out of silence, I am left wordless in the face of the immensity of living.

I’ve had the privilege to make lifelong friendships. I now breathe more deeply and my walk is tall and proud. I’ve found great dignity in the company of my new brother Abdul. Both the poorest and the richest man I’ve ever encountered.

The sometimes confusing ways of Indian culture has left me more accepting of what is. I do not feel the need to label things anymore. It all seems so petty to try to catch a morsel of the river of life going full throttle in order to give it a name, therefore feeling safe in return.

In a short time, I’ll be on a plane bound for Sri Lanka. I’ve been longing to swim in the sea ever since my stay in Mexico, a few months back.

Now’s the time to satisfy that desire.

I do not know where this adventure will bring me but here I am, firmly rooted in the present with an open heart and mind.

Let’s see what happens next, shall we?

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N.21 My Own Legend

Out here in Kerala, the Onam festival is in full swing. There are lights everywhere, it feels like Christmas, floral arrangements adorn every street corner, and it’s the perfect opportunity to go into town and buy yourself a new dress.

In my case, I invited my friend and his children to go to the circus.
“The Great Bombay Circus,” as they say.

It was like stepping back in time to the carnivals of yesteryear: clowns who weren’t very funny, dwarfs who clearly just wanted to go outside and smoke cigarettes, some really cool acrobatics, and aggressive marketing on the food and drink side.

A real business lesson for the whole family!

The other day, I had a profound realization. I’ll try to put it into words for you, my dear reader.

It’s morning. I’ve just finished my yoga session on the roof of the house where I’ve chosen to live. The view is breathtaking. You can see the sea at the bottom of the mountain, and I’m surrounded by coconut trees and birds flying overhead. The sky envelops everything brilliantly.

I open my eyes and in front of me is a brown plastic chair.
I start thinking, “Damn, that chair ruins the view,” and I feel slightly frustrated.

And then suddenly, in a split second, I realize how absurd the situation is: I am in a paradise, the wind is caressing my body, and the smell of the sea is filling my nostrils. It is completely absurd to think that a simple plastic chair could “spoil” the experience.

The apparent absurdity of concluding that the view is diminished because of a chair suddenly makes me laugh out loud.

I realize that imposing a story on the reality of the moment is a personal choice, and that I have chosen the mediocre story of the chair spoiling the magnificent experience of being alive in paradise. I laugh at the pettiness of my mind.

Life follows its course. The story we attribute to it is 100% optional.

Basically, my journey has been a reconsideration of the story I tell myself at every moment.
I stumbled upon some old, dusty tales that needed cleaning up, so I’m rewriting my own legend in a more conscious way.

In any case, my friend, I hope your legend is beautiful and surprising!

See you soon!

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N.18 Hospitality. The Indian way.

In India, the hospitality is such that they will invite you to their homes to meet the whole family, offer you a chair to sit on and feed you till your belly becomes round.
If everyone gets two portions, you get four.

You may have to learn to say no at some point. Three dosas are enough but they bring you two more and another fried fish. You can say no. That you are full and satisfied but this does not always work. When in doubt, say yes and eat the whole damn thing.

They will serve you tea.
Yes, it’s caffeinated.
Yes, it’s 9pm on a Tuesday and you usually go to bed by 10pm.
Yes, you will have trouble sleeping.
Just say thank you and drink the whole damn thing.

They will invite you to hang out the next day.
You are in India.
You are here to discover the cultures and immerse yourself in all its ways.
Just say yes.
Show up the day after. Eat more. Learn a few words. Imbibe the cultural intricacies.
Have a few laughs and share your humanity.

As you may have already deciphered, it is now 10pm on a Tuesday. I’ve just eaten for two and drank so much tea. I doubt sleep will be kind tonight.

Tomorrow, Karti will show me how to wear the traditional cotton wrapped around the waist, the Tamil way. I am sorry for not knowing the name of it yet. I usually go about it this way:

I say yes. I have an experience. Then, I learn the names of things.

Flash forward two days later.

The name is longui. I have been taught many Tamil and Malayalam words. Even a few in Indie. I laughed so much these last few days with my adoptive Tamil family, the side of my mouth hurts and my eyes are wrinkled. They sure know how to have a proper hang out!

I went fishing for the first time in ages. Armed with a bamboo stick and flour paste as bait on a lake so dirty I did not dare to put in my feet.
I already hear you asking: did you catch any fish? Yes we did. And yes, we ate them.
Still haven’t gotten sick so far. God willing, I never will.

And so, another day concludes itself in the glorious lands of Tamil Nadu, south India.
I am now aiming northward. I have heard about the musicians and dancers in Rajasthan.
I want to meet, mingle and play. I’ve been here one month so far and still haven’t quenched my thirst for jamming.
I shall keep looking outward,
rooted inward,
banjo in hand and ready to play.
Bobcat on the lookout!