For Week Ending 17th of September
More of a conversation than an Autobiography
When it comes to writing a book, most advice I have seen recommends that you plan very carefully what you want to do. First think of the message and who you want to hear it. Then plan out the contents and divide these into a logical sequence which will flow smoothly – and finally write a conclusion which reinforces the message and draws everything together in a satisfying way. But this book is different.
A History of my Entrepreneurial Endeavours and The Seven Steps to Happiness
I am an entrepreneur, and my work is all about reducing stress. I started this when I retired from teaching (Religious Education and Art) – following a strong inner ‘calling’ to take what time remains to me to ‘make a difference’ – to use my skills and experience to make this world of ours just a little bit happier and more peaceful, by sharing what I have learned over the years, both in my outer life-experience and through more than forty years of serious mindfulness and meditation practise.
I ran my first Business, DurgaMata of London, as a Sole Trader. I began by selling the silk scarves which I paint as a form of meditation and giving workshops based on Silk-Painting and Mindfulness. This evolved into a unique programme called The Seven Steps to Happiness which I ran as a retreat over several days. It was just starting to ‘take off’ when Covid came along and I had to learn something about using internet. I shaped The Seven Steps to Happiness into an online programme, but while zoom is useful, it was not so well suited to my work. I was impatient to get back to physical workshops again.
In September 2021, as the lockdowns eased, I knew that levels of stress and depression were higher than ever. There was an even more urgent need for my work. I brought together some of the strongest elements of The Seven Steps to Happiness and shaped them into a programme which would work in a single day. I wanted to reach more people and found a great location just a few miles from my home. I ran the workshops each month, but in February 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine, I felt helpless. All my time and funds were tied up with my workshops. What could I do to reduce the suffering? Then I had the inspiration to make my workshops free, in solidarity with Ukraine and refugees worldwide. Within a few months, most participants were Ukrainian refugees themselves and since then I have changed my business to a Community Interest Company. The website is Ultimate Stress Solutions and in summer of 2023, in order to be more professional, I was advised to start a weekly blog.
I wasn't sure what I would write for the first Blog in August, because I have been so busy sorting things out after the July Workshop that I didn't go anywhere or do anything 'interesting' but Sherpa, one of my cats, managed to change all that.
Meditation and my spiritual practise as a student of Sri Chinmoy is central in my life and in August I like to go on pilgrimage to a festival celebrating his birthday. I returned at the end of the month with Covid and a funny ‘tummy ache.’ I thought I must have pulled a muscle while bringing home with my luggage, but it turned out to be appendicitis.
I had to cancel my September workshop, and while convalescing from the appendix operation, staying with my son who was taking care of me hand and foot, I was inspired to catch up on the blogs that I had missed writing. I re-read the one from the start of August and what could have been a very short and uneventful blog took on a life of its own. It become a marathon 'overview' of my life, viewed through the 'lens' of the cats who have been my companions for as long as I can remember.
The Spiritual Aspirant
This book was not planned. It has ‘written itself’ over just a few weeks. It was as if I started to have a conversation with an unknown friend. I have no idea who may wish to read it, but I think of it a bit like giving birth to a child. It has its own life and its own destiny. It covers many important topics – but I think the key factor which may make it interesting and relevant to others is that it charts a life of living a life rooted in serious spiritual aspiration.
Many Important Issues - including racism, domestic violence and life as a single parent
My life has been full of difficult challenges including marrying an Indian and connecting with his parents who were initially hostile, working as warden in an Inner City Church, experiencing racism as a family which led to domestic violence, going to university and working as a teacher as a single parent and making countless mistakes, but guided throughout by a joyful and unwavering love for what I call ‘The Supreme.’ My life is rooted in an aspiration to love and serve that ‘Reality’ in the hearts of all who cross my path and in the drama of each day.