Rolling with it in India

Welp, I’m back in India after a year away and I couldn’t be happier about it! I feel like I have just scratched the surface here and I have missed the place while I’ve been away. It’s weird, after spending almost a year here, it kinda feels like home, or at least very a familiar place. I feel very lucky to have so many friends here that I can’t wait to see and as always I’m excited to eat the fantastic food and soak up what I can of their fascinating and ancient culture.

Since I landed about 24 hours ago, I’ve been trying to think of what I want to get out of my latest trip here. First, I want to do the best I can with work here. I mean, that’s why I’m here after all and seeing firsthand how dangerous the roads are makes me realize how important my work is. I’m also excited to pick up some more Tamil, the language that is spoken in Tamil Nadu where I am- between my friends and the CD’s I picked up, I hope to practice enough to become an intermediate Tamil speaker. I’d also like to learn how to cook some dishes- it’s hard to find a decent dosa, idly or chutney stateside and I’d love to be good enough that I could take that knowledge home. I’ll be sure to keep this blog updated on how I fare in both endeavors.

Finally, I want to improve on rolling with it while I’m over here. There’s a saying- “Announcing your plans is a good way to hear God laugh”, and I feel like that is particularly true here in India. Things rarely go according to plan, from transportation, to work arrangements, to various unexpected things at every turn and it makes it an absolute necessity to roll with it over here. For that reason, I plan on embracing this fact this time (I hope I can plan on that). I’m looking to wing it this time- who knows where I’ll go and see- beaches, temples, animals, parks, old and new friends- I’m not making many plans yet but I am embracing and accepting the fun in this.

I think rolling with it is especially pertinent here in India because of the Ashoka Chakra, or the wheel in the middle of the Indian flag. It’s a Buddhist symbol for dharma and it has 24 spokes to represent the original 24 states in India. I’d also like to think it symbolizes rolling with it!