“To me, Fearless is not the absence of fear. It’s not being completely unafraid. To me, Fearless is having fears. Fearless is having doubts. Lots of them. To me, Fearless is living in spite of those things that scare you to death.” ― Taylor Swift
It’s 12 : 43 PM on day 1876 of my journey towards independence and I’ve managed to brush my teeth, pray, read Acts 21, publish my Disability of the Day feature, learn one new thing -Definitions for desultory 1) digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark. 2) lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.- have breakfast and work on my potential future project.
As you may or may not know my family and I are going on vacation to India in less than a month I am both excited for and apprehensive about our trip excited because I haven’t seen my family over there in like three years and apprehensive because the last time I was there every time I went out in public I was made to feel like a circus-freak my parents will probably try to keep me inside in an effort to protect me but they will fail miserably because come what may I fully intend on being out there in public in people’s faces I refuse to hide in my house like I’ve committed some sort of crime I’ve earned the right to roll through this life with my head held high.
(Note: My intention in writing this post is not to give India or my fellow Indians a bad name I’m just writing from my past experience).
“Travel brings power and love back into your life.” ― Rumi
It’s 12 : 00 PM on day 1715 of my journey towards independence and I’ve managed to brush my teeth, pray, read Hosea 14, publish my Disability of the Dayfeature, learn one new thing –Visible from space, the world’s largest known beaver dam stretches across nearly 3,000 feet of wetlands in northern Alberta, Canada. Level, remote land lets the rodents build without the threats of fast-flowing water and humans. – feed myself bread with egg and a banana for breakfast and promote my Educate Generations campaign–$2 954 raised so far 🙂 .
Recently my family decide that in December of this year we would be going to India and two days ago we finalized our plans by buying the tickets so yeah we’re going to India I haven’t seen my family who are over there in three years seeing them will be awesome and as for the country itself it’s so steeped in culture and tradition that I can’t help but feel connected to my roots when I’m there.
Sometimes bravery is knowing what’s going to happen and doing it anyway–that’s what I keep learning 🙂
It’s 12 : 10 PM on day 1034 of my journey towards independence and I’ve managed to publish my Disability of the Day feature,sleep – I only went to bed after midnight – brush my teeth, pray, feed myself a boiled egg and All Bran Flakes for breakfast, read Joshua 17, try to clean myself in the bathroom, listen to music and tweet and Facebook about my campaign – still no luck
In recent days my parents have been talking about all of us going to India for the December holidays at first I was dead set against it because I knew that I didn’t have to go to a country and put up with people treating me like I’m not a person when I’m treated perfectly well here but now if my parents insist that we go I will be brave and I will go knowing that there’s nothing wrong with me regardless of what anybody says. Have you ever done something knowing it was going to end badly?
The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. ~ St. Augustine
It’s 3: 21 PM on day 450 of my journey towards independence and I’ve managed to brush my teeth, feed myself Corn Flakes for breakfast, prepare and publish my Disability of the Day feature, tweet about my Clean Water For All Campaign – no luck –feed myself rice and curry for lunch and watch TV
As you may know I’m going to India tomorrow so sadly this is my last post until January 2, 2012 but no fear I will be writing every day while I’m there it’s just that I won’t be able to publish the posts until I return to South Africa – getting an internet connection at my dad’s house might prove to be a hassle – and if that isn’t enough to satisfy you I’ve asked my friends, Jenelle and Holly, to write posts on Guest Posts by Jenelle Ramsami and Guest Posts by Holly Gardner respectively every day while I’m away. Merry Christmas and a prosperous new year to you and yours I hope Santa gives you everything you asked for 🙂
If you’ve given to my cause or you can’t give now, please help me by sharing my cause with others. You can tweet about it like my friend Stan Faryna. This is the tweet he uses: @Nisha360 is a brave, smart young woman trying to make a better world for us all. Please help her do an amazing thing. http://bit.ly/hC7vOu
Stan’s very sweet for saying so, but feel free to write what reflects you best.
Thanks to all my friends out there who are helping me make my dream come true: to make a better world for all of us!
Be careful what you wish for
cause you just might get it all
you just might get it all and then some you don’t want. – Chris Daughtry
It’s 7: 12 PM on day 355 of my journey towards independence and I’ve managed to brush my teeth, feed myself toast, chicken nuggets and scrambled eggs for breakfast, tweet about my Clean Water For All Campaign – no luck – listen to music, feed myself rice and curry for lunch, go with my father to drop my mother, brother and sister at different places, cry for a while– my mom asked my dad to carry something for her into the building that she was going into, he said no, she said if any other woman had asked you would do it and before I knew it he was lunging at her (Note to mom and dad: mommy if you have problems go see a psychiatrist I can’t be your confidant and dad I will no longer go above and beyond to protect your reputation if you choose to behave in this manner you have to be willing to deal with the consequences) – go with my father to fetch my mother, brother and sister from different places, tweet about my campaign some more–still no luck I tweeted facts about water to achieve objective #2 of my campaign to highlight the plight of those who don’t have easy access to water– feed myself an avocado sandwich for dinner and brush my teeth once more.
Last summer I wanted so badly to go to India for my cousin’s wedding and now that it’s been decided that we are going this summer I don’t know what to feel because I know that it’s going to be hard for me when I get there not just in terms of accessibility but also in terms of my father and just people in general – my father rarely takes me anywhere here in South Africa where people are exposed to and educated about disabilities I wonder how he’s going to act when we get to his home state of Kerala where people have little or no exposure to people who are different. Have you ever wished for something and got it only to wish that you had never wished for it in the first place?
If you’ve given to my cause or you can’t give now, please help me by sharing my cause with others. You can tweet about it like my friend Stan Faryna. This is the tweet he uses: @Nisha360 is a brave, smart young woman trying to make a better world for us all. Please help her do an amazing thing. http://bit.ly/hC7vOu
Stan’s very sweet for saying so, but feel free to write what reflects you best.
Thanks to all my friends out there who are helping me make my dream come true: to make a better world for all of us!
The bible is my saving grace – that’s what I learned today 🙂
It’s 8: 42 PM on day 225 of my journey towards independence and I’ve managed to brush my teeth, feed myself a sweet potato with a chilli, onion and yoghurt dip for breakfast, tweet about my Clean Water For All Campaign for a few hours – @morsemusings (Dawn) made another donation – thanks Dawn you are truly awesome 🙂 – feed myself rice and curry for lunch, watch TV, tweet about my campaign some more – no further luck – feed myself rice and curry for dinner and continue to tweet about my campaign – still no further luck.
Today we were meant to get our passports renewed for our trip to India this summer but it didn’t occur to my father that he would actually have to be seen with me for that to happen since my mother had to stay at home with my grandma so he called off the whole thing and decided to go get my wheelchair’s belt fixed with my sister which was totally fine with me only my mother wasn’t having any of it and said she –referring to my sister – stays I’ll go with you to which my father responded in anger saying you’re not going come ‘on Nisha let’s go and as I sat in the car looking at him in the garden feeling hurt that he was taking me out grudgingly I remembered a verse in the bible and thought bless and do not curse. Do you use the bible as a weapon or a shield?
The only way to survive in this life is to accept it the way it is – that’s what I learned today 🙁
It’s 6: 47 PM on day 222 of my journey towards independence and I’ve managed to brush my teeth, tweet about my Clean Water For All Campaign for a few hours – no luck – watch a few Youtube videos – Christina Grimmie #5 on my ‘10 Most Talented Youtubers’ list (if you have no idea what I am talking about refer to ‘Day 159’) will be touring with Selena Gomez during the American summer – I am SO for her 🙂 – feed myself rice and curry for lunch and tweet about my campaign some more – still no luck God knows it’s not for a lack of trying 🙂 – feed myself rice and curry for dinner, continue to tweet about my campaign – today is just not my day hopefully someone will take pity on me and donate after I go to sleep LOL 🙂 – and watch TV
This morning my aunt called from Kuwait and I heard her say to my mom if you’re planning on going back to India after you retire you should buy a flat in Ernakulam –the western part of the mainland of Kochi city in Kerala, India – there no one will say anything if you bring Nisha and at first I felt like a freak then I was outraged by the fact that she thought I was going to live with my parents forever considering I planned to make my own money, get married and have kids but after a couple of hours had passed I realized that I had to find a way to deal with the fact that most people would always discriminate against me. Are you resisting the circumstances of your life thereby making it more difficult for yourself to survive?
It’s always good to remember where you come from and celebrate it. To remember where you come from is part of where you’re going. – Anthony Burgess
It’s 8: 12 PM on day 186 of my journey towards independence and I’ve managed to brush my teeth, feed myself French fries for breakfast, tweet about my Clean Water For All Campaign for a few hours – no luck – feed myself rice and curry for lunch, exercise for 5 minutes, tweet about my campaign some more – @whoamitome (Juliana) who by the way has donated once before made another donation of $20 – thanks Juliana 🙂 – and feed myself butternut for dinner
A couple of days ago I was watching a Cricket World Cup match held in India on TV and I suddenly felt a twinge of guilt because I saw how proud the people of India were of being Indian while I was not and to make up for that I would like to take this opportunity to bring you the best of India – from architecture to food, music, movies and celebrities – enjoy 🙂
Welcome to my motherland
Taj Mahal – Wonder of the World
Taj Mahal, a mausoleum that was built on the southern bank of the Yamuna (Jumna) River, outside Agra in India, by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, Arjumand Banu Begam (also called Mumtaz Mahal, of which the name Taj Mahal is a corruption). She died in childbirth in the town of Burhanpur in 1631, after having been the emperor’s inseparable companion since their marriage in 1612. The building was commenced around 1632 by plans prepared by a council of architects from India, Persia, Central Asia, and beyond. More than 20,000 workmen were employed daily to complete the mausoleum itself by about 1643 and the immediate adjuncts (mosques, wall and gateway) by about 1649. The entire Taj complex took 22 years to complete, at a cost of 40,000,000 rupees.
The Golden Temple, Amritsar
The Golden Temple was first built by the fifth guru, Guru Arjun Singhji, to house the Granth Sahib – the holy book of the Sikhs. It was rebuilt in 1803 by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The temple is also known as Darbar Sahib or Hari Mandir Sahib. The temple is located in Amritsar and is the holiest place of the Sikh faith. It is built in the middle of a holy pool. The dome of the temple is covered by a gold leaf. The interior decoration consists of inlay work done with semi-precious stones in a delicate floral design.
The Akal Takht (or the immortal throne) was established near the temple by the sixth Sikh Guru, Guru Hargobind Singhji. It is the seat of the supreme head of the Sikh religious authority.
India Gate
This 42-meter high structure is located on the other end of Rajpath from the Rashtrapati. Also designed by Lutyens as a war memorial, it has the names of Indian soldiers who died in World War I inscribed on it. An eternal flame, a tribute to the Unknown Soldier, was placed under the arch in 1971.
Chapati/Roti
Thin bread cooked on the griddle.
Biryani
A fancy rice casserole, often containing meat, poultry, seafood or
vegetables
Dosa
Crispy, crepe-like southern Indian specialty filled with potatoes or vegetables
