I hold the belief that each being is a hero in their own life overcoming adversity, day to day challenges and conflicts invisible and unknown to the outside world. Whether we are able to rise above our circumstances or not, to endure the experiences of our soul’s journey is no small feat. Not all accomplishments come with a certificate or a trophy!

My parents’ decision to come to Canada was catalyzed by the passing of my brother right after his graduation from medical school; unknown to all of us that we will be met with another tragedy when we got to Canada. My brother who invited us also passed away just a few hours after we landed. I was in my early teens. I neither asked whether I’ll be returning back to my home in India, nor I thought that I wouldn’t. We were all devastated with the passing of my brothers, nothing was clear, and everyone was trying to do the best they could under these circumstances.

Weakened and raw by the passing of my two brothers, my parents had to listen to many voices, and it was decided that I will stay in Canada with my other brother or sister who had been living in Canada for a while. Youngest of 11 kids, too young to have an opinion of my own, I stayed while my parents left.

I had no idea how tough it would be to be away from my home and my parents and the reality of living with my siblings was far away from the fantasies I had created in my head as a kid, and the change in family dynamics due to the tragedies we all had endured. Needless to say, these were not fun times and after 4 years I moved out on my own to my parents worry and insistence that I return back to India. I didn’t and my dad had no choice but to support my decision but their worry of a young girl living on her own in a faraway country continued. I only realized what they may have gone through after I became a mom.

I boarded a room in a German lady’s home who was very loving and motherly towards me. I worked non-stop during summers to save for my tuition and worked throughout the school years, graduated in Biochemistry and had zero loan. Sending money from India wasn’t like it is today; my parents tried to send it through people who would visit India whenever they could.

No one can love you like your family, but no one can hurt you either like your family; I had experienced the whole spectrum. I wanted to go to medical school but the visit to these schools didn’t uphold my expectations so I decided against it and instead went into accounting and finance so I could study and work at the same time. I was in my early 20’s and lost both of my parents. I did my internship at Price Waterhouse, wrote the CA exam and was 4 points short of passing it. (The pass rate first time was less than 50% at that time), before I could write it again, I got married and moved to Detroit where I wrote the CPA exam and passed.

All I knew was Indian way of marriage, I got married after a few short weeks of knowing this person. Funny, how there was no family around and I could have made a different choice, but I arranged my own marriage. This was a rude awakening and catapulted me into the inner Spiritual path. The marriage ran its course when my son was 4 years old. During these 7 years, I worked in private sector as a CPA, did Yoga training ( a chance Yoga classes opened me to the world of Yoga)and was drawn towards the inner workings of human psyche.

Determined to not have my son in daycare, I found a job within walking distance from my new home, and I could make my own hours and dedicated my basement to a Yoga studio. I made flyers on my computer; hand folded them and drove from neighborhood to neighborhood to put them in people’s mailboxes. In this little town of Milford, no one even had heard of Yoga. But my studio started to get flooded with students as I was the only game in town. I became a weekly columnist for the local paper and the magazines. The word spread and I held 10-15 classes per week. I was fascinated with the teachings of Yoga and continued to deepen my studies. Frankly I couldn’t get enough and same holds true today. I started to lead Yoga and meditation retreats, teach at the hospitals, speak on Yoga at every opportunity I got, teaching at other communities and created a yoga program for the medical staff at the Providence Park hospital in Novi, created a Yoga program for GM, with the increasing number of employees attending, I had to open 2 classes per week and taught them for 7 years. I took Yoga to my kid’s middle and high school.

I wanted to offer Yoga with a medical basis so people would take it seriously and that’s how I came to Ayurveda. I had never even thought of Ayurveda before this, I must have thought it was a thing in India only and the fact that my dad and granddad were both renowned Ayurveda doctors of their time had totally slipped my mind. Finding Ayurveda to me was like candy to a kid; I couldn’t believe that how and what I thought was actually a study and Ayurveda was that study that understood my language. I was overjoyed and I over accomplished all the requirements. My son who was in middle school at that time said that I was weird because I would be so happy to do my homework. I took Ayurveda to the high school and taught for 7 years at the International Academy.

The rest is history as they say. My son moved to Toronto in the middle of Covid and I followed him a couple of months later. The MI chapter is so beautifully closed, and I feel I am starting anew on many levels in Toronto.

I feel I am now ready to be FULLY met by all the joys and blessings of my new life. My son is now 25 years old; he is exploring music, psychology and does not fit any norm, wants to learn by his own experiences and works hard to become the best version of himself that he can every day. He is my mirror showing and reminding me how I was at his age.

It’s important to acknowledge and point out that I have met countless angels in human form throughout my life. I can write a book on just that. I am left breathless and in awe.

This is ironic.  Although, there are many doctors in my family, I am the only one who is holding the lineage of Ayurveda and following my dad’s footsteps as when I would tell my dad that I wanted to be a doctor; although a progressive man, he would reiterate the obvious of the cultural and societal norm of the time that the girls would end up in the kitchen so what would be the point of getting so educated for a girl.

I dig the inner depths with passion and reckless abandon; this for me is the way to get to the root and solution to all dis-ease and discord in the world. I am blessed with great health and so much love of family and friends.

I am a serious person but don’t take anything seriously. I have a knack for finding humor and order in the chaos. I trust and find answers in the bigger questions. Life is a beautiful and enjoyable mystery, just when you think you know it all turns out you don’t.

I believe in the human potential and that the intelligence that created us has everything in IT to heal us. My ending thought is that if we can connect with that intelligence every day, our days will be all that we desire them to be.