Category: Good Times

Has it really been five years already???

9/9/2014

Five years ago today, I was standing in my hotel suite desperately trying not to cry. With my makeup perfectly applied, hair done, and veil in place...it was becoming real. I was getting married. Between the mini panic attacks and squeals of delight, I was so darn excited. The day had finally arrived.

As I stepped into my gown, I wave of calm enveloped me. I was mere moments away from joining my life to the person who made me feel alive. Who has enriched my life simply by existing. Who has opened up my mind and heart to new ideas and ways of thinking. Who has shown me what perfect love and perfect trust are all about.

Our wedding day is honestly a blur for me (I blame it on neglecting to eat and only hydrating myself on the champagne!), but I remember some key moments that always make me smile.

I remember my aunt adjusting my dress and then moments later, having a fit of laughter while then trying to help me learn how to use the bathroom in said dress (Tip for all you future brides: Pee first! ;-) )!

I remember feeling the air leave me as I started my walk down my (very long!) beach aisle. I remember Mark joking with me as he guided me toward the alter, whispering that he had left the car running in case I wanted to make a break for it.

I remember staring down at my husband's hands during our hand blessing ceremony
and thinking how lucky I was that he had chosen me.

I remember him delicately applying sindoor to my forehead, thus ending my days as a single woman. I remember him covering my head with a sari, the look on his face...I'll remember it forever.

I remember our vows to each other. The promises we made as our friends and family looked on.

Not all days have been good. Some, in fact, have been just plain awful but there is something that has pushed us on to today. I feel that we are madly, truly, deeply in love with one another and a love like ours is too exceptional to just toss away when things get hard.

He is my motivation to do better, to be better. He challenges me and he tests me but he is also my safe harbor...my lighthouse in the darkness. This year will also mark our 9th year of being together. I honestly can not believe that we have been loving each other for almost a decade. It doesn't feel like it's been that long. I wish that time would slow down so I don't feel like I'm missing it.

Roni, you are constantly renewing my faith that love and marriages can last forever. Your gentle way of living has touched some of the deepest parts of my soul and I am forever changed by you. I love laughing with you. I love going off on adventures with you...even routine chores are often some of my favorite things to do and it's because, with you, I am at ease. These past five years have not been without upset and sadness but they have also not been without laughter and devotion...tenderness and love. Your unwavering strength and guidance as we walk through this life together has been the greatest gift that I could ever receive. Because of you, I have so many reasons to smile.

You are my confidant, partner in crime, husband, and friend. Who could ask for more than that? I love you, Roni.

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Pour your Intentions into the Salt Bowl.

5/31/2014

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I've been thinking a lot about connection recently and how we impact the people around us. No matter how quick a connection, a change has been set in motion. An exchange...give and take.

A bee might only pause briefly atop a flower but both the bee and the flower have experienced a powerful connection. The bee, pausing only moments to collect nectar has no idea that there is an exchange taking place. As the bee sits, the flower's pollen sticks to its legs. Flower to flower the pollen is transferred and the cycle continues, creating new flowers from which the bee can drink.

Since my husband and I learned that we are going to be moving, I've been focusing a lot of my energy on the connections that I've made. I feel guilty that I didn't have the opportunity to tell everyone how much they have meant to me and how grateful I am for the lasting impact that they have had on me.

The dictionary defines a Connection as "linking of people or things: the joining together of two or more people, things, or parts". With that in mind, I wanted to mention something that I hope to do with the people in my life. I want to go to the salt bowl.

Image captured before my goodbye salt bowl ceremony

A salt bowl ceremony is an incredible practice that involves a circle of people who, with adding their own personal ingredients, co-create a large bowl full of pleasant smelling sea salt. The salt bowl is sent around the circle and as each person adds their own special ingredient (essential oils, sage, finely chopped citrus peel, lavender that you picked from your home garden, honey, sugar, etc.) they also add their intention. This can be anything that you want, a goal for your life, a thought about the relationships in the circle, a kind message to the group, aspiration, whatever intention you feel compelled to pour into the bowl is left in the salt.

When this circle is completed, everyone takes a jar of the intention filled, delicious smelling salt home with them. In times of stress, anxiety, or simply when you need a break from the day, you can return to the salt bowl. You can bathe in those intentions and love, wash your hands with the well wishes and kind thoughts that were lovingly added by family and friends, or simply close your eyes, smell, and remember the unity that you felt as each person added their selves to the bowl and how wonderfully present you were in that moment.

An experience like going to the salt bowl can be wonderfully transformative. It's a moment in time when you're holding a literal representation of yourself...being a part of something bigger. And while you're amazing on your own, great things happen when you connect and bind with those around you.

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Has it really been five years already???

Pour your Intentions into the Salt Bowl.

Kirstin Mae Sengupta

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