It’s Time to Become Mentally Strong

It was a Sunday morning at 10:30 a.m. I was on a video conference with a group of friends, talking about our school days, the journeys life has taken us on, travel stories, and plans for a reunion in December. Most of us now live in different countries, and many are planning to come back home during the holiday season.

Listening to everyone talk about their journeys made me think, I want to travel too.

A few days earlier, I had visited a coffee shop with a beautiful Vietnam-themed setup. The scenery caught my attention, so I took a picture with the Vietnam poster in the background and posted it on my WhatsApp status.

One of my previous contacts replied, saying that he was planning to go to Vietnam for work. I casually asked him, “If I have some work there too, can I come?”

His reply stayed with me:

“You have to believe in yourself. You can only help yourself.”

Coming back to that Sunday morning conversation, I was sharing some of my daily habits and talking about how I deal with different situations. Sometimes I handle things well, but there are also moments when I feel frightened or overwhelmed.

That’s when he said something very simple:

“You need to become mentally strong.”

Those words stayed with me.

I started wondering—what does it really mean to be mentally strong?

Is it about never being afraid? Never overthinking? Never feeling emotional?

Maybe not.

Maybe mental strength means feeling everything, but still choosing to move forward.

I already have things that help me—meditation, exercise, prayer, and trying to maintain positive habits. But I wanted to discover what else could help me become stronger from within.

One simple practice I came across was asking myself three questions every morning:

Today I can control: ______

Today I will accomplish: ______

Today I choose to let go of: ______

And at night:

What did I handle well today? ______

What can I learn from today? ______

I love the simplicity of these questions. They remind me that I don't have to control everything around me. I can focus on what is within my control, take one step at a time, and learn from whatever life brings.

Maybe becoming mentally strong isn't about becoming a different person.

Maybe it's about becoming a stronger version of myself—calmer, more confident, more grounded, and brave enough to believe that I can handle whatever comes next.

And perhaps that Vietnam picture wasn't just a picture after all.

Maybe it was a little reminder:

Believe in yourself. You can help yourself. And sometimes, becoming mentally strong is the first step toward the life you want to 

It’s All About Me

Yes… this one is all about me.

And for the first time, I don't feel the need to apologise for saying that.

For a long time, I thought being there for others, helping others and caring for others was what made life meaningful. But somewhere along the way, life quietly taught me something deeper:

I cannot pour from an empty cup.

I cannot be strong for everyone if I am not strong within myself.

I cannot carry others if I have forgotten how to carry myself.

And I cannot truly experience the freedom of life if I am constantly dependent on someone else to live it.

Over the years, through experiences, situations, disappointments, conversations and moments that only I truly understand, I have slowly come to know myself.

I have realised that my body is not something I should fight against.

It is the home my soul has been given.

And I want to take care of that home.

I want to become stronger.

I want to become healthier.

I want to feel stable within myself — physically, emotionally and mentally.

I want to be organised enough to create the life I dream about and strong enough to walk towards it, one step at a time.

Recently, I was speaking to someone over a video call about my life. During our conversation, he asked me something that stayed with me long after the call ended:

“What is the purpose of your existence?”

I kept thinking about that question.

What is my purpose?

Why am I here?

What am I really trying to achieve in this lifetime?

And the more I looked within, the more I realised that perhaps I don't need to have one grand answer.

Maybe my soul already knows.

Maybe my purpose is not a title, a destination or something that the world can measure.

Maybe, for me, it is a feeling.

Freedom.

The freedom to be myself.

The freedom to make my own choices.

The freedom to work, earn, create, travel, experience, love and live.

The freedom to take care of myself.

The freedom to feel strong in my own body.

The freedom to wake up and know that I can participate in my own life instead of simply watching it happen around me.

I want independence.

Not because I don't need people.

But because I want to meet people from a place of choice rather than helplessness.

I want to be able to say, “I can take care of myself, and I choose to have you beside me.”

There is a beautiful difference between needing someone and choosing someone.

And I want to live from that place.

But there is something even deeper.

My dream of becoming strong and independent is not only about me.

I want to grow so that I can take others with me.

I want to work.

I want to create.

I want to build.

I want to share what I learn.

I want to support people who are walking beside me.

I want my growth to become someone else's hope.

Maybe that is where my purpose begins.

Not in becoming perfect.

Not in proving anything to the world.

But in becoming more and more of who I truly am.

I have started to understand that taking care of myself is not selfish.

Choosing myself is not selfish.

Resting is not selfish.

Wanting a beautiful life is not selfish.

Wanting financial freedom is not selfish.

Wanting a healthy and fit body is not selfish.

Wanting love, happiness, comfort, travel, abundance and meaningful work is not selfish.

These are simply desires of a soul that wants to experience life fully.

And perhaps spirituality, for me, is not about escaping this world.

Perhaps it is about becoming fully alive within it.

To be grateful for what I have while still having the courage to dream bigger.

To accept where I am while continuing to move towards where I want to be.

To understand that my circumstances may be a part of my story, but they do not have to be the definition of my future.

I don't know exactly where this journey will take me.

But I know what I want to feel when I get there.

I want to feel free.

I want to feel strong.

I want to feel healthy.

I want to feel independent.

I want to feel peaceful within myself.

And I want to look back one day and know that I didn't simply survive my life.

I lived it.

I chose it.

I created it.

And I became the woman my soul was always trying to lead me towards.

So yes…

This one is all about me.

Not the version of me that the world expects.

Not the version of me shaped by circumstances.

But the woman within me who is still dreaming, still growing, still healing, still believing and still becoming.

Maybe my purpose is not something I need to find.

Maybe it is something I need to become.

And if I can become strong enough to carry myself…

perhaps one day I can reach back, hold another person's hand,

and say,

“Come. Let's go forward together.”

Why I Chose to Write

I have always felt that writing is a beautiful way of connecting with people.

We live in an era of social media, AI, Instagram reels and WhatsApp, where sharing has become such a big part of our lives. We share where we went, what we ate, what we drank, what we danced to, what we bought and what we did.

But somehow, I have always felt that there is more to sharing than just giving little updates about our lives.

That is why I chose Blogger.

For me, blogging gives me the freedom to express my thoughts in a longer and deeper way. I don't have to fit everything into a few seconds or a short caption. I can take my time, think about what I want to say, and share the things that actually matter to me.

As a wheelchair user, my experiences with life can sometimes be a little different from those of other people. But I have never wanted my wheelchair to define the boundaries of my life.

I still love music. I still love dancing. And yes, I dance on my wheelchair too!

There is something special about dancing when you don't necessarily have to follow the way everyone else dances. You simply move with the music and enjoy the moment. For me, dancing is about happiness, freedom and expressing myself—not about how I move.

I also love travelling and experiencing new places. In 2026, I had the opportunity to spend six months in the USA. Being away from home and experiencing a different country gave me so many new experiences, perspectives and memories.

Travelling as a wheelchair user comes with its own challenges. Accessibility, planning and transportation can require extra thought and preparation. But at the same time, travelling has taught me that the world is much bigger than the limitations we sometimes imagine for ourselves.

That journey made me more curious about life and about the possibilities that are still waiting to be explored.

I want this blog to be a collection of those experiences—my thoughts, interests, travels, discoveries and little moments from everyday life.

I have always had an interest in planning and creating things. I remember having this interest from my early adulthood, and somehow it has continued to grow with me. Even today, I find myself planning things, imagining possibilities and getting excited about small projects.

Recently, I planted cotton and corn seeds again. A few days later, seeing those tiny seeds slowly turn into little plants felt surprisingly beautiful.

There is something magical about watching life grow from something so small.

Maybe that is what I have started appreciating more as I grow older—the beauty in simple things.

A plant growing.

A beautiful morning.

A song.

A dance.

A journey.

A conversation.

A prayer.

A thought that suddenly makes sense.

Life doesn't always have to be about big achievements or extraordinary experiences. Sometimes the smallest things can make us stop and feel grateful.

And perhaps that is also why I started writing.

I want to remember these moments.

I want to explore my thoughts.

I want to connect with people who may see life in a similar way—or perhaps even people who see it completely differently.

Most importantly, I want this space to be somewhere I can be myself.

My Spiritual Journey

Alongside all these interests, another journey quietly began in my life—a spiritual journey.

I started looking deeper within myself and asking questions about life, about who I am, and about the purpose of my existence.

I wanted to understand whether there was something beyond the things we see every day.

So I began exploring different practices. I tried meditation, yoga, pranayama, healthy eating and prayers. Some days were easy, some days were difficult, and sometimes I wondered whether I was really making any progress at all.

But slowly, something started changing.

I began noticing things I had perhaps taken for granted before.

I started finding beauty everywhere.

And honestly, I don't know how to completely express this feeling in words.

It feels as though life itself has become more beautiful.

I see little miracles in ordinary moments. I see beauty in nature, in people, in the sky, in plants, in music, in dancing, in travelling and in moments that may seem completely ordinary to someone else.

It isn't that everything around me suddenly became perfect.

Perhaps I simply started looking at things differently.

And that change in perspective has been beautiful.

My spiritual journey has taught me to pause, observe and appreciate. It has made me more curious about life and about the mystery of existence itself.

It has been an awesome journey so far.

And I know I still have so much more to explore.

I don't have all the answers, and perhaps I never will. But I am enjoying the journey of asking questions, discovering myself and experiencing life with a little more awareness and wonder.

So this blog is not just going to be about what I did or where I went.

It is going to be about what I think, what I feel, what I discover and what makes me stop and say:

"Wow, there is so much beauty in this life."

It is about travelling while using a wheelchair, dancing from my wheelchair, growing plants, discovering new places, exploring spirituality, learning about myself and finding joy in things that may seem small to others.

And maybe, as I continue writing, I will discover a little more about myself too.

This is only the beginning.

I am excited to explore more, learn more, experience more and continue walking—or rolling—this beautiful path of life and spirituality.

Welcome to my little corner of the world.

Summer of 2007!!

One fine day in the mid of April 2023, I was busy munching the bag of banana chips from Calicut (one of my addictions), sipping coke, and wondering why summers are so harsh. But there are also a few good things about SUMMERS - MANGOES, JASMINE FLOWERS, PEPSI-COLA, WATER FROM MUD-POTS, NIGHTS ON THE TERRACE-looking at the stars and getting lost watching the sky and school HOLIDAYS. I grew up in a family of teachers and had an opportunity to visit many new places during my summer holidays. Most tourist places, especially those with temples, were on the TO GO LIST. We got the chance to visit Bukkapatnam, Anantapur in 2007 as one of my uncles was retiring as D.E.O in the United Andhra Pradesh. So, we planned to attend the retirement ceremony and visit the nearby tourist places around the village was the plan. The famous saying” SWAMI KARYAMU SWAKARYAM” can be fulfilled on this trip. Everything was planned and we started in the morning after the ceremony, our first place to visit was The Veerbhadra Swamy Lepakshi temple which was one of the marvels of ancient Indian architecture. It was built in the 16th century and was carved out of rock which speaks a lot about the greatness of the Vijayanagar Empire. The shrine dedicated to Lord Veera Bhadra, the Lepakshi temple stands as a timeless art that includes beautiful frescoes and murals and has some impressive architecture. Also, it had some intricate carvings, paintings, and sculptures, many of which depict scenes from Hindu mythology. “I WONDER HOW THE SCULPTORS OF THAT TIME COULD BUILD SUCH BRILLIANT ART WITH NO MANY PIECES OF EQUIPMENT AND MACHINERY”. The next astonishing thing was the unique hanging pillar, which is one of the main attractions for tourists. The pillar is said to be suspended in the air without any support, and it is possible to pass a thin piece of cloth or paper beneath the pillar. Indeed, the hanging pillar at the Lepakshi temple is a remarkable engineering feat that continues to fascinate visitors from all over the world. The fact that such a massive stone pillar can hang without any visible means of support is truly amazing. It is believed that the hanging pillar was constructed using advanced techniques such as the interlocking system, which involves the use of multiple stones that are precisely cut and fitted together. The pillars are so finely crafted that they fit together seamlessly, creating a self-supporting structure.. Apart from these two. We saw some other interesting features like a life-size Nandi statue and a giant footprint that's believed to belong to Lord Hanuman. We were happy and satisfied on our way back home. The trip was the most memorable one and I will cherish it forever.

after a long pause!

Well I am not sure if people are still interested in reading blogger as they are multiple new applications to express once thoughts be it v log, YouTube channel, clubhouse, etc. My personal choice is penning down my experiences in my free time and I feel reading a book is always better than watching a movie. Coming to the point, I've been listening to the word "Confidence" more often, the 10 letter word which changes once first impression is to express once feelings without any hindrance and communicate effectively about what is in their mind. 

Be it in carrying out day to day activities or attending an interview or visiting new friends, Confident communication is what gives you are special identification in group and makes you stand out.

Now, I would like to share my personal experience of being confident and how it affected my professional life. Last month one of my friend who lives in Pune had paid a  visit to us, it was exciting as we were meeting her after many days. Her parents were friends with my parents and we had a gala time together talking about everything under the sky. In a conversation she mentioned that she is currently working with a corporate as a recruiter and she was enjoying her work. I asked her to referr me if there is any other opening and she said ok. She then shared my CV with the concerned person and I was waiting for the call. 

Unlike my childhood my nature has become calm and quiet lately and while giving the interview my friend wanted me to be clear and confident. Thought my job was speaking to job seekers everyday I was a bit nervous to face the interviewer this time. The next week I got a call from the HR and I tried answering him in a good tone. But I think he was expecting more and mentioned that I was low on my confidence levels. After knowing that, I was a bit depressed and prayed god for another chance to prove my own self.

Luckily, I got another chance! An interview call from another company... I started seeing videos of job interviews and how to answer confidently in a job interview and read many articles about how to be confident. Few points I would like to quote include:-

Be positive and avoid any negative words in the chat.

Maintain eye contact.

Make use of hand movements, gestures and includes smile in your conversation.

Look good and it will automatically make you feel good.

I tried to cheer up myself following these steps and was ready to give the interview.

And finally I succeeded in my next attempt and bagged an offer this time. Confidence played an important role and I could sese the difference.

thanks to my friend letting me know my abilities hidden within.

How the national ID card (UID Card) will work

Operator : "Thank you for calling Pizza Hut . May I have your..."
Customer: "Heloo, can I order.."
Operator : "Can I have your multi purpose ID card number first, Sir?"
Customer: "It's here hold...on...889861356102049998-45-54610"
Operator : "OK.. You're..Mr Singh and you're calling from 17 Jal Vayu.....Your home number is 2x26xxxx, your office 250xxxxx and your mobile is 09xxxxxxxx. Which number are you calling from now Sir?"
Customer: "Home! How did you get all my phone numbers?
Operator : "We are connected to the system Sir"
Customer: "May I order your Seafood Pizza..."
Operator : "That's not a good idea Sir"
Customer: "How come?"
Operator : "According to your medical records, you have high blood pressure and even higher cholesterol level Sir"
Customer: "What?... What do you recommend then?"
Operator : "Try our Low Fat Pizza. You'll like it"
Customer: "How do you know for sure?"
Operator : "You borrowed a book entitled "Popular Dishes" from the National Library last week Sir"
Customer: "OK I give up... Give me three family size ones then, how much will that cost?"
Operator : "That should be enough for your family of 05, Sir. The total is Rs 500.00"
Customer: "Can I pay by! Credit card?"
Operator : "I'm afraid you have to pay us cash, Sir.Your credit card is over the limit and you owe your bank Rs 23,000.75 since October last year. That's not including the late payment charges on your housing loan, Sir.."
Customer: "I guess I have to run to the neighborhood ATM and withdraw some cash before your guy arrives"
Operator : "You can't Sir. Based on the records, you've reached your daily limit on machine
Withdrawal today"
Customer: "Never mind just send the pizzas, I'll have the cash ready. How long is it gonna take anyway?"
Operator : "About 45 minutes Sir, but if you can't Wait you can always come and collect it on your Nano Car..."
Customer: " What!"
Operator : "According to the details in system ,you own a Nano car,...registration number
GZ-05-AB-1107.."
Customer: " ?"
Operator : "Is there anything else Sir?"
Customer: "Nothing... By the way... Aren't you giving me that 3 free bottles of cola as
advertised?"
Operator : "We normally would Sir, but based on your records you're also diabetic....... "
Customer: #$$^%&$@$% ^
Operator : "Better watch your language Sir.. Remember on 15th July 2010 you were convicted of using abusive language on a policeman...?"
Customer: [Faints]

bum bum bhole .............

this tym my mind is preoccupied wit only 1 thing i.e farm ville on face book.whenever i switch on my PC my hands automatically search 4 d farm ville,my crops,harvest,my dairy farm & chicken coop oh god its all wat runs in my mind all d day,its high tym now even my parents & frnds scold me 4 my madness 4 d game im just addicted wat to do??
finally i got rid of it as i had problem loading d game it took lots of tym & i cud not w8 4 anymore >>>>>>> an idea struck in my genius mind y not do d real seeding & harvesting its just lovely to see a seed growing into a plants bearing leaves & flowers............ so i started growing sum potted plants at home i was busy watering my corn sprouts
it was 5 pm & door bell rang for three tyms,i had a scorn on my face as i knew who it was & my guess was true it was Dheeraj with his battalion of kids ready to make hell a lot of noise & hungama more than dance at d door.
me:Enti?
Dheeraj: china akka!!!!!!
me: deniki??
Dheeraj:dance practice ivvala 5 to 6pm me intlo,akka told!!!!
me:oh gud,entamandi dance chestunaru???
Dheeraj:only we r doing other 2 guys have their semesters so they will not come!!!
me:ok come in >>>>

there were around 10 cute looking kids wit their innocent smiles ,very curious about their performance before d huge gathering on "Vinayaka chavithi" especially d two nitya's one with short hair & d other wit thick long hair & big black eyes r too gud, my sister is choreographing some songs for the festival,we had only 4 days left & 2 teach dem with their changing mood swings is a tough job but it was more fun & entertaining hour for me.....to see them dance was a gr8 pleasure,kids r concerned about their dresses & make up more than their steps,d way they move on to d next step on glance's,their energy & co-ordination is just amazing my expectations r high w8in 4 d day with my fingers crossed.......