Settling In – Susan

We have settled into the daily routines of life at the clinic.  As of today (July 10), we have completed our fifth day of the treatments.  I noticed a shift today as I was returning from the treatment center. I felt light and actually happy to be here.  Today my 4-5 treatments were being done in two appointments and I was walking to lunch by myself through a small park headed to lunch and some rest time. I was enjoying the day!

The first couple of nights were hard; I was uncomfortable with the bathroom and generally freaked about the accommodations.  I would wake in the morning feeling sad at the recognition I was still here. Then Monday morning, Alan had gone downstairs for something and I noticed as I was getting ready for the day, I had stopped fighting the environment and was actually relaxed enjoying myself.

The clinic is full at the moment with about 28 people, staying in various nearby locations.  We are staying in the main building above the office, the doctor’s office and where the Vedic Pundits chant mornings and evenings.  The four flights up to our room are proving to be very good daily exercise, and sometimes quite a challenge!   There are no public restrooms, like we are used to for our convenience. We have a bathroom in our room and then there is one at the treatment center, a couple blocks away.  So we have to think about what we might need from the room and if we need to go, as you don’t want to run back upstairs!

We are more settled in the rooms and are enjoying the peace and quiet we have there.  There is no TV or internet in the room.   Here are some pictures of our rooms.  The room with the two beds is the main room, where we hang and sleep. This is a picture of Alan hanging on the bed!

We have a wonderful little blue tooth speaker that plays the music from our phones and sounds quite good.  We picked up the speaker, last minute at the airport, so we didn’t think to update our iTunes accounts.  We would love suggestions on new music to download. We love classical, jazz and pop., anything really except real rock and roll.

Alan had his head shaved the other day.  A barber did his head and shaved his face with a straight edge, all for about $1! Last time he was here, the doctor requested it for his treatments.  This time he just did it; and loves how it feels. The other night at dinner some repeat female guests mentioned that Dr. Raju had requested they shave their heads and they did it!  They said he would have already asked me if he wanted me to do it!  Whew!

THE GUESTS

I have enjoyed getting to know and spending time with the guests and that has helped tremendously in feeling more at home. People are from all over the world – Australia, Ireland, England, Panama (a couple with their 15 year old son), Hong Kong, Atlanta and several from Fairfield, Iowa.  There is one guy, who just sold his business and all his possessions and has begun a yearlong travels.  He is staying at the clinic for 40 days and says he doesn’t have to return to Michigan until next August to renew his driver’s license!  Many of the guests are either teachers of Transcendental Mediation or have their various practices of mediation.

My favorite guests are two gals from Sydney, Australia.  Helena is 28 and is working on her thyroid as well and has been to the clinic before.  Helena is incredibly well travelled for her young age.  Kim is my age and was so impressed with the improvements in Helena’s health that she came with her for this visit. Kim does many different types of healing work for her profession; and has studied all over the globe with amazing teachers of different disciplines. They are travelling with their friend, Andrew, who is a Chinese herbalist.  They have so much knowledge and experience between them in many alternative approaches, and of course, their accent makes it even more great fun to hear.

SHOPPING

Alan and I left the clinic today for the first time today to pick up a few things in town (I am using that term loosely).  We picked up an auto-rickshaw at the end of the street and for less than a $1 were driven to a small department store, called the Big Bazaar.  We got a few things to make our room more comfortable and returned quickly as we had afternoon treatments.   I have to admit I did not let Alan out of my sight, I continue to be aware of being completely uncomfortable in this strange land.  When we returned, we told the driver we wanted to go to “Sahara Estates” and he took us right to the door of the clinic.  I thought it was strange we didn’t have to give him the address and Alan laughed, at this local store, they know all the white people are going to the clinic!

Tomorrow morning I am planning to go to a mall with one of the gals from Iowa to get a few cooler Indian items to wear.  I had thought I would take my camera to capture a few shots, but the security guard who checked my purse upon leaving the Big Bazaar, said you can’t bring cameras into shops!  Strange, I thought, but won’t take the chance of having my camera taken away tomorrow.

Another interesting note about checking out of the store, there were two large white boards posted with the question, “What would you like to see in the store, that isn’t here?”  There were handwritten notes written all over with items that people wanted.  Two that stuck out were a Barbie set and Herbal Essences shampoo.  Again, I wondered what my marketing pal, Nancy Shaw would say about this neat way to get consumer feedback at the store level and the reach of American products!

RELATIONSHIP AWARENESS

At home, I would say that Alan and I enjoy that marriage rule that says “always for breakfast and dinner and never for lunch!”  We both have busy and fun professional lives; my sense is we do well by going in separate directions all week.

We have been together now for almost two weeks solid and I don’t think we have had a fight yet.  Maybe a few tense moments if we have gotten lost, but mostly the days have been very easy to be together.  I am sure not having to manage kid’s agendas is a huge relief and getting to put ourselves first is incredibly refreshing after the years of managing kid’s needs.

I do notice there is a shift in our relationship.  At home, I am the one who schedules our weeks and often pushes the comfort zones with new ideas.  However in India, Alan is in the lead, I am following and comforted by his knowledge on how to handle almost everything.  He is agile with the currency and has handled all the arrangements with the clinic.  Yes, he has been to the clinic before, but even before we arrived here, I noticed the shift.  I like that he is comfortable here and moves through the world with ease, it allows me to be more relaxed.

Some of the other guests have been thrilled with his technological knowledge.  He fixed Kim’s Mac, so she can now connect to the internet and have Skype calls with home.  Steve, the guy on the year long journey is staying in the room where Alan was last time.  Alan had been able to set up a wired internet connection in that room on his previous visit, which Steve didn’t realize.  Already, folks know he is a great resource!