Books Part II: Virtual Life Coaches :-)

One of my absolute favorite things to do is read, read and read some more. I would live in a bookstore, preferably BusBoys & Poets’ 14th & V location, if I could. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I got some serious reading done since I’ve been in India. So far, I’ve read roughly 15+ books and I really wanted to talk about them on my blog. I was supposed to start doing this a LONG time ago, but you know how it goes – procrastination got the better of me and I now have to find a way to tell you about these books without making a ridiculously long blog post. In the interest of reader ease, I have opted to put the books I’ve read into several categories to make it more manageable. I wouldn’t say that I have written book reviews here, more of a stream of consciousness with regard to some great books that I have had the chance to get into over the past several months. I hope you see something you like :-)

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Part II: Books That Helped Me Get My Life Right

• No Apologies: Powerful Lessons in Life, Love & Politics by Alisha Thomas Morgan

I have had the pleasure of meeting Alisha Thomas Morgan only twice in my lifetime, but I remember the first time I heard her speak during an event at Spelman - I told myself that she was a woman worth watching out for. A woman that I would like to be like. And when I read in our Spelman Alumnae magazine that she wrote a book, it took me all of 2 minutes to whip my kindle out and download it. I have to be honest here . . . it took me a while to actually read it (I have got many a book on my kindle waiting to be read hahaha) – but once I started it, I could not put it down. One of the reasons I’ve admired Representative Morgan for so long is because she is so honest and open. She has a laundry list of accomplishments under her belt, but she never pretends that it came easily to her and she personifies the saying “fall down 7 times, get up 8.” She openly shares her successes and failures (both personal and professional) in this book and I think that every young black woman should take a look. You’ll learn something about yourself (trust me) and you’ll know that whatever your dreams, you’ve got the stuff inside you to make it happen. Read this book – you won’t regret it.

• The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where YouWant to Be  by Jack Canfield

One of the reasons that I wanted to live out of the country for an extended amount of time was so that I could step out of my comfort zone and really think about the things that I want to accomplish during my lifetime. Lord knows I have some BIG dreams and I am working to bring them to fruition. What I loved about this book was that it was straight to the point and it provided a road map for making/setting goals as well as how to make dreaming big a way of life. This book taught me to dream as big as I possibly can . . . and then dream BIGGER! I’m working on it ;-)

More books to come!!!! Happy reading :-)

Books Part I: India Related

One of my absolute favorite things to do is read, read and read some more. I would live in a bookstore, preferably BusBoys & Poets’ 14th & V location, if I could. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I got some serious reading done since I’ve been in India. So far, I’ve read roughly 15+ books and I really wanted to talk about them on my blog. I was supposed to start doing this a LONG time ago, but you know how it goes – procrastination got the better of me and I now have to find a way to tell you about these books without making a ridiculously long blog post. In the interest of reader ease, I have opted to put the books I’ve read into several categories to make it more manageable. I wouldn’t say that I have written book reviews here, more of a stream of consciousness with regard to some great books that I have had the chance to get into over the past several months. I hope you see something you like :-)

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Part I: Books About India



• City of Djinns by William Dalrymple

There’s an African proverb that I learned during my freshman year at Spelman College in our African Diaspora and the World (ADW) course: “Until lions have their own historians, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunters.” This quote kept running through my head as I read City of Djinns. India has a deep  and sometimes very dark history – much of which I was ignorant to before coming here and making a conscious effort to learn more about the nation in which I had decided to spend nine months of my life. This book offers an excellent historical overview of Delhi and much of what has shaped India – the good, the bad and the ugly. The parts that interested me the most were those focused on Partition and the intense, and often violet, splitting of a nation along religious lines. Many of us think of India and our minds go straight to yoga and elephants and the Taj Mahal – but there is so much more to this place and this book tells a great story that helped me peel back some of the layers of this country and deepen my appreciation for the opportunity to be here.

• Fasting, Feasting by Anita Desai 

I picked this book up because it was about India and the author had been recommended to us during our orientation in July. It takes an interesting look at families and the role that food/eating plays in our relationships. Focusing on the lives of Uma and her brother Arun, it is set in India for the first part and in America for the second – examining the individual lives of Uma and Arun respectively. Of particular interest to me was the focus put on Uma as being unmarriageable and the light shed on her cousin who had everything (i.e. beauty and a husband), but whose life ended quite tragically despite the cards being dealt in her “favor”. Overall, it was a good read – I’m glad I picked it up.

More books to come :-) Happy reading!!!!

If You Can't Go Home, Bring Home To You . . .

Week 22-23: Days 151-158

 

This is soooo late, but still worth talking about :-) In December, my mom and sister made the journey half way across the world to see little ole me!! Like me, India would be my sister’s first international experience, but this would be mom’s 2^nd time out of the country – so we’re all pretty new to this lol. From the moment I decided to apply for this program, I knew that this experience was/is so much bigger than me and I am so glad that I have opened the world up for my family (I seriously can’t wait to put the travel/study abroad bug in my students!).

As for their weeklong visit, I did my best to show them a good time, we explored Delhi, went to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and I also took them to school to meet my students. Oh and of course we shopped until we dropped – India was not ready for my mother who bought no less than 20 scarves and a wide assortment of bracelets, necklaces, and decorative items. On their last night in India, my mom and I celebrated our birthday together for the first time in 7 years! Usually my birthday is overshadowed by finals/school and so my mom and I have to exchange “Happy Birthday” phone calls until I make my way home for Christmas break, so this was a nice way for me ring in 25 – with my mom and sis by my side :-) The visit was a good one and everyone enjoyed themselves and got back to America safely.

Now I am gearing up for visits from 3 friends in March – excited doesn’t even begin to express my feelings about them coming to visit me. Seeing them was not only good for my spirit, it also reminded me that I have people back home who are thinking about me, praying for me and proud of the woman I am becoming :-)