In the midst of the wedding planning, I found myself in a lot of resistance that often leads to negative emotions. A close friend told me that the root of my resistance laid in the false expectation that I could have things my way. I agreed, and a lot of ‘but’ immediately popped into my…
When we organized a community dialogue about personal transformation and career transition, I didn’t expect ‘parents’ to be a major challenge that many participants resonate with. One of our panellists has an extreme case of hiding her career change from her parents for 6 months; when her parents found out about it, it led to…
If there is one thing I learn from my relationship, it is parallel with the first verse of the Tao De Jing ‘the name that can be named is not the eternal name’ — love does not need words. When he kneeled and asked, ‘will you marry me?’, I looked into his eyes and I knew I…
When I put down the book ‘Untethered Soul’, I could still feel the goosebumps I got from the chapter ‘Contemplating Death’. It’s true, death is the best teacher in life that we are too scared to face. One breath is all it takes to make everything disappear and we are all equal at the end.…
When I saw my mum broke down uncontrollably after my uncle’s funeral, I stroked her back gently with a silent thought: grow up, mum. In between the strokes I was engulfed by a deep sense of gratitude that I have a mother who expresses her love freely. It is in the vastness of this love…
Osho came into my life in a non-linear chronology that was perfect to unfold the controversy and wisdom in this spiritual master. I started doing Osho Zen tarot card reading with my brother a year ago when he received the deck as a birthday gift. While I always got the insights I needed, I thought…
When my dad finished a 200km ultramarathon, I asked him over dinner, how did you do it? In my past marathon experiences, I was dragging my feet and enduring pain every step of the way in the last few kilometers. I couldn’t imagine what it took to complete a 200 km run under the hot…
When I saw the news from my Facebook feed, my heart sank. I am not a loyal fan of Anthony Bourdain, but I enjoyed watching his shows. His humility, generosity and receptivity of differences often warmed my heart. I never thought such a strong character would be engulfed by the stark darkness to the point…
I hugged him tightly, feeling the warmth and familiarity of his embrace. Many happy moments with him flushed into my mind — the times we trekked, we walked hand in hand on the street, we chilled together in a new hotel, we laughed together at little things… Warm tears streamed down my face like a water hose,…
At 26, I went back home, back to having nothing in life. When I left the company I started, I knew I was following a path that felt like my path. Even though I was not sure where it would lead to, I was ready to find out. I was scared of a blank page,…
I swiped someone right on Tinder and went on my first Tinder date. He became my boyfriend later, and he made me believe that, maybe, ‘the one’ exists. Being with him was so easy. The thought of him was like a beam of sunshine that warmed me from within, it made me smile. People called…
When I left the company I started end of last year, I knew I was following a path that felt like my path. Even though I was not sure where it would lead, I was ready to find out. I was scared of a blank page, but I knew all that I need to feel…