GoodBye August, Welcome September!!!

Today is the last day of August.  From my professional life, I am glad this month is over.  Its been a very tough month with lots of ups and downs.  From my personal life….well, I haven't had a chance to think about my personal life this whole month so I hope that September brings me more time to spend on a personal level.

I can't believe that there are only 3 more months left in this year, and then we will be in 2011.  It would be great if I can stop time to just savor the moment, but its not possible.  There are so many things that are going on our life that sometimes it feels like it is passing by right in front of my eyes. 

As I look back in this year, I see that Neeraj and I have been very committed to (3) major things with the first item given the highest priority:  (1) Office/Job, (2) School, and (3) Family.  The office/job has taken over our life this year…and sometimes I wonder if that is the right way that should happen because you always need some "time off" from the office atmosphere, but for us, this hasn't been that year.  I think also expectations have increased, for both of us, in our specific groups in Corporate America which has required us to work many more hours, including weekends, to get the job done.  

Then school.  That has been totally due to us.  We have wanted to get done (hope to complete by Dec 2011), and we have invested the time to get through 4 classes this year (3 have completed, and 1 will start in 2 weeks).  After our 4th year of doing our MBA, Neeraj and I have felt to put it in high gear to get it this completed because its time, just time to begin that next part of our life.

You know that people say that you should have kids when you are ready, and I always wondered, "How do you know that you are ready", and now, I know.  When Neeraj and I were thinking of getting married, he talked about having kids immediately after marriage, and it freaked me out.  I wanted to spend time with just "us", and of course the responsibility that comes with having a kid was overwhelming at that time.  But now, I am ready for that responsibility - I see how my colleagues are able to separate their work and personal lives because they go to a busy personal life with kids.  I would have said earlier, "Oh I can't handle my life as it is today, I don't know what I will do when I have kids", but now I am slowly realizing that it won't be as bad as I think.  The toughest part is getting through the first 9 months.  

Lastly family. Those that are close to us know that we went through the roughest part of our life last July when we lost Neeraj's eldest sister, Shobha Didi.  Today, we have taken high strides to rebuild that life, not only for ourselves, but for our family.  Shobha Didi left behind 2 wonderful children, Shubham and Himanshu, who mean the world to us.  She wanted them to have the best education as possible, and that is the major decision that we made this year, when we changed schools for Shubham, and Neeraj's niece, Gudden, both the same age, and enrolled them into a boarding school.  Though adjustment has been key, I think that we have made the best decision for those children.  They are learning and experiencing things that they would have never known about otherwise, and its for the best.  The most important thing that they are learning the difference between analysis and memorization. 

Sometimes I wonder why we work so hard….for what?  Where is the value?  But the value is there…because we are grateful to be living the life that we are living, being able to do what we are doing, and giving back where we can to our family that has given us so much.  I think that is the one thing that keeps me going every single day.  The easier part would have been to just quit…because those days also do come up (sometimes more frequently ), but you have to keep going….in order to gain something.  Thankfully, the power of prayer has power…and that is soothing. 

Alvida.  Jai Mata Di.