“If winter comes, can spring be far behind?”

​The picturesque city of Amsterdam in the Netherlands has played an important role in my grief journey.  Six months back when I arrived in the city in connection with a course in gender, I felt vulnerable; my grief still fragile and friable.   Winter was just setting in casting a somber cloak over the city. It was winter in my life too; my life being denuded with grief and sorrow.
 
However, six months later when I was again in the city to complete the course, I discovered that I had indeed travelled far in my journey…  I had just completed Murali’s first year ceremony and flew out of the country that same evening.
 
When I arrived last week in Amsterdam, it was spring in this European metropolis. The sun was lambent, gentle and soothing, the cherry blossom, the apple blossom and the fabled tulips were in bloom… there was spring everywhere… whispers of hope in the air… 
 
Indeed, it was a metaphor for a ‘spring’ in my life too. I completed the course and a moment of great personal pride and satisfaction for me was to be commended by the course directors Dr. Maitrayee Mukhopadhyay and Dr. Franz Wong, both fine professionals and finer human beings.    
 
I write this blog just minutes before I say good bye to this city which will forever be special for me. During the one week I spent here, I’ve wandered around the streets, sat by the sparking canals, lost in reflection…. Of the year that has gone by… the challenges… the highs and lows… and of the ways I’ve been forever transformed by grief.  I’ve spent a lot of time connecting with myself; listening to my dreams, my aspirations, my sorrows, and my joys… 
 
When life throws challenges at you, it also sends people who seem to appear in your life out of nowhere. One such person is Maitrayee. She made it possible for me to complete the course by giving me an extra three days (Which I had missed due to Murali’s ceremony) and personally took me through the course syllabus.  I shall forever cherish her sisterhood, the warmth of her friendship and the grace of her presence. 
 
In two days, SPEAK will be launched. This time last year, I had no clue that I was on the brink of a life changing event. 
 
Thank you, Amsterdam, for restoring a sense of perspective into my life; for helping me come full circle.  Despite life’s’ challenges, trials and struggles, it still IS a beautiful world!

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